ElevenLabs
Eleven v4 is number one on the blind speech arena, in 90+ languages.
Free · $6/mo
Best text to speech
Short answer: ElevenLabs. ElevenLabs still sounds the most human and is easiest to use. For free, use Gemini TTS in Google AI Studio; for long projects on a budget, Fish Audio; offline, Kokoro.
Which AI voice sounds the most human?
Gemini TTS
Sixth on the speech arena and free to use in Google AI Studio.
Free
Kokoro
Runs on any laptop without a graphics card, free for any use.
FreeSome setupOpen
Fish Audio
Top-ten quality and about 200 minutes for $15 a month.
Free · $15/moOpen
ElevenLabs released Eleven v4 in September 2026 and Fish Audio opened its Drama 3 model in October.
All 11 side by side.
Price, whether it runs on your own computer, and the main catch.
| # | Tool | Best for | Price | On your PC | Main downside |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | ElevenLabsElevenLabsBest overall | Voiceovers, audiobooks and videos | Free · $6/mo/mo paid | No | Credits run out fast on long books |
| 02 | SpeechifySpeechify | Listening to things you'd read | Free · $29/mo/mo paid | No | Free voices sound robotic |
| 03 | Gemini TTSGoogle | Free narration and podcasts | Free | No | No consumer app; you use AI Studio or the API |
| 04 | Fish AudioFish Audio | Long voiceovers on a budget | Free · $15/mo/mo paid | No | Open weights need a data-centre GPU, not a home PC |
| 05 | CartesiaCartesia | Real-time voice apps | Free · $5/mo/mo paid | No | Made for developers, not a reading app |
| 06 | MiniMax SpeechMiniMax | Expressive voices for apps | Paid | No | Pricier per character than most rivals |
| 07 | Azure AI SpeechMicrosoft | Many languages at low cost | Free | No | Needs an Azure account and some setup |
| 08 | Kokorohexgrad | Offline reading on any computer | Free | Some setup | Flatter emotion than paid voices |
| 09 | Qwen3-TTSAlibaba (Qwen) | Free voices on a gaming PC | Free | Technical | Needs Python and ideally an NVIDIA graphics card |
| 10 | ChatterboxResemble AI | Free local voices with emotion | Free | Technical | Retired in August 2026; no more updates or fixes |
| 11 | OpenAI TTSOpenAI | Apps already using OpenAI | Paid | No | Older voices rank far below today's leaders |
Nothing matches. Try another filter.
Best first, with the catch.
-
ElevenLabs
ElevenLabs · Eleven v4
The most natural AI voices, in 90+ languages.
Best overallFree plan- Price
- Free plan, then $6/mo10,000 credits a month, about 10 minutes of speech.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Ranked number one on the Artificial Analysis speech arena
- Huge voice library plus voice design and cloning
- Credits run out fast on long books
- Free plan is for personal use only
-
- Price
- Free plan, then $29/moReader with 10 basic voices, up to 1.5x speed.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Simba 3.5 ranks third on the speech arena
- Apps everywhere, including a browser extension
- Free voices sound robotic
- Monthly Premium is expensive; yearly is far cheaper
-
Gemini TTS
Google · Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS
Near top-quality voices, free to try in Google AI Studio.
Best freeFree- Price
- FreeFree tier in Google AI Studio and the Gemini API.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Sixth on the speech arena, best big-tech voice
- About $0.002 per 10 seconds of speech
- No consumer app; you use AI Studio or the API
- Prices double on 1 January 2027
-
Fish Audio
Fish Audio · Drama 3
Top-ten voices and cloning at a lower price than ElevenLabs.
Best valueFree planOpen- Price
- Free plan, then $15/mo8,000 credits a month, about 7 minutes, personal use.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Best open-weight model on the speech arena
- About three times more minutes per dollar than ElevenLabs
- Open weights need a data-centre GPU, not a home PC
- Commercial use of the weights only under $500k revenue
-
- Price
- Free plan, then $5/mo20,000 characters a month.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Fifth on the speech arena
- Very low delay, good for live agents
- Made for developers, not a reading app
- Higher per-character API price than Google or Fish
-
- Price
- Paid
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Eighth on TTS Arena, ahead of ElevenLabs there
- Clone a voice for $1.50
- Pricier per character than most rivals
- Mostly for developers; consumer plans unclear
-
Azure AI Speech
Microsoft · Azure HD 2.5
Microsoft's voices, with a large free monthly allowance.
Free- Price
- Free500,000 characters a month free on Neural voices.
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Biggest free monthly allowance of the big clouds
- Reliable, well documented, many voices
- Needs an Azure account and some setup
- Ranks well below ElevenLabs and Google on quality
-
Kokoro
hexgrad · Kokoro 82M v1.0
Tiny free voice model that runs on any laptop.
Best on your computerFreeOpenRuns on your PC- Price
- Free, open sourceFree and open source, including commercial use.
- On your PC
- Some setupAny laptop from the last few years, no GPU needed
- Runs fast on a normal CPU, no graphics card
- 54 voices in 8 languages
- Flatter emotion than paid voices
- No voice cloning
-
Qwen3-TTS
Alibaba (Qwen) · Qwen3-TTS 1.7B
Open voices you can design by description or clone in 3 seconds.
FreeOpenRuns on your PC- Price
- Free, open sourceFree and open source, including commercial use.
- On your PC
- TechnicalNVIDIA GPU with 8 GB, or an Apple Silicon Mac
- Describe a voice in words and it creates it
- Clones a voice from 3 seconds of audio
- Needs Python and ideally an NVIDIA graphics card
- Not yet ranked on the public voice arenas
-
Chatterbox
Resemble AI · Chatterbox Multilingual V3
Free open voices with cloning, in 23 languages.
FreeOpenRuns on your PC- Price
- Free, open sourceFree and open source, including commercial use.
- On your PC
- TechnicalNVIDIA GPU or Apple Silicon Mac; Nano runs on 8 CPU cores
- MIT license and voice cloning from a short clip
- Tags like [laugh] and [cough] for realism
- Retired in August 2026; no more updates or fixes
- Clearly below the paid leaders on quality
-
- Price
- Paid
- On your PC
- No, online only
- Simple to add if you already use OpenAI
- Tell it how to speak with plain instructions
- Older voices rank far below today's leaders
- Preset voices only, no cloning
3 of these run on your own computer.
Private and offline. Check what your machine can handle.
| Tool | Setup | You need |
|---|---|---|
| Kokoro | Some setup | Any laptop from the last few years, no GPU needed |
| Qwen3-TTS | Technical | NVIDIA GPU with 8 GB, or an Apple Silicon Mac |
| Chatterbox | Technical | NVIDIA GPU or Apple Silicon Mac; Nano runs on 8 CPU cores |
Quick answers.
What is the most realistic text to speech?
ElevenLabs Eleven v4, ranked first on the Artificial Analysis speech arena in November 2026. Speechify Simba 3.5 and Cartesia Sonic 3.6 are close behind.
What is the best free text to speech?
Gemini TTS in Google AI Studio has a free tier and ranks sixth overall. ElevenLabs gives about 10 free minutes a month. Offline, Kokoro is free for any use.
Can I run text to speech offline?
Yes. Kokoro runs on any laptop CPU. Qwen3-TTS and Chatterbox sound more expressive and can clone voices but want a graphics card or an Apple Silicon Mac.
ElevenLabs vs Fish Audio, which is better?
ElevenLabs ranks higher and has better apps. Fish Audio gives about 200 minutes for $15 a month against about 121 minutes for $22 at ElevenLabs, so it wins on price.
Can I use AI voices commercially?
On paid plans, yes, for ElevenLabs, Fish Audio and most others. Free plans are usually personal use only. Kokoro (Apache), Chatterbox (MIT) and Qwen3-TTS (Apache) allow commercial use for free.
Is ChatGPT's voice the best text to speech?
No. OpenAI's text to speech voices rank far below ElevenLabs, Google and Speechify on the speech arena, and they are only available to developers through the API.
Rankings we read: Artificial Analysis Speech Arena, TTS Arena V2 (Hugging Face). Prices from each official pricing page, checked 2026-11-05.