Top 10 Happy Scribe Free Alternatives in 2024

As technology continues to evolve, so do the ways we work and communicate. One of the most significant changes in recent years has been the rise of audio and video content. From podcasts to webinars, and interviews to lectures, there is an abundance of rich media content available online. Couple this with a move to hybrid and remote work and converting online speech to text is now an essential part of the digital ecosystem.

This is where transcription software comes in.

Transcription software is designed to automatically convert spoken words into text. As a content writer and journo who frequently works with audio and video content, I have had the opportunity to test several different speech-to-text transcription software.

In this article, I will introduce you to the 10 best alternatives to Happy Scribe that I have personally used and recommended. Whether you are a podcaster, journalist, or researcher, you will find the best transcription software for your needs.

Full comparison of Happy Scribe alternatives

What is Happy Scribe?

Happy Scribe is an all-in-one platform that offers transcription and subtitles via sophisticated machine and human transcribers.

Happy Scribe’s  Automatic Transcription guarantees 80% accuracy and includes speaker delineation, timestamps, and the ability to add a personalized vocabulary. Its AI translation offers the ability to create subtitles in 120 languages, so creators and audiences from across the globe are supported.

Their 100% human-made transcription service uses native speakers to transcribe your audio and is available 24/7 with quick turnaround times.

Happy Scribe has good customer reviews and offers a raft of features, however, the speech transcription engine is one of the more costly on the market, with AI transcription coming in at 20 cents a minute. Further to this, their ‘free trial’ allows users to edit just a few lines before requiring an upgrade.

While Happy Scribe may be a quality option for businesses looking for high-quality transcripts with fast turnaround times, it may not be the right choice for individuals or small companies with a limited budget. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the top 10 alternatives to Happy Scribe.

Top 10 Happy Scribe alternatives to check out

With the rise of hybrid work and over 85% of social media video files being watched without sound, transcription and subtitle software with accurate speech recognition is in high demand. 

1. Notta - Best for high accuracy of voice recognition

Notta is one of the most comprehensive automatic transcription options on the market. 

Using advanced machine learning algorithms, Notta is constantly improving the accuracy of our voice recognition algorithms. Our rigorous testing under numerous conditions has shown Notta’s transcription accuracy from a high-quality audio file can reach a 98.86% rate. See more details on Notta vs. Happy Scribe.

Features:

• Real-time transcription for ongoing discussions, including webinars, podcasts, and online courses.

• Record and transcribe live meetings on Zoom, Google Meet, Teams, and Webex.

• Upload audio or video files for transcription.

• Export recordings and transcripts in multiple audio and text formats.

• AI-powered automated summary.

Pros:

• Convert audio to text in 58 languages, including English, Spanish, German, Russian, French, Portuguese, Hindi, and many more. 

• Translation in 42 languages.

• Auto-correct text spelling.

• Seamless integration with Notion and Salesforce.

• Team workspace: work with your colleagues on the same transcript and edit the text.

Cons:

• Does not offer human transcription.

Available for:

• iOS

• Android

• Chrome Extension

• Web

Notta: Budget-friendly transcription option

Seeking a transcription solution that won't break the bank? Notta offers affordability transcription service without compromising on quality or features. Explore cost-effective transcription services today!

Start for Free

2. Otter

OtterPilot™ is an AI meeting assistant that records audio, writes notes, captures slides, and generates summaries. It can be connected to your Google or Microsoft calendar and can join and record your meetings on Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. Otter is a fabulous option for teams looking to record online meetings and lecturers and students running classes online. 

Pros:

• Automated meeting notes for a faster and more efficient note-taking experience.

• Collaborating in the live transcript helps teams stay aligned and on-task during meetings.

• Automated slide capture ensures complete context of the content discussed during virtual meetings.

• Automated summary generation that allows easy recall and sharing of key information after the meeting.

Cons:

• While the software offers a free trial, the pricing may be higher than some similar tools available in the market.

• There may be limitations with accuracy in transcriptions, particularly if there are accents, background noise, or multiple speakers talking at once.

Available for: 

• iOS

• Android

• Chrome Extension

• Web

3. Trint

Trint is an AI-powered workflow tool designed to address the pain points encountered by creators working in TV, radio, and text, which converts audio and video files into editable and searchable text. With

Trint, users can easily create content from their raw files, making it easier to collaborate and share their stories with the world. Trint’s easy-to-use dashboard and interactive editing tools highlight key discussion moments in your recorded speech for future reference. Trint offers industry-leading accuracy at an affordable price point.

Pros:

• Supports more than 30 transcription languages.

• 50 translation languages are available.

• User-friendly tools like tags, highlights, and comments that help teams work together seamlessly.

• Instantaneous closed captions.

Cons:

• While the ‘Story’ function is a unique offering, it needs further development to make it truly useful for journalistic purposes.

Available for:

• iOS

• Android

• Web

4. Sonix

Sonix offers an easy-to-use, in-browser transcription editor that enables you to search, edit, organize, and share your transcripts from any device, anywhere. Whether you're recording meetings, lectures, interviews, or films, Sonix's automated platform has got you covered. You can also translate your transcripts to over 30 languages, making it easy to increase your content's global reach.

Pros:

• In-browser editor for easy access on any device.

• Share video clips quickly or publish full transcripts with subtitles using the Sonix media player.

• Multi-user permissions to collaborate, upload, comment, and edit.

• Search for words, phrases, and themes across all your transcripts.

Cons:

• No app option

• Pricing can be complicated and include unexpected add-ons.

Available for:

• Web

5. Fireflies

Fireflies.ai is an AI-powered meeting assistant that helps teams to automate their note-taking process. It records, transcribes, searches, and analyzes voice conversations to make meetings more productive and effective. Fireflies offers integration with Google Meet, Zoom, Teams Webex, Ringcentral, Aircall, and other platforms with use cases across multiple verticals across sales, engineering, recruiting, marketing, education, media, and podcasting. This speech-to-text converter automates workflows from meetings by talking to your CRM software and creating tasks with voice commands.

Pros:

• Provides a centralized platform for organizing meeting notes and insights.

• Offers conversation intelligence to track key metrics and improve performance.

• Real-time knowledge base to organize and share meeting recaps.

• Custom privacy controls to ensure appropriate team members can access meeting information.

Cons:

• The user interface is not intuitive.

• The speaker identification model doesn't work sometimes.

Available for: 

• Web 

• Chrome Extension

• Android 

6. Descript

Descript is a comprehensive tool that offers a wide range of features for creating, editing, and sharing videos and podcasts. It is an all-in-one platform that provides users with the ability to write, record, transcribe, edit, collaborate, and share their content seamlessly.

Its video editing tools are as easy to use as docs and slides, which makes it accessible to users of all levels. Similarly, the multitrack audio editing feature is straightforward and intuitive, making it easy to edit and create podcasts.

Descript also offers screen recording capabilities that allow users to instantly capture, edit, and share their screen and webcam recordings. This feature is particularly useful for creating tutorials, presentations, and other educational content.

One unique feature of Descript is its AI voice capability. Users can create their own ultra-realistic text-to-speech voice clone, or choose from stock voices. This feature is particularly useful for creating voiceovers or adding narration to videos and podcasts.

Pros:

• Automatic backup and version control.

• Comprehensive editing and transcription features.

• Collaborative features make it easy to work with a team.

• High-quality AI voices for creating text-to-speech.

Cons:

• No mobile app.

• Limited video export options.

• Higher pricing compared to some competitors.

Available for:

• Windows

• macOS

Transcribe audio/video to text in minutes

Notta can convert your spoken interviews and conversations into text with 98.86% accuracy in minutes. Focus on conversations, not manual note-taking.

Start for Free

7. Rev

Rev AI's asynchronous Speech-to-Text API for pre-recorded audio is a powerful tool that can help businesses of all sizes extract valuable insights from their audio content. The platform is powered by the world's leading speech recognition engine, which makes it highly accurate and reliable.

One of the main advantages of Rev AI is its flexibility. It can be used for a multitude of use cases across different industries, including media and entertainment, legal and compliance, education, call centers, and analytics. Additionally, Rev AI supports 36 major world languages, which makes it a truly global solution.

Pros:

• Global accent model that supports major accents from around the world.

• Transcribe hour-long files in less than a minute.

• Advanced punctuation and capitalization recognition, custom vocabulary, and accurate speaker separation.

Cons:

• Requires a certain level of technical knowledge.

• More expensive than other free transcription software options.

Available for:

• Windows

• Mac

8. Google Cloud Speech-to-Text 

If you're in need of an accurate and reliable speech-to-text transcription API, then Google Cloud Speech-to-Text is a top choice. Powered by Google's AI technology, this cloud-based solution offers a range of features that can help improve customer experience and interaction insights.

With Google Cloud Speech-to-Text, users can transcribe their content with highly accurate captions. The application is capable of recognizing domain-specific terms and uncommon words through hints, making it a great option for businesses with industry-specific jargon. The tool can even convert spoken numbers into specific addresses, currencies, years, and more.

Users can choose from a list of trained models, including video, phone calls, commands, and search, or use the default settings. The speech-to-text API uses machine learning that is trained to recognize specific audio files from a particular source, thereby improving transcription results.

Google Speech-to-Text can process audio directly streamed from the user’s microphone or from a pre-recorded audio file, and provide real-time transcription results. Additionally, the tool supports over 120 languages, making it a great option for businesses that operate in multiple regions around the world.

Pros:

• Domain-specific speech recognition

• Easily compare and optimize audio quality.

• Integrates with private infrastructure.

• High level of accuracy.

Cons:

•  It requires a certain level of technical knowledge.

Available for: 

• Chrome

9. Speak AI

Speak AI is a no-code recording, transcription, and analysis tool that helps users turn language data into actionable insights quickly. It is trusted by over 20,000 companies, researchers, and marketers to reduce manual labor, unlock competitive advantages, build stronger customer relationships, and make better decisions. Speak.ai offers multiple integrations including YouTube, Vimeo, Zoom, and Speak APIs.

Pros:

• Embeddable audio and video recorder for easy capture.

• Allows comparison of trends over time and datasets against each other.

• Generates powerful research repositories that do data visualization, deep search, media playback, and other functions to reveal insights.

• Natural language processing engine for sentiment analysis, identifying keywords, topics, and key phrases

• Easy to use with no coding required.

Cons:

• The free trial is only for 14 days, which might not be enough time for some users to explore and fully understand the tool's capabilities.

• Analytics data is not instantaneous.

Available for: 

• Web

10. Transkriptor

Transkriptor is an online transcription tool that offers automated transcription services for various audio and video files, including meetings, seminars, interviews, and discussions. With Transkriptor, you can easily upload your audio or video files and convert them into editable TXT, Word, and SRT documents.

Transkriptor's AI-powered transcription technology allows for highly accurate transcriptions, with precision levels exceeding 99% depending on the audio quality and language. The tool's machine learning algorithms learn and adapt to speech patterns, improving transcription accuracy over time.

The transcription process is simple and hassle-free, and the tool generates a draft text immediately, which can then be easily edited using the online editor. The editor links your audio to the text, making it easy to listen to and update your transcriptions as needed.

Transkriptor offers a range of transcription options, including video transcription, lecture transcription, and interview transcription. It also provides timestamps and supports various audio and video formats.

Pros: 

• Rich text editor with multiple playback speeds.

• Transcribe any audio or video file from the internet such as YouTube, Google Drive, and Onedrive by simply copying and pasting the URL.

• Supports almost all audio and video formats including MP3, MP4, WAV, AAC, M4A, WEBM, FLAC, OPUS, AVI, M4V, MPEG, MOV, OGV, MPG, WMV, OGM, OGG, AU, WMA, AIFF, OGA.

• Relatively cheap.

Cons: 

• Slow upload for long videos.

• The user interface can be difficult to navigate.

• Editing functionality needs work.

Available for: 

• iOS

• Android

• Chrome Extension

• Web

Capture every detail with AI meeting notes

Notta offers the most integrated AI meeting notes, summaries, and action items so nothing gets missed.

Start for Free

Why do you need a Happy Scribe free alternative?

While Happy Scribe offers the ability to transcribe audio quickly, as you can see from the above Happy Scribe alternatives may not be the best choice for everybody.

When it comes to Happy Scribe alternatives, Notta is one of the best transcription solutions and service providers on the market today. Let’s look at the features of Notta that set it apart from the competition when it comes to audio transcription.

Security & privacy

• Notta complies with security regulations such as SSL, GDPR, APPI, and CCPA. All data is encrypted with AWS' RDP and S3 services.

• Notta’s software has strict privacy policies that adhere to international data protection standards, ensuring that user information is not shared without explicit consent.

Price

• Notta offers affordable pricing plans that cater to different users' needs.

• Notta’s free plan offers 120 transcription minutes per month.

Integrated workflow

• Notta integrates seamlessly with meeting software such as Zoom, Google Meet, Teams, and Webex, making real-time transcription during meetings a breeze.

• The software offers cross-device synchronization, allowing users to access their transcription data from anywhere, on any device.

Other features

• Notta supports 58 languages for transcription, making it a great option for users who need to transcribe content in different languages.

• The software offers a range of import and export options, including audio and video files, making it easy to use with other tools and software.

• Notta's real-time transcription service can capture and transcribe ongoing discussions like webinars, podcasts, and online courses in real-time, making it a great tool for content creators and educators.

Key takeaways

As the need for quick and efficient transcription of audio and video content grows, so does the range of software options available to meet this demand.

With the ten Happy Scribe alternative software options outlined in this article, there is no longer a need to settle for a subpar transcription experience.

From industry-leading options like Otter and Descript to lesser-known but highly effective solutions such as Notta and Trint, there is a transcription software option to suit every need and budget.

FAQs

What is the cost of Happy Scribe?

Happy Scribe charges a flat rate per hour of spoken word data. The current cost is $12 per hour. 

How accurate is Happy Scribe transcription?

Happy Scribe lets you choose between automatically transcribing your files or using their human transcription service. While their human transcription is accurate to around 99% Their transcription software has an accuracy of up to 85% in more than 120 languages, dialects, and accents.

What should I be looking for in transcription software?

When looking for AI-powered transcription software, users should consider factors such as accuracy, speed, ease of use, and flexibility. The software should have a high accuracy rate for transcribing a range of audio and video file formats.

Speed is also crucial, particularly for users who may need to transcribe large volumes of content quickly. The platform should be easy to use and offer customizable editing and integration options. It's also important to consider your audience demographic and the range of languages and dialects the software supports.

Additionally, security and privacy features are also essential factors to consider.

Happy Scribe vs. Otter: which is better?

Both Happy Scribe and Otter are advanced transcription tools that offer unique features and advantages to their users.

Happy Scribe offers a more affordable pricing plan compared to Otter, making it a better option for individuals or businesses on a tight budget. It also offers a wider range of customization options and integrations with other business tools such as Zapier, which allows for the seamless automation of tasks.

Otter, on the other hand, offers a limited free plan and a higher-priced premium plan with more features. One of its unique features is the ability to generate summary notes and highlights of transcriptions, making it a better option for individuals who need to quickly analyze and summarize large amounts of text.