ElevenLabs launched Instant Soundtracks on October 15, 2026 (post last updated October 19, 2026). Upload a video to ElevenCreative, and the model writes an original score, finds moments that need sound effects, and places those effects on the timeline.
The feature sits at the overlap of AI music and short-form video. It is available in the Music Video Editor in ElevenCreative, Creative Engine, ElevenMusic, and the ElevenCreative Studio API.
What it does
According to ElevenLabs, Instant Soundtracks:
- Scores the uploaded video with original music
- Analyzes the footage for sound-effect cues and places effects at matching timestamps (for example, a whoosh timed to a logo)
- Puts sound effects on separate layers in the Music Video Editor so you can adjust them without rebuilding the score
- Can use the video's existing audio as a reference for genre, crescendos, beats per minute, or instrumentation
- Improves short-form timing around cuts, transitions, and on-screen actions
- Can shift mood across scenes (ElevenLabs gives the example of EDM or R&B in a fast scene, then acoustic guitar in a slower one)
You can add more effects, change timing, swap the music, or refine a single moment, then export from ElevenCreative.
Where it runs and API options
ElevenLabs lists four surfaces:
- Music Video Editor in ElevenCreative's music tab (SFX as a separate layer; audio-as-reference controls)
- Creative Engine (ads)
- ElevenMusic
- ElevenCreative Studio API
The API adds three parameters named in the announcement: add_sfx, separate_tracks, and use_audio_as_reference. With separate_tracks=true, the API returns a ZIP containing music and SFX as separate files for downstream mixing.
The video-to-music API docs describe the same flags on POST /v1/music/video-to-music. Optional description text is capped at 4,100 characters. Optional style tags are capped at 10. Videos are combined in order; the docs warn that combining several clips can lengthen the request and advise combining them beforehand when you can.
Limits
Both the product post and the API docs agree on the per-request caps:
- Up to 10 videos per request
- Combined size up to 200 MB
- Combined length up to 10 minutes (the API docs say 600 seconds)
Pricing (what is and is not stated)
The Instant Soundtracks announcement does not list a price for the feature, and it does not say which subscription plans include it in the product UI.
ElevenLabs' API pricing page lists separate product rates that may apply when you call related endpoints: Eleven Music at $0.15 per minute and Sound Effects at $0.12 per minute (as of October 19, 2026). Those are general API rates, not a dedicated Instant Soundtracks line item. Treat credit use in the app and exact Instant Soundtracks metering as unpublished until ElevenLabs documents them.
Why it matters
Short-form creators and ad teams already stitch music and effects by hand. For other AI tools that fit a YouTube workflow, see our guide to the best AI tools for YouTubers. Instant Soundtracks collapses score and SFX into one pass, then keeps them editable as separate layers. The audio-as-reference option is useful when you want a new score that still matches the feel of temp music already on the clip.
It also pushes ElevenLabs further from pure text-to-speech into full soundtrack tooling, alongside Eleven Music and ElevenCreative. For developers, the ZIP stem export (separate_tracks) is the practical piece: you can keep music and effects under separate faders in your own editor.
What remains open is commercial packaging: plan access in the free tier versus paid, how credits map to Instant Soundtracks runs, and whether Instant Soundtracks has its own rate card beyond Music and Sound Effects minutes.
How it compares to nearby tools
Instant Soundtracks is video-first: music and effects are generated from the clip. That differs from text-prompt music tools such as Suno, which recently added Speech (beta) to generate spoken audio set to original background music from typed text, not from uploaded video. Instant Soundtracks also differs from standalone text-to-speech: the pitch here is a score plus timed SFX on a timeline, not a reading voice alone.
If you only need a voiceover, ElevenLabs' speech products remain the closer fit. If you need a song from a prompt with no video, Eleven Music or a dedicated music generator is still the usual path. Instant Soundtracks is for the case where the picture already exists and you want music and effects attached to it.
