# Whisper Audio & Video URL Transcriber — Speech to Text (`dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber`) Actor

Speech-to-text transcription of audio and video files from direct URLs (mp3, mp4, m4a, wav, webm, ogg, flac) into text, timed segments, SRT and VTT. Open-source Whisper, 99 languages. From $0.36 per audio hour.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber.md
- **Developed by:** [drop-in apis](https://apify.com/dropin-apis) (community)
- **Categories:** AI, Videos
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $14.00 / 1,000 audio minute (small model)s

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Whisper Audio & Video URL Transcriber — Speech to Text

**Transcribe audio and video files from direct URLs into text, timed segments, SRT and VTT subtitles**: mp3, mp4, m4a, wav, webm, ogg, flac, mkv and more, in 99 languages with automatic language detection. It runs open-source Whisper (faster-whisper) on Apify, and you pay per minute of audio.

**At a glance:** **$0.014 per minute of audio** with the default `small` model ($0.84 per hour), or **$0.006 per minute** with `base` · failed files are not charged · measured: a 10.3-minute speech took about 7 minutes with `small` on the default 2 GB memory (under 4 minutes with 4 GB). Try it: click **Start** with the prefilled 24-second public sample file.

Last updated: 2026-10-02

- ✅ One dataset row per file: `text`, `segments` (start, end, text), `srt`, `vtt`, detected `language`, `durationSec`, `billedMinutes`
- ✅ Audio **and video** files: the audio track is extracted automatically
- ✅ 99 languages, auto-detected per file, or set `language` (for example `en`, `ar`, `es`)
- ✅ Two models: `small` (default, more accurate, $0.84 per audio hour) and `base` (2–3× faster, $0.36 per audio hour)
- ✅ Silence is skipped (voice activity detection), so long recordings with pauses process faster
- ✅ `maxMinutesPerFile` caps cost: long files are cut at that point and you pay only for what was transcribed
- 🔒 Files are downloaded to a temporary file, transcribed, and deleted. Nothing is sent to a third-party API.
- ❌ **No YouTube, TikTok, Instagram or other platform page URLs.** The Actor does not download from video or music platforms. Pass a direct link to a media file you are allowed to use (your own storage, S3, a CDN, a podcast enclosure URL).

### Input

```json
{
  "urls": ["https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg"],
  "language": "",
  "model": "small",
  "outputFormats": ["text", "segments", "srt", "vtt"],
  "maxMinutesPerFile": 60
}
```

| Field | Default | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| `urls` | required | Direct media file URLs, up to 500 per run, up to 1 GB each |
| `language` | auto | ISO-639-1 code. Setting it helps on short or noisy files |
| `model` | `small` | `small` ($0.014/min) or `base` ($0.006/min, 2–3× faster, less accurate) |
| `outputFormats` | all four | Any of `text`, `segments`, `srt`, `vtt` |
| `maxMinutesPerFile` | 60 | 1–180. Transcribe at most this many minutes from the start of each file |

### Output (real run on Apify, 2026-10-02, default `small` model)

```json
{
  "url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg",
  "language": "en",
  "durationSec": 24.11,
  "transcribedSec": 24.11,
  "truncated": false,
  "model": "small",
  "billedMinutes": 1,
  "text": "I'm going to step off the land now. That's one small step for man. One giant leap for mankind.",
  "segments": [
    { "start": 3.38, "end": 15.18, "text": "I'm going to step off the land now." },
    { "start": 15.18, "end": 20.81, "text": "That's one small step for man." },
    { "start": 20.81, "end": 23.81, "text": "One giant leap for mankind." }
  ],
  "srt": "1\n00:00:03,380 --> 00:00:15,180\nI'm going to step off the land now.\n\n...",
  "vtt": "WEBVTT\n\n00:00:03.380 --> 00:00:15.180\nI'm going to step off the land now.\n\n...",
  "error": null
}
```

A file that cannot be processed (404, a web page instead of a media file, no audio track, an unsupported format) produces a row with `error` set and `billedMinutes: 0`. The run continues with the next file.

### Run it from code

#### Python (`apify-client`)

```python
import os
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient(os.environ["APIFY_TOKEN"])
run = client.actor("dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber").call(run_input={
    "urls": ["https://example.com/podcast/episode-12.mp3"],
    "outputFormats": ["text", "srt"],
})
for row in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(row["billedMinutes"], row.get("text", row.get("error"))[:200])
```

#### Node.js (`apify-client`)

```js
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });
const run = await client.actor('dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber').call({ urls: ['https://example.com/talk.mp4'], language: 'en' });
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items[0].vtt);
```

#### AI agents (Apify MCP server)

Agents connected to the [Apify MCP server](https://mcp.apify.com) can find this Actor with `search-actors` ("transcribe audio") and run it with `call-actor`. The input is the JSON above.

### Limits

- Up to **500 URLs per run** and **1 GB per file**; `maxMinutesPerFile` is 1–180 (default 60) and only the first N minutes of each file are transcribed.
- Direct URLs to public media files only. A web page, a 404, a file with no audio track or an unsupported format produces a row with `error` set and no charge; use media you are entitled to process.
- Timestamps are per segment (sentence or phrase), not per word, and accuracy is that of the open Whisper `small`/`base` models.

### Pricing

Pay per started minute of transcribed audio, plus Apify's standard run-start charge ($0.00005 per GB of run memory). There is no subscription.

| Model | Event | Per minute | Per hour |
|---|---|---|---|
| `small` (default) | `audio-minute` | $0.014 | $0.84 |
| `base` | `audio-minute-base` | $0.006 | $0.36 |

| Audio | small | base |
|---|---|---|
| 30-second voice note | $0.014 | $0.006 |
| 10-minute speech | $0.14 | $0.06 |
| 1-hour podcast | $0.84 | $0.36 |

Failed files are not charged. If you set a maximum total charge on the run, the Actor checks it **before** transcribing each file and stops cleanly when the next file would exceed it.

### Speed and accuracy

- Measured on Apify with the default 2 GB memory (half a CPU core): a 10.3-minute speech took 7 minutes with `small`. With 4 GB (1 core) the same file took under 4 minutes, and `base` took 1.5 minutes. More memory gives more CPU cores and a faster run; the per-minute price does not change.
- Accuracy is that of the open Whisper **small** model: good on clear speech, weaker than large commercial models on noisy audio, heavy accents and rare languages. `base` is noticeably less accurate.
- Timestamps are per segment (a sentence or phrase), not per word.

### FAQ

#### How do I transcribe an MP4 video to text?

Pass the direct URL of the .mp4 file in `urls`. The Actor extracts the audio track and returns the transcript, segments, SRT and VTT.

#### Can I make SRT or VTT subtitles from an audio file?

Yes. Include `srt` and/or `vtt` in `outputFormats` (both are included by default). Each row then has ready-to-save subtitle text.

#### Does it work with YouTube or TikTok links?

No. The Actor does not download from video platforms. Use a direct link to a media file you have the right to process.

#### Which languages are supported?

All 99 Whisper languages, including English, Arabic, Spanish, French, German, Hindi, Chinese and Japanese. The language is detected per file unless you set `language`.

#### How long can a file be?

Up to 1 GB, and up to 180 minutes per file are transcribed (`maxMinutesPerFile`, default 60). Longer files are cut at the limit, marked `truncated: true`, and billed only for the transcribed minutes.

#### What does it cost?

$0.014 per started minute with the default `small` model ($0.84 per hour), or $0.006 per minute with `base` ($0.36 per hour). Errors are not charged.

#### Is my audio stored?

No. Each file is downloaded to a temporary file inside the run, transcribed, and deleted. Only the transcript is saved to your dataset.

#### I need an OpenAI whisper-1 compatible API instead

Use the sister Actor [whisper-1 alternative](https://apify.com/dropin-apis/whisper-compat): the same engine behind OpenAI's `/v1/audio/transcriptions` request and response format, for apps built on the OpenAI SDK.

# Actor input Schema

## `urls` (type: `array`):

Direct URLs of audio or video files (mp3, mp4, m4a, wav, webm, ogg, oga, flac, mkv, mov, aac, opus), up to 1 GB each. Page URLs of YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and similar platforms are not supported.

## `language` (type: `string`):

ISO-639-1 code of the spoken language, for example en, ar, es, de, fr. Leave empty to auto-detect per file. Setting it improves accuracy on short or noisy files.

## `model` (type: `string`):

small: better accuracy (default), $0.014 per audio minute. base: about 2-3x faster and less accurate, $0.006 per audio minute.

## `outputFormats` (type: `array`):

Which fields to include in each row: text, segments (start/end/text), srt, vtt. Default: all four.

## `maxMinutesPerFile` (type: `integer`):

Transcribe at most this many minutes from the start of each file (1-180). Longer files are cut at this point and marked truncated; you pay only for the minutes transcribed.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "urls": [
    "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg"
  ],
  "model": "small",
  "outputFormats": [
    "text",
    "segments",
    "srt",
    "vtt"
  ],
  "maxMinutesPerFile": 60
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

All items in the run's default dataset.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "urls": [
        "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "urls": ["https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "urls": [
    "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Armstrong_Small_Step.ogg"
  ]
}' |
apify call dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,dropin-apis/media-url-transcriber"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/TU4GON01mOzd2MPMP/builds/xqO2I05hYqZUGuwzk/openapi.json