The official answer to how long a Pika video can be sits in one FAQ section, and it comes in three tiers. Pikaframes reaches twenty-five seconds. Other Pika 2.2 generations land at five or ten. Everything else stops at five.
That is the whole ladder, and the pages competing for this question miss the top of it. Most say ten seconds, because they were written for Pika 2.2 and never revised.
The short answer
The FAQ answers its own question, “How long can Pika videos be?”, in three sentences. “For Pika Model 2.2, Pikaframes generations can be up to 25 seconds. Other Model 2.2 generations (image-to-video, text-to-video or Pikascenes) can be either 5 or 10 seconds. All other models and features have 5 seconds long generations.”
Read that as a default and two exceptions. Five seconds is the baseline, the five-or-ten pair belongs to the Pika 2.2 generation types, and Pikaframes is the only feature the FAQ puts at twenty-five.
Every duration Pika publishes
The pricing page confirms the FAQ and goes further, because it gives a duration per feature rather than per model.
| Feature | Duration |
|---|---|
| Pikaffects | 5s |
| Pikascenes | 5s |
| Pikatwists | 5s |
| Pikadditions and Pikaswaps | 5s |
| Text-to-Video and Image-to-Video, Model 2.5 | 5s, 10s |
| Pikaframes, Model 2.5 | 5s, 10s, 10-15s, 15-20s, 20-25s |
| Pikaformance | Up to 10s, up to 30s |
Five seconds is the platform default
Four of the seven rows stop at five seconds, and they are the features with the least control over motion: a fixed effect, a scene built from references, a twist on existing footage, an inserted object.
Restyling an existing clip is where the Pika 2.5 walkthrough matters most, since the source footage already sets the pace.
The two features past ten seconds
Pikaframes and Pikaformance. Pikaframes gets there by chaining ordered keyframes: five slots, ending at 20-25s. Pikaformance is different in kind, because its row carries audio and its two slots read “Up to 10s” and “Up to 30s”, priced at 3 credits per second rather than per generation.
Every other row is priced per run, which is why the credit and cost breakdown treats Pikaformance separately.
Resolution, model by model
The FAQ lists resolution the same way the matrix lists duration: one line per model or feature, with the Turbo and Pro split spelled out where it applies.
| Model or feature | Resolution |
|---|---|
| Pika 2.2 | 720p or 1080p |
| Pika 2.1 | 1080p |
| Pika 1.5 (Pikaffects) | 720p |
| Pika Turbo | 720p |
| Pikadditions | 720p (Turbo) or 1080p (Pro) |
| Pikaswaps | 720p (Turbo) or 1080p (Pro) |
| Pikatwists | 720p (Turbo) or 1080p (Pro) |
Two absences stand out: no line for Pika 2.5, though the pricing matrix is written entirely for Model 2.5, and no mention of 480p at all.
Why 480p is on the pricing page only
The credits matrix carries a 480p column for Text-to-Video and Image-to-Video, Pikascenes, Pikadditions and Pikaswaps, and Pikaframes. The API tells a narrower story: pika/pika-2.5/image-to-video accepts 720p and 1080p, defaulting to 1080p, and pika/pikaframes/image-to-video accepts the same two values.
So 480p is a consumer-side tier, not an API tier. It is also the free plan ceiling, whose card reads “Access to Pika 2.5 (480p only)”. The free plan breakdown works through what that leaves available.
Worked examples for two lengths
Both cases name the fields the API accepts, the matrix row and the price line, so the arithmetic is checkable before you spend anything.
Example 1: a five-second shot
Mode: image to video, Pika 2.5
duration_s: 5
resolution: 1080p
prompt: slow dolly in on a rain-soaked street, neon reflections, steady camera
negative_prompt: text overlays, warped hands, sudden cuts
Pricing matrix: 1080p, 5s slot, 40 credits
API price line: 1080p at $0.06 per secondFive seconds is the default value of duration_s, so leaving the field out gets you this clip. The Pika API reference covers what the job object returns.
Example 2: a ten-second shot
Mode: text to video, Pika 2.5
duration_s: 10
resolution: 720p
prompt: a paper boat drifting along a gutter after rain, continuous tracking shot
negative_prompt: jump cuts, flickering light
Pricing matrix: 720p, 10s slot, 40 credits
API price line: 720p at $0.04 per secondTen seconds is the top of the enum for this endpoint. Doubling the duration doubles the per-second charge, which is why the 720p ten-second slot costs the same 40 credits as 1080p at five.
What duration and resolution cost
Duration and resolution are the only two variables in the consumer matrix: at equal length, the same feature costs more as resolution rises. On the API side the same two variables set the price, since Pika 2.5 bills per second of output.
The pika 2.5 seconds limit phrasing that circulates is a misreading. Pika 2.5 is a model version, not a duration: the shortest slot on any Model 2.5 row is five seconds.
What Pika has not published
There is no single platform-wide maximum. Pika states length per model and per feature, never one ceiling that covers everything.
Pika also does not explain why the FAQ’s resolution list omits Pika 2.5, or why 480p exists in the credits matrix but in neither API enum.
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum Pika video length? Twenty-five seconds, for Pikaframes. Other Model 2.2 types get five or ten; every other feature stops at five.
What resolution does Pika output? It depends on the model. Pika 2.2 gives 720p or 1080p, Pika Turbo 720p, and Pikadditions, Pikaswaps and Pikatwists 720p on Turbo or 1080p on Pro.
Does the API support 480p? No. The resolution enum is 720p and 1080p on both Pika 2.5 and Pikaframes, though the pricing page lists 480p.
Is there a 2.5-second limit? No. Pika 2.5 is a model version. The shortest duration slot on any Model 2.5 row is five seconds.
Can I make a video longer than 25 seconds? No official page publishes a way past the Pikaframes ceiling.
Duration is the easier half of this question, because Pika states it three times over. Resolution is where the pages thin out.