Our free AI speech to text tool transcribes any audio into accurate text using OpenAI's Whisper model. Supports 99+ languages with automatic detection. Runs entirely in your browser via Transformers.js and WebAssembly — your audio is never uploaded to any server. Record via microphone or upload an audio file, then export as plain text or SRT subtitles.
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📝 Transcription
About This Speech to Text Tool
SoundTools.io Speech to Text is a free AI-powered transcription tool that converts any audio into accurate text. It uses OpenAI's Whisper model running entirely in your browser via Transformers.js and WebAssembly. Your audio is never uploaded to any server — all processing happens locally on your device. Supports 99+ languages with automatic language detection.
Key Features
- Transcribe any audio file — WAV, MP3, M4A, OGG, FLAC, WebM, AAC, and more
- Record via microphone for instant transcription of speech, meetings, or lectures
- Powered by OpenAI's Whisper — state-of-the-art AI speech recognition trained on 680,000 hours of audio
- 99+ languages supported with automatic language detection
- Export as plain text (.txt) or SRT subtitles (.srt) for video captioning
- Timestamps included — toggle timestamps on or off, export SRT for YouTube, TikTok, and other platforms
- 100% free — no account, no watermark, no usage limits, no character caps
- 100% private — audio never leaves your browser, no server upload
- AI model cached after first visit — instant loading on return visits
- Long audio support — chunked processing with progress indication for files of any length
- Works on desktop — Chrome, Edge, and Firefox on Windows, Mac, and Linux
What Is AI Speech to Text?
AI speech to text (also called automatic speech recognition or ASR) uses machine learning to convert spoken audio into written text. Unlike older dictation software that relied on rigid rules, modern AI models like OpenAI's Whisper are trained on hundreds of thousands of hours of diverse audio, achieving near-human accuracy across dozens of languages. SoundTools runs Whisper entirely in your browser via Transformers.js and WebAssembly — your audio is never uploaded to any server, making it the most private transcription tool available online.
How to Transcribe Audio to Text — Step by Step
- Record or Upload Audio: Click "Record" to speak into your microphone, or click "Upload Audio File" to upload a recording (WAV, MP3, M4A, or any common format). There's no file length limit.
- Choose Settings: Select the AI model — "Accurate" for 99+ languages with auto-detection, or "Fast" for English-only with quicker results. Optionally set the language manually for better accuracy.
- Transcribe and Export: Click "Transcribe" to start. The first time, the AI model downloads (~240 MB, cached for future visits). View your transcription, toggle timestamps, then copy to clipboard or download as TXT or SRT subtitles.
Speech to Text Use Cases
Students — Transcribe Lectures and Study Material
Record lectures on your phone, upload the audio, and get a full transcript in minutes. Search, highlight, and review key points from class. Create study notes from recorded discussions. Works with any language your professor speaks.
Content Creators — Captions and Subtitles
Upload your YouTube video audio and generate SRT subtitle files for free. Add captions to TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube videos. Repurpose video and podcast content into blog posts and social media text.
Journalists — Private Interview Transcription
Transcribe interview recordings without uploading sensitive audio to any server. Your sources' voices never leave your device. Export timestamped transcripts for accurate quoting and fact-checking.
Podcasters — Show Notes and SEO
Generate full transcripts of podcast episodes for show notes, blog posts, and SEO. Search engines can't listen to audio — transcripts make your podcast content discoverable.
Meeting Notes — Transcribe Recordings
Upload meeting recordings from Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet and get a complete transcript. Never miss an action item or decision again. Share transcripts with team members who couldn't attend.
Accessibility — Make Audio Content Readable
Convert podcasts, videos, voice messages, and audio recordings into text for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Generate captions and transcripts to make spoken content accessible to everyone. SRT subtitle export makes it easy to add captions to any video platform.
How SoundTools Compares to Other Transcription Tools
| Feature | SoundTools | Otter.ai | TurboScribe | Rev |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free transcription | ✅ Unlimited | ⚠️ 300 min/mo | ⚠️ 3 files/day | ❌ Paid |
| No account required | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Privacy (no upload) | ✅ Browser-only | ❌ Server | ❌ Server | ❌ Server |
| Accuracy | ✅ Very Good | ✅ Very Good | ✅ Excellent | ✅ Excellent |
| Languages | 99+ | English only | 98+ | 36 |
| Export formats | ✅ TXT+SRT | ✅ TXT, SRT, DOCX | ✅ TXT, SRT, VTT | ✅ TXT, SRT, VTT |
| File length limit | Unlimited | 40 min (free) | 30 min (free) | Unlimited (paid) |
Every major transcription tool requires an account and uploads your audio to their servers. SoundTools is different: Whisper runs entirely in your browser. The tradeoff is a one-time ~240 MB model download and slightly slower processing. After the first download, the model is cached and loads instantly.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I transcribe audio to text for free?
Click "Record" to speak into your microphone, or click "Upload Audio File" to upload a recording. The AI transcribes your audio automatically — completely free, no account needed. Export as text or SRT subtitles.
Is this transcription tool really free with no limits?
Yes. There are no usage limits, no file length restrictions, no character caps, no account requirements, and no watermarks. The AI model runs entirely in your browser, so there are no server costs to recover.
Does this upload my audio to a server?
No. The AI model downloads to your browser (~240 MB, cached after first visit). All transcription happens locally. Your audio never leaves your browser — completely private.
How accurate is the transcription?
This tool uses OpenAI's Whisper model, which achieves near-human accuracy on clean audio. Accuracy depends on audio quality — clear speech in a quiet environment produces the best results. Heavy accents, background noise, and overlapping speakers may reduce accuracy.
What languages are supported?
The default model (Whisper Small) supports 99+ languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Hindi, Russian, and many more. Language is auto-detected, or you can select manually. The "Fast" model is optimized for English only.
How long does transcription take?
On a modern desktop, transcription takes roughly twice the audio length — a 5-minute recording takes about 10 minutes to transcribe. The AI runs on your CPU via WebAssembly. A progress bar shows the transcription status.
Why does it take a while to load the first time?
The Whisper AI model needs to download (~240 MB). This is a one-time download — the model is cached in your browser and loads instantly on future visits.
Does this work on iPhone and mobile devices?
Speech to text requires a desktop or laptop computer — the AI model needs more memory and processing power than mobile browsers can provide. Use Chrome, Edge, or Firefox on a desktop or laptop for best results. iPhone, iPad, and most Android devices do not have enough memory to run the Whisper AI model.
Can I transcribe long audio files?
Yes. The tool processes long audio in chunks, so there is no length limit. A 1-hour recording will take roughly 120 minutes to transcribe on a modern desktop. Progress is shown chunk by chunk.
What audio formats are supported?
WAV, MP3, M4A, OGG, FLAC, WebM, AAC, and more — essentially any audio format your browser can decode. You can also upload video files (MP4, MOV) and the audio track will be extracted and transcribed.
Can I get subtitles (SRT) from audio?
Yes. Click "Download SRT" to export the transcription as an SRT subtitle file with timestamps. This is perfect for adding captions to YouTube videos, TikTok, Instagram Reels, and other video platforms.
What is the Whisper model?
Whisper is an open-source automatic speech recognition (ASR) model created by OpenAI. It was trained on 680,000 hours of multilingual audio and achieves state-of-the-art accuracy across many languages. SoundTools runs Whisper entirely in your browser using Transformers.js and WebAssembly.
What's the difference between this and SoundTools Text to Speech?
Speech to Text converts audio INTO text (transcription). Text to Speech converts text INTO audio (voice generation). They're complementary tools — one listens, the other speaks.
What's the difference between this and SoundTools Voice Cloning?
Speech to Text transcribes audio into text. Voice Cloning uses a short voice sample to generate new speech in a cloned voice. Voice Cloning also uses Whisper internally, but its main purpose is voice generation, not transcription.