6 Best Pencil Alternatives in 2026 (Free & Paid)

AdCreate is the best overall Pencil alternative for teams that need a complete creative production platform rather than just AI-assisted ad generation with analytics. Pencil (trypencil.com, founded 2018, acquired by The Brandtech Group in 2023) uses a multi-model approach — OpenAI GPT, Google Veo 3, Gemini 1.5 Flash, Imagen 4, Adobe, Runway, Bria, and Getty — with predictive performance scoring trained on $1B+ in ad spend data (claiming 48% CPA reduction and 79% ROAS increase). However, Pencil lacks AI talking avatars, lip sync, URL-to-video, and AI music generation. AdCreate fills every one of those gaps while offering Veo 3.1 and Sora 2. With 13+ specialized AI tools — including custom avatar training, background removal, image upscaling, text-to-speech, auto captioning, and a full timeline video editor — AdCreate provides the comprehensive creative pipeline that Pencil does not. AdCreate offers a free tier and paid plans from $23/mo (billed annually) or $39/mo monthly, competitive with Pencil's $14/mo Core plan (50 generations) and $55/mo Growth plan (250 generations), while delivering significantly more creative capabilities.

Creatify is an excellent Pencil alternative for e-commerce teams who need automated product ad generation. Its standout URL-to-video feature generates multiple video ad variations from a product page link, complete with AI voiceover and platform-specific formatting. With 1,500+ avatars powered by the Aurora model, Sora 2 and Veo 3 integration, 75+ language support, and batch ad creation capabilities, Creatify handles the end-to-end ad production workflow that Pencil does not provide. Where Pencil excels at generating ad creatives and predicting performance with its $1B+ ad spend data, Creatify excels at automating the entire ad creation pipeline for e-commerce. The trade-off is no predictive performance scoring and a lighter-weight editor.

HeyGen fills Pencil's biggest gap — AI talking avatars and multilingual content. With 500+ stock avatars powered by Avatar IV technology, custom avatar training, and video translation in 175+ languages with lip sync, HeyGen enables spokesperson and localized content that Pencil simply cannot create. The platform also offers LiveAvatar real-time streaming, Video Agent for automated workflows, and a GenCredits system for flexible usage. For teams that need both data-driven ad generation (Pencil) and avatar-based content (HeyGen), these platforms are complementary rather than direct replacements. However, if you can only choose one, HeyGen offers broader content format support.

Synthesia serves a different primary market than Pencil — enterprise training and corporate communications — but offers capabilities that Pencil completely lacks. With 230+ AI avatars powered by the Express-2 model, 140+ language support with AI dubbing and lip sync, interactive video features, and enterprise-grade security (SOC 2, GDPR), Synthesia is the go-to platform for L&D departments. Plans include minute caps (120-360 min/yr depending on tier) and custom avatars cost $1,000 per year. For organizations that need both marketing ad generation and corporate training content, Synthesia covers the enterprise side comprehensively while Pencil handles ad creative generation with its predictive analytics.

AdCreative.ai is the closest Pencil alternative in terms of philosophy — both platforms use AI to generate ad creatives and then predict which ones will perform best. AdCreative.ai's creative scoring achieves 90%+ accuracy in predicting ad performance, and its AdLLM Spark engine powers intelligent creative generation. Product Videoshoot AI (currently in beta, limited to 10-second clips) turns product photos into video ads, and Instant Ads generates creatives from a URL. The key difference is that Pencil leverages frontier models (Veo 3, Imagen 4, Runway, Adobe) while AdCreative.ai does not offer frontier video models. For teams that prioritize performance prediction and static ad creative generation alongside video, AdCreative.ai is a strong complement or replacement.

Arcads specializes in producing UGC-style ads using AI actors cloned from real performers — a content type that Pencil cannot generate at all since it lacks avatars. With 300+ actors (scaling to 1,000+ on Pro plans), ElevenLabs integration with 5,000+ voices, and script generation tools, Arcads creates authentic-looking testimonial and creator-style content that performs well on social platforms. The narrow UGC focus and premium $110 per month price with no free trial make Arcads a niche choice. For teams that already use Pencil for ad generation and predictive analytics but need UGC-style content, Arcads fills that specific gap.