SentencePiece
Don’t want to install SentencePiece? Drop the file here.
The first 20 minutes of any recording are transcribed free: a recording up to 20 minutes transcribes in full, a longer one is previewed, and a pack from $6 (500 minutes) transcribes the rest and opens every export, and credits never expire.
Subword tokenizer used by Whisper, SeamlessM4T, Canary.
Best for building/fine-tuning ASR tokenizers without external tools. Pricing: free.
What it is
Google's reference subword tokenizer. Apache-2.0.
Watch out for: Bytes-only by default; check sample rate compatibility.
Install / use
pip install sentencepieceWhat people actually do with SentencePiece-style transcription
The tool is the means. These are the jobs — each one priced at published rates, each one wired up on its own page.
Features
| Speaker diarization | No |
| Word-level timestamps | Yes |
| Streaming / real-time | No |
| Languages supported | 99 |
| HIPAA eligible | No |
Links
SentencePiece vs Whipscribe
| Feature | SentencePiece | Whipscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Open source | Transcription APIs |
| Pricing | free | $6–$24 one-time packs (credits never expire) · first 20 minutes free |
| Speaker identification | No | Named in the summary, key quotes and chapters |
| Word timestamps | Yes | Yes |
| Streaming | No | No |
| Languages | 99 | 99 |
| Platforms | Linux, macOS, Windows | Web, API, MCP |
Alternatives to SentencePiece
Frequently asked about SentencePiece
Is SentencePiece free?
Yes. SentencePiece is free and open source.
Does SentencePiece work on Mac, Windows and Linux?
SentencePiece runs on Linux, macOS and Windows.
How do I install SentencePiece?
With pip: `pip install sentencepiece`. You need Python and, for most audio tools, ffmpeg on your PATH first.
How many languages does SentencePiece support?
SentencePiece lists 99 languages. That is the Whisper-family multilingual set, so quality varies by language — English and the large European languages are strongest.
Does SentencePiece identify different speakers?
No. SentencePiece does not label speakers; a conversation comes back as one continuous text. If you need speaker labels, that is a separate tool or a different service.
Does SentencePiece give word-level timestamps?
Yes — SentencePiece produces timing per word, which is what subtitle cues and clip boundaries need.
Can SentencePiece transcribe live audio?
No — SentencePiece works on finished files, not a live stream.
Is SentencePiece HIPAA compliant?
SentencePiece does not claim HIPAA compliance. For PHI, run it on infrastructure you control or choose a service that will sign a BAA.
What are the limitations of SentencePiece?
Bytes-only by default; check sample rate compatibility.
Who is SentencePiece best for?
Building/fine-tuning ASR tokenizers without external tools.
Does SentencePiece run offline?
SentencePiece runs on your own machine — it is open source, so nothing leaves the computer unless you configure it to.
Can I use SentencePiece in the browser?
No — SentencePiece is a Linux, macOS and Windows application, not a web app. You install it rather than sign in to it.
Where is the SentencePiece source code?
On GitHub at github.com/google/sentencepiece. It is maintained by Google.
What kind of tool is SentencePiece?
In this directory SentencePiece is filed under tokenizer, preprocess as a open-source tool.
What are the alternatives to SentencePiece?
There is a side-by-side page at /tools/sentencepiece-alternatives comparing SentencePiece with the closest tools in the same category on price, platform and features.
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