AssemblyAI Pricing 2026
Plans, hidden costs, and cheaper alternatives compared
Is AssemblyAI worth the price?
This pricing model is very generous, especially the Free tier offering substantial transcription hours.
The Pay As You Go tier at $0.15 per hour is competitive, providing advanced features and support. It's best for developers and businesses scaling their speech-to-text needs.
Pricing Plans
Free
Free
- 185 hours pre-recorded transcription
- 333 hours streaming transcription
- 5 new streams per minute max
- Speech-to-Text and Audio Intelligence
- Developer docs and community support
Pay As You Go
$0.15
- Unlimited Speech-to-Text and Audio Intelligence
- LeMUR LLM access
- 200+ concurrent files
- Customizable rate limits
- Dedicated technical support
- BAA for HIPAA
- EU Data Residency
- Self-hosted deployment options
Hidden Costs & Gotchas
Overage fees apply beyond free tier limits
Enterprise features require custom quotes
Specific integrations might incur costs
Which Plan Do You Need?
Developers needing generous free access
Startups scaling speech-to-text
Enterprises requiring advanced features
How AssemblyAI Compares to Competitors
Compared to Google Cloud Speech-to-Text, which starts around $0.016 per minute ($0.96/hour), AssemblyAI's Pay As You Go at $0.15/hour is significantly more affordable for basic transcription. AWS Transcribe is also more expensive at $0.024/minute ($1.44/hour), making AssemblyAI a strong value leader.
AssemblyAI Pricing FAQ
How much does AssemblyAI cost?
AssemblyAI uses custom pricing. Contact AssemblyAI directly for a quote based on your team size and requirements.
Does AssemblyAI have a free plan?
Yes. AssemblyAI offers a free plan called "Free". It includes: 185 hours pre-recorded transcription, 333 hours streaming transcription, 5 new streams per minute max.
Is there a cheaper alternative to AssemblyAI?
Yes. Popular alternatives to AssemblyAI include Whisper, Nuance DAX, Deepgram, Rev AI. Free alternatives include Whisper, Deepgram. Compare them side-by-side on Toolradar.
Cheaper alternatives to AssemblyAI
2 of 4 direct competitors below offer a free plan. Per-seat pricing varies up to 60% across this set.
