IBM Watson Text to Speech vs iSpeech
IBM Watson Text to Speech
ibm.comiSpeech
ispeech.orgSide by side
| Figure | IBM Watson Text to Speech | iSpeech |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $0.25/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 7 | 15 |
| Spec score · Text-to-speech tools | 8.6 (#43) | 9.2 (#11) |
| Spec score · Text-to-Speech Software | 8.4 (#63) | 9.2 (#6) |
| API access | Yes | API access requires an API key, with mobile development, mobile production, and web/general production key types. |
| Company | IBM was founded in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company and renamed IBM in 1924. | iSpeech describes itself as a privately held company headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, with an office in San Francisco, California. |
| Export formats | A-law,Basic audio,FLAC,Linear 16-bit PCM,MP3,Mu-law,Ogg,WebM,WAV | aiff,mp3,ogg,wma,flac,wav,alaw,ulaw,vox,mp4 |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Platforms | api,self_hosted | web,ios,android,api |
Plans
IBM Watson Text to Speech
- LitePriced on request
- StandardPriced on request
- PremiumPriced on request
- LiteFree
- StandardPriced on request
- Deploy AnywherePriced on request
- PremiumPriced on request
iSpeech
- Plus$2.95 a month
- Premium$3.95 a month
- Pay Per Use$50 a month
- Pay Per Install$0.25 a month
- BasicFree
- HackerFree
- Plus$2.95 a month
- Premium$3.95 a month
- Junior$29 a month
- Pay-per-use 2,000 credits$50, paid once
In their own words
IBM Watson Text to Speech
IBM Watson Text to Speech is an API cloud service that converts written text into audio in multiple languages and voices, for applications or watsonx Assistant. Deep neural networks trained on human speech produce its neural voices. SSML controls can change pronunciation, volume, pitch, speed, and other attributes; unusual pronunciations can be specified with IPA or IBM SPR. Listed speaking styles include GoodNews, Apology, and Uncertainty, and voice transformation can adjust strength, pitch, breathiness, rate, and timbre. The service supports nine languages and accepts up to 5,000 input units. Export formats include A-law, Basic audio, FLAC, Linear 16-bit PCM, MP3, Mu-law, Ogg, WebM, and WAV. Deployment options include public, private, hybrid, multicloud, and on-premises infrastructure. Deploy Anywhere is billed by contacting IBM. Premium can include a custom branded neural voice modeled on a chosen speaker using as little as one hour of recordings.
iSpeech
iSpeech provides text-to-speech and automated speech recognition through APIs, SDKs, and online tools. Its speech API can synthesize audio with multiple voices, formats, bitrates, frequencies, and playback speeds, and supports MathML and SSML. The API can also transcribe submitted audio across multiple languages and recognition models; iSpeech says custom models can be created. The homepage lists support for more than 30 languages. Audio downloads are available in AIFF, MP3, OGG, WMA, FLAC, WAV, A-law, μ-law, VOX, and MP4 formats. Listed access includes Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, web, Windows, API, and extension. The Basic plan is free for personal use, and commercial use is listed as available. Plus costs $2.95 a month, billed monthly, and includes 30-minute recordings, approximately 4,167 words. Premium costs $3.95 a month, billed monthly, with 12-hour recordings, approximately 100,000 words. Pay Per Use costs $50 a month for dynamic TTS usage only and includes 2,000 credits. Pay Per Install costs $0.25 a month and has a 10,000-install minimum.