Midjourney vs Runway (2026): Plans, Credits, and Which to Pick for AI Images and Video

How we checked: plan data comes from Midjourney's official plan comparison and Runway's official pricing page, both checked on October 14, 2026. We have no affiliate relationship with either company. Both companies change models and allowances often, so confirm before buying.

The short answer

Pick Midjourney if images are your main output and you want a single, distinctive house style with predictable GPU-time limits. From the Standard plan up you get unlimited images in Relax Mode.
Pick Runway if video is your main output, or you want one credit balance that covers several models: Runway's own Gen-4.5 plus third-party models such as Kling, Seedance, and Nano Banana Pro, as well as audio and text-to-speech.
Use both if you make finished videos: generate key frames or concept art in Midjourney, then animate and edit in Runway.

At a glance

	Midjourney	Runway
Free option	None (subscription only)	Free: one-time 125 credits that don't expire
Entry plan	Basic: $10/mo, or $8/mo annually ($96/yr)	Standard: $15/mo, or $12/mo annually
Mid plan	Standard: $30/mo ($24/mo annual)	Pro: $35/mo ($28/mo annual)
Upper plans	Pro $60/mo ($48 annual), Mega $120/mo ($96 annual)	Max: $95/mo ($76/mo annual)
How usage is measured	Fast GPU hours (3.3 / 15 / 30 / 60 hrs per month), plus Relax Mode	Credits (625 / 2,250 / 9,500 per month)
Unlimited option	Relax Mode: unlimited images (Standard+), unlimited SD video (Pro, Mega)	No unlimited mode on these plans
Video	SD on Basic, SD & HD from Standard	Gen-4.5 at 12 credits/second, plus third-party video models
Privacy	Stealth Mode on Pro and Mega only	Check Runway's terms
Annual discount	20%	Prices shown are about 20% lower on annual billing

How Midjourney's pricing works

Midjourney sells four subscription tiers: Basic, Standard, Pro, and Mega. They differ mainly in how much Fast GPU time you get and whether Relax Mode is included:

Basic ($10/mo): 3.3 hours (200 minutes) of Fast GPU time, SD video, up to 3 concurrent fast image jobs.
Standard ($30/mo): 15 fast hours, unlimited images in Relax Mode, and SD & HD video.
Pro ($60/mo): 30 fast hours, unlimited Relax images and SD video, Stealth Mode (keeps your images and videos private), and up to 12 concurrent fast jobs.
Mega ($120/mo): 60 fast hours, otherwise the same as Pro.

Extra Fast GPU time costs $4/hour on every plan. Annual plans save 20% and are paid upfront.

Commercial use: Midjourney's plan page says subscribers can use their images and videos in "just about any way" under its general commercial terms. However, companies with more than $1,000,000 in gross annual revenue must be on Pro or Mega. Images on Basic and Standard aren't private (Stealth Mode is Pro/Mega only), so client work under NDA usually needs Pro.

How Runway's pricing works

Runway uses credits shared across video, image, and audio models:

Free: a one-time 125 credits that never expire. Enough to test, not to produce.
Standard ($12/mo annual, $15 monthly): 625 credits a month. Runway says that's about 52 seconds of Gen-4.5 video, 104 seconds of Gen-4 Turbo, or 78 Gen-4 images at 1080p.
Pro ($28/mo annual, $35 monthly): 2,250 credits a month (about 187 seconds of Gen-4.5). It adds unlimited Topaz AI upscaling and Seedance 2.5.
Max ($76/mo annual, $95 monthly): 9,500 credits (about 791 seconds of Gen-4.5), and up to one month of unused credits rolls over.

Example credit costs from the pricing page:

Model	Credit cost
Gen-4.5 video	60 credits per 5 seconds
Aleph 2.0	140 credits per 5 seconds
Seedance 2.0 Pro 1080p	160 credits per 4 seconds
Gen-4 Image 1080p	8 credits
Gen-4 Image Turbo	2 credits
Nano Banana Pro 2K	20 credits
Text-to-speech	1 credit per 50 characters

Rollover and top-ups: on Standard and Pro, monthly credits don't roll over. They reset within 24 hours of your billing date. You can buy extra credits in blocks of at least 1,000, and purchased credits never expire. Upgrades are prorated and take effect immediately.

What a month of work looks like

A social media creator making 20 short clips of about 5 seconds each:

Runway: 20 × 60 = 1,200 Gen-4.5 credits. That's more than Standard's 625 and fits within Pro's 2,250.
Midjourney: you'd need Pro or Mega for unlimited Relax SD video. Standard covers HD video, but only within its 15 fast hours.

A blogger or designer making 300 images a month:

Midjourney Standard is the simple choice: unlimited Relax images, with fast hours for when you're in a hurry.
Runway Standard covers about 78 Gen-4 1080p images, or about 312 with Gen-4 Image Turbo (2 credits each). That's workable, but less forgiving if you iterate a lot.

Which should you choose?

You are…	Pick	Why
An illustrator, designer, or blogger making mostly images	Midjourney Standard	Unlimited Relax images at $30/mo ($24 annual)
A creator making short AI videos	Runway Pro	Enough credits for regular Gen-4.5 clips, plus access to other models
An agency doing client work	Midjourney Pro + Runway Pro/Max	Stealth Mode for privacy. Max credit rollover helps with uneven workloads
Just experimenting	Runway Free (125 credits)	Midjourney has no free tier

For voiceovers and music to go with your videos, see ElevenLabs and Suno in our directory. For editing the final cut by transcript, see Descript.

FAQ

Does Midjourney have a free trial? The official plan comparison lists only paid subscriptions (Basic, Standard, Pro, Mega).

Do Runway credits expire? Monthly plan credits reset each billing cycle on Standard and Pro. Max rolls over up to one month. Purchased extra credits never expire.

Which is cheaper for video? It depends on volume. Midjourney Pro ($60/mo) includes unlimited Relax SD video. Runway charges per second but gives you higher-end models and HD options. If you make a lot of SD video, Midjourney's Relax Mode is hard to beat on price. For model choice and fine control, Runway wins.

Sources

Midjourney, Comparing Midjourney Plans: https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/27870484040333-Comparing-Midjourney-Plans
Runway pricing: https://runwayml.com/pricing