Arcads AI Review: The Best UGC AI Ad Generator?

I’ve spent hundreds of dollars on testing AI UGC ad generators.

In this post, I will review Arcads, a platform that turns simple product images into authentic UGC ads in minutes.

Spoiler: Arcads is the best AI UGC generator right now.

👉 Get the best offer here

Let’s go!

Disclaimer: This post has affiliate links at no cost to you.

My Results

Before the review, let me quickly show you my results with Arcads.

Here’s a simple UGC ad I made:

Here’s an unboxing video I did:

Here’s another UGC ad:

And here’s a regular ad that I did as well:

Isn’t that epic?

But now, let’s jump into a detailed review of this platform.

My Experience

Let me start by showing what it’s like to use this tool.

#1 Onboarding

To use it, first, you have to sign up.

But then, right off the bat, you need to pay for it.

I think this is a huge miss.

But at the same time, I get it. This technology is so expensive that this firm would probably never be profitable on a free trial. That’s just my guess. I don’t see any other reason for not letting users try it first.

Also, I have seen this as a common pattern in all AI ad generators. There are no good ones that offer a free trial.

#2 Dashboard

Nonetheless, once you’ve signed up, you can start creating projects on your dashboard.

#3 Script-Writing

To create UGC ads, all you need is a script.

You can use ChatGPT to make one or just whip one up yourself.

Then you can send it to Arcads with the chat feature.

However, remember to check all the options for different types of ad videos with different voices and AI models.

Just as an example, I started by creating a traditional ad with the following prompt:

Ever wish your tennis tee looked good off the court too?

Most tennis shirts scream, ‘I just left practice.’ Not exactly what you want when you’re grabbing coffee after a match.

This one’s different — it’s built for the game, but looks clean enough for brunch, errands, or just chilling courtside.

Serve style and comfort. Tap the link and get yours now.

#4 Sending Product Images

Then you can also send an image of the product to the AI.

This way, the AI knows what your product looks like, and it can place it in the video.

Then hit send and wait.

One thing that annoyed me was that the AI didn’t say how long it would take to finish the ad.

After waiting a few minutes, it was finally done. But with longer and more complex ads, you might have to wait longer.

Also, if there’s a lot of demand, the servers might be crowded.

#5 Example Result

Here’s the first ad I made:

I love how this turned out.

It feels real, sounds natural, and came out exactly how I wanted.

It’s just cut short. I noticed I used 8 seconds even though I could have done 12.

#6 UGC Ads

Let’s move on to the UGC side of Arcads, which is why we came here in the first place.

To do this, you need to pick the Talking Actors feature from the list.

There’s a huge list of viral TikTok/Reels-style actors you can choose from.

The filters help you find what you’re looking for more easily.

I chose Thomas as my actor.

I hit send and waited for a couple of minutes for the ad to create again.

Here’s my result:

That looks amazing. It feels just like one of those viral TikToks.

The only downside with this mode is that you can’t, for example, place a product in the person’s hands while they’re talking.

Other than that, this is such an impressive piece of tech.

#8 Upgrade After Upgrade…

By the way, this was a bit annoying, but the “cheaper” $100-$200 plans are very limited.

For example, if you want to use a Pro AI actor, you’ll need to upgrade to the Pro plan. Most of the AI actors fall into this range, sadly.

Here’s what the pricing for that looks like:

I didn’t like this. Especially since there’s literally no way to test those.

Without any kind of trial, I’d have to pay over $2,000 just to see if there’s something cool worth using… I hate it now that I think about it more.

Also, the $100 plan only gives you around 10–20 videos per month. That’s not much, especially since you usually need a few tries to get the perfect result.

Still, for UGC ads, it’s pretty solid. Most of the time, the AI gets it right within a couple of attempts. But that’s still roughly $50 per video.

Creating an Ad: Step-by-Step Guide

In the earlier examples, the AI-generated UGC ads look cool, but something is missing: edits and b-roll.

Right now, it’s just a person talking, which is boring.

You could film the same thing on your phone in 30 seconds without paying hundreds of dollars for having to wait for the AI to render it.

• That kind of video is hard to watch all the way through.
• It also doesn’t make sense to talk about a product we can’t even see.

So, we need something more.

In this part, I will show you how I created an ad from scratch that’s not just a boring single-view person talking.

If you prefer a video version, I just made one:

Or if you prefer reading, feel free to continue.

To make the UGC ads stand out, Arcads offers two useful features: Unboxing POV and Show Your App.

Let’s use these to make a UGC ad for this smartwatch:

First, let’s create a script that follows this format:

Hook → Problem → Solution → Benefits → CTA

I’ll just ask ChatGPT to do it for me.

Here’s the script that it came up with:

Why do most smartwatches look like computers strapped to your wrist?

I wanted something that actually looked good — then I found the Pulse Pro.

It’s sleek, titanium, with a leather loop band with a bright and clean screen.

It tracks everything, lasts a week on one charge, and still looks like a real watch.

It’s affordable! Just click the link to buy it.

That looks good! Let’s roll with it.

Now, I’ll enter that script into the view.

By the way, I recommend clicking the “Add Speech Emotion” feature. This adds some liveliness to your scripts.

Instead of speaking monotonously, the AI will follow these expression styles and read the following sentence in those.

Lastly, let’s pick an actor.

I like Verity for an ad like this:

Then, let’s generate the UGC ad.

Here’s what I got back:

As you can see, it looks realistic, but it’s boring.

Now, let’s use the Unboxing POV feature and the Show Your App feature to make it shine.

The Unboxing POV feature allows you to upload an image of a product, and the AI will create a video of the actor unboxing the product.

To use this feature, pick “Unboxing POV” from the list and drop your product image to the view:

Then pick a template.

This allows you to set the scene where the unboxing happens.

Then, just hit send and wait.

Here’s my result:

As you can see, it’s pretty well-made. It has been edited in a trendy unboxing style.

There are just some minor flaws. For example, when the actor takes the watch into her hands, it lacks the wristband.

But the good part is that you don’t need to take everything into use. I’ll show you how to get around this in just a second.

But now, we can do one more thing to make the ad a bit more interesting.

That is, the Show Your App feature.

In this mode, the AI actor shows the landing page of the product on her phone to the camera.

To use it, just choose Show Your App from the list.

Pick the same actor from the list you used before, and choose which app show mode you want.

Then hit send and wait.

Here’s the result I got for my watch:

Awesome!

Now we just need to combine these three videos into one.

To do this, you can use any basic free video editor out there.

(It’s annoying you can’t do this in Arcads.)

To edit it well, drop the main UGC ad clip to the timeline. Then drop the unboxing and app scenes on top of it.

• Place the unboxing scene right around the time when the actor mentions the product for the first time.
• Place the landing page part at the end, where the actor mentions buying the product.

Here’s what my video editor timeline looks like:

Notice that I also cut a lot of the unboxing video out since it was mostly useless or boring. But I kept the necessary parts. I think the original clip was 15 seconds, and I kept about 3–4 seconds.

Feel free to make adjustments like this to make it make the most sense.

Here’s my final result:

Looks a lot better than the original clip, huh?

So that’s how you create UGC ads with Arcads.

It’s pretty cool already, and I can definitely see some firms having a lot of fun with it. Also, it can be a time/money saver on ads like this.

It’s by no means perfect yet.

I wish you’d never have to leave the app to for example do edits.

Also, I wish there were a lot more options for the actors to showcase the products.

Right now, it’s not even possible to make the actor hold the product in their hands.

👉 Try Arcads

But now, let’s recap this review into the core features, pros, cons, and alternatives.

Key Features

Let’s recap the core features of Arcads AI:

• Turn any script into a video ad using AI actors
• Choose from over 300 avatars with different looks and styles
• Add your own voice or use text-to-speech
• Generate several ad versions at once
• Adjust voice speed, tone, and emotion
• Works in multiple languages

Pros

• Super fast to make videos
• Way cheaper than hiring UGC creators
• Good mix of actors and voice options
• Looks realistic enough for TikTok or Reels
• Lets you test a bunch of versions quickly
• Lip sync and audio are pretty solid

Cons

• Some features don’t always work like they’re shown
• Limited ways to show real products
• No option to edit your videos
• A few voices still sound a bit robotic
• Pricing is steep, and there’s no free trial
• Feels a bit like it’s still in beta; not everything works smoothly

Pricing

You can’t find the price information on the homepage, but you’ll find it as you sign up.

• Starter Plan: €100 per month
• Creator (Popular) Plan: €200 per month
• Pro Plan: Custom pricing (contact for details)

Also, notice that you have to upgrade to even higher-tier plans that are not visible on this pricing page if you want to use the PRO models.

Here’s what those plans look like:

👉 Try Arcads

Benefits of Using AI for UGC Ads

The biggest advantage of AI-generated UGC ads is how fast they are to make.

You can create and test several versions in just minutes instead of waiting weeks for human creators.

It’s also a lot cheaper since you don’t need to hire anyone or film new footage. Once your script is done, each video costs almost nothing to produce.

AI also helps keep your brand consistent. Every video sticks to the same tone, message, and look, without the risk of different creators interpreting it their own way.

Testing becomes easier, too. You can tweak a few lines or visuals and quickly see which version performs best.

And because tools like Arcads support many languages, making localized versions for different markets is super simple.

Drawbacks of Using AI for UGC Ads

The biggest downside is authenticity.

Real people still feel more genuine and relatable, and AI just can’t fully capture real emotion or humor yet.

Some clips might look a bit off or miss that natural human feel.

And let’s be honest: The AI doesn’t really add any “new value” to the internet. It’s limited by what already exists, and even at its best, it only gets close to that level.

To truly stand out, AI won’t get you there.

There’s also the trust factor. If people notice the ad was made with AI, it can hurt credibility.

Also, these AI tools look cheap on the surface, but what you don’t see are the limitations and countless iterations you have to do to get one successful ad.

To Take Home

Arcads.ai is easily one of the best tools right now for making UGC-style ads quickly.

It’s not perfect, but it saves a ton of time and money if you use it the right way.

If you’re looking to scale your ads, try new hooks, or test creative angles before bringing in real creators, Arcads is definitely worth a shot.

You can use it to build a quick test campaign, see what performs best, and then have a team take those winning ideas to the next level.

👉 Try Arcads

If you’re looking for alternatives, check this post.