AnimatePhoto vs Merge

AnimatePhoto turns still photos and other images into animated videos using AI. Users describe the desired movement in text and choose an animation style, including cinematic, gentle, or dynamic options. The site says its animator is powered by 60+ AI models. Animations can be downloaded as MP4 files, at up to 1080p; the listed capabilities also include face animation, camera motion, and lip-sync. The homepage says generated animations can be used commercially with full licensing rights, and users are refunded if generation fails. AnimatePhoto offers a free plan and free trial. One-time credit packs start at $6.90, paid once. Monthly options are Basic Monthly at $9.90 a month for 1,200 credits, Pro Monthly at $24.90 a month for 4,000 credits, and Premium Monthly at $49.90 a month for 10,000 credits. The monthly plans include access to all AI models, private generation, video effects and tools, a commercial license, and priority support. The web service stores uploads and generated content in the account dashboard, where individual items can be deleted.

Merge is an iOS app that turns a still photo and a reference motion video into an AI-generated motion video, with an optional style prompt. The site says generation takes under a minute. Listed creation types include AI dance videos, animated portraits, moving selfies and cinematic motion; output can reach 1080p. Users can save videos to their device or publish them to a community feed where people can browse and like them. Merge is listed for iPhone only and uses Apple Sign-In; Apple handles billing. Its free Starter plan includes 300 credits per month, Full HD videos and community feed access. Creator bills 1,000 credits per month and adds a priority generation queue, while Studio bills 3,000 credits per month and adds a top-priority queue. Selected photos are uploaded to temporary storage for generation and automatically deleted within about 48 hours. Merge lists English, Spanish, German, Dutch, Turkish and Russian.