Tolstoy review (2026): is it worth $16 a month, billed yearly?
AI studio for ecommerce product videos, ads and shoppable video
Black Friday: is there a Tolstoy sale?
Tolstoy report card
Weak · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for AI product photos, ads and shoppable video for online stores
Tolstoy is an AI suite for online stores: product photos and video, ad creative, shoppable video and AI agents. Plus starts at $16 a workspace on yearly billing with capped credits and viewers, extra seats are $20 each, and the pricing page lists no free plan.
Who Tolstoy is for
- Fits if you run an online store and want product photos and ads made with AI
- Works for teams that want shoppable video on product pages
Who Tolstoy is not for
- Skip it if you want a free plan, since none is listed on the pricing page
- Pricey if you add people, at $20 a seat a month on Plus and Business
- Watch out: video viewers are counted separately, and extra ones cost $10 per 1,000 on Plus
- Watch out: credits drain at different rates for different models and actions
- Skip it if you sell nothing online, because it is built for stores
Why Tolstoy gets a 1.6
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for moneyPlus is $16 a workspace a month billed yearly ($20 monthly), which sits level with the category's $14 middle. Business is $80, and extra seats cost $20 each.
- FFree plan and trialThe pricing page lists no free plan or trial. The homepage says Start for free, but its terms weren't confirmed.
- CFeaturesMedia Studio, Ads Studio, Storefront Studio and Shop Bots. Credits aren't a fixed number of photos or videos, so what a plan buys is hard to predict.
- CEase of useNo store rating on record. Connecting your store, setting up bots and learning the credit system comes first.
- CPlatforms and integrationsWeb only, with Meta the only integration listed.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Tolstoy's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
Make Tolstoy? Put this grade on your site
Paste this where you want the badge. It links here and follows the grade if it changes. About badges
<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/tolstoy#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/tolstoy.svg" alt="Tolstoy: 1.6 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Tolstoy stands among screen recording and video tools
Tolstoy's GPA of 1.6 is higher than 1 of the 133 other screen recording and video tools we grade, and level with 6.
It stands best on value for money (C, above 20 of 133) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $16 a month, against a middle price of $12.25 for the category: 56 of the 88 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. 51 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 134 screen recording and video tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Tolstoy’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 20 of 133, level with 66
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 133, level with 13
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 133, level with 77
- CEase of useAbove 2 of 133, level with 84
- CPlatforms and integrationsAbove 17 of 133, level with 49
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 102 screen recording and video tools. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Keep Tolstoy, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Tolstoy you would be making a video model, which you can rent by the second but not make. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 126 of the 133 other screen recording and video tools grade higher. It costs $192 a year.
What you could not
- A video model, which you can rent by the second but not make.
- Ad images and videos made to each network's sizes.
- A chatbot builder hooked into the messaging apps.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
What this rests on. Tolstoy’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Tolstoy?
Tolstoy is an AI platform for online stores. Media Studio creates product photos and videos, Ads Studio prepares ads and Meta campaigns, and Storefront Studio adds shoppable video, virtual try-on and a shopping assistant. Shop Bots are AI agents that do work a team reviews.
Worth knowing
- Usage is capped monthly: AI credits, plus video viewers counted separately; extra viewers cost $10 per 1,000 on Plus and $7 on the first two Business steps.
- Credits are not a fixed number of photos or videos; models and actions use different amounts.
- Extra team members cost $20 per seat a month on Plus and Business.
- The homepage offers Start for free, but the pricing page lists no free plan; its terms were not confirmed.
Key features
- Media Studio
- Creates product photos, reshoots, colorways, videos and creator-style content.
- Ads Studio
- Turns content into ad creative and Meta campaigns, including creative refreshes.
- Storefront Studio
- Adds virtual try-on, shoppable video and a Personal Shopper assistant to a store.
- Shop Bots
- AI agents for roles such as creative director or ads manager, whose work the team reviews and approves.
- Forward
- Hands-on setup and workshops from Tolstoy's team, an add-on to Business and included in Enterprise.
Tolstoy pricing
As of Nov 13, 2026, Tolstoy is a paid product, starting at $16 per workspace / month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly).
- Starts at
- $16 per workspace / month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- None listed
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Plus | $16per workspace / month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly) | 4,000 AI credits a month (3,000 Studio, 1,000 Onsite AI) and 5,000 video viewers a month; extra viewers $10 per 1,000. |
| Business | $80per workspace / month, billed annually ($100 billed monthly) | 20,000 AI credits and 25,000 video viewers a month; steps at $160 and $400 a month billed annually add credits and viewers. Studio credit top-ups available. |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom usage and contracts, security and permission controls, bot versioning, custom integrations, and Tolstoy Forward included. |
Read from gotolstoy.com on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Tolstoy before you buy.
Ways to pay less
- Annual discountYearly billing lowers the monthly price
Plus is $16 a month billed yearly ($192) against $20 monthly; the Business steps are $80, $160 and $400 against $100, $200 and $500.
Stated on gotolstoy.com
Works with
Tolstoy alternatives
- Tolstoy vs HeyGen
Free plan · from $24/mo
- Tolstoy vs Synthesia
Free plan · from $14/mo
- Tolstoy vs VEED
Free plan · from $25/mo
- Tolstoy vs Wave.video
Free plan · from $16/mo
- Tolstoy vs Captions
Free plan · from $4.99/mo
Common questions
Does Tolstoy have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Tolstoy is listed for Web.
Does Tolstoy have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Tolstoy is listed for Web.
Is Tolstoy open source?
Tolstoy is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026.
