OpenAI closed the Sora app on April 26, 2026. The Sora 2 API and Videos API stop on September 24. This page compares seven replacements with public pricing — not a ranked leaderboard paid for by vendors.
See the comparison Export leftover Sora filessora-2 break on Sept 24. We list tools you can actually sign up for today. Some outbound links may later become affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Pricing checked August 30, 2026 against each vendor’s public page. Confirm before you pay — plans move.
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free / trial | Audio + max clip | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Veo 3.1 Google DeepMind video model inside Gemini / Flow. Closest photoreal + native sound replacement. | Photoreal clips with synced audio | Google AI Pro, US list $19.99/mo | Flow: 50 credits/day free | Native audio · ~8s typical in Flow | Visit Gemini |
| Kling 3.0 Kuaishou’s consumer app. Strong motion and a cheap paid on-ramp. | Cinematic motion on a budget | Standard $6.99 first month, then $8.80/mo | Free forever (watermarked) | Native audio on Turbo · 720p–4K | Visit Kling |
| Runway Editor, not just a generator. Gen-4.5 plus other models (including Veo 3.1 and Kling 3.0) on paid plans. | Edit, extend, and finish footage | Standard $12/mo billed yearly ($15 monthly) | 125 one-time credits | Audio tools on Pro+ · ~5–10s gens | Visit Runway |
| Luma Dream Machine Ray 3.2 plus third-party models in one studio. Fast iteration for teams. | Fast ideation and iteration | Plus $30/mo ($300 billed yearly) | Start on Luma app | Image + video models · commercial on Plus | Visit Luma |
| Pika 2.5 Short social clips, effects, and scene tricks (Pikascenes, Pikatwists). | Playful short-form / social | Standard $8/mo billed yearly | Free: 80 credits/mo, 480p | 5–10s typical · effects-first | Visit Pika |
| LTX-2.5 Open weights from Lightricks. Self-host, fine-tune, or call the hosted API. | Self-host / no vendor lock-in | Weights free under $10M ARR; API from $0.09/s (720p Fast) | Open weights | Joint audio-video · 4K HDR path | Get weights |
| Grok Imagine Video inside grok.com. No separate Sora-style app to migrate into. | Fast 720p clips in chat | Free to try; SuperGrok for higher limits | Free on grok.com | Up to 15s at 720p | Visit Grok |
Sources checked 2026-08-30: OpenAI Sora discontinuation notice; Google AI Pro commentary + Flow credit docs; Kling membership page; Runway pricing; Luma plans; Pika subscription page; LTX-2.5 model page; xAI Grok product page. This list is ordered by job-to-be-done, not by payment.
Match the job you hired Sora for. Do not copy someone else’s “best overall” if you only make 15-second social clips.
Start with Google Veo 3.1 on Gemini / Flow. It is the closest remaining consumer path for native audio and physical motion in one pass.
Kling 3.0’s paid Standard plan is the lowest verified entry among the closed models here. Free is watermarked — do not ship client work from the free tier.
Runway is the replacement if Sora’s “generate and hope” workflow was the problem. You stay in a timeline and can call more than one model.
LTX-2.5 weights run on hardware you control. Hosted APIs can still die; the downloadable checkpoint is the insurance policy.
The app is already gone. The remaining work is files and API calls.
sora-2, sora-2-pro, dated Sora 2 snapshots, and the Videos API all end September 24, 2026. Any product that still posts to those endpoints will fail that day.
The Sora web and mobile apps ended April 26, 2026. The API is still live as of August 30, 2026 and is scheduled to shut down September 24, 2026. OpenAI documents this on its Sora discontinuation page.
For most former Sora users, Google Veo 3.1 is the closest consumer fit because it generates picture and sound together. If you need editing control, use Runway. If price is the constraint, use Kling 3.0. If you need weights you can keep, use LTX-2.5.
Yes, with limits: Kling’s free plan (watermarked, not commercial), Pika’s free 80 credits at 480p, Grok Imagine on grok.com, Google Flow’s daily free credits, Runway’s one-time 125 credits, and LTX-2.5 weights if you have a GPU.
Exported files remain yours under OpenAI’s terms at the time of generation, subject to usage policies. New generations through OpenAI stop when the API shuts down. Export before the window closes.
No. Placement follows the job: photoreal, budget motion, editing, self-host, social, in-chat speed. Some links may become affiliate links later. That does not change the order on this page.