What HappyScribe costs
| Plan | Monthly | Billed yearly | AI minutes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | €0 | €0 | 10-minute trial |
| Basic | €17 | €8.50 / month | 120 a month |
| Pro | €29 | €19 / month | 600 a month |
| Business | €89 | €59 / month | 6,000 a month |
Extra minutes cost €0.20 each on paid plans. Basic limits a recording to 90 minutes. Human proofreading starts at €1.75 a minute.
The alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Where it runs | Platforms | Speaker labels | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scrieb | Your computer | Mac, Windows | ✓ every plan | Free 1 h/day; Pro $169.99/year, no minute limits |
| MacWhisper | Your Mac | Mac only | Pro only | Free; Pro €64 one-time |
| Buzz | Your computer | Windows, Mac, Linux | ✓ | Free, open source |
| noScribe | Your computer | Windows, Mac, Linux | ✓ | Free, open source |
| aTrain | Your computer | Windows; Mac (Apple Silicon) beta | ✓ | Free, open source |
| TurboScribe | Cloud (upload) | Browser | ✓ | Free tier and paid plans |
Which one fits
Scrieb: local, with notes
Transcribes, labels speakers and writes summaries on your own Mac or Windows PC. Records calls without a bot, exports Word, PDF, TXT and Markdown. Free for 1 hour a day without an account; Pro has no minute limits. Download.
MacWhisper: Mac only, one-time price
A popular local Whisper app for the Mac. Speaker recognition, meeting recording and DOCX export are in Pro. MacWhisper pricing.
Buzz, noScribe, aTrain: free and open source
All three run Whisper locally and label speakers. noScribe and aTrain are built for researchers transcribing interviews. Open-source Whisper GUIs compared.
TurboScribe: another cloud service
Switching from one upload service to another changes the price, not where your audio goes. TurboScribe alternative.
Scrieb vs HappyScribe
| Scrieb | HappyScribe | |
|---|---|---|
| Processing | On your computer | Uploaded to HappyScribe |
| Works offline | ✓ after the model download | ✗ |
| Free plan | 1 hour a day, no account | 10-minute AI trial |
| Paid plans | No minute limits | 120–6,000 AI minutes a month |
| Desktop app | Mac and Windows | Listed as “Soon” |
| Speaker labels | ✓ | ✓ |
| Summaries and AI chat | ✓, on your computer | ✓, in the cloud |
| Subtitles (SRT) and translation | ✗ | ✓ |
| Human transcription | ✗ | ✓ |
When HappyScribe is still the better choice
- Subtitles and translation. Subtitle files, burned-in captions and AI translation into 80+ languages.
- Human-checked transcripts. Proofreading by people, for when the result must be close to perfect.
- Team editing in the browser. Several people working on the same transcript.
- Phones. HappyScribe has iOS and Android apps; Scrieb runs on Mac and Windows only.
For confidential recordings (interviews, client calls, patient conversations) the question is different: whether the audio may leave your computer at all. Local transcription removes that question. GDPR and transcription.
Pricing
Free plan: 1 hour of recording a day, with speaker labels, summaries and all exports. Pro: no minute limits, one licence for Mac and Windows.
Try it on your own recordings
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best HappyScribe alternative?
- It depends on why you are leaving. For confidential recordings and no per-minute plans, a local app: Scrieb on Mac and Windows, with speaker labels and summaries, or MacWhisper on Mac only. For free and open source, Buzz or noScribe. If you mainly need subtitles, translation or human proofreading, HappyScribe itself is still strong.
- Is there a free HappyScribe alternative?
- Yes. Buzz, noScribe and aTrain are free open-source apps that run on your computer. Scrieb’s free plan gives 1 hour of recording a day with speaker labels, summaries and all exports, and needs no account. HappyScribe’s free plan includes a 10-minute AI trial.
- Is Scrieb cheaper than HappyScribe?
- For regular use, yes. HappyScribe Pro is €19 a month billed yearly for 600 AI minutes a month, and extra minutes cost €0.20. Scrieb Pro is $169.99 a year with no minute limits, and one licence covers Mac and Windows.
- Does HappyScribe have a desktop app for Windows?
- Not yet: its pricing page lists a Mac and Windows desktop app as “Soon” (checked 31 October 2026). HappyScribe runs in the browser and on iOS and Android. Scrieb is a desktop app for Windows 10 and 11 and macOS.
- Does HappyScribe work offline?
- No. Files are uploaded and processed by HappyScribe’s service. Scrieb, MacWhisper, Buzz, noScribe and aTrain transcribe on your own computer and work without internet after the models are downloaded.
- Can the alternatives tell speakers apart?
- Scrieb, Buzz, noScribe and aTrain label speakers on your computer. MacWhisper includes speaker recognition in Pro only. HappyScribe detects speakers on all its plans, in the cloud.
- Which alternative is best for subtitles?
- HappyScribe is hard to beat for subtitles and translation: 150+ languages for transcription and subtitles, 80+ for AI translation, plus human subtitling. Scrieb exports Word, PDF, TXT and Markdown, not subtitle files.