Video is a powerful medium. Transcription takes this power one step further by creating a document that outlines everything said in a video.

A transcript can be a remarkable tool for both marketing and internal communication. For example, when utilizing transcriptions, you can repurpose video into other pieces of content, such as an article or a social media post. Transcriptions are also vital for indexing video assets with search engines, which allows for its reach and exposure to be extended.

They’re also crucial for your operations. Human resources (HR) can use transcripts to create training materials from a seminar video or distribute it to participants as a refresher.

Unfortunately, most teams overlook the importance of including transcriptions when budgeting for video costs. The same is true when production teams leave the translation process out of the planning stage.

Most of the money is often reserved for more critical tasks like equipment and post-production. Then, when teams need a transcript, they realize that free tools don’t get the job done. The result?

They’re forced to work with top-tier professionals who charge high transcription costs per hour, which pushes the video budget over its limit. Or, because the transcription services cost isn’t accounted for in the budget, teams have to sacrifice the quality of the translation.

Both options are problematic.

On the one hand, free and fast transcription tools are readily available. Plus, they have a low or zero transcription cost per word. The caveat is that they usually output inaccurate transcripts requiring you to make corrections manually, which is time-consuming.

On the other hand, you have high-quality professionals who can create accurate transcriptions. However, they tend to have long turnaround times and carry an expensive transcription cost per minute.

Luckily, Sonix offers a better solution for all—AI-powered transcription software.

It features the ease of use, fast turnaround time, and low cost of a digital transcription tool. But thanks to artificial intelligence and advanced natural language processing, it can produce accurate transcripts at or near-professional levels.

We’ve been discussing the merits of using a transcription tool like Sonix to lower the cost of transcribing your videos. But how much does transcription cost in the first place?

Before we get started, let’s look at the pricing structure of transcription services.

Transcription is usually billed in one of three ways.

The first is based on the audio or video length (called audio minute or hour). For this, professionals charge for every minute or hour of video they transcribe. This is the most common way many transcriptionists price their services.

Next is output-based. With this structure, pricing is dependent on the length of the transcript. An output-based billing structure is common for medical transcriptionists. Usually, they charge around 7-14 cents per document line. In some cases, they can also charge per page.

Last is time-based billing. Here, a transcriptionist charges an hourly work rate for transcription, regardless of the video length. This is less common and is usually adopted by higher-tier professional transcribers. Average transcription rates are around $25 to $40, with the highest cost for transcribing interviews (which are priced at $50 per hour on average).

So, what are some typical transcription costs?

The standard transcription cost per hour of audio in the U.S. and Canada is around $90, or $1.5 per audio minute. You’ll expect to pay this minimum transcription hourly rate for high-quality and accurate transcripts. Anything lower (less than $1 per audio minute) can be a red flag that the transcriptionist is a non-native English speaker and can produce less accurate transcripts.

Keep in mind that these are average transcription rates for standard audio or video transcription. Many factors can add or subtract from these amounts.

The difficulty of the audio or video file typically has the most significant impact on the hourly rate for transcription. The difficulty level of transcription can stem from anything in the file that can hinder the transcriptionist. Top examples include garbled audio, thick accents, heavy background noise, multiple people talking, or speakers who speak too fast or mumble. These complex issues can quickly add around 25% to 50% to a standard transcription price.

The number of speakers in the audio can also increase the effort (and therefore, price) of transcribing. The average addition is around 0.25 cents per audio minute for three speakers or more.

The location of the transcriptionist also matters. Professionals from North America typically charge more than non-English speaking countries. The higher rates are due to the fact that native speakers better understand the speech patterns of the language, which can ensure copy is transcribed correctly.

Lastly, requests like fast turnaround times (often 24 hours or less), timestamps, and subtitles can also balloon the transcription price tag.

Ultimately, the answer to “how much does transcription cost?” is not an exact figure. A reasonable estimate is around $100 - $150 per audio hour to get a high-quality and accurate transcript.

These transcription rates can be a significant cost for many companies who need to transcribe large volumes of videos. Fortunately, we already mentioned that AI-powered transcription tools are a fantastic alternative with lower transcription fees.

But how much does it compare to a traditional transcriptionist?

Let’s review Sonix’s pricing plan to compare the two approaches effectively.

Sonix adopts a pay-as-you-go pricing structure, similar to a typical transcriptionist. However, Sonix is much cheaper – you only need to pay $10 per audio hour instead of the minimum $100 for a professional transcriptionist. That’s a whopping 90% discount.

What’s more, with Sonix, you also get many features and options that other services don’t include with their transcription rates. For example, we can translate over 50+ languages and add automated subtitles and word-by-word timestamps. With today’s global audience, the need to produce a video for a wide variety of languages is a crucial part of a business’s digital marketing efforts. Sonix can help you expand your global reach.

In addition, when you work with Sonix, you get top-notch security and secure file storage that only an online platform can provide.

Choosing an AI-powered automated transcription solution for both cost and quality benefits seems like an easy solution to your transcript needs. But with dozens of options out there, why make the switch to Sonix?

With Sonix, not only will you have access to an efficient transcription tool, but you'll also enjoy competitive pricing that suits your particular needs. Plus, with our transcriptions you get quick and accurate results. Experience the superior quality and remarkable savings Sonix delivers on projects of every size and complexity.

Sonix uses the latest artificial intelligence (AI) technology and natural language processing to automatically transcribe your video in seconds. Simply upload your video file, and Sonix’s speech-to-text algorithm will do the rest.

There’s no more need to spend exorbitant amounts of money to cover the cost of transcription services. Sonix provides a fast and affordable alternative, especially if you need to transcribe videos in bulk. There’s also no need to wait for a transcriptionist to finish their job manually – Sonix can deliver results in minutes.

But that’s just the beginning. Sonix also gives you powerful new ways to interact with your transcripts and video files.

For example, you can click the corresponding word on the transcript, and Sonix will jump to that specific point in the video. This feature is excellent if you want to review specific meeting or lecture video segments.

Sonix also allows you to edit the transcript directly, adjusting the video accordingly. Did the speaker say unnecessary words? You can remove them from the transcript using the Strikethrough feature, and Sonix will automatically edit the video to match. It gives content creators a fast and powerful new way to edit their videos.

Need to create a video for different regions? Sonix features an AI-powered translation engine that can transform your transcripts into 39 other languages. Thanks to its natural language processing algorithm, Sonix creates one of the most accurate translations in the industry in as little as 10 minutes. You can also view the original and the translated transcript side-by-side so that you can adjust them as needed.

The Sonix AI-powered translation platform allows you to take your original video and translate it into different language versions. It empowers you to disseminate your video to a broader audience, dramatically increasing your exposure. There’s also no need to worry about high transcription prices, which is often the case when translating a video into multiple languages.

Gone also are the days when you needed to type subtitles manually yourself. Sonix can create subtitles automatically in seconds. It can also split subtitles by lines, character, and duration. You may also fine-tune the timing of your subtitles by milliseconds for the best accuracy.

Sonix’s subtitle feature makes its already affordable audio-to-text transcription service price even more appealing.

Sonix also supports various file formats and workloads, including multi-track video files. For instance, if you have individual speakers on separate audio tracks, Sonix will combine them into one transcript. You can also upload an existing transcript, and Sonix will automatically align it with the accompanying video.

Sonix also provides robust solutions for managing large volumes of transcripts – perfect for enterprises and bigger marketing teams. You can organize your transcripts into folders and files with permission levels for each. In addition, you can use the powerful search feature to find specific words or phrases throughout your transcripts.

Today’s modern workflow involves dozens of platforms and apps; luckily, Sonix is compatible with most of them.

For instance, you can connect Sonix to a Google Drive folder, which will automatically transcribe any video files in the background. Want to transcribe your Zoom recording of an important meeting? Integrate Sonix, and it will do that task automatically at the end of every session.

Our platform is compatible with other major applications like Zapier, YouTube, Vimeo, and Adobe Premiere, to name a few.

Sonix’s flexible integration complements your video pipeline, saving you plenty of time and effort.