Cheapest transcription software: Price and live editing compared
Author: Mert S. Kaplan · Last updated: November 1, 2026
The cheapest transcription software depends on how you work: the tool that costs least for a few short recordings a month can be expensive for someone transcribing for hours every day. Here we compare eight tools first on price, then on whether you can edit the text while it transcribes. We make LiveType, so we say that up front. That is why the figures come from the same source as our comparison pages, and why we also list where LiveType falls short.
Transcription software prices, side by side
| Product | Starting price | Free use | Transcription time | Editing while it transcribes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LiveType | 140 TRY a month | 30 minutes | Unlimited | Yes |
| UniScribe | $10 a month | 120 minutes a month | Limited to 1200 minutes per month | No |
| Voiser | 60 minutes for 119 TRY | 15 minutes | 60 minutes | No |
| Wave | $15 a month | 30 minutes of recording a month | Unlimited | No |
| Sonix | $25 a month | 30 minute | 5 hours a month | No |
| VoiceDocs | 70 TRY an hour | 20 minutes | By the package bought 1–100 hours | No |
| Transkriptor | $9.99 a month | 90 minutes for a day | 2,400 minutes a month | No |
| TurboScribe | $20 a month | 3 files a day, up to 30 minutes each | Unlimited | No |
Details of other tools come from their own websites and may have changed. The date checked and the source links are on the comparison page that opens from each tool’s name. See the current price on the tool’s own site before you buy.
Try it on your own recording
No card needed. 30 minutes of transcription on the free plan.
How to read the price
The lowest number is not always the best deal. Four questions help:
- Subscription or package? UniScribe, Wave, Sonix, Transkriptor, TurboScribe and LiveType charge monthly. Voiser and VoiceDocs sell the time you buy. For irregular work a package can make more sense, for steady work a subscription.
- How much time for the money? A starting price says little alone, so read it with the Transcription time column. Work out your monthly minutes and put the two columns side by side.
- Which currency? The table mixes Turkish lira (TRY) and US dollars. What a dollar plan costs you depends on the exchange rate.
- Is the free use enough? On some tools the free time renews every month, on others it is given once. LiveType’s free time does not renew. That matters both for trying a tool and for getting work done with it.
Who lets you edit during transcription?
Most tools take a file, do the job and hand over the text at the end. That is fine for an interview you will go through this evening. It is not fine if you are writing a story during a press conference, or sharing the text the moment a meeting ends.
In our table, only LiveType shows this feature. A finished sentence lands in the editor at once, you fix a misheard name right there, and the new text the engine writes does not disturb your correction. We describe how this works in a newsroom on the edit while transcribing page. Correcting a transcript afterwards is a different thing, and most tools offer it.
Which kind of tool for which job
| You need | Look at |
|---|---|
| A few short recordings a month | The Free use column, and tools sold by package |
| Hours of transcription every day | Plans with unlimited or high transcription time |
| A live stream or a press conference | Live stream transcription and editing during transcription |
| A confidential conversation | Whether audio is processed on your device: private transcription |
| The shortest wait on a finished recording | Cloud-based tools, or cloud transcription in LiveType |
Where LiveType falls short
- It needs a capable device. The most accurate models need a graphics card. On a weak computer accuracy drops, or you move to the cloud or another device.
- No summaries or translation. If you want meeting summaries or another language, look at tools that offer them.
- It does not burn in subtitles. It gives you SRT and VTT files, and putting them on the picture takes another tool.
- Browser and source limits. Transcribing platforms such as YouTube needs a Chromium-based browser on a computer.
If you would rather pay nothing at all, read about free transcription software. The best way to decide is to try the same recording on two tools’ free time. LiveType’s free plan has 30 minutes, and current plans are on the pricing page. To find the route for your source, see the audio to text converter page.
Works in news, software and design; founder of LiveType. Worked as a reporter for many years. Has done SEO consulting, content editing and reporting for several online news sites, and has developed many pieces of software. Currently works in the press office of the Turkish Medical Association and provides SEO support to Elips Haber.
Related pages
Try it on your own recording
No card needed. 30 minutes of transcription on the free plan.