Sora Alternatives After the Shutdown: Veo 3.1, Grok, MiniMax

Quick answer

OpenAI has discontinued Sora (the app on April 26, 2026 and the API on September 24, 2026). On RelayMe you can switch to four video models in one no-code workflow: Google’s flagship tier Veo 3.1 (400 credits/sec with audio at 720p / 1080p, 600 at 4K), the cheaper Veo 3.1 Fast (150 credits/sec with audio, 350 at 4K), and, for vertical 9:16 clips longer than 8 seconds, Grok Imagine (150 credits/sec) or MiniMax-H3 (from 120 credits/sec, with reference images, video and audio). 1,000 credits is about US$1, and you can start free without a credit card.

Specs and prices

Item	Veo 3.1	Veo 3.1 Fast	Grok Imagine	MiniMax-H3
Credits per second (base tier, with audio)	400 (720p / 1080p)	150 (720p / 1080p)	150 (480p / 720p / 1080p)	120 (768P)
Credits per second (base tier, no audio)	200	100	150	—
Credits per second (4K / 2K, with audio)	600 (4K)	350 (4K)	—	200 (2K)
Credits per second (4K / 2K, no audio)	400	300	—	—
Clip length	4 / 6 / 8 s	4 / 6 / 8 s	4 / 6 / 8 / 10 / 12 / 15 s	5–15 s, 1-second steps
Resolutions	720p / 1080p / 4K	720p / 1080p / 4K	480p / 720p / 1080p	768P / 2K
Aspect ratios	Model default	Model default	16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 3:2, 2:3	16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 21:9, adaptive
Audio track	Optional (cheaper without)	Optional (cheaper without)	Optional (same price)	Always included
Inputs and references	Text-to-video; image-to-video from a first frame	Text-to-video; image-to-video from a first frame	Text-to-video; one first-frame image (up to 1080p) or 2–7 reference images (up to 720p)	Text-to-video; up to 9 reference images, 3 reference videos and 3 audio clips
Model family	Google DeepMind	Google DeepMind	xAI	MiniMax

Credit prices come from the same live model list as the pricing page USAGE table; 1,000 credits is about US$1.

Worked example

Credits for one 8-second clip

Setting	Veo 3.1	Veo 3.1 Fast	Grok Imagine	MiniMax-H3
Base tier, with audio	3,200 · ≈US$3.20	1,200 · ≈US$1.20	1,200 · ≈US$1.20	960 · ≈US$0.96
Base tier, no audio	1,600 · ≈US$1.60	800 · ≈US$0.80	1,200 · ≈US$1.20	Always with audio
4K / 2K, with audio	4,800 · ≈US$4.80	2,800 · ≈US$2.80	—	1,600 · ≈US$1.60

For one 8-second text-to-video clip with audio: Veo 3.1 Fast 1,200 credits (about US$1.20), Grok Imagine 1,200 credits (about US$1.20), MiniMax-H3 at 768P 960 credits (about US$0.96), and Veo 3.1 3,200 credits (about US$3.20). Prices come from the same live list as the pricing page at build time.

Observed workflow and comparison limits

The tables compare settings and costs, not measured visual quality or speed. In one product-image-to-video run on 2026-08-25, the Nano Banana special channel generated a 1:1 product image for 20 credits in about half a minute. Veo 3.1 Fast then generated a 4-second, 720p, 16:9 clip with audio for 600 credits in about a minute. The total was 620 credits. This is one historical observation, not a current quote or a cross-model performance result.

Read the workflow and test context

For your own comparison, keep inputs and prompts fixed and record the model, channel, settings, date, actual credits and elapsed time. Evaluate cost calculations separately from generated results.

If you used Sora for…, use…

Text-to-video that needs 4K: Veo 3.1 Fast (350 credits/sec at 4K with audio) or Google’s flagship tier Veo 3.1 (600 at 4K, 400 at 720p / 1080p, with audio), in 4 / 6 / 8 s clips.
Lots of prompt tests and drafts: Veo 3.1 Fast at 150 credits/sec with audio or 100 without; decide on a Veo 3.1 re-render once the prompt is final.
Vertical 9:16 social clips longer than 8 seconds: Grok Imagine (4 / 6 / 8 / 10 / 12 / 15 s, up to 1080p, 150 credits/sec) or MiniMax-H3 (5–15 s, 1-second steps).
Shots steered by reference material (a person, a product, a rhythm): MiniMax-H3, with up to 9 reference images, 3 reference videos and 3 audio clips per generation.
Lowest cost per second: MiniMax-H3 at 120 credits/sec for 768P, about US$0.96 for 8 seconds.
Were you calling the Sora API? RelayMe’s API is also asynchronous: submit a video task, poll its status, fetch the result. The developer page covers workflow runs; the standalone video-task endpoints are in the OpenAPI spec (/api/ai-tools/v1/openapi.json).

Move your Sora workflow over

A prompt → clip → review flow becomes, in RelayMe: Text node → (optional Gemini prompt rewrite) → the video node of your choice → task history with credit cost. Put two video nodes on the same prompt, for example Veo 3.1 Fast and Grok Imagine, to compare them in one run.

Teams that generated through the Sora API can create an API key in the developer area after signing in and call the video generation endpoint, or save the flow as a workflow, start a run with one request and poll it for results, with a separate call to estimate the cost first. Usage bills in the same credits.

Start free and run these models in one workflow See live pricing

No credit card required · 1,000 credits ≈ US$1

Frequently asked questions

OpenAI has shut Sora down. What should I use instead?

Pick by use: for 4K, Veo 3.1 Fast (350 credits/sec at 4K) or the flagship Veo 3.1 (600 at 4K); for volume drafts, Veo 3.1 Fast (150); for vertical clips longer than 8 seconds, Grok Imagine (up to 15 seconds, 150); for reference-driven shots or the lowest per-second price, MiniMax-H3 (from 120). All four run in the same RelayMe workflow.

When did OpenAI shut Sora down?

According to OpenAI’s help center, the Sora web and app experiences were discontinued on April 26, 2026, and the Sora API end date was September 24, 2026 (checked September 28, 2026).

Can I use Sora on RelayMe?

No. RelayMe does not offer Sora, and OpenAI has discontinued the Sora app and API. The video models you can select today are Veo 3.1, Veo 3.1 Fast, Grok Imagine and MiniMax-H3; the pricing page is the live list.

I was using the Sora API. How do I migrate?

Create an API key in the RelayMe developer area after signing in, submit a video task to the generation endpoint, poll the task status and fetch the video when it finishes (endpoints are in the OpenAPI spec at /api/ai-tools/v1/openapi.json). For longer chains such as product image → video, save them as a workflow, estimate the cost first, then start a run with one request and poll it. Model names and parameters need to be re-selected for the new models.

What is the cheapest Sora alternative here?

MiniMax-H3 at 120 credits/sec for 768P, about US$0.96 for an 8-second clip; its 2K tier is 200 credits/sec.

Do these models generate audio?

Yes. Veo 3.1, Veo 3.1 Fast and Grok Imagine let you choose whether to generate an audio track (Veo is cheaper without audio, Grok costs the same either way); MiniMax-H3 always includes one.