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Best Transcription Software in 2026

Transcription software turns recorded speech into text, but the useful details vary by workflow. Compared on languages supported, included minutes, speaker identification and timestamp support, these entries also differ in export formats and API access. Free plans and paid-from pricing provide cost context. Notta, Simon Says and Happy Scribe are among the names to consider, alongside Superwhisper and Amazon Transcribe. Think about the recordings you need to process and where the transcript will go afterward; the listed language, output and integration details can help you compare options for that work.

46 apps
Research read 23 Sept 2026
How the order is worked out

1

oTranscribe

Free plan Open source Self-hostedWeb

oTranscribe is a manual transcription workspace with useful playback controls and several export options.

8.5 Free plan Visit site
2

Whisper

Free plan Open source APILinuxMac+2

Whisper provides multilingual speech-processing capabilities as locally installable, MIT-licensed code and model weights.

8.5 Open source Visit site
3

AssemblyAI

Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb

AssemblyAI offers a broad set of speech capabilities and usage-based plans, with a free tier subject to stated limits.

7.5 From $0.15 Visit site
4

Azure AI Speech
by Azure AI Speech
Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb

7.5 Free plan Visit site
5

Express Scribe

Free plan APILinuxMac+1

Choose Express Scribe if you need a transcription player with timestamps, configurable playback controls and dictation handling across desktop platforms.

7.5 Free plan Visit site
6

f4transkript
by f4transkript
Free plan LinuxMacWeb+1

f4 combines transcription, correction and qualitative analysis tools in one interface, with both automatic and manual workflows.

7.5 From €25 Visit site
7

Amazon Transcribe

Free plan APIWeb

Amazon Transcribe covers live and batch speech transcription, with language, speaker, and privacy features.

7.4 From $0.01 Visit site
8

Buzz

Free plan LinuxMacWindows

Buzz brings multiple transcription inputs, transcript tools, and export formats into a free desktop app. Check its hardware requirements and operating-system notes before choosing it.

7.4 Free plan Visit site
9

easytranscript

Free plan LinuxMacWindows

easytranscript pairs manual editing tools with automatic transcription on paid plans. The free Test version is limited to manual work, while online audio processing uses Microsoft Azure and Gladia.

7.4 Free plan · paid from €5/mo Visit site
10

Gladia
by Gladia
Free plan APIMacWeb+1

7.4 From $0.61 Visit site
11

Happy Scribe

Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+1

Happy Scribe combines transcription, translation, meeting connections, and AI-assisted tools, with support for individual and team workflows.

7.4 Free plan Visit site
12

FOLKER

Free plan LinuxMacWindows

FOLKER is a free transcription editor centered on research and teaching corpus work. Its cGAT support and EXMARaLDA interoperability are relevant to users handling spoken German transcripts.

7.3 Free plan Visit site
13

Google Cloud Speech-to-Text

Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb

Speech-to-Text offers multiple recognition modes, language support, and developer interfaces for application integration.

7.3 From $0.00 Visit site
14

Notta
by Notta
Free plan AndroidExtensioniPhone+3

Notta combines meeting capture and file transcription with summaries, action items, and multiple export formats.

7.3 Free plan · paid from $8.17/user/mo (annual) · 7-day trial Visit site
15

ElevenLabs
by ElevenLabs
Free plan APIWeb

7.2 Free plan · paid from $6/mo Visit site
16

ELAN
by ELAN
Free plan LinuxMacWindows

ELAN provides detailed, time-aligned annotation tools for audio and video, with a free version for three desktop operating systems.

7.1 Free plan Visit site
17

IBM Watson Speech to Text
by IBM Watson Speech to Text
Free plan APISelf-hosted

7.1 Free plan Visit site
18

noScribe
by noScribe
Free plan LinuxMacWindows

noScribe offers local transcription, speaker recognition, and an editor suited to reviewing interview recordings.

7.1 Free plan Visit site
19

Simon Says
by Simon Says
Free plan ExtensioniPhoneMac+3

Choose Simon Says if you need multilingual transcription with transcript editing and exports to video, document, or subtitle formats.

7.1 Free plan · paid from $15/user/mo (annual) Visit site
20

Superwhisper

Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+3

Superwhisper offers cross-app dictation, context-aware formatting, and an offline on-device option. Review the trial limit and cloud-model handling if you plan to use cloud processing.

7.1 Free plan · paid from $8.49/mo Visit site
21

FileToText
by FileToText
Free plan API

Choose FileToText if you need speaker-aware transcripts with word-level timestamps, synced playback and multiple export formats.

7.0 From $10/mo Visit site
22

InqScribe
by InqScribe
Free plan MacWindows

InqScribe combines local transcription with editing, playback, and caption export tools. Its license choices differ in duration and purpose, so users should check which option fits their work.

7.0 Free plan · paid from $10 · 7-day trial Visit site
23

MacWhisper
by MacWhisper
Free plan iPhoneMac

MacWhisper covers transcription, meeting recording, dictation, and transcript workflows, with a free plan and a paid one-time Pro option.

7.0 Free plan · paid from €64 Visit site
24

Sarvam AI Speech to Text
by Sarvam AI Speech to Text
Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb

Sarvam offers multiple output modes and processing routes, with speaker identification available in Batch and streaming over WebSocket.

7.0 From ₹30 Visit site
25

Sonal π
by Sonal π
Free plan LinuxMacWindows

Pick Sonal π if you want free, open-source corpus-based qualitative research tools across desktop operating systems.

7.0 Free plan Visit site

#1Places #1, #2, #3, #4, #5 on this list can be bought by the makers of the software on it. See the price

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