ElevenLabs vs Speechify
Text-to-speech and voice cloning for producing audio, priced on monthly credits across a wide range of tiers. A text-to-speech reader for consuming documents, articles and books aloud, rather than a tool for producing audio for an audience.
At a glance
| ElevenLabs | Speechify | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $6/mo | $29/mo |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Plans offered | 6 | 2 |
| Team pricing | $990/mo | Not published |
| Vendor | ElevenLabs | Speechify |
| Best for | Producing narration, audiobooks, podcasts and video voiceover | Getting through a high volume of reading -- students, researchers, anyone with a large queue |
| Main trade-off | Credit-based pricing makes cost hard to predict from usage | Free tier voices are noticeably robotic |
The short answer
Choose ElevenLabs if producing narration, audiobooks, podcasts and video voiceover. Choose Speechify if getting through a high volume of reading -- students, researchers, anyone with a large queue. The rest of this page is the detail behind that.
Pricing
ElevenLabs
| Plan | Price | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 10,000 credits/month · Text to speech, sound effects, voice design |
| Starter | $6/mo | 30,000 credits · Commercial licence · Instant voice cloning |
| Creator | $22/mo | 121,000 credits · Professional voice cloning |
| Pro | $99/mo | 600,000 credits · 44.1kHz PCM via API |
| Scale | $299/mo | 1.8M credits · 3 seats · 3 professional voice clones |
| Business | $990/mo | 6M credits · Low-latency TTS · 10 seats |
Pricing verified
Speechify
| Plan | Price | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 10 robotic voices · Up to 1.5x speed · Text to speech only |
| Premium | $29/mo | 1,000+ natural voices · 60+ languages · Up to 5x speed · Scan and listen · AI summaries · Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive integration |
Pricing verified
ElevenLabs
Strengths
- The most natural synthetic speech generally available
- A genuinely usable free tier at 10,000 credits/month
- Commercial licence starts at $6/month, which is cheap for production use
- Voice cloning quality is well ahead of the field
Trade-offs
- Credit-based pricing makes cost hard to predict from usage
- The jump from Creator to Pro is $22 to $99 with nothing between
- Voice cloning raises consent and misuse questions you have to manage yourself
ElevenLabs: who it suits
Buy it if
- Producing narration, audiobooks, podcasts and video voiceover
- Developers integrating speech via API
- Anyone needing a cloned voice at production quality
Skip it if
- People who just want articles and documents read aloud -- that is a reader, not a generator, and costs less
- Anyone needing predictable flat-rate billing, since credits vary with output length
- Use cases where cloning someone else's voice would be the point
Visit ElevenLabsfrom $6/mo · free tier available
Speechify
Strengths
- Built for reading speed -- 5x playback is the feature power users actually stay for
- Scan-and-listen handles physical pages and images, not just files
- Integrates with Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive where documents already live
- Free tier is usable for evaluating
Trade-offs
- Free tier voices are noticeably robotic
- Only two self-serve tiers, so no middle ground at $29
- Not intended for producing audio others will listen to
Speechify: who it suits
Buy it if
- Getting through a high volume of reading -- students, researchers, anyone with a large queue
- Accessibility, including dyslexia support
- Listening to documents while doing something else
Skip it if
- Producing narration or voiceover for an audience -- ElevenLabs is the tool for that
- Anyone satisfied with their operating system's built-in read-aloud, which is free
- Voice cloning, which is not what this does
Visit Speechifyfrom $29/mo · free tier available
Common questions
- Is ElevenLabs or Speechify cheaper?
- ElevenLabs starts at $6/mo and Speechify at $29/mo. ElevenLabs is cheaper at entry level, though the allowances differ.
- Who should not use ElevenLabs?
- People who just want articles and documents read aloud -- that is a reader, not a generator, and costs less. Anyone needing predictable flat-rate billing, since credits vary with output length. Use cases where cloning someone else's voice would be the point.
- Who should not use Speechify?
- Producing narration or voiceover for an audience -- ElevenLabs is the tool for that. Anyone satisfied with their operating system's built-in read-aloud, which is free. Voice cloning, which is not what this does.
- Does ElevenLabs or Speechify have a free tier?
- Both offer a free tier, so you can evaluate each before paying.