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Why You Need a Free Cantonese Transcription Tool?
People in Hong Kong use Cantonese extensively in daily communication. Whether it's meeting recordings, class notes, interviews, or YouTube videos, there's a need to quickly convert speech to text. But manual transcription is time-consuming and error-prone, and many so-called free tools either charge after a few minutes of trial or only support English. This article rounds up 5 truly free Cantonese transcription tools and compares them based on free quotas, accuracy, ease of use, and export features.
Testing 5 Free Cantonese Transcription Tools
1. Google AI Studio (Gemini)
Google AI Studio is a recently popular free option among Cantonese speakers. It doesn't require complex API setup—just upload an audio file, and Gemini can directly transcribe Cantonese. Tested pros: completely free, high accuracy, supports long audio, and you can even ask AI to summarize or segment. Cons: requires a Google account, and the interface is developer-oriented. Suitable for those who need occasional transcription but don't want to install an app.
2. Subanana
Subanana is a Hong Kong-based AI speech-to-text platform supporting Cantonese, Chinese, English, and 80 other languages. The free plan offers trial credits, allowing direct upload of audio or YouTube links to generate subtitles and transcripts. It boasts 98% accuracy and supports exporting to SRT, VTT, TXT, and more. Ideal for content creators who need quick subtitles for videos.
3. cSubtitle
cSubtitle is an online automatic speech-to-text tool focused on Chinese processing, with accuracy above 94%. No registration is required—just upload an audio or video file and download the text within minutes. It supports MP3, WAV, MP4, and other formats. The free version has usage limits, but it's very convenient for users who need quick transcription on the fly.
4. UniScribe
UniScribe offers 120 minutes of free transcription per month, with a maximum of 3 files per day and no file size limit. It's powered by an optimized Whisper model, processing one hour of audio in under a minute. Suitable for users who need to handle longer recordings without spending money. Downsides: fewer export formats and requires registration.
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5. Tinrec
Tinrec is an AI recording and audio/video organization tool that supports real-time recording-to-text, audio file transcription, and parsing of online video links. The free version provides a monthly base transcription quota to experience core features. It's especially suitable for users who need to organize audio from multiple sources like meetings, classes, and interviews. Besides transcripts, it can auto-generate summaries, to-do lists, and supports AI Q&A.
Tutorial: Using Google AI Studio as an Example
- Open the Google AI Studio webpage and sign in with your Google account.
- Click "New prompt" or "Upload file" to upload your Cantonese audio file (supports MP3, WAV, etc.).
- In the prompt, type "Please transcribe this recording into Cantonese text and segment it."
- Wait for processing to complete, then copy the text result or ask AI to summarize key points.
FAQ
Are free tools really completely free?
Most tools offer a fixed monthly free quota, after which you need to pay. Google AI Studio is currently completely free, but policies may change at any time.
Which one has the highest accuracy?
Based on testing, Google AI Studio and Subanana perform better in Cantonese recognition, but accuracy is still affected by recording quality and background noise.
Can I transcribe YouTube videos?
Subanana and Tinrec support pasting a YouTube link for direct transcription, but please comply with platform copyright regulations.
Are there file size limits on the free version?
cSubtitle supports files up to 4GB and under 5 hours; UniScribe has no file size limit but limits the number of files per day.
What formats can I export the transcript in?
Most tools support TXT, Word, or SRT/VTT subtitle formats for easy editing.
References
- Free + Cantonese OK: How to Use Google AI Studio to Transcribe Your Recordings...
- Free Cantonese Speech-to-Text App 2025 | Subanana
- AI Speech-to-Text: Fast Audio to Text Online, Transcripts and Video Subtitles - Free Trial - cSubtitle
- Transcribe Chinese (Cantonese) Audio to Text for Free in Seconds
- Online AI Speech, Video, Audio Auto-Transcription - Free Trial - cSubtitle
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