Deepgram vs AssemblyAI
An independent, side-by-side comparison to help you pick the right tool. Pricing, features, strengths, and trade-offs.
Free $200 credit / Pay-as-you-go from $0.0043/min
$130M Series C (Jan 2026, $1.3B valuation)
Free tier (up to 185 hrs pre-recorded) / Pay-as-you-go from $0.15/hr (Universal-2) or $0.21/hr (Universal-3.5 Pro) / Streaming from $0.15/hr
User ratings
4.6/5
on G2 (440 reviews)
76% satisfaction
Not yet rated on G2
Source: G2.com. Ratings may change over time.
At a glance
| Deepgram | AssemblyAI | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free $200 credit / Pay-as-you-go from $0.0043/min | Free tier (up to 185 hrs pre-recorded) / Pay-as-you-go from $0.15/hr (Universal-2) or $0.21/hr (Universal-3.5 Pro) / Streaming from $0.15/hr |
| Type | Transcription | Transcription |
| G2 Rating | 4.6/5 (440 reviews) | n/a |
| Team Size | 101-250 | n/a |
| Funding | $130M Series C (Jan 2026, $1.3B valuation) | n/a |
| Key Investors | AVP, Alkeon, In-Q-Tel, Madrona Venture Group, Tiger Global, Wing Venture Capital, Y Combinator | n/a |
Feature comparison
| Feature | Deepgram | AssemblyAI |
|---|---|---|
| Real-time streaming transcription | No | |
| Pre-recorded audio API | No | |
| Custom model training | No | |
| Speaker diarization | ||
| Language detection | No | |
| Speech-to-text API (pre-recorded and real-time streaming) | No | |
| LLM Gateway (formerly LeMUR) | No | |
| PII redaction | No | |
| Topic and sentiment detection | No | |
| 99 languages on Universal-2 | No |
What makes each tool different
Deepgram
Deepgram trains its own speech models from scratch (not based on Whisper), delivering the fastest real-time transcription API with competitive accuracy. Its streaming API processes speech with sub-300ms latency, critical for real-time voice applications.
AssemblyAI
AssemblyAI goes beyond transcription to provide audio intelligence: topic detection, sentiment analysis, entity recognition, PII redaction, and auto chapters. Its LLM Gateway (formerly LeMUR) lets you apply language models to transcribed audio through the same API.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Fastest streaming transcription available
- Competitive accuracy
- Good developer experience and docs
Weaknesses
- Fewer features than AssemblyAI for intelligence
- Custom models require enterprise plan
- Pre-recorded Nova-3 ($0.0043/min) costs more than AssemblyAI Universal-2 ($0.15/hr)
Strengths
- Rich audio intelligence features beyond transcription
- LLM Gateway enables Q&A on audio content
- Excellent developer documentation
- Universal-2 at $0.15/hr undercuts Deepgram Nova-3 pre-recorded ($0.0043/min, about $0.26/hr)
Weaknesses
- Universal-3.5 Pro covers 18 languages, fewer than Universal-2's 99
- Premium real-time model (Universal-3.6 Pro Realtime) costs $0.45/hr
- In-region US/EU processing costs 10% more
Try both and decide
The best way to choose is to test each tool with your own workflow. Most offer free tiers or trials.