Google’s Gemini 3.5 Transcribe is an audio-to-text model for uploaded recordings; a separate gemini-3.5-transcribe-live model handles streaming. For a file, send its URI and MIME type to gemini-3.5-transcribe through the Gemini Interactions API. Then choose verbatim or smart output and enable only the extra features your workflow needs: vocabulary hints, speaker labels, or word-level timestamps.
Which Gemini 3.5 Transcribe model should you use?
Use gemini-3.5-transcribe for transcription from an audio file. For streaming audio, Google documents the separate gemini-3.5-transcribe-live model. These are distinct workflows, not two names for the same model. Google’s model reference lists the model capabilities and limits; its transcription guide explains file requests.
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How do you transcribe an audio file?
The documented file workflow uploads audio, then passes the returned file URI and its MIME type in a request to gemini-3.5-transcribe via the Interactions API. Google provides examples for Python, JavaScript, and REST in its audio transcription guide. The exact request fields can change, so use the current example for your chosen language rather than copying an older API snippet.
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Choose a language setting
When language_codes is omitted or empty, the API can automatically detect the language. If you know the language, you can provide a BCP-47 language code as a hint. Google documents automatic detection across more than 85 locales; this is a stated capability, not an independent accuracy benchmark. The guide also documents support for code-switching, when speakers switch between languages.
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Check the audio format and duration
Google documents support for WAV, MP3, AIFF, AAC, OGG, FLAC, MPEG, M4A, L16, Opus, ALAW, MULAW, and WebM. The model reference lists a maximum of one hour per file request, reduced to 30 minutes when speaker diarization or word-level timestamps are enabled. Those limits make the feature choice a practical part of planning long recordings.
Should you choose verbatim or smart transcription?
| Mode | What Google documents | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Verbatim | Preserves fillers, repetitions, pauses, and false starts. | A faithful record, such as source material where spoken wording matters. |
| Smart | Removes disfluencies, resolves some spoken self-corrections, and applies formatting and grammatical cleanup. | Readable text when a polished transcript is more useful than a close rendering of every utterance. |
Smart mode changes how speech is represented; it is not simply a different display of the same verbatim transcript. Choose verbatim when fidelity to what was said matters, and smart when readability is the priority. Google documents smart mode as incompatible with speaker diarization and word-level timestamps.
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Can it add speaker labels and timestamps?
Speaker diarization
Diarization assigns portions of a transcript to speakers. Google documents support for up to eight speakers, but attribution for recordings with three or more speakers is experimental. Treat labels as a feature to review, particularly for multi-person recordings, rather than as guaranteed identification.
Word-level timestamps
Word-level timestamps are available in verbatim mode. Google warns that enabling them may degrade transcription accuracy, so use them when aligning words to audio is important enough to justify that trade-off. Timestamps also trigger the shorter 30-minute file-request limit.
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Which features can be combined?
Plan around the model’s feature conflicts before sending a request. Google documents these combinations:
- Custom vocabulary: Cannot be combined with speaker diarization or word-level timestamps.
- Speaker diarization: Cannot be combined with custom vocabulary or smart mode.
- Word-level timestamps: Cannot be combined with custom vocabulary or smart mode; Google also cautions that timestamping may degrade transcription accuracy.
- Smart mode: Cannot be combined with speaker diarization or word-level timestamps.
For example, a transcript that needs specialized names plus speaker labels cannot use both custom vocabulary and diarization in one request. Likewise, smart cleanup and word-level timestamps are not a supported pairing. Decide which output requirement is essential, then configure the request accordingly.
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When is custom vocabulary useful?
Custom vocabulary can help with specialized terms, names, or phrases that may be unfamiliar from audio alone. Google documents a maximum of 1,000 phrases, while saying results are typically best with up to 100 terms. Because vocabulary hints conflict with diarization and word-level timestamps, they suit terminology-focused transcripts more than workflows requiring those other features.
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For streaming, use gemini-3.5-transcribe-live rather than the file model. Google lists a maximum live session length of 10 minutes in its model reference. A long recording intended for file processing follows the separate file-request limits; a live session should not be assumed to accept the same duration.
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How should you choose a configuration?
- For a close record of speech, choose verbatim and leave optional features off unless needed.
- For clean, readable prose, choose smart mode and do not request diarization or word-level timestamps.
- For speaker attribution, select diarization, use verbatim, and keep the recording within the 30-minute limit when diarization is enabled.
- For word-aligned text, choose verbatim with timestamps, account for the 30-minute limit, and review the transcript because Google warns accuracy may be affected.
- For domain-specific terminology, add custom vocabulary, keeping the list near the range Google says typically works best, and omit diarization and word-level timestamps.
These are documented options and constraints from Google, not a promise of a particular transcription quality. The official materials cited here do not provide an independent accuracy benchmark.
Quick Recap
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