Export your composition from Descript as an MP3, WAV, or M4A audio file.
Descript exports a composition as an audio file.
Export an audio file ↗Descript Alternative
A Descript alternative for when the transcript is the whole job
Descript transcribes your recording so you can edit it. If the text is what you came for, PodText hands it to you as the finished thing. Upload a file or paste a podcast link.
Descript details checked on 2026-09-23. Sources sit next to each claim below.
Create a transcript
Add a supported link or upload a recording to get searchable text.
or
Here, the transcript is the deliverable
Example
12:04We opened the shop in March, and for six weeks almost nobody came in.
12:11What changed was one sign on the corner that said fresh bread at seven.
12:19By June the morning queue ran past the door most days.
12:26So the lesson for us was simple: tell people when, not just what.
Every segment carries its start time, which becomes the caption timing when you export captions.
Click a segment and the player jumps to that second, for as long as the recording is kept.
Copy the whole thing, or export TXT, Markdown, SRT, or VTT.
In Descript, an upload lands in the project Files, and you add it to the script to transcribe it and edit by text.
What the bill is attached to
Descript's allowance is built around the editor; PodText's is built around the transcript.
Descript meters the media you upload or record into the editor, shared out by Editor seat, the allowance resets every billing cycle and unused minutes do not roll over, and only Creator and Business plans can buy top ups, which expire after 12 months.
PodText charges each transcript by its length, with no seats, credit packs never expire, and subscription credits reset at each renewal too, and you can buy a credit pack without subscribing, or subscribe.
When Descript is the better call
If you need names on who said what,
Descript detects and labels speakers on every plan.
PodText does not label speakers.
If you fix words inside the transcript before you hand it off,
Descript lets you correct the text without touching the audio underneath.
PodText has no in-app editing; export the transcript and edit it in your own editor.
If you deliver Word, RTF, or HTML files,
Descript exports transcripts as DOCX, RTF, and HTML, among other formats.
PodText does not export those three.
If your files run past 500 MB,
Descript takes files up to 1 GB on the free plan, and the cap rises with the plan to 50 GB at most.
PodText takes files up to 500 MB.
If you transcribe less than an hour a month,
The Descript free plan includes 60 media minutes every month.
PodText gives 60 one-time signup credits, up to 60 minutes at standard quality.
If you cut, record, or dub,
Descript edits video by editing text, records remote sessions, and translates captions and audio.
PodText does none of that. You need an editor, and Descript is one. Stay.
If none of these is you, the transcript is the whole job, and that is the job PodText does.
Frequently Asked Questions
What people ask before moving transcript work from Descript to PodText.
Not the projects themselves. Export the audio from Descript, then upload it here, keeping each file up to 500 MB. If you still have the original recording, upload that instead.
Descript says Chinese, Japanese, and Russian are not supported yet. PodText transcribes 99+ languages.
Languages such as Chinese, Japanese, or Russian are not yet supported, but it's certainly something we’d like to add in the future.
From the Descript list of transcription languages.
Supported transcription languages ↗We do not claim that. Accuracy depends mostly on the recording itself, so run the same file through both: your signup credits cover a test run of up to an hour at standard quality.
If a transcription is paid only with signup credits, and not on pay later, its audio is deleted after 7 days and the transcript stays. Audio paid with a credit pack or a subscription, or run on pay later, is kept.
Bring the recording you only need the words from
Take the transcript and leave the editing to whatever tool you already use.