What Is an Explainer Video?
Short answerAn explainer video is a short video, usually 60 to 90 seconds, that explains what a product or service does, who it is for and why it matters, then asks the viewer to take one next step. Most are animated with a voiceover. vpixai makes explainers for $200 for up to 60 seconds and $400 for up to 2 minutes, delivered in 4 days.
Explainer videos sit on homepages, landing pages, sales emails and ads. Their job is to replace a long paragraph with a minute of clear pictures and plain words. This guide covers the main types, the four-part structure most of them follow, where B2B teams use them, and how they differ from product demos and brand films. If you are ready to have one made, see our explainer video production service.
What are the main types of explainer video?
There are eight common styles: 2D animated, character animation, 3D animation, product and UI, whiteboard, kinetic typography, live action and AI cinematic. The right one depends on what you sell and how abstract it is. Here is what each looks like and which ones vpixai makes.
| Type | What it looks like | Best for | Made by vpixai? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2D animated | Flat illustrations, icons and characters in motion | Abstract services, finance, HR, anything without a screen to show | Yes |
| Character animation | Illustrated characters that move and talk, with lip-synced dialogue | Stories told through a customer or a guide, onboarding, people-focused services | Yes |
| 3D animation | 3D scenes and photoreal product renders | Hardware, devices, industrial and deep tech | Yes |
| Product and UI | Your real interface, animated with highlights and zooms | SaaS and software products | Yes |
| Whiteboard | A hand drawing on a white background | Education and step-by-step concepts | Yes |
| Kinetic typography | Animated words and numbers carry the message | Short ads, launches, stats-led messages | Yes |
| Live action | Filmed people, places or physical products | Culture, testimonials, physical products in use | Editing only: we edit footage you supply |
| AI cinematic | Film-like AI-generated scenes, often 3D in feel | Brand films, hardware, industrial and deep tech | Yes |
2D animated
The most common explainer style. Illustrations make an idea concrete when there is nothing physical to film: a funding process, a compliance check, a hiring workflow. The mona explainer for small-business funding is an illustrated example from our portfolio.
Character animation
Illustrated characters carry the story: a customer with a problem, a guide who walks through the steps, or a talking character with lip-synced dialogue. Characters make an abstract service feel human. vpixai builds them with a vector illustration workflow, at the same price as any other style.
3D animation
3D scenes and photoreal product renders show hardware, devices and machines from every angle, without a photo shoot. vpixai builds 3D work in Blender. Our is a 45-second cinematic 3D example.
Product and UI
For software, the clearest picture is the product itself. A UI explainer animates real screens, zooms into the feature that matters and cuts the clicks a viewer does not need. Our 60-second BambooHR walkthrough of Bamboo AI is a product video of this kind, and the conmeet example further down puts the product UI on screen with captions.
Whiteboard
A hand sketches each idea as the narrator speaks. It suits teaching and step-by-step logic. It is less common in B2B marketing today. vpixai makes whiteboard animation at the same price and in the same 4 days as every other style.
Kinetic typography
Words, numbers and short phrases move on screen in time with the voice or music. It works well when the message is a claim or a number, and for ads that must make sense with the sound off.
Live action
Real people on camera build trust and suit products you can hold. It also needs a crew, locations and talent, so it costs more and takes longer. vpixai does not film or shoot, so if you need new live footage, a production company is the better fit. If you already have footage, we can edit it into your video.
AI cinematic
AI-generated scenes with a film-like look: camera moves, lighting and depth that used to need a 3D studio. It suits brand films and products that are hard to film, such as industrial robots.
What is the classic explainer video structure?
Most explainers follow four beats: problem, solution, how it works, call to action. In a 60-second video, each beat gets roughly 10 to 20 seconds. The order matters because a viewer only cares about your solution once they recognise their own problem.
- Problem (about 10 to 15 seconds). Name the pain in the viewer's words. "Quotes take hours" lands harder than "Inefficient workflows".
- Solution (about 10 seconds). Introduce the product as the answer to that pain, in one sentence.
- How it works (about 20 to 30 seconds). Show two or three steps or features, not ten. One idea per scene.
- Call to action (about 5 to 10 seconds). One clear next step: book a demo, start a trial, visit a page.
The first five seconds carry the most weight, especially in ads. On YouTube, viewers can skip a skippable in-stream ad after 5 seconds, according to Google Ads Help, so the problem or the promise needs to appear before then. For more on timing each beat, read our guide on the ideal explainer video length.
Where are explainer videos used?
B2B teams use explainer videos wherever a buyer first meets the product and needs to understand it fast. The same 60-second video can usually be cut for several of these places.
- Homepage and landing pages. Above or just below the headline, so visitors get the idea without scrolling. Google's video SEO guidance recommends embedding video with standard HTML video elements and describing it with structured data, which helps it appear in search.
- Sales emails and follow-ups. A link or thumbnail that lets a prospect forward the explanation to colleagues.
- Paid social and video ads. Shorter cuts for LinkedIn and YouTube. LinkedIn's video ad specifications allow videos from 3 seconds to 30 minutes and recommend 15 to 30 seconds. See our video ad production page for formats.
- Product launches. Announcing a new product, feature or funding round.
- Onboarding and training. Showing new customers or new hires how something works, once, so the support team does not repeat it.
- Investor and partner decks. A minute of video can replace several slides of explanation.
What is the difference between an explainer video, a product demo and a brand film?
An explainer says what the product is and why it matters. A product demo shows how it works. A brand film says who the company is and how it should feel. They answer different questions for buyers at different stages.
| Explainer video | Product demo | Brand film | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Question it answers | What is this and why should I care? | How does it work? | Who are these people? |
| Viewer | New to the product | Evaluating or onboarding | Anyone meeting the brand |
| Typical length | 60 to 90 seconds | 1 to 3 minutes or more | 30 to 90 seconds |
| Main content | Problem, solution, steps, call to action | Real screens and workflows | Mood, story, values |
| vpixai example | conmeet (0:49) | BambooHR (1:00) | YK-Robotics (0:45) |
The lines blur in practice. A good SaaS explainer often borrows real UI from a demo, and a short demo can open with an explainer's problem statement. If you need a walkthrough of features rather than a pitch, our product demo video service is the closer match.
What does a good explainer video look like?
A good explainer is specific: one audience, one problem, one next step. Here is a 49-second example we made for conmeet, a construction software company. Its promise is on screen in one line, "Quotes in minutes, not hours", and the product UI shows a tender file turning into a priced quote. As the title says, the story runs from quote to invoice. On-screen captions carry the message, so it still works with the sound off.
More examples from the same studio:
- BambooHR: a 60-second Bamboo AI product walkthrough (product and UI style)
- All client work, with formats and lengths
Every one of these was made with the same process: a short brief, a script and storyboard for approval, then AI-assisted visuals and voiceover finished by human editors. A video costs $200 for up to 60 seconds and $400 for up to 2 minutes, takes 4 days, and you pay after delivery. For how that compares with other options, see our guide to what an explainer video costs in 2026.
FAQ
What is the purpose of an explainer video?
An explainer video makes a product or service easy to understand quickly. It shows the problem it solves, how it works and what to do next, so a buyer gets the idea in about a minute instead of reading a full page of copy.
How long is an explainer video?
Most B2B explainer videos run 60 to 90 seconds. Ad cuts are often 30 seconds or shorter. vpixai makes videos up to 60 seconds for $200 and up to 2 minutes for $400, and examples in our portfolio run from 30 seconds to 1 minute.
What is the difference between an explainer video and a product demo?
An explainer video answers what the product is and why it matters, usually for people who are new to it. A product demo shows how the product works, feature by feature, usually for people who are already evaluating it.
Are explainer videos always animated?
No. Most are animated because animation is faster to change and can show abstract ideas and software screens clearly. Live-action explainers with real people also exist, but they need filming, which adds cost and time.
How much does an explainer video cost?
A 60-second explainer typically costs $2,000 to $10,000 from a video agency. vpixai makes explainer videos for $200 for up to 60 seconds and $400 for up to 2 minutes, delivered in 4 days, and you pay after delivery.