ElevenLabs review

ElevenLabs is an AI audio platform, not just a text-to-speech tool. Its products are split between ElevenCreative, for generating speech, music, sound effects and video, and ElevenAgents, for deploying voice or chat agents. Developers can also use ElevenAPI to add text-to-speech, speech-to-text and music generation to their own products.

The homepage lists speech generation in 90+ languages, voice cloning and voice design, plus a library of more than 17,500 voices. Eleven Scribe handles speech-to-text; its listed accuracy is 98%, with speaker diarization. The music tool generates tracks from natural-language prompts. Agents can be deployed across phone, chat, email and WhatsApp.

Pricing starts with a free plan and then $6 per month for Starter, or $5 per month with annual billing. Plans bill monthly by default; annual billing charges for 10 months upfront for 12 months of service. The range runs to custom-priced Enterprise, with different credit, project and seat limits.

The appeal is breadth: speech generation, cloning, music, sound effects, transcription and agents sit under one platform. That can simplify a workflow if you need more than voiceovers, while the API gives developers a way to build audio features into their own products. The homepage’s 90+ language claim and 17,500+ voice library also make the service worth considering for teams producing varied or multilingual content.

There is a low-cost way to start, but the free plan is for noncommercial use. Starter adds a commercial license and instant voice cloning for $6 monthly, with 30,000 credits and 20 Studio projects. Creator is $22 monthly, or $18.33 with annual billing, and includes 121,000 credits plus Professional Voice Cloning. Its first month is listed at $11.

Higher tiers add capacity and team features rather than changing the basic proposition. Pro includes 600,000 credits and higher-quality audio options; Scale includes three workspace seats and three Professional Voice Clones. Business lists 10 seats, 10 Professional Voice Clones and low-latency TTS as low as 5 cents per minute. For teams that want one vendor for creation and deployment, that package breadth is the clearest advantage.

The main cost question is how quickly your workflow uses credits. Free includes 10,000 a month and no commercial license; Starter includes 30,000, Creator 121,000, Pro 600,000, Scale 1.8 million and Business 6 million. The listed monthly prices rise from $6 for Starter to $22 for Creator, $99 for Pro, $299 for Scale and $990 for Business. Those credit pools are caps, not unlimited usage.

Overage costs are listed per minute: about $0.36 on Free, $0.20 on Starter, $0.18 on Creator and $0.17 on Pro, Scale and Business. Pay-as-you-go top-up credits are available and are not subject to the rollover cap. Extra workspace seats are also available, but the per-seat price is not published. Enterprise pricing and its credit and seat limits are custom.

Some features require a higher tier: Professional Voice Cloning starts with Creator, while team collaboration and multiple workspace seats start with Scale. Free has only three Studio projects, compared with 20 on Starter. Annual billing lowers the monthly equivalent, but requires paying for 10 months upfront. Check expected usage and rights needs before choosing a plan.

ElevenLabs has a free plan, but it has no commercial license. Starter costs $6/month, or $5/month with annual billing, and adds commercial rights and 30,000 credits. Creator is $22/month ($18.33 annual) for 121,000 credits; Pro jumps to $99/month ($82.50 annual) for 600,000. The next step is $299/month for Scale, then $990/month for Business. Annual billing charges for 10 months upfront for 12 months of service, so the lower monthly figure comes with a larger upfront payment.

The credit allowance rises with each tier, but the pricing details don’t explain how many credits a particular workflow will use. Pay-as-you-go top-ups are available and aren’t subject to the rollover cap. Listed per-minute overage costs range from about $0.36 on Free to $0.17 on Pro, Scale and Business. Extra Workspace seats are available, but their price isn’t published. Enterprise pricing is custom. Budget for your actual usage before moving a high-volume workflow; the entry price alone won’t tell you what it will cost.

Switching in is straightforward to scope, but the published material doesn’t document migration tools or imports. Before committing, list the voices, scripts, Studio projects, and agent workflows you need to recreate, then confirm what can be brought over. The published material also doesn’t say whether cloned voices, projects, or agent configurations can be exported. Treat portability as an open question, not a confirmed lock-in.

If you’re leaving, check that you can retrieve the assets and records your next tool needs before cancelling. Replacing ElevenAPI text-to-speech, speech-to-text, or music generation may also mean changing the integration in your product; the brief doesn’t describe a transfer path. We don’t have Reddit posts or comments in the published sources, so we can’t responsibly attribute reasons for leaving to users. Ask ElevenLabs about exports, deletion, and any plan-specific limits, and verify the answers against your intended destination before you switch.