Speech and voice AI credits: Deepgram vs AssemblyAI vs ElevenLabs vs Cartesia and more
Signup credits, free tiers and startup programs for speech-to-text, text-to-speech and voice-agent APIs. This table covers 13 offers from 8 vendors; 8 of the 13 live offers need no application, and the largest stated one-time USD credit is $100,000 (Deepgram).
13 offers · built only from our verified dataset · latest verification . We don’t rank or score offers; the quotes speak for themselves. Published by Avatar 8.
Side by side
| Vendor / offer | Type | Credit value | Application needed? | Eligibility | How to claim | Source quote | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AssemblyAI | free tier | Free tier: up to 185 hours pre-recorded + 333 hours streaming, no card | No | New accounts | Sign up | “The free tier includes up to 185 hours of pre-recorded transcription” source ↗ | |
| AssemblyAI | startup program | 12 months of recurring free credits + discounted startup pricing | Yes | Startups building with voice/audio, launching within 6 months | Apply to AssemblyAI startup program | “12 months of recurring free credits and discounted startup pricing” source ↗ | |
| Cartesia | free tier | Free plan: 20K credits/month | No | Anyone | Start free | “Free $0 /mo Start free 20K credits / month” source ↗ | |
| Cartesia | startup program | 12 months on Scale: 8M Sonic/Ink credits/month + $299/month Managed Agents credits | Yes | Accepted startups | Apply for Startups Grant | “Accepted startups receive 12 months on Scale, with 8 million shared Sonic and Ink credits each month” source ↗ | |
| Deepgram | signup credit | $200 free credit, then pay-as-you-go | No | New Deepgram accounts | Sign up | “Free $200 Credit then pay-as-you-go” source ↗ | |
| Deepgram | startup program | Up to $100,000 in credits over 12 months | Yes | AI builders / early-stage startups in or near production | Apply to Deepgram for Startups | “get up to $100,000 in credits over 12 months” source ↗ | |
| ElevenLabs | startup program | 12 months free access: 33,000,000 characters (>$5,500 value) | Yes | Startups building with ElevenLabs | Apply for startup grant | “33,000,000 characters” source ↗ | |
| ElevenLabs | free tier | Free plan $0/month | No | Anyone | Sign up | “Free $0 per month Build for free” source ↗ | |
| Gladia | signup credit | 50€ in free credits valid one year | No | New accounts | Sign up | “New accounts get 50€ in free credits, valid for one year” source ↗ | |
| Gladia | startup program | $3,000 in credits for 12 months + a dedicated Field Developer Engineer ($3,500 if referred by a Gladia VC Partner) | Yes | Early-stage startups: fewer than 10 people, under 2 years since incorporation, voice AI at the core of the product, monetised or clear path to it; no minimum funding; agencies/consultancies not eligible | Apply via the Startup Studio form (decision within 7 business days) | “Gladia Startup Studio backs early-stage startups with 12 months of credits and a dedicated Field Developer Engineer” source ↗ | |
| Retell AI | signup credit | $10 in free credits | No | New accounts (pay-as-you-go) | Sign up for free | “Go live in minutes with $10 in free credits” source ↗ | |
| Speechmatics | signup credit | $100 in credits, no card; first 1M TTS characters free | No | New accounts | Start free | “Start free • $100 in credits No card required” source ↗ | |
| Vapi | signup credit | $5 free credits to get started | No | New accounts (pay-as-you-go, no Success Package) | Start building on Vapi | “$5 free credits to get you started” source ↗ |
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