Kling 4.0 vs Kling 3.0: What Changed and How to Migrate

Kling 4.0 is the newer Kling model from Kuaishou on Makernice, and compared with Kling 3.0 it runs up to 30 seconds instead of 15, picks 720p or 1080p through a resolution field instead of separate model ids, and adds reference-to-video with up to 10 images and a 21:9 ratio. Kling 3.0 remains the only Kling line here with a 4K tier. Kuaishou released Kling 4.0 on October 15, 2026, and it has been available on the Makernice API since October 30, 2026. Both generations always include audio.

What is new in Kling 4.0 compared with Kling 3.0?

Source: GET /v1/models and GET /v1/pricing (price list v12, November 2, 2026). In the mode row, t2v is text-to-video, i2v is image-to-video, flf is first and last frame and r2v is reference-to-video. Catalog facts only, no quality ranking.

What can Kling 4.0 do that Kling 3.0 cannot?

• Longer clips. One Kling 4.0 request can return up to 30 seconds; beyond 15 seconds, Kling 3.0 needs two or more clips joined together.
• Reference-to-video. Send mode set to r2v with up to 10 images in reference_images and describe them in the prompt.
• 21:9 framing. Kling 4.0 text-to-video and reference-to-video accept 21:9 as well as 16:9, 9:16 and 1:1.
• One model id for two tiers. Kling 4.0 switches between 720p and 1080p with the resolution field, so the model id stays the same.

Which Kling 4.0 features are not available through the Makernice API?

The capabilities below are not available on Makernice through this API (as of October 30, 2026). This describes what the Makernice API accepts, not what Kuaishou offers elsewhere.

• 4K output. For 4K on Makernice, Kling 3.0 4K and Seedance 2.5 remain the options.
• A timeline of up to 10 keyframes. The API takes one first frame (image_url) and an optional last frame (last_image_url).
• Video references. Reference-to-video takes images only, through reference_images.
• Motion Control.
• Kling 4.0 Flash.

How do you migrate a Kling 3.0 request to Kling 4.0?

Most requests need three changes:

• Model id. Replace kling-3.0-standard or kling-3.0-pro with kling-4.0.
• Resolution. Kling 4.0 defaults to 720p, so a Kling 3.0 Pro request needs resolution set to 1080p to stay on the 1080p tier, and a Kling 3.0 Standard request can leave it out.
• negative_prompt. Remove it, because Kling 4.0 has no negative_prompt option and returns 400 invalid_request when one is sent.

Durations of 3 to 15 seconds stay valid, and prompts may run to 4,000 characters instead of 2,500. Image-to-video and first and last frame keep the same fields (image_url, plus last_image_url for flf), and neither generation takes aspect_ratio in those modes. A Kling 3.0 4K request has no Kling 4.0 equivalent at the same tier, because Kling 4.0 tops out at 1080p.

  {
-   "model": "kling-3.0-pro",
+   "model": "kling-4.0",
+   "resolution": "1080p",
    "mode": "t2v",
    "prompt": "A paper boat drifts down a rain gutter, macro shot, soft afternoon light.",
-   "negative_prompt": "blurry, text, watermark",
    "duration": 10,
    "aspect_ratio": "16:9"
  }

import os, requests

API = "https://api.makernice.com/v1"
H = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['MAKERNICE_API_KEY']}"}
job = {"mode": "t2v", "prompt": "A paper boat drifts down a rain gutter, macro shot, soft afternoon light.",
       "duration": 10, "aspect_ratio": "16:9"}

for model, extra in (("kling-3.0-pro", {}), ("kling-4.0", {"resolution": "1080p"})):
    q = requests.post(f"{API}/generations/quote", json={**job, **extra, "model": model}, headers=H, timeout=30).json()
    print(model, f"${int(q['amount']) / 1e6:.2f}")   # $1.61 · $2.52

Quoting is free and holds nothing; each quote is locked for 12 minutes. The quote, create and poll flow is the same for both generations: create with the quote_id and an Idempotency-Key, then poll (quickstart).

How much do Kling 4.0 and Kling 3.0 cost per clip?

Price list v12 (as of November 2, 2026). Clip price = per-second price × seconds, rounded to the cent; the quote shows the exact amount. Audio is included in every price below.

Per second, Kling 4.0 costs 1.39× the price of Kling 3.0 Standard at 720p and 1.56× the price of Kling 3.0 Pro at 1080p. A single 30 second Kling 4.0 clip at 1080p costs $7.56, while on Kling 3.0 Pro the same length takes two 15 second clips at $2.42 each.

Live prices: Pricing or GET https://api.makernice.com/v1/pricing (no key needed).

When should you still use Kling 3.0?

• Use Kling 3.0 4K for text-to-video at the 4K tier, which Kling 4.0 does not offer on Makernice.
• Use Kling 3.0 Standard or Pro when your prompts depend on negative_prompt.
• Keep an existing Kling 3.0 pipeline as it is while you compare quotes and results on Kling 4.0 shot by shot; Kling 3.0 requests keep working unchanged.
• Use Kling 4.0 for clips over 15 seconds, reference images, 21:9 framing, or one model id for both 720p and 1080p.

Next: Kling 4.0 vs Seedance 2.5 compares Kling 4.0 with ByteDance's model, Kling 3.0 Pro vs Standard vs 4K explains the three Kling 3.0 tiers, and the Kling 4.0 model page lists every field.