How much does it cost to convert an MP3 to text?

To try it, nothing: without an account, the trial transcribes up to the first 10 minutes of a recording, and the result page shows what you can read without paying and how to read the rest. What the free account includes today and Pro's prices are on the pricing page.

Does it also take M4A, WAV or video files?

Yes. Upload the file as it is: we accept MP3, M4A, WAV, OGG, Opus, MP4, MOV and WebM, among others.

Does it tell the speakers in the MP3 apart?

In American English, British English and Indian English, the transcript separates the voices into Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on; you rename each label once, and the name holds for the whole transcript. In Australian English and Philippine English, it separates them too, on recordings of up to 2 hours. If the separation fails, the transcript comes without speaker labels, and says so.

Does the quality of the MP3 matter?

Yes. Compression discards sound, and a low-bitrate or many-times-converted MP3 produces more errors than the original recording would. Upload the best copy you have, and check names and numbers against the audio before you use the text.

What happens to the MP3s I upload?

Your recordings and transcripts are not used to train models. In the no-account trial, the file and the transcript are deleted 48 hours later — or 7 days after payment, if you buy just that transcript; in an account, they are kept until you delete them.

Convert MP3 to text

Upload the MP3 — from a recorder, a podcast download, an old archive — and try it here, with no account. In an account, the text comes with a time on every word, so you can click a line, hear it, fix what was misheard and export the result to Word or TXT.

LanguageIdentify speakers

Auto detect can mishandle a recording that switches language.

Free: one recording up to 10 minutes · its transcript to read · no account · deleted after 48 hours

What you get

In an account — free or Pro, with the same features — the transcript comes with:

The MP3 as text: Punctuated, with a time on every word: click any line to hear that passage, and the transcript follows the audio while it plays.
Who spoke: In American English, British English and Indian English, the transcript separates the voices into Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on; you rename each label once, and the name holds for the whole transcript. In Australian English and Philippine English, it separates them too, on recordings of up to 2 hours. If the separation fails, the transcript comes without speaker labels, and says so.
Editing in the text itself: Fix names and misheard words where they sit, while the passage plays.
Export: Word (DOCX), TXT, SRT and VTT, on every plan.
Summary, translation and questions: Summarise the recording, translate the transcript into another language, and ask what was said about a topic; the answer points to the moment in the recording.

What an MP3 brings with it

An MP3 is compressed audio, and what the compression threw away is gone before transcription starts: a file saved at a low bitrate, or converted several times, carries more errors than the recording it came from. Upload the best copy you have — the original WAV or M4A, if you still have it, rather than an MP3 made from it. We accept MP3, M4A, WAV, OGG, Opus, MP4, MOV and WebM, among others.

Every automatic transcript has errors, and they cluster on proper names, numbers and technical terms. Before you quote a passage, click the line and listen: with a time on every word, that check takes seconds.

An MP3 downloaded from somewhere is someone's recording. Transcribe what you have the right to use.

Long MP3s

Without an account, the trial transcribes up to the first 10 minutes of a recording. On Pro, each file can be up to 8 hours, within the month's included hours; what each plan includes, the pricing page shows. See plans and prices.

On long recordings, speaker labels can wander from one section to the next — a consequence of how long audio is processed, not a setting.

Before you upload

Name the main language rather than leaving it on automatic. Automatic detection has to decide what language each stretch of speech is in, and where a recording switches language, what was said in the other one may come back translated instead of transcribed — or not come back at all. Either way nothing is marked as missing: the transcript will look complete.

Philippine English is marked “preview” in the language list: offered, but without a quality commitment yet, so check its transcript more closely before you use it.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to convert an MP3 to text?: To try it, nothing: without an account, the trial transcribes up to the first 10 minutes of a recording, and the result page shows what you can read without paying and how to read the rest. What the free account includes today and Pro's prices are on the pricing page.
Does it also take M4A, WAV or video files?: Yes. Upload the file as it is: we accept MP3, M4A, WAV, OGG, Opus, MP4, MOV and WebM, among others.
Does it tell the speakers in the MP3 apart?: In American English, British English and Indian English, the transcript separates the voices into Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on; you rename each label once, and the name holds for the whole transcript. In Australian English and Philippine English, it separates them too, on recordings of up to 2 hours. If the separation fails, the transcript comes without speaker labels, and says so.
Does the quality of the MP3 matter?: Yes. Compression discards sound, and a low-bitrate or many-times-converted MP3 produces more errors than the original recording would. Upload the best copy you have, and check names and numbers against the audio before you use the text.
What happens to the MP3s I upload?: Your recordings and transcripts are not used to train models. In the no-account trial, the file and the transcript are deleted 48 hours later — or 7 days after payment, if you buy just that transcript; in an account, they are kept until you delete them.