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WAV to text

WAV to text

Upload a WAV file and get an editable, timestamped transcript. WAV is raw, uncompressed audio from recorders and editors, so the files are large; here is how to know whether yours fits and what to do if it does not.

Free preview: one file up to 15 minutes and 25 MB, 3 tries a day, no account needed.

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Why WAV files are big

A WAV file usually holds uncompressed PCM audio: every sample is stored as it was captured. CD-quality stereo (44.1 kHz, 16-bit, two channels) is 10.6 MB for every minute. A 48 kHz 16-bit mono voice recording is 5.8 MB a minute. Speech recognition works on audio reduced to 16 kHz mono, which would be 1.9 MB a minute as WAV, so most of a typical WAV's size is detail the recogniser never uses.

For the no-account preview that means 2 minutes of CD-quality stereo fits both the 15-minute and the 25 MB limit; whichever is smaller wins. Classic WAV files also cannot exceed about 4 GB because of how the header stores the length.

Where WAV files come from

Audio editors such as Audacity export WAV by default. Handheld field recorders, interview kits, call-recording software and phone-line loggers often write WAV because it is simple and lossless. If you recorded something important on a dedicated recorder, this is probably the file you have, and uploading the original WAV rather than an MP3 made from it keeps the best starting quality.

How to transcribe a WAV file

  1. Copy the WAV from the recorder or export it from your editor.
  2. Choose it above. Large files take longer to upload than to transcribe on a slow connection, so if you are on mobile data convert to M4A or MP3 first with the audio converter.
  3. Read the transcript against the audio, correct it, then export.

Two-channel and multi-track WAVs

A stereo WAV with one speaker on each channel is mixed down for recognition, so overlapping speech stays overlapped. If you recorded each person on their own track, transcribe the tracks as separate files and merge the text by timestamp; that is more work but cleaner than one mixed file.

How it works

  1. Add a recording

    Drop in a video or audio file, choose one from your device, or record from the microphone. Nothing to install.

  2. It transcribes

    Speech becomes timestamped text, with speaker labels when more than one person talks.

  3. Read, fix, export

    Click any line to correct it, then download TXT, subtitles, Markdown, JSON or CSV.

Questions

Should I convert WAV to MP3 before uploading?
Only to save upload time. WAV works directly. A 128 kbps MP3 is about 1.0 MB a minute, far smaller, and fine for speech.
My WAV is over the size limit. What now?
Convert it to M4A or MP3 with the audio converter, or trim it. The length limit still applies to the no-account preview.
Does WAV give a better transcript than MP3?
A clean WAV is a better starting point than a low-bitrate MP3 made from it. A good-quality MP3 of clear speech is not meaningfully worse for transcription.
Is it free?
Yes — one file up to 15 minutes and 25 MB with no account, up to 3 tries a day. A free account keeps your transcripts in a library and lifts the guest limits; the current limits and paid plans are on the pricing page.
What can I export?
Plain text, timestamped text, SRT, VTT, Markdown, JSON with word timings and CSV, all from the same edited transcript.

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