AI Voiceover Cost Calculator
By Jaden Vo · Prices checked Oct 22, 2026
Enter your script's word count or paste the script itself, choose a speaking speed, and see how long the voiceover will run and what it costs across popular AI voice tools. Everything runs in your browser.
Watch: 1,000 words as a voiceover in 40 seconds
Words
1,000
Est. video length
6m 40s
Characters
6,000
≈ 6 characters per word
| Tool | Est. cost | Pricing basis & source |
|---|---|---|
| ElevenLabsTry ElevenLabs → | $6.00/mo (Starter, 20% of credits) | Subscription. ~1 credit per character (Multilingual v2). Starter $6/mo = 30k credits, Creator $22/mo = 121k ($11 first month), Pro $99 = 600k. Paid plans include a commercial license. Official pricing |
| Murf API – FalconMurf review → | $0.06 | Pay as you go, $0.01 per 1,000 characters. $10 free API credit on the trial. Official pricing |
| Murf API – Gen2 (studio quality)Murf review → | $0.18 | Pay as you go, $0.03 per 1,000 characters. Official pricing |
| WellSaid (monthly) | $19.00/mo ($19/mo plan) | Billed by downloaded minutes: $19/mo for 20 min, $49/mo for 180 min. Unlimited generation, commercial rights. Official pricing |
| Google Cloud – Chirp 3: HD | $0 (if within free tier: $0) | $30 per 1M characters after 1M free characters per month. Official pricing |
| Google Cloud – WaveNet / Standard | $0 | $4 per 1M characters after 4M free characters per month. Official pricing |
Prices checked Oct 22, 2026 on official pricing pages, USD, excluding taxes. Estimates assume no retakes. Tools whose prices we could not verify that day are not listed.
How to use it
- Add your script. Type a word count, or paste the script for an exact word and character count.
- Set the speed. 150 WPM suits most YouTube narration. Use 130 for tutorials and 170 for Shorts.
- Set scripts per month to see which subscription plan covers your monthly volume.
- Compare. Subscriptions (ElevenLabs, WellSaid) charge per month; APIs (Murf API, Google Cloud) charge per character.
Price is only part of it. Read our best AI voice generators for YouTube and ElevenLabs vs Murf comparisons to hear how they sound. Ready to start? Try ElevenLabs free (affiliate link), or plan your credits in detail with the ElevenLabs cost calculator.
FAQ
How long is a 1,000-word voiceover?
About 6 minutes 40 seconds at 150 words per minute, the typical narration pace. At a calm 130 WPM it is about 7 minutes 42 seconds; at a fast 170 WPM about 5 minutes 53 seconds.
How many characters is 1,000 words?
Roughly 6,000 characters including spaces for typical English (about 5 letters per word plus a space). Paste your script for the exact count, since most TTS tools bill per character.
What does a 1,000-word voiceover cost on ElevenLabs?
About 6,000 credits on Multilingual v2 (1 credit per character). The Starter plan ($6/month, 30,000 credits) covers about five such scripts per month and includes a commercial license.
Which AI voice is cheapest for a single video?
Of the prices we verified, Murf API Falcon ($0.01 per 1,000 characters) and Google Cloud's free monthly tiers are the cheapest, but they are APIs for developers. For a ready-to-use studio app, ElevenLabs Starter is the cheapest paid option we list.
Why do my real numbers differ?
Speaking speed varies by voice and settings, pauses add time, and regenerations use extra credits. Add 10–20% for retakes.