60db vs Deepgram
60db vs Deepgram: an honest comparison
Deepgram is known for speech recognition, and it has spent years on that job. 60db started from the voice side. It covers speech to text, text to speech, chat and memory on one key. This page sets out what each one includes, where each is ahead, and how to test both on your own audio. We do not quote Deepgram's prices here, because they change. Check its pricing page.
The 60db Free plan renews 3,000 credits every month.
- 01Speech to text: 60db uses 25 credits a minute on every plan. Check Deepgram's pricing page for its current rates.
- 02Text to speech: 60db pay as you go is $0.02 per 1,000 characters.
- 03Deepgram has a long track record in speech recognition. 60db is the newer company, and it puts voice, chat and memory on one key.
Type a line. Hear it back.
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Who should pick which?
Pick Deepgram if transcription is the heart of your product, and you want a team that has spent years on speech recognition alone.
Pick 60db if you want transcription, speech, chat and memory from one place, with one key and one credit balance. Our text to speech is $0.02 per 1,000 characters on pay as you go. Every plan includes a commercial licence, Instant Voice Cloning and unlimited team members.
Many teams do not have to choose for good. Send the same audio and the same scripts to both, and compare the results on your own data. That test is worth more than any table on this page.
60db vs Deepgram at a glance
Each row names one thing you may need. Deepgram's plans and rates change, so check its docs and pricing page for current figures.
| What you get | 60db | Deepgram | Who is ahead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free start | Free plan: 3,000 credits every month, with a commercial licence | Check its current trial terms | Check both |
| How you pay | Monthly plans at $6, $22 and $99, or pay as you go | Check its pricing page | Depends on volume |
| Speech to text, pre-recorded | 25 credits a minute on every plan | Check its pricing page | Compare on your audio |
| Speech to text, streaming | 25 credits a minute | Check its pricing page | Compare on your audio |
| Text to speech | $0.02 per 1,000 characters pay as you go | Check its pricing page | Compare on your voices |
| Voice agent product | Speech to text, chat (Vyas), memory (Smriti) and speech (Kaak) on one key | Check its docs for its agent product | Depends on your build |
| Speech-to-text languages | 40+ | Check its docs for the current list | Test your languages on both |
| Text-to-speech languages | 30 | Check its docs for the current list | Test your languages on both |
| Voices | 500+ | Check its docs | Check both |
| Voice cloning | Instant Voice Cloning on every plan, including Free | Check its docs | Check both |
| Audio quality | 48 kHz by default; 8 to 48 kHz through the API | Check its docs for output formats | Check both for your format |
| Team members | Unlimited on every plan | Check its plan terms | Check both |
| Hosted MCP server | Yes, mcp.60db.ai with OAuth 2.1 | Check its docs | Check both |
| Track record in transcription | Newer to the market | Check its track record | Deepgram |
- Free start
- 60dbFree plan: 3,000 credits every month, with a commercial licence
- DeepgramCheck its current trial terms
- Who is aheadCheck both
- How you pay
- 60dbMonthly plans at $6, $22 and $99, or pay as you go
- DeepgramCheck its pricing page
- Who is aheadDepends on volume
- Speech to text, pre-recorded
- 60db25 credits a minute on every plan
- DeepgramCheck its pricing page
- Who is aheadCompare on your audio
- Speech to text, streaming
- 60db25 credits a minute
- DeepgramCheck its pricing page
- Who is aheadCompare on your audio
- Text to speech
- 60db$0.02 per 1,000 characters pay as you go
- DeepgramCheck its pricing page
- Who is aheadCompare on your voices
- Voice agent product
- 60dbSpeech to text, chat (Vyas), memory (Smriti) and speech (Kaak) on one key
- DeepgramCheck its docs for its agent product
- Who is aheadDepends on your build
- Speech-to-text languages
- 60db40+
- DeepgramCheck its docs for the current list
- Who is aheadTest your languages on both
- Text-to-speech languages
- 60db30
- DeepgramCheck its docs for the current list
- Who is aheadTest your languages on both
- Voices
- 60db500+
- DeepgramCheck its docs
- Who is aheadCheck both
- Voice cloning
- 60dbInstant Voice Cloning on every plan, including Free
- DeepgramCheck its docs
- Who is aheadCheck both
- Audio quality
- 60db48 kHz by default; 8 to 48 kHz through the API
- DeepgramCheck its docs for output formats
- Who is aheadCheck both for your format
- Team members
- 60dbUnlimited on every plan
- DeepgramCheck its plan terms
- Who is aheadCheck both
- Hosted MCP server
- 60dbYes, mcp.60db.ai with OAuth 2.1
- DeepgramCheck its docs
- Who is aheadCheck both
- Track record in transcription
- 60dbNewer to the market
- DeepgramCheck its track record
- Who is aheadDeepgram
Deepgram's plans and rates are on deepgram.com/pricing. Confirm them there before you buy. 60db prices are on 60db.ai/pricing. One 60db credit is one character of text to speech. One minute of speech to text uses 25 credits.
Send the same file to both
Transcribe one real recording on 60db's Free plan and on Deepgram's trial, then compare the text line by line.
Where Deepgram is ahead
These are real reasons to choose Deepgram, and we would rather you hear them from us.
Transcription is its whole focus.
Deepgram has worked on speech recognition for years, and its docs, SDKs and examples reflect that depth.
Check its docs for an agent product, if you want one bill and one integration for the whole loop. With 60db you connect the parts yourself.
It is an established name, which can make security reviews and procurement shorter at some companies.
Its current trial terms may suit a one-off pilot better than our monthly free credits.
Check them on its site.
Where 60db is ahead
This is where 60db tends to win for teams that need both halves of voice.
One key for the whole agent
Garuda transcribes, Vyas chats, Smriti remembers, and Kaak speaks. All four use the same key and the same credits, so one bill covers the agent.
Speech to text in credits
60db bills speech to text at 25 credits a minute. One balance covers it and your text to speech, so you can plan one budget.
Voice cloning included
Instant Voice Cloning comes with every 60db plan, including Free. You can give your product its own voice without a separate contract.
Unlimited team members
Every 60db plan, including Free, lets your whole team in. Nobody has to share a login to test a voice.
Fast first audio
In our June 2026 test of 330 prompts, Kaak had a median of 197 ms to first audio and a p95 of 300 ms. Run your own test, but that is fast enough for live conversation.
A hosted MCP server
Point an AI assistant at mcp.60db.ai, sign in with OAuth 2.1, and it can use 60db's tools without you writing glue code.
500+ voices in 30 languages
Kaak offers a large voice library for text to speech, with 48 kHz audio by default.
How far each 60db plan goes for transcription
60db bills speech to text in credits. One minute costs 25 credits, which is 1,500 credits an hour. Use this table to see how far each plan goes, then set it against Deepgram's own rates.
| Plan | Monthly price | Credits | Hours of speech to text |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 3,000 | about 2 |
| Starter | $6 | 120,000 | about 80 |
| Creator | $22 | 400,000 | about 267 |
| Pro | $99 | 2,000,000 | about 1,333 |
- Free
- Monthly price$0
- Credits3,000
- Hours of speech to textabout 2
- Starter
- Monthly price$6
- Credits120,000
- Hours of speech to textabout 80
- Creator
- Monthly price$22
- Credits400,000
- Hours of speech to textabout 267
- Pro
- Monthly price$99
- Credits2,000,000
- Hours of speech to textabout 1,333
Hours are 25 credits a minute, or 1,500 credits an hour. Check 60db.ai/pricing for current plan details, and check Deepgram's pricing page for its rates.
What generated speech costs on 60db
60db bills text to speech at one credit per character. Pay as you go is $0.02 per 1,000 characters. A minute of speech is roughly 750 to 1,000 characters.
| Characters per month | What it costs on 60db |
|---|---|
| 3,000 | $0 on Free |
| 120,000 | $6 on Starter |
| 400,000 | $22 on Creator |
| 2,000,000 | $99 on Pro |
| 1,000,000 on pay as you go | $20 |
- 3,000
- What it costs on 60db$0 on Free
- 120,000
- What it costs on 60db$6 on Starter
- 400,000
- What it costs on 60db$22 on Creator
- 2,000,000
- What it costs on 60db$99 on Pro
- 1,000,000 on pay as you go
- What it costs on 60db$20
Deepgram's text to speech rates are on its pricing page. Compare the same number of characters on both.
How to judge transcription accuracy fairly
Every speech-to-text company publishes a word error rate, and every one picks a test set that suits it. The only number that matters is the error rate on your own audio: your callers, your microphones, your accents, your product names. A model that wins on clean podcast audio can lose on a noisy phone line.
Our own published number is for Hindi. On a set of 9,997 Hindi clips, Garuda had a 12.95% word error rate. We have not run Deepgram on that same set, so we will not claim to beat it. If Hindi or Hinglish matters to you, send the same clips to both and count the errors yourself.
To compare fairly, take 30 to 60 minutes of real recordings, write a careful human transcript, then run both services and score each against it. Note the errors that would actually hurt you, such as wrong numbers, names and negatives. Ten wrong filler words matter less than one wrong account number.
What each free start really covers
Deepgram's trial terms change, so check its pricing page for the current credit and expiry rules before you plan a pilot around them.
The 60db Free plan gives 3,000 credits every month, and they renew. That is about 2 hours of speech to text, or a few minutes of audio if you spend it on speech. It suits a developer who wants a small test running for months, and it includes a commercial licence and voice cloning from day one.
The honest summary: for a short, heavy trial, compare the trial terms on both sites. For a long, light test, or once you are paying, the monthly credit rules matter more. Our Starter plan is $6 for 120,000 credits, which is about 80 hours of speech to text.
Building a live voice agent on each
A voice agent has four jobs: listen, think, remember and speak. Deepgram may offer a packaged voice agent product. Check its docs and pricing for what it includes and how it bills.
On 60db you call the parts yourself, all on one key. Garuda transcribes at 25 credits a minute. Vyas answers in chat, Smriti stores and finds past context, and Kaak speaks at $0.02 per 1,000 characters on pay as you go. Measure a few real calls to see your total cost per minute before you compare it with a packaged rate.
Concurrency matters for agents too. On 60db, text to speech allows 1 request at once on Free, 5 on Starter, 10 on Creator and no fixed cap on Pro. Check the speech to text limits on 60db.ai/pricing and Deepgram's limits on its own site, then check both against your busiest hour.
How to move transcription from Deepgram to 60db
Most teams move one workload at a time and keep Deepgram running until the numbers agree.
Pick one workload
Choose something low risk, such as overnight transcription of recorded calls, rather than your live agent.
Create a 60db key
Sign up, open the dashboard and create an API key. The Free plan is enough for a first test.
Run both in parallel
Send the same audio to Deepgram and to 60db for a week. Store both transcripts so you can compare them.
Score the results
Check accuracy on the words that matter to your business, plus speed and cost per hour.
Map the response fields
Both APIs return text with timestamps, but the JSON shapes differ. Write a small adapter so the rest of your code does not care which provider answered.
Move traffic in steps
Send 10%, then 50%, then all of that workload to 60db. Keep a switch so you can roll back in minutes.
What else comes with a 60db account
Kaak text to speech
500+ voices in 30 languages, with 48 kHz audio by default.
Garuda speech to text
40+ languages, live streaming or uploaded files, at the same 25 credits a minute.
Vyas chat
A chat model for the thinking part of a voice agent, billed from the same credits.
Smriti memory
Store and search what users told your agent before, so the next call starts with context.
Voice cloning
Instant Voice Cloning on every plan. Use only voices you have the rights to.
Uptime commitment
Paid plans carry a 99.9% uptime SLA.
A one-week test plan
Run this plan on both services and you will have your answer with real data.
Day 1: collect 50 real recordings and 50 real scripts.
Include the hardest cases you have, such as noisy calls, strong accents and long numbers.
Day 2: write or buy careful human transcripts for 20 of the recordings, so you have a fair answer key.
Day 3: run every recording through Deepgram and 60db Garuda.
Save the raw output and the time each one took.
Day 4: score word errors against your answer key, and list the mistakes that would cost you money.
Day 5: generate your 50 scripts with Deepgram's voices and 60db Kaak.
Play them, unlabelled, to three people and ask which they prefer.
Day 6: measure time to first audio from your own servers, at your own busy hour.
Day 7: add up the cost at your real monthly volume, using the credit tables on this page and Deepgram's pricing page, and decide.
Mistakes teams make when comparing the two
Testing on clean audio only
Studio recordings make every model look good. Use the messy calls your product really gets.
Comparing unlike rates
Make sure both sides price the same thing: pre-recorded or streaming, monolingual or multilingual, file or live audio.
Ignoring trial terms
Count any free credit and its expiry when you compare the first year's cost.
Counting characters wrong
Text-to-speech bills by character, including spaces and punctuation. Measure your real scripts rather than guessing.
Forgetting the agent's other parts
A voice agent also needs a language model and maybe memory. Price the whole loop, not just one piece.
Not testing latency from your region
Network distance changes time to first audio. Test from the cloud region where your app runs.
Running Deepgram and 60db side by side
You do not need one provider for everything. Some teams keep Deepgram for live transcription in a product that already depends on it, and use 60db for spoken replies and for transcription of recordings. Others do the reverse.
If you mix providers, put a thin layer in your code that hides which one is answering. Then you can move traffic between them as prices, accuracy or your needs change, without a rewrite.
Which one fits your use case
Call-centre analytics on large archives of recorded calls: price per hour decides most of the budget. Use the credit table on this page and Deepgram's rates to total it, and test accuracy on your calls first.
A live voice agent that must ship this month: Deepgram's agent product, if it fits, may save integration time. Check its docs. 60db gives you one key and voice cloning, but you connect the parts yourself.
A product that speaks to users, such as an app, game or reader: 60db's voice library, voice cloning and single key usually matter more than a small price difference.
A team that wants a long annual contract with a known vendor: ask Deepgram about its enterprise terms. Talk to our sales team if you want to compare contract options on 60db.
9 questions
60db vs Deepgram: common questions
Plain answers, including the ones where Deepgram comes out ahead.
It depends on your volume and the rates you buy. We do not quote Deepgram's prices here, because they change. Put both pricing pages side by side, use the same hours or characters, and compare the totals.
Test it on your own audio
3,000 free credits a month, a commercial licence, voice cloning and speech to text on one key.