# Descript AI and Underlord: What Your AI Credits Really Buy

> How Descript's Underlord agent, one-click AI tools, avatars and generated media work, which plan unlocks what, and how far your monthly AI credits go.

_Source: https://professionalstoolkit.com/articles/descript-ai — The Professional's Toolkit · updated October 2026_

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**400-1,500** — AI credits a month per Editor on Hobbyist, Creator and Business; Free gets 100 one-time



- **200** — Max AI credits per Underlord thinking turn
- **30** — Credit cap per file for Studio Sound or filler-word removal
- **None** — Unused AI credits carried into the next month


## The short answer: an AI co-editor that bills in credits

Descript's AI is two things at once. **Underlord** is an agent inside the editor: you describe an edit in plain language and it cuts, cleans up audio, adds scenes, makes clips and drafts scripts, working from the transcript. Around it sit dozens of one-click AI tools, from Studio Sound to dubbing. Nearly all of them draw on one pool of AI credits: 100 one-time on Free, then 400, 800 or 1,500 a month per Editor on Hobbyist, Creator and Business, with no rollover [1]. That pool decides how much AI you get. Hobbyist suits light cleanup. Every plan can generate video, but regular avatar or generated-video work needs the larger Creator or Business allowance.

## How Underlord works: models, context and undo

Underlord (Descript's help center still labels it beta and warns it can get things wrong) can run a whole workflow from one prompt. Descript's own examples chain a rough cut, filler-word removal, Studio Sound, Eye Contact, B-roll, clips and chapter markers in a single pass. Every editing turn gets an automatic review pass that checks the diff and calls Underlord again to fix problems. It can search the public web for current facts. It cannot open a specific URL, though, so paste the page text into the chat instead.

### Pick the model for the job

A model picker offers Auto plus Claude, GPT, Gemini and Grok options, and the premium models are on paid plans only [2]. Descript positions Claude Haiku 4.5 as the cheaper, faster choice for quick edits, and its Underlord v2 announcement named Claude Opus 4.5 the highest-quality and most expensive option. Recent changelogs added Claude Sonnet 5 for everyone and Claude Fable 5 as a premium model, and Enterprise drives now default to Claude Opus 5.5. Keep it simple. Use a light model for trims and a stronger one for scripts, episode plans and multi-step edits.

### Pin the context, and keep an exit

Typing @ in the prompt box pins scenes, script selections, layers, files, speakers or timestamps to the request, which narrows what Underlord touches. Chat history persists per user and per project and stays invisible to collaborators. Undo has a time limit. Checkpoints let you revert a response only during the current session; once you refresh or close the project, your only way back is Version History. Prompt templates are being retired in favor of Underlord skills, which are private to their creator for now. Running a skill spends AI credits like any other Underlord request.


> 💡 **Save a version first:** Underlord checkpoints can be reverted only during the current session. Save a version before a large prompt so Version History can take you back later.


## The one-click tools, and the plan gates behind them

Descript groups its AI tools in five sets: Sound good (Studio Sound, Remove Filler Words, Remove Retakes, Shorten Word Gaps, Edit for Clarity), Look good (Green Screen, Eye Contact, Automatic Multicam, Center Active Speaker in beta), Repurpose (clips, translation), Publish (titles, show notes, YouTube descriptions, social posts) and Write (scripts, outlines, rewrites). You can run any of them by hand or ask Underlord to chain them. On current plans most of them spend AI credits. Filler-word removal works in English, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese and Italian, with the language detected automatically, and Edit for Clarity marks removed words as ignored text so you can review the cut.

Two tools need care. Create Clips makes 1 to 20 clips of 10 seconds to 5 minutes, each as its own editable composition, but sources under a minute may produce none. Automatic Multicam works on multi-track sequences and overwrites existing scenes; stopping it midway does not undo what it already applied. Translation is where the plan gates get murky. Lip sync starts at Creator and does not work with multiple speakers or avatars. Dubbing with proofread is a Business feature; the help center says lower paid plans can also dub, so check the plan before buying for translation.


> 💡 **Proofread captions before dubbing:** On Business and Enterprise, translate captions, proofread them, then dub and lip sync. The help center says this order saves AI credits.


## Generated media and avatars: where credits go fastest

Image and video generation share one panel. The image models are Flux Kontext, GPT Image 2 and three Nano Banana variants; the video list includes Veo 3.1, Kling v3.0, Seedance 2.0, PixVerse v5, MiniMax H3 Max Turbo and Gemini Omni Flash [3]. Pricing lists video generation with the latest models as a Creator addition, and since October 2026 paid plans default to MiniMax H3 Max Turbo while free plans stay on PixVerse V4.5. Premium or longer-video models usually cost more credits. Through Underlord, video parameters cannot be adjusted, so use the panel when duration or aspect ratio matters.

Avatars are AI presenters that lip-sync to a script, built from a photo, a text prompt or the stock gallery with Kling Avatar models; pricing lists custom avatars from a photo or text under Business. **Billing is the trap.** Each generation or regeneration debits credits on the total length of spoken audio, not only where the avatar is visible, and editing the script or switching the AI speaker forces a new generation. Avatar layers also drop out of timeline exports to Premiere Pro or Final Cut. Voice clones and Regenerate have their own guide, our [Descript Overdub explainer](/articles/descript-overdub).

## What the credits buy, by our arithmetic

| Plan | Price per Editor a month (annual / monthly billing) | AI credits | Top-ups |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 100, one-time | No |
| Hobbyist | $16 / $24 | 400 a month | No |
| Creator | $24 / $35 | 800 a month | Yes |
| Business | $50 / $65 | 1,500 a month | Yes |

Credits are counted per Editor and pooled on the Drive, so a full Creator team of three shares 2,400 a month and a full Business team of five shares 7,500, by our arithmetic. Manual tools are predictable. Studio Sound and Remove Filler Words are each capped at 30 credits per file or application [4], so cleaning one file with both costs at most 60: 400 credits cover six such files, 800 cover 13 and 1,500 cover 25. AI layout packs cost 120 credits for the basic flow.

Underlord is not predictable. Its cost is non-deterministic, even chat costs a few credits per message, and a tool run charges for both the reasoning and the tool. One thinking step can reach 200 credits per turn. Avatars show the scale too. At the February 2026 changelog figures of about 67 credits a minute for Kling v2 at 720p and about 138 for Kling v2 Pro at 1080p, 400 credits buy just under six minutes of 720p presenter. The model list has changed since, so measure in a pilot month on the Usage tab.

Top-ups are sold only on Creator and Business. The AI-credit packs are one-time purchases that expire 12 months after purchase: 350 credits for $35 (one-time), 1,000 for $80 (one-time) or 4,000 for $200 (one-time), which works out to $0.10, $0.08 and $0.05 per credit. A Creator Editor who keeps running short has two exits. By our arithmetic, stepping up one plan costs $26 more per Editor a month billed annually, or $30 billed monthly, for 700 extra credits. The largest pack stays cheaper until you need about 520 extra credits a month (600 on monthly billing). Above that, upgrade. Top-ups are never refunded, and plan refunds run only 48 hours from the invoice (Editor seats 7 days), as our [Descript pricing guide](/articles/descript-pricing) explains.

## Where the AI falls short

Underlord can overpromise, and it cannot edit in the background while you record. When it hits an edit it cannot do, it points you to a help article for the manual steps. In one creator's course project described on Descript's blog, it switched layouts from slide to slide when visual choices were left open, and its branding match was not close enough to use. It may also create content that ignores locked brand settings. Review every edit before publishing.

Language is the second limit. Regenerate for changing words handles English audio only, up to 250 characters per action, and needs a voice clone authorized by that speaker, who must record a consent statement in English. Video regeneration skips sequences, B-roll, multi-speaker recordings and shots without a clearly visible face. Data is the third. Descript's Terms let it train on inputs and outputs unless you opt out, and only Enterprise gets a contractual opt-out, so check the Share data with Descript toggle under Settings, then Profile.


> ⚠ **Avatars bill the whole script:** Each avatar generation charges AI credits on the total spoken-audio length, and any script, voice or image change forces a new generation.



## FAQ

**Can I run Underlord from Claude or ChatGPT?**

Yes. Descript's MCP connectors for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor, plus its API, Zapier and Raycast, can send prompts to Underlord, and those runs use the same AI credits and media minutes as work in the app. Our Descript API guide covers the setup.

**What happens when my AI credits run out?**

On Creator and Business you can buy a top-up pack. On Hobbyist you wait for the monthly allowance to reset at renewal, while Free's 100 credits are one-time and never reset, so you have to upgrade. API and MCP requests return a 402 error when credits or media minutes run out.

**Can I use Underlord on my phone?**

No. Descript has no native mobile app, and on mobile you can open, play and publish projects but not edit them. Editing needs the desktop app or a Chromium browser.

**Can I share Underlord skills with my team?**

Not yet. Skills are private to the person who creates them, so each Editor builds a separate set until Descript adds sharing.


## The bottom line

Descript's AI is deep: an agent that edits from the transcript, a model picker spanning several labs, five sets of one-click tools, and generated media with avatars. The limit is credits, not features. Hobbyist's 400 a month handles cleanup across a handful of files; avatars, generated video and heavy Underlord sessions belong on Creator or Business, where top-ups exist. Treat Underlord as a fast first pass that still needs a human review, save a version before big prompts, and read the Usage tab for a month before you commit to a plan.



## Sources

[1] Descript Pricing - Plans for Every Creator, Free to Start Features Features Video editing Editing video in Descript is as easy as using docs — https://www.descript.com/pricing (2026-10)
[2] Descript Help: underlord beta your ai co editor in descript — https://help.descript.com/getting-started/underlord-beta-your-ai-co-editor-in-descript (2026-10)
[3] Descript Help: models — https://help.descript.com/generative-media/models (2026-10)
[4] Descript Help: track and understand your media minutes and ai credits — https://help.descript.com/billing-payments-plans/track-and-understand-your-media-minutes-and-ai-credits (2026-10)
[5] Descript Help Center — https://help.descript.com/
[6] Descript Terms of Service — https://www.descript.com/terms
[7] Capterra, Descript reviews — https://www.capterra.com/p/230702/Descript/