Veo 3.1 vs Veo 3.1 Fast
Fast for a shot that stands alone. Full Veo the moment the clip has to match something else.
Google's flagship: generates dialogue and sound from the same prompt as the picture.
from 83.5 credits · Google
Veo without references, at roughly a third of the price. The single-shot tool.
from 42 credits · Google
Side by side
| Veo 3.1 | Veo 3.1 Fast | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest | 83.5 credits | 42 credits |
| Aspect ratios | 16:9 9:16 | 16:9 9:16 |
| Resolutions | 720p 1080p | 720p 1080p |
| Duration | 4, 6, 8 seconds | 4, 6, 8 seconds |
| Reference images | 3 | Not accepted |
| Last frame | Accepted | Accepted |
Read from Kuro's model catalog when this page was built. This page shows no outputs from either model; the prices and limits are the comparison.
What each costs
Veo 3.1
| 5s · silent | 83.5 credits | ≈ $1.98 |
| 5s · with audio | 167 credits | ≈ $3.97 |
Veo 3.1 Fast
| 5s · silent | 42 credits | ≈ $1.00 |
| 5s · with audio | 62.5 credits | ≈ $1.48 |
Dollar figures are approximate, at the Starter plan's rate of $19.00 for 800 credits.
Which one
Same two aspect ratios, same 4, 6 and 8 second steps, same self-generated audio. A five-second silent take is 42 credits on Fast against 83.5 on the full model; with audio it is 62.5 against 167. On price alone Fast wins comfortably.
The difference that decides it is references. Full Veo 3.1 takes three reference images; Fast takes none. That means nothing about a Fast clip can be pinned to a character, product or look you already have, and a multi-shot sequence built on it will not hold together, however carefully each shot is prompted.
Both still accept a last frame, so frame-chaining works on either: render a shot, take its final frame, open the next take with it. That is a weaker form of continuity than reference images, but for b-roll, establishing shots and anything where the subject is not a specific recognisable person, it is usually enough.
So the rule is about the sequence rather than the shot. One clip, nobody who has to look like themselves: Fast, and take the saving. A run of clips that share a subject: full Veo, and do not try to economise your way around it. If you want a *silent* clip cheaply, Fast is also the answer, because Veo 3.1 Lite has no silent mode at all.
Related comparisons
- Kling 3.0 vs Veo 3.1
Veo 3.1 when someone speaks a scripted line, or a reference picture has to hold. Kling 3.0 when the take runs past eight seconds, is square, or should be 4K.
- Veo 3.1 vs Seedance 2.5
Veo 3.1 when someone speaks. Seedance 2.5 when the shot is long, or has a cast to keep consistent.
When neither is the right pick
Each model's prompting guide names the jobs it hands to another model. Both lists, as the guides write them:
Use something other than Veo 3.1 when…
- A single take must run longer than eight seconds: Seedance 2.5.
- A vertical clip must hold a recurring character from reference pictures: Seedance 2.5.
- A talking head should follow a voice track you already have: OmniHuman 1.5.
Both are one pick in the same composer.
Switching models does not move your references or your library.
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