Descript vs ElevenLabs: For Voice Cloning in 2025?

Have you ever wished you could have Morgan Freeman narrates your YouTube videos?

Or create a podcast with the voice of your favorite celebrity.

AI voice cloning tools like Descript and ElevenLabs are making that a reality.

But with two powerful options on the market, knowing which one is right for you can be challenging.

In this post, we’ll break down the key differences between Descript vs ElevenLabs.

Focusing specifically on their voice cloning capabilities so you can choose the best tool for your needs.

Descript vs ElevenLabs Overview

We’ve spent weeks testing both Descript and ElevenLabs to give you the most accurate comparison.

Experimenting with their features and pushing their voice cloning capabilities to the limit. 

This hands-on experience allows us to provide real-world insights and help you make an informed decision.

What is Descript?

Have you ever wished editing audio and video was as easy as editing text?

That’s the idea behind Descript. It’s an incredible tool that lets you edit audio and video by changing the transcript’s words.

Pretty neat? It’s like magic, but it’s clever AI.

You can also record screen recordings, make podcasts, and even clone your voice!

Key Benefits

• Effortless Editing: Edit audio and video like a text document. No more complex timelines!
• Studio Sound in Seconds: Instantly improve your audio quality with one click.
• Overdub: Create a digital clone of your voice to edit or create new content.
• Collaboration Made Easy: Work seamlessly with others on projects.
• Multitrack Editing: Edit up to 1000 video and audio tracks simultaneously.

Pricing

Descript offers you a free plan with limited features. But if you want the full power of Descript, you have three paid options:

• Free: Start your journey with text-based editing, 1 transcription, Export 720p, with watermarks.
• Hobbyist: $12/month – 10 transcription hours/month, Export 1080p, watermark-free, 30 minutes/month of AI speech.
• Creator: $24/month – 30 transcription hours/month, Export 4k, watermark-free, unlimited access to royalty-free stock library.

What is ElevenLabs?

Want to create realistic-sounding voiceovers without hiring a voice actor?

That’s where ElevenLabs comes in. It uses some pretty advanced AI to generate human-like speech.

You can even clone your voice or create entirely new ones!

It’s super helpful in making content like audiobooks, videos, and even video games.

Key Benefits

• Unmatched Voice Quality: ElevenLabs voices are known for their realism and expressiveness.
• Diverse Voice Library: Choose from a wide range of pre-made voices or create your own.
• Instant Voice Cloning: Clone a voice from just a few minutes of audio.
• Long-form Speech Synthesis: Generate hours of high-quality audio with ease.
• API Access: Integrate ElevenLabs directly into your applications.

Pricing

ElevenLabs has a free plan that gives you access to basic features and limited voice cloning credits.

If you need more, they offer three paid plans:

• Free: Experiment with core features and 10,000 characters per month.
• Starter ($5/month): Generate 30,000 characters per month, access to VoiceLab, and commercial use.
• Creator ($22/month): Generate 100,000 characters per month, priority support.
• Pro ($99/month): Generate 500,000 characters per month, early access to new features.
• Scale ($330/month): 2,000,000 characters per month and all features unlocked.

Descript vs ElevenLabs Feature Comparison

Now that you understand each AI tool better, let’s compare their key features head-to-head.

This will help you see where each platform shines and identify which best aligns with your needs.

We’ll explore how Descript and ElevenLabs measure up regarding voice synthesis, text-to-speech, and overall editing capabilities.

Considering their pros & cons will help you make an informed decision.

Voice Cloning

• Descript: Use Descript to create a digital version of your voice with Overdub, which is perfect for correcting mistakes in your audio file or generating new content with your voice. This is an excellent feature for podcast production or creating training materials.
• ElevenLabs: Excels at creating highly realistic clones from any voice, ideal for diverse applications like generating voiceovers with different accents. This opens up possibilities for creating unique characters for video or audio projects.

Text-to-Speech

• Descript: Descript provides a solid text-to-speech software engine seamlessly integrated with text-based editing features for easy use. This streamlines the editing process for those who prefer to work with text.
• ElevenLabs produces arguably more natural and expressive voices. It offers you a range of customization options, allowing you to create high-quality voiceovers for various applications.

Transcription

• Descript: Provides highly accurate transcription that integrates seamlessly with its editing platform, allowing text-based editing. This is a game-changer for audio editing and video editing capabilities, as you can transcribe your audio file and then edit the video or audio by simply changing the text.
• ElevenLabs: It offers an essential transcription feature but is not its primary focus.

Audio Editing

• Descript: A comprehensive audio editing software with features like Studio Sound and Filler Word Removal, ideal for podcast production. Descript provides a full suite of tools for refining your audio.
• ElevenLabs: Limited audio editing capabilities as its primary function is text-to-speech software.

Video Editing

• Descript: Offers robust video editing capabilities with a unique text-based editing approach. This simplifies the editing process and makes it more accessible to those new to video editing capabilities.
• ElevenLabs: It does not offer any video editing features.

Ease of Use

• Descript: Known for its user-friendly interface and intuitive workflow, particularly its text-based editing. Even beginners can quickly learn to use Descript.
• ElevenLabs is relatively easy to use but has a slightly steeper learning curve, especially for voice customization and API access.

Collaboration

• Descript: Provides excellent collaboration features, allowing multiple users to work simultaneously on projects. This is essential for teams involved in content creation.
• ElevenLabs: Currently lacks any built-in collaboration tools.

What To Look For When Choosing the Right Voice Cloning Tool?

• Your Budget: ElevenLabs offers a more affordable entry point with its free plan and lower-priced tiers. Descript’s pricing is higher but may be justified by its wider range of features.
• Your Primary Use Case: If your primary focus is on voice cloning and text-to-speech, ElevenLabs might be the better choice. However, Descript is the stronger contender if you need a comprehensive audio and video editing platform with voice cloning capabilities.
• Your Technical Skills: Descript’s user-friendly interface makes it ideal for beginners. If you’re comfortable with more technical tools and API integration, ElevenLabs offers greater flexibility.
• Ethical Considerations: Be very mindful of the moral implications of voice cloning technology and use it responsibly. Both platforms have guidelines and restrictions in place to prevent misuse.
• Future Needs: Consider your long-term goals & how your needs might evolve. Descript’s all-in-one approach might offer better scalability if you anticipate needing more comprehensive editing features.

Final Verdict (Our Pick)

For us, Descript emerges as the winner in this ElevenLabs vs showdown.

It’s a tool that simplifies audio and video production, allowing users to edit incredibly easily.

Descript offers more comprehensive features, including a screen recording feature and robust audio editing features.

We love that it allows users to edit by editing the transcribed text.

This makes editing your video or audio file super easy without complex timelines.

While Labs excels at voice generators, Descript is designed to be an all-in-one platform.

Descript also includes features like Overdub, which lets you clone your voice using just a few minutes of recorded audio.

Labs offer amazing voice generators, but Descript provides a more comprehensive editing experience.

This makes it perfect for content creators who need to edit audio and video files efficiently.

Ultimately, both Labs and Descript are powerful tools with their strengths. 

Frequently Asked Questions