ComparisonsWhat Are the Best CometAPI Alternatives for Video and Image in 2026?
Makernice Team · ·
Key takeaways
- MuAPI, Atlas Cloud, Crun, Kie.ai and Makernice each list most of the Wan, Kling, Seedance, MiniMax and Qwen models CometAPI sells, all on prepaid or pay-as-you-go terms.
- CometAPI bills text per token and media per image or per second, and says it does not collect or store model outputs, so every video has to be downloaded as soon as it is ready.
- Atlas Cloud and Crun keep generated files for 14 days and Kie.ai deletes them after 14 days; Makernice outputs carry an expiry date, 30 days after completion in the docs example.
- Keep CometAPI if most of your spend is on text models, if you need enterprise volume pricing, or if its 5, 10 and 15 second test estimates are how you budget a clip.
When CometAPI is mostly a video and image gateway for you, the closest alternatives are MuAPI, Atlas Cloud, Crun, Kie.ai and Makernice. They all carry most of the same Wan, Kling, Seedance and MiniMax models and charge by use. The useful differences for media work are whether you get a firm price, how the finished file reaches you, and how long it stays available. We read each platform's pages on November 11, 2026.
Why look past CometAPI for video and image work?
CometAPI is built as one key for a very large catalog that leans on text models. It "charges per token for text models and per image/second for media models", with no monthly fee, minimum spend or subscription, and enterprise customers get custom pricing and volume discounts. Model pages offer an "Estimate before you build" panel with 5, 10 and 15 second test figures. We found no statement that any of those figures is locked before a run.
Two rules matter for media. CometAPI says it "does not collect or store user prompts, inputs, or model outputs", which is good for privacy and means you own storage from the first second. And its billing table is written for token streams: an error returned by the model is not billed, while a request interrupted mid-stream is "Billed for tokens generated". Credits stay valid while the account is in good standing, and purchased credits are generally non-refundable.
The CometAPI alternatives at a glance
MuAPI, Atlas Cloud, Crun, Kie.ai and Makernice cover the media half of CometAPI: each sells most of its Wan, Kling, Seedance and MiniMax models on prepaid or pay-as-you-go terms. Atlas Cloud and Kie.ai also list chat models, while Makernice is video and image only.
| Platform | Best for | How it bills | Source checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| MuAPI | Developers who want a webhook on submit and an exact price per request | Credits bought in advance and deducted per generation; no monthly fee for API access | muapi.ai · 2026-11-11 |
| Atlas Cloud | Teams that keep chat and media spend on one balance | Cash balance with a per-transaction minimum; credits expire 365 days after purchase | atlascloud.ai · 2026-11-11 |
| Crun | Asynchronous jobs where a two-week file window is enough | Credits sold in top-up plans; listed costs are estimates settled on actual usage | crun.ai · 2026-11-11 |
| Kie.ai | Products that mix music or chat models with video | Credits at a fixed US-dollar rate per image, second, video or million tokens | kie.ai · 2026-11-11 |
| Makernice | Media-only pipelines that want a fixed price and a long file window | Prepaid US-dollar balance per output second or per image; no expiry | Makernice pricing · live price list |
Prices are left out on purpose. The CometAPI alternative page puts per-second and per-image rates for the shared models side by side, computed from each platform's published list.
Where each alternative fits
MuAPI uses "a credit-based system to meter API usage", with credits bought in advance through Stripe. Its docs offer an estimate endpoint that returns the exact price of a specific request, plus a way to submit a task with a webhook, so results come to you. "Credits never expire.", new accounts get a small free allocation, and MuAPI also runs Studio, Workflow and Agents tools in the browser. We found no failed-task billing rule or output retention period on its pages.
Atlas Cloud sells image, video, audio and chat models from one cash balance. The exact charge "is computed when the task completes", failed tasks are not charged, and outputs stay 14 days by default. Each top-up has a minimum, credits expire a year after purchase, and purchases are final. Payment can be a card through Stripe, Alipay or cryptocurrency.
Crun runs every generation as an asynchronous task and keeps generated media "stored for 14 days, then automatically deleted". New requests are limited to 20 per 10 seconds. Credits come in four top-up plans with more credits per dollar on larger plans, and the rate cards note that final charges follow actual usage. There are no monthly subscriptions and a free trial is offered; we did not find a rule on failed tasks.
Kie.ai is the one to pick if music or chat models must sit beside video, since its catalog covers video, image, music and chat. Credits are sold at a fixed US-dollar rate and do not expire, failed tasks are free, and new users get 80 credits to test with. Tasks are asynchronous with a callback option, and files are deleted after 14 days.
Makernice carries 19 video and image models and no text models, so it replaces the media half of CometAPI only. Each run is priced first: a REST quote is held for 12 minutes, and over MCP the agent's generate call is refused when the price exceeds the max_cost_usd you set. Billing is per output second or per image at one rate across modes, failed and timed-out runs are not charged while an output blocked by moderation is, and the prepaid balance doesn't expire. Results come by polling, a per-job callback_url or an account webhook, and each output has an expiresAt.
How long do CometAPI alternatives keep generated files?
Atlas Cloud, Crun and Kie.ai keep generated files for 14 days, and each Makernice output carries an expiry that is 30 days after completion in the docs example. CometAPI stores no model outputs at all, and MuAPI publishes no retention period on the pages we checked.
- CometAPI: states it does not store model outputs; save each file from the response.
- Atlas Cloud: 14 days by default when no retention is set.
- Crun and Kie.ai: 14 days, then automatic deletion.
- Makernice: each output has its own
expiresAt; the docs example is 30 days after completion. - MuAPI: no retention period on the pages we checked.
Cases where CometAPI remains the better fit
CometAPI makes sense when text models are most of your bill and media is a side workload, because one key and one credit pool then cover both. Enterprise teams can also ask it for custom pricing and volume discounts, which none of the alternatives here lists in the same way. If you prefer that no copy of your prompts or outputs stays with the provider, its no-storage rule is a point in its favor. To compare a single model on both sides first, use the CometAPI alternative page.