Arabic Speech-to-Text Comparison

SpeechmaticsvsElevenLabs Scribe v2

Head-to-head comparison based on real production benchmarks with Gulf Arabic callers.

Overview

Speechmatics

Not Recommended

Ultra-fast Arabic STT with poor transcription quality.

production testedstandard

ElevenLabs Scribe v2

Not Recommended

ElevenLabs' realtime STT offering — poor quality and slow for Arabic.

production testedscribe_v2_realtime

Latency

Speechmatics

Avg EOU Delay460ms
Best Case0ms
Worst Case806ms

ElevenLabs Scribe v2

Avg EOU Delay2000ms–2500ms
Best Case2000ms
Worst Case2500ms

Quality

Speechmatics

Poor

Users had to repeat themselves frequently. Quality unacceptable for production use.

MSA

ElevenLabs Scribe v2

Poor

Described as 'shit quality' in production testing. Not viable for Arabic.

Saudi Arabic

Features

FeatureSpeechmaticsElevenLabs Scribe v2
Real-time streaming transcription✓✓
Configurable endpointing✓✗
Standard and enhanced operating points✓✗
Custom dictionary✓✗
Multiple language support✗✓
LiveKit inference integration✗✓

Pricing

Speechmatics

Free tier
StandardReal-time streaming
$0.0042per minute

ElevenLabs Scribe v2

Free tier
StarterIncludes STT credits
$5per month

Streaming & Integration

CapabilitySpeechmaticsElevenLabs Scribe v2
Streaming support✓✓
LiveKit plugin✗✓
Self-hostable✓✗
API styleWebSocket streaming + RESTWebSocket streaming
SDKsPython, Node.jsPython, Node.js

Verdict

Not Recommended

Speechmatics

Amazingly fast but Arabic quality is too poor for production. The speed advantage is meaningless when users have to repeat themselves.

Choose Speechmatics if you need:

  • Speed-only use cases where quality doesn't matter
Pros
  • +Lightning-fast endpointing (0-460ms)
  • +Self-hosting option available
  • +Configurable latency/quality tradeoff
Cons
  • -Poor Arabic transcription quality
  • -Users had to repeat themselves
  • -Quality issues negate speed advantage
Not Recommended

ElevenLabs Scribe v2

Poor quality and poor latency for Arabic. Not recommended for any Arabic STT use case.

Choose ElevenLabs Scribe v2 if you need:

    Pros
    • +LiveKit plugin available
    • +Part of ElevenLabs ecosystem (TTS bundle)
    Cons
    • -Poor Arabic transcription quality
    • -High latency (2-2.5s EOU)
    • -No advantage over better alternatives

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Which is faster for Arabic speech-to-text, Speechmatics or ElevenLabs Scribe v2?

    Speechmatics is faster with an average end-of-utterance delay of 460ms, which is 1540ms faster than ElevenLabs Scribe v2.

    Which has better Arabic transcription quality, Speechmatics or ElevenLabs Scribe v2?

    Speechmatics has a quality rating of 1/5 (Poor). Users had to repeat themselves frequently. Quality unacceptable for production use.

    Is Speechmatics or ElevenLabs Scribe v2 better for production voice agents?

    Both providers are viable options. Speechmatics: Amazingly fast but Arabic quality is too poor for production. The speed advantage is meaningless when users have to repeat themselves. ElevenLabs Scribe v2: Poor quality and poor latency for Arabic. Not recommended for any Arabic STT use case.

    How does Speechmatics pricing compare to ElevenLabs Scribe v2?

    Speechmatics starts at $0.0042 per minute (Real-time streaming). ElevenLabs Scribe v2 starts at $5 per month (Includes STT credits).