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Photoroom vs Runway

Photoroom and Runway are both AI image & video generation tools. Photoroom is aimed at E-commerce and small businesses, while Runway is aimed at creators and agencies. Photoroom costs less, from $12.99/mo versus $15/mo for Runway. Both have a free plan.

Photoroom

AI product photo editor for background removal and store images

Runway

AI video generation and editing suite

PricingFreemium · $13Freemium · $15
Starting price$12.99/mo$15/mo
Free planYesYes
Free trial——
Built forE-commerce, Small businesses, CreatorsCreators, Agencies
Platformsweb, ios, androidweb
CountryFRUS · 2018
Rating——

Choose Photoroom if

Online sellers and e-commerce teams that need clean, consistent product photos at volume without a studio.

  • Fast, accurate cutouts from a phone or the web app
  • Built specifically for marketplace and store product photos
  • Annual billing cuts Pro to about $7.50 a month

Look elsewhere if: Teams needing general marketing design or illustration (Canva, Adobe Firefly, Recraft).

Choose Runway if

Creative professionals and agencies producing AI-assisted video.

  • Professional-grade generation quality
  • Broad editing toolset
  • Consistency controls for storytelling

Look elsewhere if: Simple talking-head videos (HeyGen, Synthesia).

Photoroom vs Runway pricing

Photoroom

  • Free$0Core tools; watermark once the monthly free export limit is hit
  • Pro$12.99/mo$89.99/yr; 8,000 AI credits, 1,000 exports a month
  • Max$34.99/mo$250/yr; 25,000 credits, 3,000 exports, video, Shopify
  • Ultra$99/mo$990/yr; 75,000 credits, 10,000 exports, 4K output
  • EnterpriseCustomUsage-based; SLA, SSO and dedicated onboarding

Runway

  • Free$0125 one-time credits, 5 GB storage
  • Standard$15/user/mo$12 billed annually; 625 credits/mo, no watermark
  • Pro$35/user/mo$28 billed annually; 2,250 credits/mo, voice clone
  • Max$95/user/mo$76 billed annually; 9,500 credits/mo

Photoroom · Key features

  • One-tap background removal with no credit cost under fair use
  • AI Backgrounds and Product Staging for lifestyle product scenes
  • AI Fashion Models and Virtual Try-On for apparel listings
  • Batch editor that applies one template to hundreds of photos
  • Video Generator for product ads on Max and above
  • Brand kit, shared Spaces and up to 50 seats per plan

Cons

  • AI credit costs vary by tool and are hard to forecast
  • Free exports get a watermark after the monthly export limit
  • Shopify sync and video need the $34.99 Max plan

Runway · Key features

  • Text and image to video with Gen-4
  • Character and scene consistency with References
  • Act-One performance capture
  • Video editing with prompts (Aleph)
  • Green screen, inpainting, motion tracking
  • Upscaling and audio tools

Cons

  • Credits deplete quickly
  • Generation length limits
  • Learning curve for best results

Photoroom vs Runway: FAQ

Which is cheaper, Photoroom or Runway?

Photoroom starts at $12.99/mo and Runway at $15/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.

Do Photoroom and Runway have a free plan?

Yes, both Photoroom and Runway have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.

Which is better for small businesses, Photoroom or Runway?

Photoroom lists small businesses as a core audience, while Runway is aimed more at creators and agencies.

Not sure yet?