Sora video generation limit: 30 videos a day, then 6, now zero because OpenAI shut Sora down

Is there still a Sora video generation limit?

No. There's no Sora limit left to wait out, because there's no Sora. OpenAI's discontinuation page puts it in one line: "The Sora web and app experiences were discontinued on April 26, 2026." Developers could still use it through the API for five more months, and then that went too. The Sora 2 model page now reads: "The Sora 2 models and Videos API were shut down on September 24, 2026 and are no longer available."

So a "limit reached" screen in an old tab, or a guide that still promises 30 videos a day, describes a product that's gone. Nothing resets. OpenAI didn't name a successor either. Its API deprecations page lists no recommended replacement for sora-2, sora-2-pro or the Videos API. ChatGPT's pricing page, read on 18 October 2026, lists image generation on Free, Go, Plus and Pro, and no video row on any of them.

What were Sora's daily limits before it shut down?

As of October 2026, Sora's free daily cap had fallen twice in six months: from 30 videos a day in October 2025 to 6 a day on 28 November 2025, then to none on 26 April 2026. Paid plans moved too. We compiled every change from OpenAI's own pages and the press reports that quoted its staff:

Sora started on a monthly meter, not a daily one. OpenAI's launch post told Plus subscribers: "You can generate up to 50 videos at 480p resolution or fewer videos at 720p each month." The Sora 2 app changed that. It counted videos per day, and it also capped how long each one could run, which is why older guides quote both a daily number and a clip length in seconds. Free users went from 10 seconds a clip to 15 in October 2025, and Pro users got 25 seconds on the web, Vice reported.

Why did OpenAI cut Sora's limits and then close it?

OpenAI ran out of patience with the compute bill. Bill Peebles, who led Sora, wrote on X in October 2025: "We thought 30 free gens/day would be more than enough, but clearly we were wrong!" He called the economics "currently completely unsustainable", per Business Insider. A month later he cut free accounts to six a day. He wrote that "our gpus are melting," and CNET reported that Plus and Pro kept their caps.

Then OpenAI gave up on it. On 24 March 2026 a spokesperson told Engadget: "We've decided to discontinue Sora in the consumer app and API." The company pointed to growing demand for compute. Engadget also cited Appfigures data showing new Sora downloads fell 32% from November to December 2025.

How much video can you make a day without Sora?

A free Google account gets the most of any option that prints a number. Google Flow grants 50 credits a day, enough for four 8 second Gemini Omni Flash clips at 720p, about 32 seconds of video. Google's Flow credits page says "you receive 50 Google Flow credits per day", and a paid plan adds a monthly pot on top. We worked out what each allowance buys from the prices vendors listed on 18 October 2026, for the US:

Flow's free credits come with two catches. They don't roll over, and the next 50 arrive a day after you make your first clip, not at midnight. Google also warns: "During peak hours, roughly 2 PM to 5 PM UTC, you may not be able to generate videos without a subscription." Inside the Gemini app there's no count at all. Google's limits page rates video generation "High" in usage cost, and your limit "refreshes every 5 hours until you reach your weekly limit."

Grok and Meta AI make video too, but neither of them prints a daily number. xAI's SuperGrok plans page lists its video features with no count, and Meta's Meta AI and Vibes help center has no limits article. You'll find their caps when you hit them.

Whizi, which publishes this page, sits in the last row, and it isn't the cheap route. Whizi Video AI runs only on Powerhouse at $49.99 a month and spends 20 credits a clip, per Whizi's credits page. Each clip is about 4.8 seconds, so a free Flow clip is longer than ours. Powerhouse makes sense if you'd pay for GPT and Claude in one chat anyway. For video alone, start with Flow.

Can you still download your old Sora videos?

Yes, for now, if you do it soon. OpenAI's help page sends you to sora.chatgpt.com/sunset, where you select Export and get an email when the file is ready. Its advice is blunt: "We recommend you export your Sora content as soon as possible." OpenAI says it may open one final export window and will email you before it does. After that, it will "permanently delete any data associated with your use of Sora."