Seedance 2.5 vs Veo 3.1 vs Gemini Omni: Which Fits Your Job

Pick Seedance 2.5 when the shot has to run long in one generation or lean on a large pile of references: it produces up to 30 seconds per generation and accepts up to 30 images, 10 videos and 10 audio clips. Pick Google when you need native 4k, a clip extended past a minute at 720p, or the lowest price per second. On Google's side that means Veo 3.1 for 4k and extension, and Gemini Omni Flash for everything else, because Google itself now names Omni as the default video model. Sora 2 is no longer a choice: OpenAI shut down the Sora 2 models and the Videos API on September 24, 2026.

Every figure on this page comes from the vendors' own documentation and price pages as of September 30, 2026, and none of it is a measured quality result. ByteDance's numbers for Seedance 2.5 are launch claims, and ByteDance itself acknowledges limits in physical plausibility and in scenes where several subjects interact. Before committing a budget, run your own prompt on both sides.

Clip length and extension

Clip length is the largest practical difference between the two families. ByteDance's Seedance 2.5 launch post describes up to 30 seconds per generation, multi-round extension and timestamp-level editing. BytePlus lists the model as dreamina-seedance-2-5-260628 with 4–30 second output.

Veo 3.1 is built around short clips. Google's Veo documentation allows a duration of 4, 6 or 8 seconds, and the duration must be 8 seconds whenever you use 1080p, 4k, reference images or extension. Longer pieces come from extension, which has its own rules:

• Each extension adds 7 seconds, and you can extend up to 20 times.
• The input must be a Veo-generated video of up to 141 seconds, so the combined output tops out at 148 seconds.
• Extension works at 720p only.
• Veo 3.1 and Veo 3.1 Fast can extend. Veo 3.1 Lite cannot.

That makes Veo the longest option here on paper, with two conditions attached. The result is 720p, and it is assembled in 7-second steps instead of planned as one take.

Gemini Omni Flash sits in between. The Omni documentation says an extension continues the scene by 3–10 seconds and that a video can grow to a total of 40 seconds. Extension only appends to the end of a clip. An uploaded video must be 10 seconds or shorter before you can extend it, and extending uploaded videos is unavailable in the European Economic Area, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Extending a video that Omni generated works in every supported region. The API documentation does not state a maximum length for a single generation; Google Flow offers Omni Flash clips of 4, 6, 8 and 10 seconds.

If the shot is a single 20-second camera move with dialogue, Seedance 2.5 is the only one of the three that can attempt it in one generation. If the piece is a 90-second 720p sequence, only Veo's extension reaches that length.

References and character consistency

Seedance 2.5 accepts far more reference material than either Google model: up to 30 images, 10 video clips and 10 audio clips in one request, according to ByteDance. That matters when a single shot has to hold a character, a product, a location and a camera move at once, because each can be shown instead of described.

Veo 3.1 takes up to three reference images for style and content, and it can generate between a first frame and a last frame that you supply. Using reference images forces the 8-second duration. In the EU, the UK, Switzerland and the Middle East and North Africa, person generation is limited to adults.

Omni Flash handles references differently. It accepts subject reference images, and Google's own prompt example uses six of them. It also takes video references, capped at three clips of up to 3 seconds each, and it ignores any audio inside those clips. Google's overview describes Omni as reasoning over text, images, audio and video together. The Omni documentation, however, says uploading audio references is unsupported in the current version of the API. So as of September 30, 2026, Seedance 2.5 is the only one of the three whose documentation lets you steer a generation with an audio file.

Omni's strength is revision. It supports multi-turn editing: you generate a clip, then ask for a change in the next turn without uploading the previous video again. Google lists character consistency among the reasons to use Omni by default.

None of these features imports anything from Sora. Cameos, remixes and storyboards have no documented import path, so a recurring Sora character has to be rebuilt from reference images on whichever model you move to.

Resolution and audio

Veo 3.1 generates 720p, 1080p and 4k natively, and every Veo 3.1 clip comes with natively generated audio. Veo 3.1 Lite stops at 1080p.

Omni Flash outputs 360p, 720p, 1080p and 4k, but Google labels the 1080p and 4k outputs as upscaled, and 720p is the default. If true 4k detail matters, for a large screen or a tight crop in post, that label is the reason to choose Veo.

BytePlus prices Seedance 2.5 at 480p, 720p and 1080p. Its price page has 4k rows for Seedance 2.0 but none for Seedance 2.5, so 1080p is the ceiling for now.

Price per second at the same resolution

Seedance 2.5 costs less than Veo 3.1 Standard at 720p and more at 1080p. BytePlus charges about 2.5 times as much for 1080p as for 720p, while Google charges the same Standard rate for both. Veo 3.1 Fast, Veo 3.1 Lite and Omni Flash undercut Seedance 2.5 at every resolution they share.

The Google rows are from the Gemini API pricing page and the Seedance row is from the BytePlus ModelArk pricing page, both as of September 26, 2026. The Kling row is from the Kling developer pricing page as of September 30, 2026. All prices are in US dollars.

Three details change how you read the table:

• Seedance is billed in tokens. The per-second figures are BytePlus's own conversions from a 5-second, 16:9 example with no video input: $1.156 per clip at 720p and $2.843 at 1080p. Adding a video reference raises the bill. BytePlus's 5-second 720p example costs $1.244–$4.838 depending on how long the input video is.
• Omni is billed in tokens too. Google charges $17.50 per million output tokens at 5,792 tokens per second of 720p video, which works out to about $0.10 per second.
• Kling's range depends on audio. The low end is Kling 3.0 without native audio and the high end is with it.

Google charges only for videos that are generated successfully. For the full Seedance price ladder, including the 480p tier, see Seedance 2.5 API pricing by cost per second.

What a 30-second 1080p spot costs

Take a 30-second product spot delivered at 1080p. Seedance 2.5 can produce it as one generation: 30 s × $0.569 ≈ $17.07. Veo cannot extend at 1080p, so the same spot is four separate 8-second clips cut together, or 32 seconds of footage.

Multiply each figure by the number of attempts you expect to need. If one generation in three is usable, the Seedance spot costs about $51 and the Veo 3.1 Fast version about $11.50. The extra money buys continuity: one unbroken take instead of three cuts.

At 720p the order changes. Thirty seconds on Seedance 2.5 costs 30 × $0.231 ≈ $6.93, against $12.00 on Veo 3.1 Standard and about $3.00 on Veo 3.1 Fast or Omni Flash. For budgets that span several tools and subscriptions, how much an AI video generator costs per month and per clip covers the wider field.

API access, storage and watermarking

Both Google models run on the paid tier of the Gemini API, and neither has a free API tier. They are called differently, though. Veo 3.1 uses the SDK's generate_videos method, or the REST predictLongRunning endpoint, and returns a long-running operation that you poll. Google reports request latency from 11 seconds to 6 minutes at peak hours. Omni Flash, model ID gemini-omni-1.1-flash, runs on the Interactions API, where the previous interaction's ID carries an edit from one turn to the next. Code written for one does not transfer to the other.

Seedance 2.5 is sold through BytePlus ModelArk. Mainland China access through Volcano Engine is a separate contract priced in yuan, and its terms are not the BytePlus terms.

Two operational details apply to Google:

• Storage. Veo keeps generated videos on the server for 2 days and then removes them. Referencing a video for extension resets its timer. Download anything you want to keep.
• Watermarking. Veo and Omni both embed a SynthID watermark in every output. It is invisible to viewers and detectable by software.

To try Omni before writing any code, Google Flow gives every account 50 credits a day, and an 8-second Omni Flash clip at 720p costs 12 credits. How to create a video with Nano Banana, Gemini Omni or Veo 3.1 walks through the consumer side.

Veo 3.1 or Gemini Omni Flash

Google's video generation overview answers this directly: use Gemini Omni Flash as the default, and use Veo 3.1 "for specific capabilities like scene extension, last-frame control, or integration with legacy pipelines." Google credits Omni with better video coherence, character consistency and multi-turn editing.

The specifications add two more reasons to stay on Veo. Veo is the only route to native 4k, and its extension reaches 148 seconds against Omni's 40. Omni's documentation also describes generating between a first and a last frame, so that feature alone no longer forces the choice.

"Veo 4" shows up in the titles of some comparisons. As of September 30, 2026, Google's model list, its Veo documentation and its pricing page contain no model by that name. Veo 3.1 is the current Veo.

Where Sora 2 and Kling 3.0 fit now

Sora 2 belongs in a comparison only as history. The Sora app and website closed on April 26, 2026, and the API followed on September 24. OpenAI's model page states that there is no one-to-one replacement API. Its last list prices were $0.10 per second for sora-2 at 720p, and $0.30, $0.50 and $0.70 per second for sora-2-pro as resolution rose. Those figures are useful as a baseline when you re-budget a pipeline that used to run on Sora: Veo 3.1 Fast and Omni Flash cost about what sora-2 did at 720p. Sora 2 API shut down: what still works and what to switch to has the export and migration details, and the best Sora 2 alternatives for app clips and the video API compares replacements by use.

Kling 3.0 is a credible fourth option on price. At $0.084–$0.168 per second across 720p and 1080p, it sits between Veo 3.1 Lite and Seedance 2.5, and it lists a 4k rate of $0.42 per second. Kuaishou's plans on that pricing page do not cover Kling 4.0.

How to choose in practice

Decide on the constraint that cannot bend, then test.

1. If the shot must be one take longer than 8 seconds, test Seedance 2.5 first. A 5-second 480p trial costs about $0.51 on BytePlus.
2. If the deliverable is native 4k, or 720p footage longer than 40 seconds, use Veo 3.1 or Veo 3.1 Fast.
3. If neither applies, start with Omni Flash, as Google recommends, and move to Veo 3.1 Lite when you need the lowest price with sound.
4. If the shot depends on more than three reference images, or on an audio reference, go back to Seedance 2.5.

Run the same prompt and the same references on the two finalists, and count how many attempts each needs before one is usable. The retry count moves the real cost more than the gap between list prices does.

Frequently asked questions

Is Seedance better than Veo?

Neither wins outright. Seedance 2.5 generates up to 30 seconds at once and takes up to 30 image, 10 video and 10 audio references. Veo 3.1 generates 4-, 6- or 8-second clips but offers native 4k, audio with every clip and 720p extension up to 148 seconds. These are documented specifications, not results of a side-by-side quality test.

Which is cheaper, Seedance 2.5 or Veo 3.1?

It depends on the Veo tier and the resolution. As of September 26, 2026, Seedance 2.5 costs about $0.231 per second at 720p and $0.569 at 1080p on BytePlus. Veo 3.1 Standard costs $0.40 at both resolutions, Veo 3.1 Fast costs $0.10 and $0.12, and Veo 3.1 Lite costs $0.05 and $0.08. Seedance is cheaper than Veo Standard at 720p and more expensive than every Veo tier at 1080p.

Which one is better for long shots?

For a single continuous take, Seedance 2.5, because it produces up to 30 seconds in one generation. For total running time, Veo 3.1, because extension adds 7 seconds at a time up to 148 seconds, at 720p only. Gemini Omni Flash extends to 40 seconds.

Which keeps characters consistent?

Each model uses references to do it. Seedance 2.5 accepts the most, at up to 30 images. Veo 3.1 accepts three reference images. Gemini Omni Flash accepts subject images plus up to three video clips of 3 seconds or less, and Google names character consistency as one of its strengths.

Do Seedance and Veo generate sound?

Veo 3.1 generates audio natively with every clip, on all three tiers. Seedance 2.5 accepts up to 10 audio references to guide a generation. Gemini Omni Flash does not accept uploaded audio references in the current API.

Is there a Veo 4?

Not in Google's documentation. As of September 30, 2026, Google's model list, Veo documentation and pricing page do not mention a Veo 4. The current models are Veo 3.1, Veo 3.1 Fast, Veo 3.1 Lite and Gemini Omni Flash.

Can I still use Sora 2?

No. OpenAI shut down the Sora 2 models and the Videos API on September 24, 2026, after closing the Sora app on April 26. A Microsoft Foundry preview deployment of sora-2 is scheduled to retire on October 15, 2026.