In August I needed a few hundred illustrations for coloring books. Artlist had just bundled image, video, voiceover and music models into one subscription, and the AI Starter plan promised "up to 1,650 AI images" a month for $19.99. On paper that covered several books. I sat down to check whether it actually would.
It didn't. The reason is a pattern you'll see across every credit-based AI subscription, so it's worth walking through.
"Up to" numbers are calculated on the cheapest model in the catalogue. The question is how many outputs you get on the model you'd actually choose.
The arithmetic that decided it
AI Starter gives 16,500 credits a month. The 1,650-image figure divides that by the cost of the cheapest image model, at about 10 credits an image. The models good enough for a printed book cost more, according to Artlist's help center when I checked in August:
- Nano Banana at about 40 credits: roughly 412 images a month.
- Flux 2.0 at about 50 credits: roughly 330.
- Nano Banana Pro at about 160 credits: roughly 103, which wouldn't finish one book.
A coloring book for me is about fifty designs, three attempts each, plus a cover: around 160 generations. On pay-per-image services that whole book came to between $0.50 and $6 depending on the model. A monthly subscription made sense only if I published books every month and wanted the video and audio tools too, and I already had other tools for both.
The current plans
From Artlist's pricing page on October 16, 2026:
| AI plan | Monthly | Yearly (per month) | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Starter | $19.99 | $11.99 | 16,500 / month |
| AI Core | $39.99 | $23.99 | 40,000 / month, plus unlimited on select models |
| AI Creator | $69.99 | $41.67 | 80,000 / month, plus unlimited on select models |
The "unlimited" on the higher plans covers selected models only, gives you a set number of fast generations, and then slows to standard speed. It's also human use only; Artlist says automation and scraping aren't permitted, and MCP use is billed in credits.
The stock plans are a separate decision. Music and sound effects start at $9.99 a month billed yearly for social use. The Pro tiers, which add client work and ads, are billed yearly only.
The licence and refund rules
- What stays licensed after you cancel: projects you published while subscribed. New projects after cancelling aren't covered, even with files you already downloaded.
- Social vs Pro: the Social licence covers one channel per platform and no client work. Pro covers client work, ads and three channels per platform.
- Refunds: only within 14 days of payment, and only if you haven't downloaded or generated anything. That applies to renewals too.
The last rule explains a lot of the review record. Artlist holds 3.2 out of 5 from 2,736 Trustpilot reviews. The recurring complaints: the "up to" counts feel inflated on the models people actually use, the refund rule isn't visible at checkout, cancelling runs through a chat assistant, and some users feel the music library is being pushed aside for AI.
Who should say yes
Video creators who need music, sound effects, footage and AI tools in one licence. That bundle is Artlist's real strength. If you'd otherwise pay for a music licence, a stock footage site and an AI video tool separately, one subscription can be simpler than three, and the licence questions are answered in one place.
People who want to try before paying. The AI trial has no time limit and needs no card. Generate with the model you'd actually use and count how many outputs your credits buy.
Who should say no
Anyone who mainly needs images. Pay-per-image generation is far cheaper at book-sized volumes.
Anyone who only needs a commercial music licence. Epidemic Sound's Pro plan is cheaper for that alone, and it can be paid monthly.
The verdict
Try Artlist if you make videos and want music, footage and AI generation under one licence. Use the free trial with your real model, and don't download anything until you're sure, because downloading ends your refund window.
Skip it if images are your main need. That's what I did, and the arithmetic hasn't changed.
The one-line version
Artlist's "up to" counts assume the cheapest model; on the models good enough for print, its entry plan covered a fraction of a book a month, so it suits video creators who need the whole bundle, not people who mainly need images.
Sources
Checked on October 16, 2026. I'm an affiliate for Artlist; nothing above changes based on that:
- Artlist — product site (my affiliate link)
- Artlist — pricing (AI Starter $19.99 or $11.99/mo yearly with 16,500 credits; Core and Creator; how unlimited works; MCP billed in credits)
- Artlist help — Music and SFX plans (Social vs Pro licence; Pro billed yearly only)
- Artlist help — understanding the licence (what stays licensed after cancelling)
- Artlist help — refund policy (14 days, nothing downloaded or generated; no-card AI trial)
- Trustpilot — Artlist (3.2 from 2,736 reviews)
- Epidemic Sound — pricing (Pro plan with monthly billing, for comparison)
- First-hand: my August 2026 cost comparison for coloring-book illustrations (per-model credit costs from Artlist's help center at the time; book estimates from my own production numbers).
One honest gap: per-model credit costs change as Artlist adds models. Check the current cost of the exact model you'd use before you trust my August numbers.