Balabolka

by Ilya Morozov

Free Windows TTS reader — uses installed SAPI voices, scriptable, no telemetry.

TL;DR

Free Windows TTS reader — uses installed SAPI voices, scriptable, no telemetry.

Best for windows users who want a free, offline TTS reader that uses already-installed system voices. Pricing: free.

Category
Desktop apps
License
—
Stars
—
Last push
—
Pricing
free
Platforms
Windows

What it is

Balabolka is a freeware Windows TTS frontend by Ilya Morozov that wraps SAPI4/SAPI5 + Microsoft Speech Platform voices. Long-running, no telemetry, scriptable from the command line.

Best for: Windows users who want a free, offline TTS reader that uses already-installed system voices.
Watch out for: Windows-only. Voice quality is whatever SAPI / Microsoft voices you have installed — modern neural voices not bundled.

Install / use

Download from cross-plus-a.com

Features

Speaker diarizationNo
Word-level timestampsNo
Streaming / real-timeNo
Languages supported99
HIPAA eligibleNo

Balabolka vs Whipscribe

FeatureBalabolkaWhipscribe
CategoryDesktop appsTranscription APIs
Pricingfreefree beta
Speaker diarization—Yes
Word timestamps—Yes
Streaming—No
Languages9999
PlatformsWindowsWeb, API, MCP

Alternatives to Balabolka

MacWhisper
Jordi Bruin

Polished Mac app for Whisper — the default pick if you're on macOS.

freemium
SuperWhisper
Sindre Sorhus

Always-on system-wide dictation for macOS and iOS, powered by local Whisper.

freemium
Aiko
Sindre Sorhus

Free Mac App Store Whisper app — drag, drop, done.

free

Whipscribe is a managed faster-whisper + whisperX service. If you want transcripts without running infrastructure, paste a URL or drop a file in the form below — you'll have a transcript in seconds.