KIE Alternatives in 2026: Seedance and MiniMax H3 Priced Per Second

Is there a cheaper KIE alternative for Seedance and MiniMax H3?

Yes, on every tier checked. KIE.ai quotes in credits worth 0.005 USD each; reAPI quotes USD per second directly. Normalised at 720p, the tier most teams ship on, in USD per second of output:

Does the cheaper reference-video rate actually lower the bill?

Often it does not. Both KIE.ai and reAPI publish a lower per-second rate when a request carries a reference video, and both bill that rate against input seconds plus output seconds rather than output alone. KIE.ai states the rule as With video = Price × (Input + Output). A five-second output with an eight-second reference clip therefore bills thirteen seconds, and the cheaper tier ends up costing more than the plain one. Trim the reference clip, not the tier.

Full 480p to 4K tiers and the billing rules sit on each model page linked above. Rates read from both platforms' public pricing pages on 19 August 2026; both label them subject to change.