Understanding Credits:
Credits serve as the in-platform currency for image and video generation within Luma App. Each subscription tier includes a fixed monthly credit allocation. Please note that any unused credits expire at the end of the applicable billing cycle and will not be carried over to the subsequent month.
Your monthly credits reset each billing cycle. If you run out mid-project, you can set an additional spending limit from your account settings for as little or as much as you need to keep creating without interruption. Luma pauses the moment you hit that limit. You're never charged beyond your approved spending limit.
Conserving Your Credits
Credit conservation isn't about restricting creativity, it's about separating thinking from execution. Define your direction first so you only spend credits when you know what you want.
Core Principles for Saving Credits
Plan before generating: Use Brainstorm mode to outline goals, style, and structure upfront rather than generating images/videos to figure out what you want.
Draft low, finalize high:
Video: Iterate at lower resolutions and upscale/re-render only when the concept is locked.
Images: Refine composition in low res, then re-generate natively at high resolution for maximum sharpness.
Limit auto-generations: Tell the AI explicitly: "Create one version. Don't generate alternatives. Wait for my feedback."
Reuse workflows: Save your preferences and style notes as a document on your board to give the AI at the start of each session.
Solve visuals with stills first: Fine-tune composition and lighting in images before turning the winning shot into a video keyframe.
Disable unused audio: If you plan to add your own music or voiceover, turn off native audio generation.
Reframe, don't regenerate: Use reframing tools to change aspect ratios for different platforms rather than rendering new shots.
Match the model to the job: Don't default to the most expensive model for early drafts or simple tasks.
Crucial Billing Details
Key Rule: Failed generations are automatically refunded to your account, but rejected outputs (results you don't like) still cost credits.
Expiration: Unused monthly plan credits expire at the end of each billing cycle (they do not roll over).
Overage option: If you run out of credits mid-project, you can enable On-Demand Spend in your settings and cap your spending limit.
Pro tip: If you want to avoid using the agent, you can create directly from the canvas by right-clicking an empty space and selecting New Image/New Video/New Audio.
These options can also found on the tool bar at the bottom of your canvas
For a detailed view of our cost-per-generation guides, please visit https://lumalabs.ai/pricing and scroll down.
Please note: Agent costs fluctuate based on the complexity of the prompt and the steps necessary as dictated by the user.