Drop your audio. Transcript in seconds. 30 free min, then $2 = 200 min
Descript
The leading text-based audio and video editor for podcasters and video creators — transcribe, edit by editing the transcript, clean voices with Studio Sound, and clone voices with AI Speech, all in one app.
Edit audio and video by editing text. Drop a file in, Descript transcribes it (30+ languages, ~95% accuracy), and the transcript becomes your timeline — delete a sentence, the audio cut goes with it. Layered with AI Speech (voice cloning + stock voices, regenerate speech by typing), Studio Sound (one-click noise removal + voice enhancement), screen recording, multitrack audio, captions, filler-word removal, and Underlord — their agentic AI co-editor that drafts cuts from a prompt.
Best for podcasters, video creators, and async-comms teams who edit recordings every week. Pricing (verified 2026-05-10 on descript.com/pricing): Free (60 min media/mo, 100 one-time AI credits) · Hobbyist $16/mo (10 hrs, 1080p watermark-free) · Creator $24/mo (30 hrs, 4K, full Underlord access) · Business $50/mo (40 hrs, brand kit, 30+ language translation) · Enterprise (custom, SSO/SCIM). Monthly billing shown; annual is cheaper per month.
What it is
Descript is a production suite built around the transcript as the editing surface. If you edit audio or video, the transcript-first workflow is genuinely great. If you just want a transcript file to paste into show notes, Descript is more tool than you need. Last price check: 2026-04-20.
Watch out for: Not a transcription API or a pure transcript tool — it's a production suite; heavier than a podcaster actually needs for just transcripts.
Install / use
Go to Descript www.descript.comWhere Descript fits · top workflows
Descript is one product but it serves several distinct creator workflows. Pick the row closest to your job — each card lists the Descript feature doing the heavy lifting.
Multitrack audio editing where deleting a sentence from the transcript deletes the audio. Filler-word removal in one click. Studio Sound rescues USB-mic recordings. The original Descript use case and still the strongest fit.
Drop a long-form YouTube edit in, Descript transcribes it, then Underlord drafts a 9:16 short from a text prompt. Captions, B-roll suggestions, and stock media are inline.
Train a voice on your own recordings, then fix flubs by typing the corrected line. Used heavily by podcasters re-recording sponsor reads and creators dubbing missed words without re-tracking the whole take.
Screen + cam recording with auto-transcribe, then edit out the awkward openings, ums, and tangents before sharing. The killer combo over plain Loom is that you can polish the recording instead of shipping raw.
Background-noise removal + voice enhancement on any track. Strong enough that creators run it on recordings made in cars, cafés, and untreated home offices and ship the result.
Auto-captions on every export (animated, brand-styled), plus instant transcript / caption / audio translation across 30+ languages. Business plan adds proofread translation for higher-stakes content.
Getting started in 3 steps
Descript is a desktop app (macOS + Windows) with a web companion. Here's the shortest path from sign-up to your first exported edit — no special hardware required.
Free tier, no card required. macOS 12+ or Windows 10+. Web app works in any modern browser as a fallback.
1. Go to descript.com and sign up (Google / email, no card).
2. Open descript.com/download to grab the desktop app.
System requirements:
- macOS Monterey (12) or newer · Apple Silicon native
- Windows 10 or newer · x64
3. Install + sign in. Your account state syncs
with the web app at descript.com.
# free tier covers 60 minutes of media
# per month + 100 one-time AI credits —
# enough to evaluate the full workflow.Drop a file in, transcription runs automatically, the transcript becomes the timeline.
1. New Project → drag in an .mp3 / .mp4 / .wav / .mov
(Descript also imports from YouTube URLs, Zoom
cloud recordings, and Riverside / SquadCast.)
2. Pick the language (auto-detect works for 30+).
Transcription runs in the background; partial
text appears within seconds for short files.
3. Edit by editing text:
- Select a sentence in the transcript → ⌫ deletes
the audio/video too.
- Right-click filler words → "Remove all 'um's".
- Need to fix a flub? Highlight the wrong word,
type the right one, AI Speech regenerates the
audio in your trained voice.
# multitrack audio: drag in extra tracks
# (intro music, sponsor read, guest mic).
# Each gets its own transcript lane.MP4 / MP3 / WAV for the finished cut · SRT / VTT / TXT / DOCX for the transcript · animated captions for shorts.
1. Publish → Export.
2. Pick a preset:
- Video → MP4 (up to 4K on Creator+)
- Audio → MP3 / WAV
- Transcript → SRT, VTT, TXT, DOCX, PDF
- Captions → burned-in animated, or
sidecar .srt / .vtt
3. Optional: add YouTube chapters from the
transcript outline (Underlord can auto-
draft chapter timestamps from the content).
4. Hit Export. Watermark-free on Hobbyist+;
Free tier exports with a Descript watermark.
# bonus: "Publish to YouTube / Spotify / Riverside"
# pushes the rendered file + chapter list directly
# to the destination, no manual upload.Features
| Speaker diarization | Yes |
| Word-level timestamps | Yes |
| Streaming / real-time | No |
| Languages supported | 22 |
| HIPAA eligible | No |
Links
- descript.com ↗Product home — current marketing copy, feature tour, and pricing entry point.
- descript.com/pricing ↗Free / Hobbyist $16 / Creator $24 / Business $50 / Enterprise. Annual pricing shown alongside monthly. Verified 2026-05-10.
- descript.com/download ↗Desktop app landing page. macOS Monterey (12)+ and Windows 10+. Apple Silicon native.
- help.descript.com ↗Help center — getting started, transcription, AI Speech, Studio Sound, exports, troubleshooting.
- Descript changelog ↗Public release notes — new / improved / fixed entries, weekly cadence. Hosted on Canny.
- status.descript.com ↗Live system status + 90-day uptime history per service (Editor, Recording, Publishing, API/MCP).
- descript.com/blog ↗Creator-focused articles — podcast launches, AI-editing workflows, growth tactics.
- descript.com/transcription ↗Standalone transcription product page — accuracy claim, language list, integration with the editor.
Descript vs Whipscribe
| Feature | Descript | Whipscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Products | Transcription APIs |
| Pricing | free / from $12/mo | free beta |
| Speaker diarization | Yes | Yes |
| Word timestamps | Yes | Yes |
| Streaming | No | No |
| Languages | 22 | 99 |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows, Web | Web, API, MCP |
Sources & dates for the comparison above
- diarization: “Descript automatically labels each speaker in a multi-speaker recording.” — source (checked 2026-04-23)
- word timestamps: “Descript exports transcripts with per-word timestamps in multiple formats.” — source (checked 2026-04-23)
- streaming: “Upload your audio or video file and Descript transcribes it.” — source (checked 2026-04-23)
- pricing: “Free plan available; Creator plan starts at $12/month.” — source (checked 2026-04-23)
Alternatives to Descript
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.