Transformers.js
by Hugging Face
Run Whisper / wav2vec2 entirely in the browser via ONNX Runtime Web.
TL;DR
Run Whisper / wav2vec2 entirely in the browser via ONNX Runtime Web.
Best for in-browser private transcription with no server round-trip. Pricing: free.
Category
Open source
License
—
Stars
—
Last push
—
Pricing
free
Platforms
Web, Node.js
What it is
The JavaScript port of HuggingFace Transformers. Apache-2.0.
Best for: In-browser private transcription with no server round-trip.
Watch out for: WebGPU acceleration still uneven across browsers; large model download.
Watch out for: WebGPU acceleration still uneven across browsers; large model download.
Install / use
npm install @xenova/transformers
Features
| Speaker diarization | No |
| Word-level timestamps | Yes |
| Streaming / real-time | Yes |
| Languages supported | 99 |
| HIPAA eligible | No |
Transformers.js vs Whipscribe
| Feature | Transformers.js | Whipscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Open source | Transcription APIs |
| Pricing | free | free beta |
| Speaker diarization | No | Yes |
| Word timestamps | Yes | Yes |
| Streaming | Yes | No |
| Languages | 99 | 99 |
| Platforms | Web, Node.js | Web, API, MCP |
Alternatives to Transformers.js
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