AssemblyAI alternatives
6 audio tools in the same lane as AssemblyAI, ranked by editorial score.
WH
WhisperAPI
Audio · OpenAI Whisper
6.9
Hosted OpenAI Whisper transcription with a pay-as-you-go API and drop-in web dashboard.
Paid· 20 API Credits: $5 · 100 API Credits: $20 · 200 API Credits: $30 · Custom: $100.00audio-transcriptionvideo-subtitles
DE
Deepgram
Audio · Nova, Flux, Speak (proprietary)
7.9
Production-grade speech-to-text, text-to-speech, and voice-agent APIs for real-time and batch audio.
Freemium· Free credits on signup; usage-based pricing; enterprise contracts availablespeech-to-texttext-to-speech
VO
VoxAI
Audio · Bring-your-own via MCP (Claude, GPT, or other MCP-compatible clients)
Local macOS conversation recorder with live AI copilot and speaker-labelled transcripts
Paid· FREE TRIAL: US$0 · EARLY BIRD · REGULAR: US$19.90Real-time meeting transcription with speaker labelsLive AI copilot during sales calls and negotiations
FA
Fireflies.ai
Audio · Multi-model (proprietary ASR + LLM layer)
8.2
AI meeting assistant that joins calls, transcribes them, and turns the talk into searchable notes and action items.
Freemium· Basic: $10 · Pro: $20 · Enterprise: Contact salesmeeting transcriptioncall summaries
VI
Vibe
Audio · OpenAI Whisper (via whisper.cpp)
7.2
Offline desktop transcription app powered by Whisper, with diarization, batch processing, and an HTTP API.
Free· Free and open-source (MIT)transcriptionsubtitles
OA
Otter.ai
Audio · Proprietary speech + LLM stack
6.8
AI meeting notetaker that transcribes calls, summarizes them, and pulls out action items in real time.
Freemium· Basic: $20 · Pro: $50 · Enterprise: Contact salesmeeting-transcriptionmeeting-summaries