
An honest, documentation-based comparison of the best transcription software in 2026 — Otter, Rev, Sonix, Descript, Happy Scribe, and Subanana. Accuracy claims, languages, speaker labels, exports, and price, with a clear note on which one fits which job.

To turn non-English audio or video into English, you transcribe the speech first and then translate the text — two steps, not one. AI does the heavy lifting well now, but some languages are far harder to get right than others. This guide walks the general workflow and shows where AI shines and where you still do the work, with real examples from the tough cases.

Translation works on written text; interpretation works on the spoken word in real time. That one distinction explains the whole field — and a third option, AI live captioning, now sits between the two. Here's the plain-English difference, the simultaneous-vs-consecutive split, and how to decide what your event actually needs.