Deepgram alternatives
6 audio tools in the same lane as Deepgram, ranked by editorial score.
AS
AssemblyAI
Audio · Universal / Slam-1
8.7
Speech-to-text API with diarisation, summarisation, and topic detection.
Freemium· Pre-recorded Speech-to-Text API: $0.21 /hr · Universal-2: $0.15 /hr · Realtime Speech-to-Text API: $0.45 /hr · Universal-Streaming: $0.15 /hr · Universal-Streaming Multilingual: $0.15 /hrtranscriptiondiarisation
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
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
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
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
EA
EKHOS AI
Audio · Proprietary local models
6.8
Offline Windows transcription app with speaker diarization, GPU acceleration, and 98-language support.
Freemium· Premium: $9transcriptionspeaker-diarization