Sora 2 vs. Veo 3.1: which is better?                     

OpenAI’s Sora 2 and Google DeepMind’s Veo 3.1 are available on Artlist for both text-to-video and image-to-video creation. Choosing between them really comes down to your creative needs because while both generate high-quality results, each one is optimized for different outputs.

Here’s the breakdown of how to choose between them.

Creative control 

If you just need one incredible, physics-defying hero shot for a social video, Sora 2 is the clear winner. It handles complex motion, like a backflip on a paddleboard or a dancer’s mid-air spin, really well. This high level of realism makes it ideal for high-impact visual storytelling where the movement is the main focus.

On the flip side, if you’re building a narrative, like a short film or commercial, Veo 3.1 is your best bet. It’s perfect for keeping characters, backgrounds, and objects consistent across multiple clips. It basically solves the “character drift” problem, where a character might end up looking like a completely different person from one shot to the next.

Prompt: An action shot of a contemporary dancer captured at the peak of a powerful mid-air spin. Hyper-realistic skin textures and focused expression. The dancer’s form is defined by sharp, dramatic rim lighting that separates them from a deep black studio background. Faint particles of dust or resin caught in the light beams. Photorealistic, intricate muscle definition, flowing athletic fabric frozen in motion.

Visual signature

Each model has a distinct look based on its training data. Sora 2 feels cinematic, excelling at moody lighting and natural textures that often feature a bit of film grit. This makes it perfect for dramas, music videos, or anything requiring a high-end, atmospheric feel.

Veo 3.1 is more aligned with advertising-grade aesthetics — the visuals are typically bright, clean, and sharp. If you’re working on a product reveal or a corporate video where everything needs to look polished and perfect, Veo 3.1’s high-key look is a better fit.

Integrated audio 

Ambiance is where Sora 2 shines. It leans heavily into high-fidelity realism, which means the sounds feel baked into the environment. For example, if you generate a shot of a barista steaming milk, you’ll hear the high-pitched hiss of the steam wand perfectly timed to the visual cues. This realism extends to spatial audio, where sound levels shift naturally as the camera moves closer to or further from the subject. 

Veo 3.1 takes on more of an audio engineer role by focusing on narrative control and soundstage directing. This allows you to be much more specific with your sound design in the prompt, where you can dictate room tones, specific dialogue, and timed sound effects with high precision. It’s also great for audio continuity, since it can keep a specific voice or background atmosphere consistent across multiple scene extensions.

Prompt: Shot of a barista’s hands steaming milk in a stainless steel pitcher. A chrome wand creates a swirling microfoam whirlpool with rising steam. Backlit by warm golden light, cinematic depth of field and photorealistic.

Performance and cost

In terms of speed, Sora 2 is generally the faster model, optimized for quick iterations so you can see your ideas come to life almost instantly. Both models use a credit system, but Veo 3.1 offers an additional Fast mode. This is a great, cost-effective option for high-volume projects where quality and details are less essential.

Technical specs 

Sora 2 currently supports clips up to 10 seconds and excels at high-definition 1080p output in landscape, portrait, or square aspect ratios. Veo 3.1 is built for precision. Like Sora, it fully supports 1080p and all standard social and cinematic aspect ratios.

Constraints

While powerful, both models have their flaws. Neither will generate recognizable public figures, copyrighted characters, or sensitive content. Sora 2 occasionally struggles with very long and complex prompts, sometimes deviating from the original instruction if the text is too wordy. Veo 3.1 is highly precise in following instructions, but its motion can sometimes feel a bit stiff or rigid compared to the more fluid, artistic movement found in Sora.

The bottom line: Sora 2 vs Veo 3.1

Choosing between Sora 2 and Veo 3.1 really comes down to what you’re trying to make. If you’re after high-impact visuals where the wow factor of the movement is the main event, Sora 2 should be your pick. Its ability to handle complex physics makes it the go-to model for those singular, cinematic shots that need to look and feel real.

However, if you are building a larger world that requires technical precision and shot-to-shot reliability, Veo 3.1 is the more dependable workhorse. Its focus on continuity and ad-ready clarity makes it ideal for professional brand work and narrative storytelling, where the details need to stay exactly where you put them.

A combination of both could also be great for a hybrid workflow — using Sora 2 for moody, atmospheric openers and complex action, then switching to Veo 3.1 for narrative-heavy tasks, like character dialogue and product close-ups, to ensure total consistency. Both models are fully integrated into Artlist, and any output you generate with Sora 2 or Veo 3.1 is covered by your license. This means your videos are royalty-free and cleared for commercial use from the jump, so all you need to do is start creating.