WhisperLiveKit: Open-source, self-hosted real-time speech-to-text and speaker diarization toolkit with a FastAPI server and web interface, suitable for meeting transcription. Whisperstream: Whisperstream is a privacy-focused Windows dictation app that turns speech into text entirely on-device, with no cloud upload. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist WhisperLiveKit when self-hosted real-time meeting transcription with speaker labels matters most, and Whisperstream when transcribing imported audio recordings privately on-device matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
Open-source, self-hosted real-time speech-to-text and speaker diarization toolkit with a FastAPI server and web interface, suitable for meeting transcription.
Whisperstream is a privacy-focused Windows dictation app that turns speech into text entirely on-device, with no cloud upload.
WhisperLiveKit is an open-source, self-hosted toolkit for ultra-low-latency real-time speech-to-text and speaker diarization. Rather than naively running Whisper on each audio chunk, it uses state-of-the-art simultaneous-speech research for intelligent buffering and incremental processing, which preserves transcription quality while streaming results with minimal latency. The project ships a complete backend built on FastAPI with WebSocket support, an OpenAI-compatible REST API, a Deepgram-compatible WebSocket protocol, and a simple, customizable HTML and JavaScript web interface that captures microphone audio and streams it to the server. It supports multiple ASR backends including Whisper variants, Voxtral, and Qwen3-ASR, covers 200+ languages with translation, and includes real-time speaker diarization and voice activity detection to reduce processing overhead. It can handle multiple concurrent users on a single backend and is distributed via PyPI with Docker images for both GPU and CPU. Licensed under Apache 2.0 and actively maintained into 2026, the project explicitly lists meeting transcription, accessibility tooling, and podcast or call transcription with speaker identification among its intended use cases, making it a practical building block for private, on-premise meeting transcription pipelines. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Whisperstream is a downloadable Windows desktop application from Lanreal Technologies Inc. that converts speech to text using push-to-talk dictation. Transcription runs entirely locally on the user's PC via the NVIDIA Parakeet model, so audio is never uploaded to the cloud and no account is tied to the user's voice. It works across any application without add-ins or setup, inserting dictated text directly into tools such as Outlook, Gmail, Slack, VS Code, browsers, and Claude Code. Beyond live dictation, it can import and transcribe existing audio recordings, and it keeps a searchable transcript history with audio replay, encrypted on the device. Additional features include AI cleanup that tidies spoken input, a custom vocabulary for names, jargon, and acronyms, per-app custom AI prompts, support for 25 languages, global keyboard shortcuts, and full offline operation. It requires Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit) with at least 8GB RAM. It targets professionals and privacy-conscious knowledge workers who want fast, local voice input rather than typing.
Best suited for
WhisperLiveKit is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Whisperstream is a free tier with paid upgrades (paid). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | WhisperLiveKit | Whisperstream |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Real-time streaming speech-to-text with low latency over WebSocket | Local, on-device speech-to-text using the NVIDIA Parakeet model (no cloud upload) |
| Standout feature | Real-time speaker diarization to distinguish multiple speakers | Push-to-talk dictation that inserts text into any application |
| Team usage | FastAPI backend with OpenAI-compatible REST API and Deepgram-compatible WebSocket protocol | Audio file import for transcribing existing recordings |
| Integrations | Multiple ASR backends (Whisper variants, Voxtral, Qwen3-ASR) and 200+ language support with translation | Searchable, encrypted transcript history with audio replay |
| Languages & capture | Included customizable HTML/JavaScript web interface and Docker images (GPU and CPU) | AI cleanup plus per-app custom AI prompts and custom vocabulary |
| Best-fit workflow | Voice activity detection and multi-user support on a single backend | 25-language support with full offline operation |
WhisperLiveKit
Choose WhisperLiveKit if you need self-hosted real-time meeting transcription with speaker labels — strengths include fully open source (apache 2.0) and self-hostable for private, on-premise transcription.
Whisperstream
Choose Whisperstream if you need dictating emails, messages, and documents faster than typing — strengths include fully local processing keeps audio private and works offline.
WhisperLiveKit
Whisperstream
It depends on your workflow. WhisperLiveKit is strong for self-hosted real-time meeting transcription with speaker labels, while Whisperstream is strong for dictating emails, messages, and documents faster than typing. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
WhisperLiveKit is a free tier with paid upgrades and Whisperstream is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
You can — some teams pair them when each covers a different part of the meeting workflow.
More head-to-head comparisons involving WhisperLiveKit and Whisperstream.
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