ElevenLabs Sound Effects v2 bills by requested seconds on HiAPI: $0.0029 per second, or 5.8 credits — $0.0058 for a 2-second clip, $0.0145 for 5 seconds, $0.0638 at the 22-second maximum. The model is live on HiAPI: open the model page, type a description, and new accounts get 200 credits.
What does one second cost?
A second is $0.0029, and 2000 credits make $1, so every second also logs 5.8 credits. Billing follows the duration_seconds you send, from 0.5 seconds up and fractions allowed; 2.5 seconds is charged as 2.5 seconds, never rounded up. Each request returns one MP3 at 44.1 kHz / 128 kbps / stereo, and failed tasks are refunded.
| Duration | Credits | USD |
|---|---|---|
| 0.5 s | 2.9 | $0.00145 |
| 1 s | 5.8 | $0.0029 |
| 2 s | 11.6 | $0.0058 |
| 3 s | 17.4 | $0.0087 |
| 5 s | 29 | $0.0145 |
| 10 s | 58 | $0.029 |
| 22 s | 127.6 | $0.0638 |
The cinematic impact on the model page is that 2-second case, $0.0058:
Spacious cinematic braam with a deep sub-bass impact, metallic shimmer and a short reverb tail, suitable for a high-impact movie trailer moment.
The link prefills the description only. Set duration_seconds to 2 and keep loop off after it opens to reproduce this clip.
What do 100, 1,000, and 10,000 clips cost?
At 5 seconds per clip:
| Clips | Total seconds | Credits | USD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 500 | 2,900 | $1.45 |
| 1,000 | 5,000 | 29,000 | $14.5 |
| 10,000 | 50,000 | 290,000 | $145 |
At 2 seconds per clip the same counts take half the seconds: 100 clips is 200 seconds, inside a $1 budget (344.8 seconds); 1,000 clips is 2,000 seconds, inside $10 (3,448 seconds); 10,000 clips is 20,000 seconds, 116,000 credits, $58. The rate is flat, so budget by total seconds — fix the length of a clip first, then multiply. Billing moves in seconds rather than clips, so the same money simply buys more clips at a shorter length.
Which duration keeps the bill down?
Reruns cost more than the rate, so start short:
- 0.5–1 second: confirm the texture. Check the source, the material, and the attack before committing to a length; one clip runs $0.00145 to $0.0029, and ten clips cost $0.029.
- 2–5 seconds: transitions and impacts. Whooshes, hits, and UI alerts land in this range — $0.0058 at 2 seconds, $0.0145 at 5 seconds.
- 10–22 seconds: ambience beds. Machine rooms, rain, and street tone that must cover a scene run $0.029 at 10 seconds and $0.0638 at 22 seconds; one long take beats stitching five short ones.
- loop fixes the seam, not the length. It smooths the head-to-tail join, and
duration_secondsstill sets the clip length; loop the file in your player to cover a longer scene, and the bill stays at the length you requested.
How it compares with Mirelo SFX 2.0 on HiAPI
The other sound-effect model on HiAPI is Mirelo SFX 2.0, also priced per second. Both rows come from the same pricing endpoint:
| Model | Per second | 5 seconds | 10 seconds |
|---|---|---|---|
| ElevenLabs Sound Effects v2 | $0.0029 | $0.0145 | $0.029 |
| Mirelo SFX 2.0 | $0.0215 | $0.1075 | $0.215 |
That is $0.0145 against $0.1075 at 5 seconds and $0.029 against $0.215 at 10 seconds; ElevenLabs Sound Effects v2 runs at 1/7.41 of the Mirelo SFX 2.0 rate per second. The lower rate comes with finer controls: fractional durations from 0.5 seconds, a loop switch, and prompt_influence from 0 to 1, delivered as MP3. Take Mirelo SFX 2.0 when you need whole-second WAV for a mix; take ElevenLabs Sound Effects v2 for very short accents and bulk ambience beds.
FAQ
Can it generate a half-second effect? Yes. Set duration_seconds to 0.5 for $0.00145 — enough for a click or a page flip.
Does loop extend the clip? No. It smooths the head-to-tail transition; duration_seconds still decides the length.
Are failed tasks charged? No. Failed tasks are refunded; fix the inputs after an INVALID_REQUEST and submit again.
How many clips do the 200 signup credits cover? The 200 credits equal $0.10, which is 34.5 seconds of audio — a dozen or so 2-second clips, enough to audition several directions before topping up.
Generate your first clip
Copy the 2-second prompt above and generate your first effect on the model page, then listen for the attack and tail. To wire it into code, read the ElevenLabs Sound Effects v2 API guide.
