Council and public meeting transcription, into minutes and an accessible record.
WhipScribe transcribes council, board and public meeting recordings, from the file or the meeting's YouTube link, into timestamped text. Packs: $4 for 300 minutes, $18 for 3,000, $32 for 6,000; Workspace $19 a month. Up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file. Measured turnaround: about 2 minutes per audio hour. 99 languages. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
1,822 minutes of public meetings recordings already transcribed here · packs from $4, any length · ~2 min per hour of audio · 99+ languages · private, never used for training
- 1,822 minof public meetings recordings transcribed by users here, across 21 files
- ~2 minper hour of audio, measured on production
- 99+languages, auto-detected
At a glance
- Field
- Public meetings
- Transcribed here
- 1,822 minutes across 21 public meetings recordings, out of 404,452 minutes site-wide since April 2026 (measured 10 Nov 2026)
- Turnaround
- About 2 minutes per hour of audio; most files finish in under a minute
- Input
- Any audio or video file, YouTube, podcast or RSS link; up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file
- Output
- A brief with chapters, the names, numbers and dates that were said, and the questions it answers; word timestamps and AI chat. Export TXT, SRT, VTT, DOCX or JSON
- Languages
- 99+, with automatic detection
- Privacy
- Private servers, no third-party AI, never used for training, delete any time
- Price
- Packs from $4 for 300 minutes, credits never expire; every recording starts with a free preview of its opening minutes
- Support
- contact@whipscribe.com or the chat on every page
What council and public meetings cost to transcribe
The public meeting recordings transcribed here averaged 87 minutes (21 recordings, 1,822 minutes, measured 10 Nov 2026). Across every recording people transcribed here in the 90 days to 25 Oct 2026, the median was 25 minutes and three in four were under 63 minutes (recording lengths). Each recording uses minutes by its length. Packs are $4 for 300 minutes, $18 for 3,000 and $32 for 6,000, credits never expire, and Workspace is $19 a month for steady volume. Every recording starts with a free preview of its opening minutes.
| Recording | Audio | Credit used at the $4 pack's rate | Cheapest packs that cover it | A human service at Rev's $1.99 a minute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A 90-minute council meeting | 1 h 30 min | $1.20 | $4 210 min left on the account | about $179 |
| A 3-hour budget hearing | 3 h | $2.40 | $4 120 min left on the account | about $358 |
| A year of twice-monthly 2-hour meetings | 48 h | $38.40 | $18 120 min left on the account | about $5,731 |
| A 45-minute committee session | 45 min | $0.60 | $4 255 min left on the account | about $90 |
WhipScribe prices from /pricing, checked 2 Nov 2026. Rev's human transcription rate from rev.com/pricing, checked 2026-10-25; WhipScribe is not affiliated with Rev. Larger packs cost less per minute, from $0.80 down to $0.32 an audio hour. More rates: transcription rates compared.
What comes back
- The meeting as text with a timestamp on every line, so the clerk drafting minutes jumps to each motion and vote.
- Chapters by agenda item, the names, numbers and dates said, and key quotes with the speakers named.
- SRT and VTT captions for the posted meeting video, and DOCX or TXT for the record.
- Files up to 10 hours, so a long hearing is one upload; meetings in 99+ languages.
Speakers are identified and named in the summary, key quotes and chapters. Transcript lines carry timestamps, not speaker labels.
When to pay a human or certified service instead
- The approved minutes or a verbatim record are a legal document in your jurisdiction and must be certified or signed by a person.
- Captions that must meet a broadcast or accessibility rule with a stated accuracy; have a person review them.
- Every line of the record needs the speaker's name. Ours names speakers in the summary, key quotes and chapters only.
Human services and their published rates are compared in our human transcription directory.
Questions about council and public meetings
How much do council transcription services cost?
A 90-minute council meeting uses $1.20 of credit at the $4 pack's rate. A year of twice-monthly 2-hour meetings is 2,880 minutes, which the $18 pack (3,000 minutes) covers. Credits never expire, so a clerk can buy once for the year.
Can I transcribe a board or council meeting from YouTube?
Yes. Paste the public link to the meeting video, or upload the recording. A meeting up to 10 hours goes in as one file.
Does it write the minutes?
It gives the clerk the transcript, chapters by topic and the motions and numbers that were said. The minutes are still written and approved by the clerk.
Transcription for other professional work
- Market research and user interviewsA 60-minute interview uses $0.80 of credit
- Focus groupsA 90-minute group uses $1.20 of credit
- Research and thesis interviewsA 45-minute interview uses $0.60 of credit
- HR and recruiting interviewsA 1-hour investigation interview uses $0.80 of credit
- Depositions and court hearings (drafts)A 3-hour deposition uses $2.40 of credit
- Journalism interviewsA 45-minute interview uses $0.60 of credit
- Sermons and church servicesA 35-minute sermon uses $0.47 of credit
- Transcription rates, comparedAn hour of audio uses $0.80 of credit
Quick answers
The five questions people ask before the first upload.
- What does WhipScribe do for public meetings recordings?
- Turn council, board, and commission recordings into searchable text — so your clerk drafts minutes faster, the public gets captions and a posted transcript, and every meeting joins a searchable civic archive. Private transcription, budget-friendly.
- How much does it cost?
- Every recording starts with a free preview of its opening minutes; a pack from $4 (300 minutes) transcribes the rest and opens every export. Credit packs: $4 = 300 min · $18 = 3,000 min · $32 = 6,000 min; credits never expire and there is no seat fee. Workspace is $19 a month for unlimited transcription (300-hour fair-use mark; 100 GB of storage included, then $3 per extra 100 GB a month).
- How long does a transcript take?
- A one-hour recording is usually ready in about two minutes; most files finish in under a minute. Files up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file.
- Is it private?
- Yes. Transcribed on our own servers; audio is never sent to a third-party AI service. Never used to train, fine-tune or evaluate any model. Delete a recording and its transcript at any time; account deletion removes every record tied to the email.
- Which languages and files does it accept?
- 99+ languages, detected automatically; the transcript comes back in the recording's language. WhipScribe translates a finished transcript into any of 99 languages with the same timestamps, so SRT and VTT stay aligned. Input: any audio or video file (MP3, MP4, M4A, WAV, FLAC, OGG, WEBM, MOV, GSM and more), a YouTube, podcast, RSS, Google Drive, Twitch or Kick link, or a microphone recording. Export: TXT, DOCX, SRT, VTT, JSON.
Built for Public meetings
What matters when transcribing public meetings recordings?
Chair, members & public comment
Every motion, vote and comment carries its timestamp, so you can find it and attribute it correctly against the recording when you draft the minutes. Speakers are identified and named in the summary, key quotes and chapters.
Draft minutes far faster
Start from a full, timestamped transcript instead of a blank page and the recording. Summarize decisions, lift exact wording of a motion, and cut the hours a clerk spends scrubbing audio.
Accessible to the whole public
SRT/VTT captions plus a posted transcript help meet ADA and Section 508 goals for public meetings, so residents who are deaf, hard of hearing, or watching later can follow along.
A searchable civic archive
Every meeting becomes searchable text. Residents and staff can find when a project, a budget line, or a street name was discussed and jump to the exact moment — transparency without scrubbing hours of video.
How it works
How do I transcribe a public meetings recording?
Drop or paste
A file, a YouTube link, a podcast link or an RSS feed. Up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file.
Read in a minute
Timestamps, a summary and AI chat over the transcript. Click any line to hear it.
Get the brief, not just the text
The Intelligence tab reads the recording back to you: a short brief, chapters, the names and numbers that were said, and the questions it answers. Export TXT, SRT, VTT, DOCX or JSON whenever you want it elsewhere.
Intelligence
What comes back from a public meetings recording?
Council meeting — planning item 7
Brief overview
Item 7 is deferred, not refused, and the reason given in the room is narrower than the reason in the motion.
- The vote is 5–3 to defer, recorded at 1:48:00 with names.
- Three members of the public speak; two are on the same point.
- The deferral reason stated aloud is the traffic survey; the motion text is broader.
Questions this recording answers
- What happened to item 7?
- Deferred on a 5–3 vote at 1:48:00 — not refused. It returns in six weeks.
- Why was it deferred?
- In the room, the traffic survey. The motion as read is broader than that.
Chapters
- Apologies and minutes
- Item 7 opens
- Public speakers
- The vote
Names, numbers and dates
Example output, written to show the shape. Your own recording produces its own brief, in the language it was recorded in.
Questions
What else do people ask about public meetings transcription?
Can it tell speakers apart?
Speakers are identified and named in the summary, key quotes and chapters; every motion, vote and comment carries its timestamp, so you can attribute it against the recording.
Does it replace official minutes?
No. It's a working transcript that speeds the clerk's draft. Your body still adopts the official minutes through its normal process.
Does it help accessibility?
SRT/VTT captions plus a posted transcript support ADA and Section 508 goals for public meetings. Your accessibility officer confirms policy fit.
Draft the minutes from text, not audio.
Packs from $4 for 300 minutes, credits never expire; every recording starts with a free preview of its opening minutes.