Word Transcribe vs Scrieb
| Word Transcribe | Scrieb | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the audio is processed | Microsoft's cloud | Your computer |
| Internet required | Yes, for every file | Only for setup and updates |
| Subscription | Microsoft 365 | Scrieb, one licence for Mac and Windows |
| Monthly upload cap | Yes, per-month minute limit | ✗ none |
| Speaker labels | ✓ | ✓ |
| Summary | ✗ | ✓, generated locally |
| Output | Text in the Word document | DOCX, PDF, TXT |
| Languages | A set list | 90+ |
Word's limits and language list as published by Microsoft at the time of writing; check the current values for your plan.
When Word Transcribe is enough
A short personal voice memo, a lecture you recorded for yourself, an internal meeting where the content is not sensitive: Word does the job if you already pay for Microsoft 365 and stay under the cap. The friction starts when the recordings are long, frequent, or about other people.
How to get the same result locally
- Install Scrieb on Windows 10/11 or macOS. The AI model downloads once.
- Drop in the audio or video file, or record directly in Scrieb.
- Transcription and speaker identification run on your CPU or GPU.
- Export as DOCX and open it in Word. Speaker labels and timestamps come with it.
Hardware and speeds for Windows: Offline transcription for Windows. If you want a free option first, see free offline transcription for Windows.
Pricing
No minute cap, no Microsoft 365 dependency. Free trial first.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Microsoft Word's Transcribe work offline?
- No. Transcribe in Word uploads the audio to Microsoft's cloud speech service and needs an internet connection and a Microsoft 365 subscription. Scrieb processes the audio on your computer and works with no connection after setup.
- What is the limit on Word Transcribe?
- Uploaded recordings are capped per month, at the time of writing 300 minutes, and each file has a size limit. Scrieb has no minute cap: a four-hour recording is processed like any other file.
- Can Scrieb export to a Word document?
- Yes. Export as DOCX with speaker labels and open it in Word, or as PDF or TXT. The transcript ends up in Word without the audio ever going through Microsoft's servers.
- Does Scrieb label speakers like Word does?
- Yes. Both label speakers; Word does it in the cloud, Scrieb locally. Scrieb also produces a summary on the device.
- Is Word Transcribe a privacy problem?
- For personal notes, no. For client, patient or interview recordings it means the audio is processed by a third party under Microsoft's terms, which may need to be reviewed under GDPR, HIPAA or professional confidentiality rules. Local transcription avoids the question.
- Do I still need Microsoft 365 for Scrieb?
- No. Scrieb runs on Windows 10 and 11 and macOS as a standalone app. Word is only needed if you want to open the exported DOCX there.