Whisper Web vs WhisperAI
Whisper Web runs OpenAI's Whisper model in your browser, so your computer does the work. For an hour-long, two-person interview, that means a model download, a tab left open while your machine works 30 seconds at a time, and text with no speaker labels. We transcribe it in the cloud, label each speaker, and you can close the tab.
By Eman Khoubian, Founder & CEO
Which Whisper Web is which?
Search for Whisper Web and you'll find five sites with the name. One is the open-source project that started it. The other four are separate websites built on the same idea by other people.
| Site | Who runs it | Where your audio is transcribed | Length limit | Exports |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whisper Web (open source) | Xenova, on GitHub and Hugging Face | In your browser, on your computer | None set; your computer's speed and memory | TXT, JSON |
| whisperweb.dev | Zefan Zheng | Free: in your browser. Paid: uploaded to its cloud | Free: 20 minutes or 200 MB a file | TXT, SRT, VTT, JSON |
| whisperweb.app | Not named | In your browser | None stated | Not stated |
| whisperweb.net | Not named | In your browser | None stated | Text, JSON, SRT, VTT |
| whisperwebai.com | Not named | In your browser | None stated; warns long recordings may exceed browser memory | TXT, SRT, VTT; copy JSON |
| WhisperAI | WhisperAI | Uploaded and transcribed in the cloud | 10 hours or 5 GB a file, on every plan | PDF, DOCX, TXT, SRT, VTT |
Two more addresses turn up in the same searches: whisperweb.ai is a parked domain, and whisperweb.org doesn't load at all. whisperweb.dev calls itself the official Whisper Web site, but the original is the open-source project on GitHub, which also runs as a demo on Hugging Face.
What happens to an hour-long interview in Whisper Web?
First, the download. Whisper Web downloads a Whisper model into your browser before it can start. The open-source project's model menu lists sizes from 41 MB for the smallest model to 776 MB for the medium one.
Then your computer does the transcribing. The audio is cut into 30-second chunks, and the model works through them one after another inside the open tab. How long an hour takes depends on your machine. There's no account to save the result to, so you export the text before you close the tab.
Long files are where the sites start warning you. whisperwebai.com warns that "long recordings may exceed browser memory." whisperweb.app says the only limits are "your device's processing power and available memory." whisperweb.dev's free mode stops at 20 minutes a file, so an hour needs its paid plan.
And two voices come out as one block of text. The open-source project's code returns text and timestamps with no speaker labels, and none of the other four sites lists speaker labels among its features. whisperweb.dev's own guide advises "One Speaker: Avoid overlapping dialogue." For an interview, that means reading the whole transcript back and marking who said what yourself.
Example (invented)
What does WhisperAI do with the same file?
You upload the recording, we transcribe it, and the transcript waits in your library. An hour-long interview goes like this:
- Turn on Speaker Labels in the upload settings. Leave the number of speakers on Auto, or set it from 2 to 10.
- Upload the file. WhisperAI takes about 40 audio and video formats. The file goes straight from your browser to storage in pieces, and a dropped connection picks up where it left off.
- Close the tab once the upload finishes. The transcription runs on its own, and the finished transcript appears in your library on any device you sign in from.
- Rename Speaker 1 and Speaker 2 to the real names, then export a Word file, a PDF or subtitles.
WhisperAI transcribes 98 languages and detects the language for you, and it can translate a finished transcript into 87. You don't download anything, and an older laptop or a phone gets the same result as a new desktop.
Does my audio stay private with WhisperAI?
WhisperAI uploads your audio, so it leaves your computer. Whisper Web's free in-browser modes keep it there, and whisperweb.dev's paid plan uploads too. Your file is encrypted in transit with TLS 1.3 and at rest with AES-256, and your recordings stay in your account until you delete them. The security page has the details.
How much does an hour of audio cost on WhisperAI?
The free plan gives you 5 minutes a month, which is enough to try a short clip. If a file runs longer than the minutes you have left, WhisperAI turns the whole file away instead of transcribing part of it, so an hour-long interview needs a paid plan.
Premium is $14.99 a month for 120 minutes, about two interviews. Business Pro is unlimited for $24.99 a month or $199 a year. Simple rule: one interview a month, go Premium. One a week, go Business Pro and stop counting minutes. See plans and pricing.
Is Whisper Web made by OpenAI? Is WhisperAI?
No to both. OpenAI made the Whisper model and released it as open source, and the Whisper Web sites run that model in your browser. whisperweb.app and whisperwebai.com both say they aren't affiliated with OpenAI.
WhisperAI is an independent product. It isn't affiliated with, owned by or endorsed by OpenAI. If you came looking for Whisper without installing anything, the closest thing on this site is using Whisper online. Weighing whether to run the model yourself? Read WhisperAI vs OpenAI Whisper. For a long recording with more than one voice, see transcripts with speaker labels.
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