Head to head / AI Transcription
AssemblyAI vs OpenAI Whisper API
- →AssemblyAI has a free tier to start; OpenAI Whisper API does not.
| Compared | AssemblyAI | OpenAI Whisper API |
|---|---|---|
| Accuracy (tested) | 96.9% | Not tested |
| Starting price | $0.15/hr | — |
| Free tier | Yes | — |
| Visit AssemblyAI | Visit OpenAI Whisper API |
Feature by feature
| Feature | AssemblyAI | OpenAI Whisper API |
|---|---|---|
| Languages | 99+ | 90+ |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Real-time | Yes | No |
| Speaker labels | Yes | No |
| Export formats | JSON, TXT, SRT, VTT | JSON, TXT, SRT, VTT |
| Human option | No | No |
AssemblyAI
Developers who want a speech-to-text API with built-in audio intelligence like summarization, sentiment, and LLM queries.
- +Universal-2 model, strong English accuracy
- +LeMUR runs LLMs over your transcripts
- +Sentiment, topics, PII redaction built in
- +Generous free credit to start
OpenAI Whisper API
Developers who want cheap, accurate multilingual batch transcription with a dead-simple API.
- +Strong multilingual accuracy across 90+ languages
- +Very low price per minute
- +Built-in translation to English
- +Newer gpt-4o-transcribe models available
Compared on the metrics we track for this category. Prices are the cheapest paid tier. Some links are affiliate links.