Buying guide
The 10 best explainer video software in 2027 (and when to skip the software)
The 10 best explainer video software for 2027 compared: Vyond, Powtoon, VideoScribe, Synthesia and more, with free plan limits, prices and the hours each takes.
Capri Video · Updated · 14 min read
Key takeaways
- Pick explainer video software by the style you need: Vyond, Powtoon or Animaker for character animation, VideoScribe or Doodly for whiteboard, Synthesia for avatar explainers, Canva or Renderforest for quick template videos.
- Free plans are trials in practice: most add a watermark, cap length or resolution, block downloads or exclude commercial use. Read the plan table before you build anything.
- Every tool on this list can animate scenes. None of them writes the one clear message, keeps the story tight or checks the facts for you.
- Our estimate for a first 60 to 90 second explainer made yourself with a maker tool is roughly 13 to 35 hours, most of it script, storyboard and revisions.
- If you need one explainer that has to sell, a done-for-you service can cost less than your own hours. Capri Video sends a free watermarked draft within 24 hours; to keep it, you subscribe from $99 a month.
The best explainer video software depends on the style you need: Vyond for character-based business explainers, Powtoon or Animaker for the same look on a smaller budget, VideoScribe or Doodly for whiteboard animation, Synthesia for avatar explainers, and Canva or Renderforest for quick template videos. Before you pick one, count your hours: a good 60 to 90 second explainer takes most people several working days with any tool. If you'd rather not spend them, skip the software.
A fair note first: Capri Video publishes this article, and we make animated explainer videos for businesses. We've listed ourselves first and labelled ourselves clearly, because we aren't software. The ten tools after us are software you operate yourself, and several are the right choice for many teams. This list reflects tools, plans and prices as of October 2026, and we'll update it as they change.
Short on time? Paste your website link and get a reviewed, watermarked explainer draft within 24 hours. To keep it, subscribe from $99 a month plus sales tax.
How we chose these explainer video makers
We looked for tools that can make a narrated explainer of one to two minutes, not just a 10-second clip, and sorted them by the kind of explainer they produce: character animation, whiteboard, AI avatar, simple illustration, or template video. That choice decides more than any feature list.
For each tool we read the official product and pricing pages in October 2026. We give a paid price only where the official pricing page showed it clearly; otherwise we say "check current pricing". We didn't run new hands-on tests for this article, so the "where it breaks" notes come from how each type of tool works and from our experience making explainers every day.
Quick picks: which explainer video software for which need
Swipe sideways if needed to read the full table.
| Your need | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A finished explainer without doing it yourself | Capri Video (done-for-you) | Made for you; first video free, from $99 a month to keep it |
| Character-based business and training explainers | Vyond | Deep character editor plus Vyond Go AI drafts |
| Character animation on a small budget | Powtoon | Low entry price, commercial rights on paid plans |
| Many animated styles in one tool | Animaker | Character, whiteboard and infographic modes |
| Classic whiteboard animation | VideoScribe | The best-known whiteboard tool |
| Whiteboard and blackboard on desktop | Doodly | Mac and PC app with a large doodle library |
| A presenter explaining to camera | Synthesia | AI avatars and voices, no filming |
| Clean, simple explainers from text | simpleshow | Builds a schematic explainer from your script |
| Quick animated slides | Canva | You may already use it |
| Ready-made explainer templates | Renderforest | Explainer template packs |
| Frequent marketing videos | Biteable | Brand profiles and templates |
The 10 best explainer video software in 2027, plus the done-for-you option
Capri Video: best if you'd rather not make it yourself (done-for-you, not software)
Capri Video isn't a tool you operate. You give us your website, and we make the explainer. We include it because many people searching for an explainer video maker really want the finished video, not a new skill.
- Explainer style: styles such as Paper, Flat Figures, Whiteboard, Isometric, Geometric Figures, Corporate Memphis, Product Tour, Assembly Guide and Kinetic Type. Videos in English or German. - Best for: businesses that need one strong explainer for a homepage, sales page or onboarding. - How it works: 1. Paste your website link. Notes, a script or brand files are optional. 2. We write the script, animate, and add a professional voice-over, music and optional subtitles. AI supports production; our team reviews every draft. 3. You get a watermarked draft within 24 hours and three revision rounds before you decide. - Where it breaks: you don't get an editable project file, and we're not the right fit for weekly social clips or a 20-minute course. - Free plan reality: your first video, including revisions, is free with a watermark; no credit card needed. - Price: subscription from $99 a month plus sales tax (Start, 2 credits: one explainer up to two minutes or two short videos), cancel monthly.
1. Vyond: best for character-based business explainers
Vyond is widely used by training and communications teams for animated character videos. Vyond Go turns a prompt, script or document into a draft you can refine in Vyond Studio.
- Explainer style: character animation with scenes, props and lip-synced dialogue. - Best for: HR, training and internal communication teams that make many explainers with recurring characters. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Start in Vyond Go with a prompt or your script and pick a layout (narration, conversation or talking head). 2. Fix the dialogue in Quick Edit. 3. Open the video in Vyond Studio to adjust characters, timing and brand colors, then export. - Where it breaks: the AI draft is generic until you rewrite it, fine character acting takes practice, and it's the priciest tool here for one user. - Free plan reality: no free plan. The trial lasts up to 14 days, videos are watermarked, and trials can't download. - Price: Starter $699 a year or $99 month to month; Professional $1,199 a year per user or $199 month to month.
2. Powtoon: best for character animation on a small budget
Powtoon is a long-running explainer video creator for people without animation skills. Paid plans include AI document-to-video, AI voices and avatars.
- Explainer style: cartoon characters, animated text and whiteboard-style scenes. - Best for: small businesses, educators and marketers on a tight budget. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Pick an explainer template or start from your document with AI. 2. Replace the template script with your own words, scene by scene. 3. Swap characters, colors and logo, add a voice, and export in Full HD. - Where it breaks: the template look. Many Powtoon videos share characters and transitions, and viewers notice. Character customization and lip-sync sit on higher plans. - Free plan reality: watermark, up to three minutes, 720p, no MP4 download and no commercial rights. - Price: Lite $15 a month and Professional $40 a month, billed yearly; Advanced $125 a month, billed yearly.
3. Animaker: best for many animation styles in one tool
Animaker is a browser-based animated explainer video maker with a large character library, a character builder, and AI tools for text-to-animation, voices and subtitles.
- Explainer style: 2D characters, whiteboard, infographic and generative AI modes. - Best for: teams that want to try several styles without buying several tools. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Start from a template or a text prompt. 2. Build your characters and keep the same ones in every scene. 3. Add an AI voice (auto lip-sync matches mouths to narration), add subtitles and export. - Where it breaks: so many options make it easy to mix styles that don't belong together. - Free plan reality: watermark, limited resolution and assets, no commercial rights. The pricing page lists commercial rights with Pro. - Price: Starter $300 a year and Pro $516 a year, billed annually.
4. VideoScribe: best whiteboard animation software
VideoScribe is the best-known whiteboard animation software. It runs in the browser and as a desktop app, and paid plans include AI script and image generation, with AI voice-over on higher plans.
- Explainer style: whiteboard, a hand drawing images and text as the narration plays. - Best for: training, education and process explainers. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Write or generate your script and split it into short beats. 2. Add one drawn image or phrase per beat. 3. Set draw and pause times, sync the voice-over and export. - Where it breaks: whiteboard suits logic more than emotion or real products, timing drawings to voice is fiddly, and library images can look generic. Our whiteboard explainer guide covers when the style fits. - Free plan reality: a seven-day trial with watermarked videos, three downloads a month and a five-minute limit. - Price: check current pricing (shown in local currency; Lite, Core and Max plans).
5. Doodly: best for whiteboard and blackboard on desktop
Doodly is a desktop app for Mac and PC that makes doodle videos. It's now sold inside the Voomly Cloud bundle.
- Explainer style: whiteboard, blackboard, glassboard and green screen, with about 200 characters in many poses. - Best for: marketers who like whiteboard videos and prefer a desktop app. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Choose a board style and a drawing hand. 2. Place characters and props scene by scene; Smart Draw animates your own images. 3. Record a voice-over, add music and export up to 1080p. - Where it breaks: the doodle library has a recognizable look, and the Doodly page we read shows no AI script help, so the writing is all yours. - Free plan reality: no free plan; a 14-day trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. - Price: check current pricing. Voomly listed Voomly Cloud, which includes Doodly Standard, at $49 a month or $490 a year.
6. Synthesia: best for avatar explainers
Synthesia makes videos with AI avatars, realistic presenters who speak your script in many languages. HeyGen is a similar option worth comparing.
- Explainer style: a presenter on screen with slides, screenshots or images. - Best for: multilingual training and onboarding where filming isn't practical. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Pick a template and an avatar. 2. Paste your script or let the AI assistant draft one from a document. 3. Add visuals to each scene, choose voice and language, then share. - Where it breaks: a talking avatar tells rather than shows. Processes and product benefits often land better in animation. - Free plan reality: 10 minutes a month, nine avatars, watermark, share by link only. - Price: Starter $18 a month billed yearly or $29 month to month; Pro $64 a month billed yearly or $89 month to month.
7. simpleshow: best for clean, simple explainers from text
simpleshow is an AI explainer video maker that turns your text into a simple illustrated explainer with voice and timing. It also offers avatar videos.
- Explainer style: schematic illustration in several corporate styles, plus avatars. - Best for: training, HR and compliance teams that need many plain explainers in many languages. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Paste your script. 2. Review the suggested visual for each sentence and swap the ones that don't fit. 3. Choose a voice in one of 40+ languages, add subtitles and render. - Where it breaks: the deliberately simple look suits training better than a homepage brand film. - Free plan reality: three renderings a month, watermark, three illustration styles, no commercial rights. - Price: check current pricing (Business and Pro plans; Enterprise on quote).
8. Canva: best for quick animated slides
Canva isn't an explainer tool first, but its video editor and animation features make it the fastest way to turn designs you already have into a short video.
- Explainer style: animated slides, text and icons with stock footage and music. - Best for: short social explainers and internal updates by people who already design in Canva. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Start from a video template in your brand colors. 2. Put one idea on each page. 3. Add animation (Magic Animate is a paid feature), voice or music, time each page and export. - Where it breaks: no real characters or story scenes, and limited timing control. Fine for 30 seconds, thin for two minutes. - Free plan reality: a free plan exists; premium elements add a watermark unless you upgrade. - Price: check current pricing (Pro and Business, billed per person).
9. Renderforest: best for ready-made explainer templates
Renderforest is an online platform for videos, logos and websites, with explainer template packs and AI generators.
- Explainer style: template-based character and motion graphics scenes. - Best for: small businesses that want a fast template explainer alongside other brand assets. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Pick an explainer pack or describe your video to the AI generator. 2. Choose scenes and replace the placeholder text. 3. Set brand colors, add voice and music, and export. - Where it breaks: shared scene packs make videos look alike, and your story is limited to the scenes on offer. - Free plan reality: a free plan exists, but only paid tiers drop the watermark, and Renderforest positions Pro as its plan for commercial use. - Price: check current pricing.
10. Biteable: best for frequent marketing videos
Biteable is a template video maker for marketing and internal communications, with brand profiles, AI avatars and AI voices.
- Explainer style: animated templates, motion graphics, stock footage and avatar clips. - Best for: teams that publish short videos often without a designer. - How to make an explainer with it: 1. Pick a template or use the AI video builder. 2. Apply your brand profile. 3. Edit text and scenes, add voice and captions, and export. - Where it breaks: built for short marketing videos, less for a two-minute story with consistent characters. - Free plan reality: no free plan; a seven-day trial without a credit card. - Price: Pro $180 a year or $29 month to month; Premium $588 a year or $99 month to month.
Comparison table: explainer video software at a glance
Swipe sideways if needed to read the full table.
| Tool | Explainer style | Best for | Free plan | Price (Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capri Video (done-for-you) | Several styles, made for you | One explainer that has to sell | First video free with watermark | From $99 a month to keep it |
| Vyond | Character | Training teams | 14-day trial, no downloads | From $699/year |
| Powtoon | Character | Small budgets | Watermark, 720p | From $15/month, yearly |
| Animaker | Character, whiteboard | Many styles | Watermark | From $300/year |
| VideoScribe | Whiteboard | Training | 7-day trial | Check current pricing |
| Doodly | Whiteboard, blackboard | Desktop | 14-day trial | Via Voomly Cloud, $49/month |
| Synthesia | AI avatar | Multilingual training | 10 min/month, watermark | From $18/month, yearly |
| simpleshow | Simple illustration | Plain explainers | 3 renders/month | Check current pricing |
| Canva | Animated slides | Quick social videos | Yes | Check current pricing |
| Renderforest | Templates | Fast template videos | Yes, watermarked | Check current pricing |
| Biteable | Templates, avatars | Marketing teams | 7-day trial | From $180/year |
What separates a good explainer from a template video
Every tool above can make something move. That's not what makes an explainer work. These four things do, and no software adds them for you:
- One message. What problem do you solve, for whom, and why you? A script that covers every feature leaves viewers remembering none. Our explainer video script guide shows how to cut it down.
- A story. Problem, turning point, solution, result. A template gives you scenes in a row; a story gives viewers a reason to keep watching. Plan it with a simple storyboard.
- Consistent characters and look. The same person, colors and drawing style from first scene to last. Mixed template packs and AI scenes drift, and drift looks cheap.
- A clear call to action. One next step at the end, not three.
For real videos that get this right, see our explainer video examples.
The real cost: your time
Monthly prices are the small number. Your hours are the big one. These are our estimates for a first-time user making a 60 to 90 second explainer with a maker tool, from our own production experience rather than a formal study.
Swipe sideways if needed to read the full table.
| Task | DIY with a maker tool (our estimates) | Done-for-you (your time) |
|---|---|---|
| Learning the tool | 2 to 6 hours | None |
| Script and message | 2 to 4 hours | About 3 minutes to paste your link and add notes |
| Storyboard and scene plan | 1 to 3 hours | None |
| Building and animating scenes | 4 to 12 hours | None |
| Voice-over | 1 to 2 hours | None |
| Music and sound | 0.5 to 1 hour | None |
| Revisions with colleagues | 2 to 6 hours | About 10 minutes to watch the draft and send notes |
| Brand, fact and spelling checks | 0.5 to 1 hour | A few minutes in your final review |
| Total | About 13 to 35 hours | About 15 minutes |
Thirteen to thirty-five hours is two to five working days. Using all three revision rounds adds a few minutes each; the gap is still days.
Where DIY hours hide: rewriting the script after scenes exist (lock it first; our guide on how to make an explainer video explains the order), hunting for the right template, regenerating a whole AI draft to fix one sentence (our AI explainer video guide covers where AI fails), and feedback from three colleagues with three opinions.
Checklist before you buy explainer video software
- Commercial rights. Several free and entry plans exclude commercial use. A website or ad video needs them.
- Watermark. Which plan removes it, and do premium assets still add one?
- Voices. AI voices included? Which languages, how many minutes, and can you record your own?
- Brand kit. Can you save logo, colors and fonts once?
- Export formats. At least 1080p MP4, social aspect ratios and subtitle files.
- Team seats. Many plans cover one user. Check the per-seat price if two people edit.
Comparing tools for other jobs? See our guides to the best AI video generators, the best free video editing software and the best animation software.
When to skip the software: we focus on nailing explainers so you don't have to
Software makes sense when you need many simple videos and someone has time to learn the tool. A studio makes sense when you want fully custom illustration and have weeks and a bigger budget; our guide to the best explainer video companies and our breakdown of what an explainer video costs help you compare.
If you need one or a few explainers that carry your main message, that's what we do. We use AI in production, and a team that only makes explainers writes the story, keeps the look consistent and reviews every draft. You paste your link, get a watermarked draft within 24 hours, use up to three revision rounds, and keep it with a subscription from $99 a month, which covers one explainer up to two minutes. More on our process on the explainer video production page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best explainer video software?
It depends on the style you need. Vyond is the strongest choice for character-based business explainers, Powtoon and Animaker are cheaper for the same style, VideoScribe and Doodly lead for whiteboard animation, Synthesia suits avatar explainers, and Canva or Renderforest work for quick template videos. If you don't want to operate software at all, a done-for-you service such as Capri Video is the alternative.
What is the best free explainer video maker?
There is no truly free explainer video maker for business use. Powtoon, Animaker, simpleshow and Renderforest have free plans, but they add watermarks, limit length, resolution or downloads, or exclude commercial rights. Vyond, VideoScribe, Doodly and Biteable offer time-limited trials instead. Use a free plan to test a tool, then plan on paying for the video you publish.
Is there an AI explainer video maker that does everything?
Not yet. Vyond Go, Powtoon, Animaker, simpleshow and Synthesia can turn a prompt or document into a first draft with scenes and an AI voice. That draft still needs a clear message, consistent visuals, correct facts and a proper call to action, and a person has to do that work.
What is the best whiteboard animation software?
VideoScribe is the best-known whiteboard animation software. It runs in the browser and on desktop and includes AI script, image and voice-over tools on paid plans. Doodly, a desktop app for Mac and PC, adds blackboard and glassboard looks and a large doodle library. Animaker also offers a whiteboard mode.
How long does it take to make an explainer video with software?
Our estimate for a first 60 to 90 second explainer is roughly 13 to 35 hours of your own time, spread over several days. Learning the tool, writing the script, planning scenes and handling revisions take longer than the animation itself. Later videos go faster once you know the tool.
Should I use explainer video software or hire someone?
Use software if you need many simple videos and someone on your team has time to learn the tool. Hire someone, or use a done-for-you service, if you need one or a few explainers that carry your main message to customers and your hours are worth more than the cost of the video.
Skip the software, keep the explainer
Pick the tool that matches your style, learn it properly and lock your script before you animate. Or hand the whole job to a team that does nothing else.
Start for free with your website link and get a watermarked draft within 24 hours. To keep it, subscribe from $99 a month.