Need a Talking Avatar? Here Are 10 Options To Go With

Updated: May 04, 2022

Need a talking avatar for your live streams,  videos, or presentations? Perhaps for your website or app? Here is a selection of talking avatar software that will help you jazz up your content.

Just before we jump into that… why should you use a talking avatar?

Let’s just say, the statistics cannot lie – people simply love video content. These days, videos and animations are one of the most powerful marketing tools that engage the audience and keep it interested for longer. And not just speaking in terms of social media content. People prefer watching videos instead of reading text everywhere. They simply accept the information times faster and more efficiently. It’s better to watch a 1-minute video than read a piece of 1000 words, right?

Talking avatars engage the audience in presentations, videos, live streams, and more, and as a result, help you convey your message and achieve your goals. But you already probably knew that. So let’s find out the software options you have.

What talking avatar software to choose?

No matter if you need a talking avatar for your website, live streams, videos, presentations, apps, or something else, this selection of talking avatar tools and software will help you identify the best option for your needs.

1. Adobe Character Animator

• A part of Adobe Creative Cloud
• A free trial of 30 calendar days

Adobe Character Animator is software that has all the arsenal you would need to create a talking avatar or a talking full-body character. The software supports a lip-sync function which you can use with a pre-recorded audio file or animate the character live as you speak on the mic and cam.

Adobe Character Animator works with 2D characters in all kinds of character design styles. Pretty much, you can draw your own character and adjust it for the software, so it detects its mouth, eyes, eyebrows, etc. (a process called rigging). Of course, you can find many pre-made avatars and characters prepared for Adobe Character Animator and ready for animation – these characters are called puppets.

The great thing about Adobe Character Animator is that it allows you to stream live talking avatars on different platforms. The software comes as a part of Adobe Creative Cloud and as such, it is available with a full month of a free trial which is enough to find out if the software is suitable for your needs.

If you are interested in the software, check out our article 16 Beginner Tutorials to Learn Adobe Character Animator.

2. Reallusion Cartoon Animator 4

• Available for Windows and Mac OS
• Standard, Pro, and Pipeline editions (30-day free trial)

Formally known as CrazyTalk, this is one of the most popular software options for creating a talking avatar for your projects. With Cartoon Animator 4, you can create dozens of talking 2D avatars from any photos and images, for professional-level animation and motion editing, allowing you to animate 2D characters with 3D motions.

It can work with .psd files and images and there is a brand new After Effects plugin in the Pipeline version, which incorporates VFX effects, glow effects, color grading, and blur effects alongside some other cool effects. Cartoon Animator 4 uses a technology that animates the face of a character by recreating different facial expressions. The software also achieves smooth lip-syncing through text-to-speech technology, pre-recorded WAV files, or by using the Record function in the software. Available as an additional plugin is new real-time motion capture from a webcam or iPhone as well as full-body motion capture. The software includes rigging tools, character templates, and much more.

Cartoon Animator 4 is available for Windows and Mac OS with 2 different versions: Pro (99$), and Pipeline ($199). The software also provides a 30-day free trial to test out its full capacity. Motion capture is sold separately.

3. Voki

• Free basic version
• Paid plans from $4.99/month (15-day free trial)

Voki is a platform that contains a library of over 200 customizable characters waiting to become your next talking avatar. The platform is oriented towards education and learning and has developed different tools for the needs of teachers and students, each available with a 15-day free trial:

• Voki Presenter – a tool for creating presentations with a talking avatar;
• Voki Classroom – a management tool for teachers allowing them to involve up to 90 students;
• Voki Teach – engaging lessons prepared by teachers;
• Voki Hangouts – a virtual discussion with each student participating with their own talking avatar.

Voki platform is suitable for use by people of all ages and all fields of occupations. However, its main purpose is to help teachers engage students with speaking animated characters and make lessons more comprehensive.
Voki offers a free basic version, as well as licenses for entire schools. The free version is very handy if you’d like to test out the software but you will only have access to a limited set of characters. The advanced versions allow you to create as many characters as you wish, as well as use the full capacity of the provided tools. Voki also comes with a mobile app for Android and iPhone.

4. SitePal

• Paid plans from $11.95/month (15-day free trial)

SitePal is a service that adds an animated character to your website. The talking avatars can also be used in emails, mobile apps, blogs, and even in PowerPoint presentations. The library contains over 250 characters with many customization options. You can choose from full body characters or avatar characters – in 3D photo face style or 2D illustrative style. You can customize the overall look with hairstyles, accessories, different backgrounds, and more options. SitePal lets you create an avatar even from your uploaded photo.

When it comes to making your avatar talk, you have several options. You can upload a pre-recorded audio with your voice, you can use a text-to-speech feature available in more than 25 languages, you can use a professional voice talent, and more. With the online publishing tool offered by SitePal, you can upload your talking character on the web easily, and without any programming knowledge.

The pricing for SitePal starts from $11.95 per month. However, this plan doesn’t include full-body character models, as well as any of the add-on features. If you are going to use SitePal professionally, you should probably go for the Platinum plan which will cost you $249.95 per month but includes all premium features of the software.

5. Living Actor™ Presenter

• Paid plans according to animation length (1 credit = 1 second of animation)
• 15-day free trial (for up to 2-minute animation)

Living Actor™ is software that will create an animated talking avatar with your own text and/or audio file. Once animated, you can download it as a video file and use it in different projects. These could be presentations, websites, emails, training videos, etc. The software offers a diversity of 3D characters and backgrounds. The great thing about this diversity is that each character acts differently – according to their age, culture, and style.

The tool works fully online and the process of ordering a talking avatar for your project is simple. You choose the length of videos you intend to record and purchase credits accordingly. The service has a 15-day free trial and a trial video making up to 2 minutes (with watermarks included).

6. Vyond

• Paid plans from $49/month
• 14-day free trial

Vyond is a great tool for creating engaging 2D video animations for various audiences and purposes: business and marketing, learning and education, and even fun. Vyond offers a huge variety of stock characters, scenes, backgrounds, props, and additional assets like royalty-free music.

Along with all the great features which the tool offers, you can create animation videos with your own talking avatar – including a lip-sync function (according to an audio file) and a dialogue between different characters. There are many character templates you can use and customize according to your taste. Of course, you can import your own graphic assets, as well. The tool comes with a drag-and-drop function to help you create the animation that you aim for fast and easily.

7. People Builder by Media Semantics

• A subscription plan – $10 per month
• Week-long free trial is included (but doesn’t cover publishing a character on a website)

A tool with which you can create a talking avatar on your website which interacts with your users. The animation is not video-based since its purpose is to interact with the user and act in accordance with the user’s actions. Instead, the character behaviors are made of different modules assembled using texture images.

A trial mode is included if you want to test out the tool but it doesn’t support publishing modules on your website. In order to publish your animated character modules on a website, you need to have a subscription plan. Unfortunately, for now, you cannot change the appearance of the premade avatars and characters unless you are using Character API which is the developers’ version of People Builder. The software works with text-to-speech technology and lip-sync technology once you upload your audio. People Builder can also be used on mobile devices.

8. Avatar SDK

• cross-platform
• The subscription plan starts at $400/month ($300/month if paid annually)

Avatar SDK is a tool that generates 3D avatars out of 2D photos and the results are very realistic virtual 3D humans. Avatar SDK is primarily intended to create 3D avatars for games, AR/VR technologies, and mobile apps. The tool can create a 3D avatar that looks like you from just one selfie photo.

Avatar SDK is available in a Cloud version and an Offline version. The latter allows you to create as many avatars as you want and comes with a 1-month trial period. Avatar SDK supports a lipsync function with third-party apps.

9. BuddyPoke App

• Free to install on Android and iOS
• In-app purchases

An app that allows you to create your own custom avatar in a 3D style, animate it and share it across social media. BuddyPoke offers a library of design elements that will help you customize your 3D character according to your taste: hairstyles, eyes, clothes, accessories, and other elements.

The BuddyPoke app is available for Android and iOS. Recently, the app has introduced a new Talking Video feature that lets you record an animation with an avatar of your choice as you speak and share it across social media. The app is free to use but has in-app purchases.

10. VideoPal

• $39 one-time payment
• 30-day money-back guarantee

VideoPal is a technology that allows you to create a talking avatar or character for your website. The tool has a gallery of 2D, 3D, and human characters which can “talk” in 24 languages with a life-like voice (a library of voices also included) and with the help of text-to-speech technology. The character animation plays like a video, so the website visitors can easily pause and play it. The character video also shows a timer, so the viewer knows how much time is left, as well as a button to close the animation.

Besides choosing from pre-made characters and avatars, you can record yourself on a green screen and upload your own video to use as a video welcome message on your website. Even if you use a pre-made animated character, you can record your voice and use it as a voiceover for the animation. The platform also comes with ready-made marketing scripts for you to use.

VideoPal is a one-time purchase. The app is cloud-based and offers unlimited video hosting. It runs on all kinds of browsers and platforms, including mobile devices.

To sum up,

All these software options can help you create a talking avatar but they are quite different at the same time. Some of this software is specifically developed for website talking avatars, others – for presentation talking avatars, and thirds are suitable for all kinds of purposes. Some software options support 2D characters only, others – 3D characters only, and thirds support both formats. Most software options support automatic lipsync from an audio file and text-to-speech technology but some support live lip-sync animation, as well. Well, the choice is in your hands!

Do you have a favorite software for creating a talking avatar? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.

You may also be interested in some of these related articles:

• Animation Trends 2022: Experimental and Open-Minded
• How to Get Easy Animation: From Beginner Animation Tools To Hiring a Professional
• 12 Best Animation Software for Beginners (Premium, Free, and Online)