AI Explainer Videos: Tools, Cost, and How to Get Started

Your product is great. Your landing page says so. But visitors still leave without converting — because they never really got what you do.

That's the problem explainer videos have always solved. And now, with AI, you can make one without a production crew, a $10,000 budget, or three months of back-and-forth with an agency.

Here's everything you need to know about AI explainer videos: what they are, what they cost, which tools are worth your time, and how to avoid the mistakes that make them fall flat.

What Is an AI Explainer Video?

An explainer video is a short video — usually 60 to 90 seconds — that communicates what a product or service does and why someone should care. Think animated characters, motion graphics, voiceover, simple story arc. You've seen thousands of them.

An AI explainer video uses AI tools to generate some or all of that production: the script, the voiceover, the visuals, the animation, even the avatar presenter. Instead of hiring a scriptwriter, illustrator, animator, and voiceover artist separately, you feed a prompt or a brief into a tool and get a draft video back in minutes.

The output quality varies. But the gap between AI-generated and traditionally produced video has closed significantly in the past two years — and it's closing faster every month.

Why They're Gaining Traction

Speed and cost are the obvious reasons. But there's more to it.

According to Wyzowl's video marketing research, 73% of video producers say explainer videos are one of the most common formats they create. Demand is high. Traditional production can't keep pace — especially for teams that need to localize content across multiple markets, test multiple versions, or update messaging frequently.

AI changes the calculus on all of that:

• Iteration is cheap. Don't like the tone? Regenerate. Need a Spanish version? One click.
• No production dependencies. No waiting on a freelancer's schedule or an agency's revision cycle.
• Volume without proportional cost. A startup can now produce five variations of a product explainer for the cost that used to buy one.

That said, AI explainer videos aren't a replacement for every use case. A venture pitch or a brand-defining hero video still benefits from human craft. But for product pages, onboarding sequences, social ads, and internal training — AI tools now clear the bar.

Best AI Explainer Video Tools

There's no single best tool. The right choice depends on your use case, your technical comfort level, and how much customization you need.

A few notes on these:

• Synthesia and HeyGen are the go-to choices if you want a professional avatar presenter. Both produce credible results without filming anyone.
• InVideo is the fastest path from idea to finished video, particularly for social formats.
• Vyond is the tool to use if you want animated characters rather than talking-head presenters.
• Colossyan stands out for enterprise teams that need training-specific features like quizzes, branching, and analytics.

For a broader look at how these tools fit into an AI video production workflow, see how AI ad creative tools work end to end.

What Does an AI Explainer Video Cost?

This is where most buyers get confused, because "AI explainer video" can mean anything from a $15/month self-service tool to a $5,000 project with a professional AI video studio.

Here's how the math actually breaks down:

What drives the price differences:

The tool subscription gets you access. It doesn't get you a good script, a coherent story, or professional-grade output unless you invest time learning the tool and have at least some sense of what makes a video work.

Freelancers and AI studios bring the craft layer — a human who knows what a good explainer video looks like, uses AI to move faster, and charges for the judgment, not just the render time.

For context: the equivalent traditionally-produced 2D animated explainer video costs $2,000–$5,000 for a single 60-second video, and takes 4–8 weeks. An AI-native production can cut that timeline to 1–2 weeks and reduce cost by 40–60%.

How to Get Started: Step by Step

Whether you're doing this yourself or working with a creator, the workflow is similar.

Step 1: Define the single problem you're solving

Most bad explainer videos try to explain too much. Before you open any tool, write one sentence: "This video helps [audience] understand [specific thing] so they [take this action]." That's your brief.

Step 2: Write or generate a script

Even with AI tools, a strong script is the difference between a video that converts and one that wastes 90 seconds. If you're using a tool like Synthesia or InVideo, use their AI script generators as a starting point — but edit aggressively. Cut anything that doesn't earn its screen time.

Good explainer scripts follow a simple arc: problem → solution → proof → CTA. Don't deviate from this without a good reason.

Step 3: Choose your visual style

AI explainer videos fall into a few buckets:

• Avatar-based — A realistic AI presenter delivers the script directly to camera
• Animated — Characters, icons, and motion graphics illustrate the story
• Screenshare + voiceover — Works well for SaaS product demos
• Mixed — Combination of stock footage, text overlays, and voiceover

For product explainers specifically, AI product demo videos often perform better than generic animated formats because they show the actual product in context.

Step 4: Generate, review, and iterate

Run the tool. Most AI explainer video makers produce a first draft in 5–15 minutes for a 60–90 second video. Review it critically: Does the pacing work? Is the voiceover tone right? Do the visuals match what's being said?

Iterate in text — most tools let you make changes through text commands without starting over.

Step 5: Add branding and publish

Add your logo, brand colors, and a clear call to action. Export in the format your platform requires. For paid social, you'll typically want a square or vertical cut as well.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Trying to explain everything at once. A 90-second video that covers your entire product suite will explain nothing. Pick one thing.

Using AI voiceovers without reviewing them. AI text-to-speech has gotten very good, but it still mispronounces brand names, product terminology, and unusual words. Always listen through before publishing.

Skipping the script review. AI-generated scripts are a draft, not a finished product. They tend toward generic, filler-heavy language. Rewrite the first and last lines at minimum.

Ignoring the thumbnail. Most viewers decide whether to watch based on the thumbnail alone. Don't treat it as an afterthought.

Building only one version. If you're doing this with AI tools, you might as well test two or three variations. The cost of the second version is almost zero. The case for scaling AI video creative rests on exactly this: volume and testing become accessible at a price point that traditional production never allowed.

Assuming AI handles quality control. The tool renders the video. It doesn't know if your video is good. That judgment still belongs to a human — whether that's you, a teammate, or a professional who works with these tools daily. There's a real advantage to keeping a human in the loop even in an AI-driven workflow.

Where to Go From Here

If you want to build your first AI explainer video, start with InVideo or Synthesia — both have free tiers and low learning curves. Get something out the door, see how it performs, then refine from there.

If you want help from someone who already knows these tools well, Viralix connects you with AI video creators who specialize in this format — including explainer videos for product launches, SaaS onboarding, and paid ads.

The technology is genuinely good now. The main variable is whether the strategy and story behind the video are worth watching. That part hasn't changed.