Speech-To-Text
Choosing between Deepgram and Gladia for your speech-to-text and audio intelligence needs often comes down to these five critical questions: How fast do you need results? How many languages do you support? What audio intelligence features matter most? How do you prefer to pay? What compliance certifications do you require?
Speech-To-Text
Deepgram has positioned itself as a comprehensive voice AI platform, offering everything from speech-to-text and text-to-speech to conversational AI capabilities. With its end-to-end, broad learning architecture and developer-focused approach, it has become a popular choice for enterprises building voice-enabled applications at scale.
Speech-To-Text
Deepgram has established itself as a major player in the speech-to-text space, offering developers and enterprises a fast, accurate transcription platform built on end-to-end deep learning. Its combination of real-time streaming, batch processing, and audio intelligence features makes it a go-to choice for companies building voice-enabled applications.
If you've ever tried to navigatenavigated AssemblyAI's pricing page:, adding up the base transcription rate, plus speaker identification, plus sentiment analysis, plus entity detection—--, you know that calculating your actual monthly cost requires a spreadsheet and some patience.
If you've ever tried to navigate AssemblyAI's pricing page: adding up the base transcription rate, speaker identification, sentiment analysis, plus entity detection—you know that calculating your actual monthly cost requires a spreadsheet and some patience.
AssemblyAI has established itself as a leading speech-to-text and audio intelligence platform, processing billions of API calls for companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 enterprises. The platform offers a comprehensive suite of features, from core transcription to advanced capabilities like LeMUR for applying large language models to audio data. But as AssemblyAI has expanded its feature set and positioned itself as a broader Voice AI platform, its pricing has evolved into a granular add-on model where each capability carries its own per-hour charge.
This guide analyzes AssemblyAI's pricing structure, add-on costs, and feature tiers. AssemblyAI is the ideal choice if:
However, AssemblyAI's pricing may not be the best choice if:
Gladia offers a compelling alternative: a speech AI and audio intelligence API built on its Solaria-1 model, designed from the ground up for real-time voice applications. Gladia includes core features like speaker diarization and language detection in its base pricing and supports over 100 languages with code-switching in both real-time and async modes. In addition, for paid tiers, Gladia does not use customer audio for model training, and this privacy protection comes with no pricing penalties.
(A detailed pricing comparison between AssemblyAI and Gladia is covered in more detail later in this review.)
Table of Contents
AssemblyAI operates on a usage-based, pay-as-you-go model without up-front commitments or contracts. The platform charges separately for each base transcription and additional audio intelligence features, allowing users to pay only for what they use. This granular approach offers flexibility for teams who want to optimize costs. For streaming services, billing is based on total session duration. For multichannel audio, each channel is billed separately.
Understanding the Pricing Models
Before diving into the detailed breakdown, it helps to understand how AssemblyAI and Gladia approach pricing differently:
AssemblyAI uses a uniform base rate of $0.15/hr for both pre-recorded (async) and streaming (real-time) transcription.
Additional audio intelligence features like sentiment analysis, summarization, and entity detection are charged as separate add-ons, allowing you to pay only for the capabilities you need. Your actual cost depends on which features you enable. When common audio intelligence features are added (Speaker ID, Sentiment Analysis, Summarization, Entity Detection, and Topic Detection), the effective rate rises to approximately $0.45/hr.
Gladia uses differentiated base rates: $0.61/hr for async and $0.75/hr for real-time on the Self-Serve plan (or $0.50/hr and $0.55/hr, respectively, on the Scaling plan). However, core audio intelligence features like speaker diarization and language detection are included in these base prices rather than being charged separately.
This fundamental difference means that for basic transcription alone, AssemblyAI's lower base rate may be more economical.
But when comparing equivalent feature sets (transcription plus audio intelligence capabilities), the pricing gap narrows significantly: AssemblyAI's \~$0.45/hr with common add-ons is comparable to Gladia's $0.50/hr on the Scaling plan, and Gladia's bundled pricing eliminates the complexity of calculating stacked add-on costs.
The free tier provides $50 in credits for new users to test AssemblyAI's capabilities. Unlike subscription models with monthly limits, this is a one-time credit allocation that can be used at any pace. The actual hours you get depend on which features you enable, since each add-on consumes additional credits.
The Bottom Line 👉 The free tier works well for initial testing and proof-of-concept work, but the one-time credit structure means ongoing development requires moving to paid usage quickly.
The pay-as-you-go model charges a base rate for transcription plus separate fees for each audio intelligence feature. Note that the $0.15/hr base rate applies equally to both pre-recorded (async) and streaming (real-time) transcription. This means a simple transcription costs $0.15/hr, but enabling speaker identification, sentiment analysis, and summarization brings the total to $0.22/hr.
For a more typical production setup that includes Speaker Identification, Sentiment Analysis, Summarization, Entity Detection, and Topic Detection, the total reaches approximately $0.45/hr.
For users needing additional guardrails like PII Redaction and Content Moderation on top of that, costs can reach $0.68/hr or more. Note that these rates are subject to participation in AssemblyAI's model improvement program, and rates may differ for accounts that opt out.
The Bottom Line 👉 Pay-as-you-go suits users with simple transcription needs or those who can carefully optimize which features to enable. Volume discounts are available for higher usage.
Enterprise plans offer volume-based pricing, custom rate limits, and deployment flexibility for organizations with large-scale needs. This tier includes options for self-hosted deployments for data sovereignty requirements and customized service level agreements.
The Bottom Line 👉 Enterprise makes sense for organizations processing high volumes who can negotiate better rates, or those with strict data residency requirements needing self-hosted options.
While AssemblyAI offers comprehensive speech AI capabilities with strong accuracy, its granular pricing model and platform direction create challenges for certain teams:
Complex Cost Calculations
No Inclusive Feature Bundles
Limited Real-Time Multilingual Support
Source: G2
These considerations have led many teams to explore alternatives that offer more predictable pricing with audio intelligence features included.
Gladia takes a different approach to speech AI pricing by including core audio intelligence features in its base rate.
For teams who find AssemblyAI's add-on pricing complex or need broader real-time multilingual coverage, Gladia offers transparent pricing with features bundled, support for over 100 languages with code-switching in both real-time and async modes, and clear data privacy policies where paid tier audio is not used for model training, without any pricing implications for this protection.
Founded in 2022 with headquarters in both Paris and New York City, Gladia is backed by $20.3 million in funding and serves over 600 enterprise customers, including Aircall and Method Financial. The platform is built on its proprietary Solaria model, designed from the ground up for real-time voice applications with partial latency under 100 milliseconds.
Gladia positions itself as a focused speech AI infrastructure provider, concentrating exclusively on transcription and audio intelligence rather than expanding into end-to-end voice AI solutions. This means teams building voice agents or other products using multiple AI components can use Gladia as a partner rather than a potential competitor in their stack.
Unlike AssemblyAI's add-on model, Gladia's Self-Serve plan includes speaker diarization and other audio intelligence capabilities in the base price. The 10 free hours per month refresh automatically, providing ongoing testing capability rather than a one-time credit allocation. Gladia's Solaria model delivers partial transcripts in approximately 103ms with real-time code-switching across the full 100+ language set.
The Bottom Line 👉 Self-Serve works well for teams who need speaker diarization, multilingual support, and real-time code-switching included by default, without calculating add-on costs.
The Scaling tier reduces per-hour costs while maintaining all Self-Serve features. At $0.50/hr for async transcription with audio intelligence features included, Gladia's Scaling plan is directly comparable to AssemblyAI's \~$0.45/hr rate when common add-ons are factored in, while offering the simplicity of all-inclusive pricing.
The Bottom Line 👉 Scaling suits growing teams who can commit to volume for better rates while maintaining transparent, predictable pricing.
Enterprise provides maximum flexibility with unlimited concurrency, zero data retention for privacy-sensitive use cases, and dedicated support channels. Gladia's support model includes direct access to technical teams who work closely with customers, an advantage of their focused, startup approach.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI uses granular add-on pricing with a uniform base rate.
Both pre-recorded (async) and streaming (real-time) transcription cost the same $0.15/hr, with each audio intelligence feature adding $0.02 to $0.15/hr. This gives users precise control but requires calculating total costs.
For example, a transcription with speaker identification, sentiment analysis, summarization, entity detection, and topic detection costs approximately $0.45/hr, regardless of whether you're processing pre-recorded files or live streams.
Gladia's Approach: Gladia uses differentiated base rates for each mode: $0.61/hr for async and $0.75/hr for real-time transcription on the Self-Serve plan (or $0.50/hr and $0.55/hr on the Scaling plan).
Core audio intelligence features (including speaker diarization, language detection, sentiment analysis, summarization, entity detection, and more) are bundled into these base prices. Users know their costs upfront without adding line items.
🪙 Value Comparison: For teams needing only basic transcription, AssemblyAI's $0.15/hr base rate offers savings. For teams needing standard audio intelligence features, the pricing gap narrows: AssemblyAI's \~$0.45/hr with common add-ons is comparable to Gladia's Scaling plan at $0.50/hr async. Gladia's bundled approach eliminates cost calculation complexity and provides predictable bills.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI's Universal model supports 99+ languages for pre-recorded transcription. For streaming, the Universal-Streaming multilingual model supports 6 languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese (beta). The platform also supports code-switching for handling multiple languages within the same conversation.
Gladia's Approach: Gladia supports over 100 languages in both async and real-time modes, with code-switching capability across the full language set. The platform's European heritage, with headquarters in Paris and New York, means multilingual support has been foundational from the start rather than added later. Gladia's Solaria-1 model includes 42 languages that are completely unsupported by some competitors.
🪙 Value Comparison: For English-primary or single-language use cases, both platforms perform well. For multilingual applications where users may speak in any of dozens of languages or switch between languages mid-conversation, Gladia's broader language support is a significant advantage.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI offers SOC 2, GDPR, and HIPAA compliance. Enterprise plans include self-hosted deployment options for data sovereignty. AssemblyAI has a model improvement program, and their documentation notes that published rates are subject to participation in this program, with rates potentially differing for accounts that opt out. A documented opt-out process is available.
Source: AssemblyAI
Gladia's Approach: Gladia's paid tiers (Scaling and Enterprise) are not subject to data being used for model training, and this protection is included in standard pricing without opt-out processes or potential pricing implications. The Enterprise tier offers zero data retention. Free tier users should note that their audio may be used for model training. For Gladia, data privacy is treated as a default rather than a premium add-on.
🪙 Value Comparison: Both platforms offer compliance certifications. The key difference is philosophical: AssemblyAI ties its published pricing to model improvement program participation, while Gladia includes data privacy protection in its standard paid tier pricing without pricing penalties.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI's Universal-Streaming delivers approximately 300ms latency with immutable transcripts and intelligent endpointing. The streaming model uses a turn-based approach optimized for voice agent applications.
Gladia's Approach: Gladia's Solaria-1 model was designed as a real-time-first architecture, delivering partial latency around 103ms. The platform supports real-time code-switching and entity recognition across 100+ languages simultaneously.
🪙 Value Comparison: Both platforms offer competitive real-time latency for voice agent use cases. AssemblyAI's streaming is limited to 6 languages, while Gladia supports 100+ in real-time, making Gladia better suited for multilingual voice applications.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI offers LeMUR, a mature framework for applying large language models to transcribed audio. This enables question-answering, custom summaries, and action item extraction from recordings up to 100 hours long. LeMUR is a production-ready feature with extensive documentation.
Source: AssemblyAI
Gladia's Approach: Gladia offers summarization, sentiment analysis, and an Audio to LLM feature (currently in alpha) that allows custom prompts to be applied to transcripts.
🪙 Value Comparison: AssemblyAI's LeMUR is the more mature LLM integration, making it a better choice for teams prioritizing LLM-powered audio analysis today. Gladia's Audio to LLM provides similar functionality but is earlier in development.
AssemblyAI's Approach: AssemblyAI has positioned itself as a Voice AI platform, expanding beyond core transcription into LLM integration (LeMUR), guardrails, and comprehensive speech understanding features.
Gladia's Approach: Gladia positions itself as a focused speech AI infrastructure provider, deliberately remaining vertical in the transcription and audio intelligence space. This pure-player approach means Gladia doesn't compete with customers building voice agents or other products that combine multiple AI components.
🪙 Value Comparison: Teams wanting an all-in-one Voice AI platform may prefer AssemblyAI's broader feature set. Teams building products that combine STT with other AI services, and who want their infrastructure provider to remain a partner rather than a potential competitor, may prefer Gladia's focused approach.
AssemblyAI provides $50 in free credits for new users, which covers approximately 185 hours of pre-recorded transcription at the base rate or 333 hours of streaming. However, this is a one-time allocation rather than a recurring monthly free tier. Once credits are exhausted, a payment method is required.
AssemblyAI charges a base rate for transcription ($0.15/hr for both pre-recorded and streaming modes) plus separate per-hour fees for each audio intelligence feature enabled.
Note that basic speaker diarization is included in the Universal model; the $0.02/hr add-on is for Speaker Identification, which maps speakers to real names. Sentiment analysis adds $0.02/hr, summarization adds $0.03/hr, entity detection adds $0.08/hr, and topic detection adds $0.15/hr.
Adding all of these common features brings the effective rate to approximately $0.45/hr.
For basic transcription only, AssemblyAI's base rate of $0.15/hr (the same for both async and real-time) is lower than Gladia's rates of $0.61/hr async or $0.75/hr real-time on the Self-Serve plan.
However, Gladia's pricing includes audio intelligence features like speaker diarization, sentiment analysis, summarization, entity detection, and more, while AssemblyAI charges separately for each. When comparing equivalent feature sets, AssemblyAI's effective rate rises to approximately $0.45/hr, which is comparable to Gladia's Scaling plan at $0.50/hr for async. The best choice depends on which features you actually need: à la carte flexibility from AssemblyAI or bundled predictability from Gladia.
Yes, Gladia offers speech-to-text, speaker diarization, sentiment analysis, summarization, and named entity recognition through its Solaria-1 model.
Gladia also has an Audio to LLM feature (in alpha) that provides LLM-powered analysis similar to AssemblyAI's LeMUR, though LeMUR is more mature. Gladia differentiates with broader real-time multilingual support (100+ languages vs. 6\) and data privacy included in paid tier pricing without opt-out requirements.
AssemblyAI's published pricing is subject to participation in their model improvement program. Their documentation notes that rates may differ for accounts that opt out. An opt-out process is available. Enterprise customers can negotiate specific data handling terms. By contrast, Gladia's paid tiers (Scaling and Enterprise) are automatically excluded from model training without pricing implications, while Free tier data may be used.
Yes. AssemblyAI offers $50 in one-time credits without requiring a credit card. Gladia provides 10 free hours per month that refresh automatically. Both allow testing core features before committing to paid usage.
AssemblyAI's real-time streaming supports 6 languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese (with non-English in beta). Their async transcription supports 99+ languages. Gladia supports 100+ languages in both real-time and async modes, with code-switching available across the full language set.
The choice between AssemblyAI and Gladia depends on your specific requirements for features, pricing structure, multilingual support, and data handling preferences:
👍 Choose AssemblyAI if:
Get started with AssemblyAI here.
👉 Choose Gladia if:
Get started with Gladia and experience real-time speech AI.
The fundamental difference extends beyond pricing philosophy. AssemblyAI is expanding into a broader Voice AI platform with comprehensive features, while Gladia remains focused on speech AI infrastructure. Both platforms deliver strong accuracy and performance, but the choice depends on whether you prefer granular cost control with mature LLM features or bundled pricing with broader real-time multilingual support and privacy included by default.
