Pepys vs Swell AI

Pepys9.4Visit Swell AI8.7Visit

Higher score Pepys #1 in Podcast Transcription Software 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit Pepys

vs

Swell AI #7 in Podcast Transcription Software 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 2 of 4 features Visit Swell AI

• Pepys fits best

  Podcasters wanting flexible pay-as-you-go pricing

• Swell AI fits best

  Podcasters repurposing episodes into content

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Side by side

Feature	Pepys 9.4/10 Visit ↗	Swell AI 8.7/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.7
Ranking	#1 in Podcast Transcription Software	#7 in Podcast Transcription Software
Best for	Podcasters wanting flexible pay-as-you-go pricing	Podcasters repurposing episodes into content
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	$17/mo
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Browser extension	Cloud
Platforms	Web, Chrome extension	Web
Compliance	GDPR	SSO/SAML
Integrations	11 integrations	10 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Pepys 4/4 · Swell AI 2/4
Speaker labels	✓	✓
Transcript editor	✓	✓
Caption export	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Searchable library	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Specs
Monthly transcription	10 hours (best)	3 hours
Transcription languages	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Permanent free tier with transcription in 99+ languages Speaker labels, batch processing, editing, and searchable transcripts Broad exports, podcast integrations, API, MCP, and webhooks	Imports catalogs from RSS feeds and Apple Podcasts Speaker-labeled transcripts with editing, highlighting, and clipping Generates show notes, articles, summaries, and social content
Cons	Paid credits require one-time purchases rather than monthly billing The listed access points are web, Chrome extension, and API Advanced speaker labels and premium exports start on paid packs	Hobby allows only 1 upload per month Starter includes 3 hours of usage per month Caption export is not a stated capability
Our verdict	Pepys is a web-based transcription tool designed for podcasters, journalists, researchers, creators, and legal teams. It accepts uploaded audio or video and links from podcast and social platforms, then produces timestamped transcripts… Read the review →	Swell AI is a web and API-based tool for podcast producers, agencies, and networks that want to turn audio or video episodes into transcripts and reusable content. Its workflow combines AI transcription, automatic speaker identification,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Pepys — where it wins

  • Permanent free tier with transcription in 99+ languages
  • Speaker labels, batch processing, editing, and searchable transcripts
  • Broad exports, podcast integrations, API, MCP, and webhooks

  Where it doesn't

  • Paid credits require one-time purchases rather than monthly billing
  • The listed access points are web, Chrome extension, and API
  • Advanced speaker labels and premium exports start on paid packs

• Swell AI — where it wins

  • Imports catalogs from RSS feeds and Apple Podcasts
  • Speaker-labeled transcripts with editing, highlighting, and clipping
  • Generates show notes, articles, summaries, and social content

  Where it doesn't

  • Hobby allows only 1 upload per month
  • Starter includes 3 hours of usage per month
  • Caption export is not a stated capability

• Pepys9.4/10 · Free plan

  A podcast-focused transcription tool with a free tier and flexible one-time credit packs.

  Visit PepysFull verdict →
• Swell AI8.7/10 · Free plan

  A podcast-focused workspace for turning episodes into transcripts and reusable content.

  Visit Swell AIFull verdict →