9 Best Transcription Services to Use in 2024

Transcription services have become more and more popular over time. Think about it, talk-to-text is massively popular. At one time or another, most of us have had a recording transcribed.

Maybe you needed something from a voice memo or wanted to find something from a speech. Transcribing is the way to get it.

The process can be daunting and tedious. However, with the emergence of transcription services, having long items transcribed is no longer a monumental task. 

What is a Transcription Service?

A transcription service is a business that provides a service that will convert live or recorded speech into a written or electronic text document. These services offer a number of ways to transcribe, including sending staff members to events, speeches, and seminars.

There are a lot of really good transcription services out there today. Narrowing down which ones are the best and why can be a difficult process. Below is a list of some of the best transcription services online out there today.

Let’s take a look at some and see what all they have to offer.

Best Transcription Services

1. Rev

With a wide range of audio and video transcription services available, you will be hard-pressed to find a better transcription service out there today than Rev. They offer captions, subtitles, and translations for all types of audio and video files.

Rev can complete transcriptions that are straightforward in just a few hours. This provides you an opportunity to get a fantastic turnaround time. Caption and subtitle transcriptions for videos are also offered and are FCC, ADA, and Section 508 compliant.

Perhaps the thing that makes Rev stand out above some of the other transcriptions services is the balance they provide between transcription speed and error rate. The fast turnaround time is great, but providing a low error rate with a fast turnaround time is something they excel at.

Pros

• Fast turnaround time
• High accuracy and low error rate
• Caption and subtitle services
• Easy editing
• Affordable

Cons

• No subscription model available
• Web dashboard is a little clunky

2. Scribie

Offering both manual and automated transcription services, Scribie is another one of the best available services out there today. Their manual transcription service offers a 99% accuracy and readability rate and combines that with a 36-hour turnaround time. With that combination, they are a service that is hard to beat.

Scribie offers excellent pricing for American speaking transcription services. While their pricing is a little more expensive for accents, nosy backgrounds, and poor audio files, they still come in at one of the most affordable and cost-efficient transcription services available.

Using the Scribe service is very simple as well. Just upload your file, choose your plan, pay the fee, and the text in a Word file is returned within the expected time window.

Pros

• Automated and manual services available
• Fast turnaround times
• Excellent pricing
• The accuracy rate is very good
• Solid online editor

Cons

• Web interface is a little confusing
• No mobile app available.

3. The Transcription Pros

The Transcription Pros (formerly iScribed) will offer you general transcription services, as well as transcription services for the legal and medical professions. They use a unique “two-pass” process that helps ensure their 99% accuracy claim remains intact.

The turnaround time is a bit slower than some of the other services on this list, but 48 hours is still a very solid time.

The Transcription Pros also offers a wider range of services that complement their transcriptions. These include subtitles, closed captioning, translation services, and even content writing services.

This service is worth a look when you are choosing a transcription service.

Pros

• High accuracy rates
• Very well priced
• A selection of complimentary services

Cons

• No free or automated tier

4. Temi

Another one of the best transcription services out there is Temi. They are a premium, automated service that provides advanced speech recognition software for a very competitive cost. The service also allows you to transcribe voice to text via an uploaded audio or video file in as little as 5 minutes.

They are a fully automated service, which means the transcriptions are all AI-based. That being said, they do claim to have a 90-95% accuracy as long as there are no accents and minimal background noise. 

The pricing is also straightforward and easy to understand. There are no minimum purchases, no subscription fees, and no other hidden charges. The Temi transcription service is very ideal for people who have fewer transcription requirements.

Pros

• Very inexpensive
• Flat rate, straightforward pricing
• Clean and easy-to-use interface
• Mobile apps available 

Cons

• Not a lot of customization options
• Transcriptions of complex files can be inaccurate

5. TranscribeMe

TranscribeMe is actually a name you have probably heard several times in transcription circles. They have been around for a while and run a very popular service. They have remained popular over time because they do a great job of balancing the speed of transcription with a low error rate and competitive pricing.

TranscribeMe is not as accurate as something like Rev, but it costs significantly less. If you are looking for a lower-cost transcription service and can deal with a few more errors from complex files, the TranscribeMe is worth looking into.

If your files are not complex, then this service is perhaps the very best one available because of the pricing. Give it a look.

Pros

• Accurate and human-powered
• Clean web interface
• Very secure transcription process
• Mobile apps available 
• Machine (AI) transcriptions are offered

Cons

• Can be a little more pricey in certain situations
• No web editing
• Not many collaboration features

6. GMR Transcription

Offering a wide range of transcription services, GMR Transcription is a pretty well-known service that provides both human and AI reviews. They also offer video transcriptions. Perhaps the place GMR excels at is the fact that they offer Spanish transcriptions. 

Another really interesting service that GMR offers is a text-to-text transcription for converting paper documents into electronic ones. There are not many drawbacks to using this service.

Possibly the main downfall is their pricing and turnaround time.

You will find that pricing is on the higher end and that the turnaround time that GMR offers can be on the low end, especially when compared to alternative services.

Rates go up and down based on audio quality, time, and number of speakers involved. Give GMR a look for basic transcription services and check out their available “same day service” as well.

Pros

• Accuracy is solid
• Same-day service in some situations
• Solid variety of services
• Spanish translations
• Text to text

Cons

• Expensive
• Outdated mobile apps
• The sign-up process is convoluted

7. Trint

Trint offers a smooth and slick automated transcription service that provides good editing software. However, it is still only best suited for easier transcription tasks that are needed from time to time.

With quick turnaround times, an online editor that is considered excellent, and very solid security policies, Trint is a transcription service that you will want to take a look at. 

This service offers a lot of features and gives you a pretty accurate simple transcription. That being said, usable results are usually not produced if you are trying to use this service for complex audio files.

Pros

• Excellent transcription of simple files
• Fast filing processing
• Mobile app
• Excellent online editor

Cons

• Expensive
• Accuracy is not good for complex files
• The web interface needs more tools

8. GoTranscript

This is a British company that offers very competitive pricing to its customers. While GoTranscript is pretty run-of-the-mill and solid with regular transcriptions, it set itself apart from the rest on this list because of its ability to cater to more complex projects.

Despite handling complex projects, GoTranscript has a turnaround time that is very good and near the top of the spectrum. Matter of fact, the turnaround is so fast that they are usually able to get the transcribed document back to you within 6-12 hours, which is a blinding fast speed in comparison.

There is one thing to consider about the turnaround time, though. If you are not located in Britain, then oftentimes their turnaround time may be a little different because of time zones and geographical location.

Either way, check them out for your more complex projects.

Pros

• Amazingly fast turnaround times
• Very competitive pricing
• STEM transcription
• Able to handle complex projects

Cons

• Time differences if not located in Britain can affect turnaround

9. Transcription Panda

Rounding out our list of the best transcription services available is one called Transcription Panda. Pricing and accuracy rate are comparable to TranscribeMe, but the transcription speed offered by Panda is better.

Their pricing is also connected to their turnaround time. Cheaper rates will offer a five-day turnaround time, while higher rates paid mean a transcription can be made available within 24 hours.

Like most of the other services on the list, turnaround is essential. But, how important is it? Is it important enough to pay a much higher price? Give Transcription Panda a look and see if it is right for you.

What to Look for in a Transcription Service

When talking to people who use transcription services, there are always the same few things that they all look for. You should be on the lookout for all of these things as well. 

Having certain abilities and features in place is what makes transcription services great. Here are some of the things you want to look for when you are searching for the best audio transcription service out there.

Readability

This can’t be overstated and is perhaps the most important aspect of any good transcription service. What is the final readability or the transcript that is submitted? Is the grammar correct? Is the spelling correct?

This is important, as you want your final document to be as readable as possible. Human transcribers can usually hit the 99% or higher readability rate, while the best AI transcription services should be able to hit at least 90% readability and above.

Cost

Yes, cost is always at the top of the list no matter what service you are looking at. You need to know what is offered, and for what you’re paying.

Finding the most cost-effective service that gives you all the features and functionality you want is important. While prices obviously change all the time, a pretty standard number right now is about $0.25 cents per minute of audio when using an AI service, and around $2.00 per minute of audio when using a human service.

Turnaround Time

Something else that needs to be considered is the turnaround time that you will be facing using a transcription service. Obviously, an AI-based transcription service can give you a much quicker turnaround time than a human-based service can. However, you may be sacrificing some readability.

You don’t want a rushed transcript, as that can lead to errors and confusion. However, you also don’t want to wait a week or more to receive a transcript back. Make sure you know all about turnaround time when picking a service.

Complicated Audio Support

Not all files that you need transcribed will be of a professional standard. Some files will come from phones and other recordings. The best transcription services should be able to handle background noise, mumbling, and accents.

Some services even offer transcriptions for multiple languages. You will know one way or another if the service you are interested in offers multiple language transcriptions.

User Interface

The user interface is important for any type of software. Truth be told if a user interface is smooth and easy to handle, more people will be interested in using it.

There should also be laid out extras within the interface that you can take advantage of. A messy appearance, too many pages to click through to make an order, and services that are not clear on cost are never good to use.

Security and Privacy

Last, but definitely not least, is security and privacy. While I don’t really recommend uploading sensitive files to a random transcription service, there are still privacy and security policies you should view before choosing to go with one or the other.

Of all the things to consider, one of the more important ones is whether or not a transcription service offers an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) or not.

Conclusion

Choosing a transcription service involves a few steps. You want to view some different services and see what all they offer and which one may be right for you. Honestly, a lot of the choices you make will depend on personal preference and what exactly you are looking for when it comes to features.

All of the transcription services on this list are top-notch, and you can’t really go wrong with any of them. Take a look, explore a few of them, and see which one may fit you best.

This should be a very good starting point for your journey to finding the best transcription services available today. Good luck and enjoy the process!