Avatar quality tiers on a 20 second clip: $3.68, $4.90 or $11.00

A 20 second talking-head clip on Sume costs $3.68 on standard, $4.90 on plus and $11.00 on max, so max is 2.99 times standard and plus is 1.33 times. Plus is the default when quality is omitted. Max is the highest quality tier with slower turnaround, and standard is the fastest path.

What the docs say about each

Sume describes plus as the balanced path, standard as the fastest execution path and max as the highest quality tier with slower turnaround. It publishes no quality score or benchmark for the three, so any claim of how much better max looks is something you measure on your own script.

Measure it cheaply. Render the same 8 second script on all three tiers: standard 8 x 0.184 = $1.472, plus $1.96, max $4.40, for $7.832 in total. Compare them on the device where viewers will watch.

Use the preview to avoid paying twice

Preview stills are tier-independent. After you approve a preview, generate-video can override the quality for the final render only, without a new preview. That means you can approve composition once and choose the tier at the end. A changed script, scene, aspect ratio or avatar still needs a new preview.

The product image adds a small per-second amount on every tier: $0.194, $0.258 and $0.58 per second instead of $0.184, $0.245 and $0.55.

A simple rule

Use standard for drafts, internal clips and anything that is replaced weekly. Use plus for most published clips. Use max only where a face is close to the camera for a long time and the spend is small against the media budget behind it: 20 seconds at max is $11.00, which is $7.32 more than standard.

A budget view

For a series of 52 weekly 20 second clips, standard costs 52 x 3.68 = $191.36 for the year, plus costs 52 x 4.90 = $254.80, and max costs 52 x 11.00 = $572.00. The gap between standard and max is $380.64 a year. Compare that with the cost of an editor's hour rather than with zero.

Most teams land on a mix: standard for the weekly drafts, plus for what they publish, and max for a hero clip.

Keep notes of what you see at each tier on your own script. Write down specific differences, such as how steady the face looks or how natural the mouth shapes are, instead of a general impression. Those notes are the only evidence that justifies a higher tier to whoever approves the budget.