ElevenLabs vs Podcastle (Now Async): Which Is Better for Podcasters?

ElevenLabs vs Podcastle is now ElevenLabs vs Async, since Podcastle rebranded in January 2026. For podcasters, Async is the all-in-one studio for recording, editing and transcribing episodes, from $19.99 a month. ElevenLabs is the specialist for AI voices, cloning, dubbing and audio cleanup, from $6 a month. The right pick depends on whether you record or generate.

Last updated: October 2026. Plans and credit costs checked against ElevenLabs’ official pricing page.

ElevenLabs vs Podcastle: the quick answer

ElevenLabs vs Podcastle comes down to workflow. Podcastle, now called Async, suits podcasters who record real conversations and want recording, editing and transcription in one place. ElevenLabs suits podcasters who generate narration, clone a host voice, dub episodes into other languages or need studio-grade AI voices for scripted shows.

On raw text to speech volume, Async’s mid and upper plans include more characters per dollar. On entry price, voice range and specialist audio tools, ElevenLabs is stronger. Many shows can justify one or the other, and some use both.

Record-first shows lean Async; script-first and multilingual shows lean ElevenLabs.

What happened to Podcastle?

Podcastle is now Async: the company announced the rebrand in a blog post dated January 19, 2026, and podcastle.ai now redirects to async.com. The product is still an AI audio and video studio for creators, and Async also announced a separate developer Voice API with low-latency text to speech models.

“Podcastle is now Async”

Source: Async blog

For anyone searching the old name, the practical changes are the domain, branding and a refreshed pricing page. This comparison uses the plan prices from Async’s help center, updated in April 2026, because the main pricing page renders prices dynamically. Older blog posts quoting different Pro prices are out of date.

Readers can still start through Podcastle’s signup link, which now lands on Async. Our earlier Podcastle review covers the studio’s editing features in depth.

Same product family, new name: treat every Podcastle reference as Async.

What does each tool do for podcasters?

Async is an all-in-one recording, transcription, editing and text to speech studio that runs on credits, with remote recording hours included in each plan. ElevenLabs is an AI audio platform focused on generating and transforming speech: text to speech, voice cloning, dubbing, transcription, voice isolation, sound effects and music.

The difference is where an episode begins. An interview show begins with a recording session, so a studio that captures guests remotely and edits the transcript is the core tool. A narrated show, an AI co-host format or a translated edition begins with text or an existing file, so a generation platform does the heavy lifting.

A broader overview of podcast tooling is in our guide on how to make a podcast with AI tools, and the ElevenLabs side is covered in our ElevenLabs review.

Async produces episodes from recordings; ElevenLabs produces and transforms voices.

How much do ElevenLabs and Async cost?

ElevenLabs starts at $6 a month for Starter, or $5 billed annually, and its Creator plan costs $22. Async’s Essentials plan costs $19.99 a month, or $11.99 a month billed yearly; Pro costs $39.99 or $23.99, and Teams $84.99 or $49.99. Both offer free plans with no credit card required.

Source: ElevenLabs pricing page (elevenlabs.io/pricing), Async pricing page (async.com/pricing) and Async help center pricing article (help.async.com), checked October 2026.

ElevenLabs is far cheaper to start, while Async’s annual discount is larger and its upper tiers bundle more studio features.

Async advertises that yearly plans save 40 percent, while ElevenLabs annual billing works out to two months free. ElevenLabs’ full plan ladder, including credit costs for each product, is in our ElevenLabs pricing guide.

Budget-first podcasters start cheaper on ElevenLabs; teams that want a full studio pay more on Async but get more in the bundle.

How much text to speech does each plan include?

Text to speech allowance is how many characters of generated speech each plan covers. ElevenLabs Creator includes 121,000 credits, about 121 minutes of speech on Multilingual v2. Async’s help center lists about 2 hours (120k characters) on Essentials, about 10 hours (500k characters) on Pro and about 40 hours (2M characters) on Teams.

Source: GrowthStackKit calculation from elevenlabs.io/pricing and the Async help center pricing article, October 2026. ElevenLabs figures assume about 1 credit per character on Multilingual v2.

For pure text to speech volume, Async Pro and Teams give clearly more characters per dollar than any ElevenLabs plan shown.

A worked example: a weekly 20-minute narrated show of about 20,000 characters per episode (assuming roughly 1,000 characters per minute, an approximation) needs about 80,000 characters a month before retakes. That fits ElevenLabs Creator with room for revisions, or Async Pro with plenty of headroom.

If narration volume is the main cost driver, Async’s bundles are hard to beat on price per character.

Which is better for recording and editing episodes?

Recording and editing is Async’s core strength. Its studio combines remote recording, transcription and editing in one workspace, so a host can capture a guest, clean up the conversation and export an episode without switching tools. ElevenLabs does not offer remote recording or a full episode editor for recorded shows.

Five Async studio strengths that matter to recorded podcasts:

• Remote recording included: Async plans include remote recording hours, letting hosts capture guests in different locations without a separate recording service.
• All-in-one studio: Recording, transcription, editing and text to speech sit in one credits-based workspace, which reduces exports and file juggling between apps.
• Built-in transcription: Recordings are transcribed inside the same studio, so edits and show notes can start from text without a separate transcription service.
• Built-in AI voices: More than 1,000 AI voices are available for intros, ads and narrated segments without leaving the studio.
• Team plan collaboration: The Teams plan targets groups producing shows together and adds AI dubbing and lip sync for video podcasts.

For an editor-first comparison, see our Podcastle vs Descript breakdown.

If your show is recorded, Async covers far more of the production chain.

Which has better AI voices?

AI voice quality covers realism, emotional range and how many voices and languages are available. ElevenLabs is a voice specialist with thousands of library voices, multiple model generations and up to 90+ languages on Eleven v4. Async lists more than 1,000 AI voices in 15+ languages inside its studio.

Five voice factors podcasters should compare:

• Voice library size: ElevenLabs offers thousands of voices in its library, while Async lists more than 1,000, both enough for most hosts to find a fit.
• Language coverage: ElevenLabs models range from 29 languages on Multilingual v2 to 90+ on Eleven v4, compared with 15+ languages listed by Async.
• Expressive models: ElevenLabs Eleven v3 and Eleven v4 aim for emotionally rich delivery, useful for storytelling, fiction podcasts and dramatic intros.
• Multi-speaker dialogue: ElevenLabs Text to Dialogue creates natural-sounding conversations from text, suited to scripted two-host or interview-style AI segments.
• Custom voice design: ElevenLabs Voice Design builds a new voice from a written prompt when no library voice matches the show’s tone.

Settings that make ElevenLabs narration sound human are in our ElevenLabs text to speech guide.

For voice depth and language reach, ElevenLabs is the stronger platform.

Can you clone your voice on both?

Voice cloning creates a synthetic copy of a host’s voice from recorded samples. Both tools offer it. Async lists voice cloning on its pricing page, noted as available in the iOS app, without naming the plan tier. ElevenLabs offers Instant Voice Cloning from Starter and Professional Voice Cloning from Creator.

“an application of artificial intelligence designed to generate speech that convincingly mimics specific individuals”

Source: Wikipedia, Audio deepfake

For podcasters, a cloned voice is handy for fixing flubbed lines, reading sponsor spots or producing extra episodes when the host is unavailable. ElevenLabs documents its requirements publicly: at least 1 minute of audio for an instant clone, and a recommended minimum of 30 minutes plus a verification step for a professional clone. Details are in our ElevenLabs voice cloning guide.

Listeners should know when a voice is synthetic, and consent rules apply to anyone else’s voice, as covered in whether AI voice cloning is legal.

Both clone voices; ElevenLabs documents tiers and requirements more clearly.

Which handles transcripts and audio cleanup better?

Transcripts and audio cleanup are post-production jobs that every podcast needs. Async includes transcription inside its recording and editing studio. ElevenLabs offers Scribe speech to text at about 330 credits per minute, covering 90+ languages, and Voice Isolator, which removes background noise at about 1,000 credits per minute.

Five post-production tasks and how each tool handles them:

• Episode transcripts: Async transcribes recordings inside its studio, while ElevenLabs Scribe v2 transcribes uploaded audio in 90+ languages at about 330 credits per minute.
• Noisy guest audio: ElevenLabs Voice Isolator separates voices from background noise, a quick rescue for guests recording in kitchens, cars or echoey rooms.
• Show notes and captions: Transcripts from either tool feed show notes, captions and blog posts, which helps episodes get discovered in search.
• Fixing a single line: A cloned host voice in either tool can patch a misspoken line, avoiding a full re-record for small mistakes.
• Budgeting cleanup: A 40-minute noisy episode run through Voice Isolator uses about 40,000 ElevenLabs credits, more than Starter’s monthly allowance.

Step-by-step guides: ElevenLabs Voice Isolator and ElevenLabs speech to text.

“ElevenLabs is the toolbox you reach for when a single audio problem needs a specialist fix.”

Source: GrowthStackKit, ElevenLabs Review

Async keeps transcription in the studio; ElevenLabs offers stronger specialist cleanup tools priced per minute.

Which is better for multilingual episodes?

Multilingual episodes reach listeners in other languages through translated narration or dubbing. ElevenLabs offers dedicated dubbing, from 2,000 credits per minute for watermarked automatic dubs to 10,000 per minute in Dubbing Studio without a watermark. Async adds AI dubbing and lip sync on its Teams plan, at $84.99 a month.

For a podcaster translating a 30-minute episode, ElevenLabs automatic dubbing without a watermark at 3,000 credits per minute would use about 90,000 credits, which fits within the Creator plan’s 121,000. Async Teams includes dubbing in its bundle, which may suit video podcasts that also need lip sync.

Language reach also differs: ElevenLabs model coverage runs up to 90+ languages, while Async lists 15+. The full process is in our ElevenLabs dubbing guide.

For translated editions, ElevenLabs offers wider language reach and transparent per-minute costs.

When is Async the better choice?

Async, formerly Podcastle, is the better choice for podcasters who record conversations and want one subscription to cover capture, editing, transcription and AI voices. It also wins on text to speech volume per dollar on its Pro and Teams plans, which matters for shows that generate a lot of narrated content.

Five situations where Async is the stronger pick:

• Interview and co-host shows: Remote recording hours included in Async plans cover guest sessions without paying for a separate recording platform.
• One-tool production: Recording, transcription, editing and TTS in one studio suits solo hosts who want fewer tools and fewer exports.
• High narration volume: Async Pro’s 500k characters for $39.99 a month undercuts ElevenLabs on cost per character for heavy text to speech users.
• Video podcasts with dubbing: The Teams plan adds AI dubbing and lip sync, useful when episodes publish as video in more than one language.
• Mobile-first creators: Voice cloning noted as available in the iOS app suits hosts who produce and fix content from a phone.

Interested podcasters can start with a free Podcastle (now Async) account and test a full episode.

For recorded shows that want everything in one place, Async is the natural fit.

When is ElevenLabs the better choice?

ElevenLabs is the better choice for podcasters whose shows start from scripts, who want a distinctive or cloned voice, or who publish in several languages. It costs less to start, at $6 a month, and its specialist tools for cloning, dubbing and voice isolation go deeper than a general studio’s built-in features.

Five situations where ElevenLabs is the stronger pick:

• Narrated and scripted shows: Daily news briefs, storytelling series and explainer podcasts start as text, which is exactly what ElevenLabs text to speech is built for.
• Low entry budget: Starter at $6 a month includes a commercial license, far below Async Essentials at $19.99 a month on monthly billing.
• Professional host clones: Professional Voice Cloning from the Creator plan trains on longer recordings for a high-fidelity copy of the host’s voice.
• International editions: Dubbing plus models covering up to 90+ languages make translated feeds practical for shows with global audiences.
• Rescuing bad audio: Voice Isolator cleans noisy recordings before editing, saving guest episodes that would otherwise need a full re-record or heavy manual repair.

ElevenLabs works alongside any editor, including Async itself, so choosing it does not rule out a separate studio.

For script-first or multilingual podcasts, ElevenLabs offers more voice power per dollar at entry level.

Verdict: ElevenLabs or Podcastle (now Async)?

The verdict on ElevenLabs vs Podcastle depends on how your show is made. Async, the new name for Podcastle, is better for recorded podcasts that want one studio for capture, editing and transcription, and it gives more TTS characters per dollar on Pro and Teams. ElevenLabs is better for scripted, cloned-voice and multilingual shows, and it is cheaper to start.

Both have free plans, so the fairest test is producing one real episode on each. Shows that record and also need specialist voice work can pair Async’s studio with ElevenLabs for cloning, dubbing or cleanup. For more voice options, see our AI voice generator roundup.

Async for recorded shows, ElevenLabs for generated voices, and both when a show needs each.

Frequently asked questions

The 12 most-asked questions about ElevenLabs vs Podcastle (now Async).

Is Podcastle the same as Async?

Yes. Podcastle rebranded to Async, announced in a blog post dated January 19, 2026, and podcastle.ai now redirects to async.com. The product remains an AI audio and video studio for creators, and Async also announced a separate developer Voice API.

Is ElevenLabs cheaper than Podcastle?

ElevenLabs is cheaper to start: Starter costs $6 a month versus $19.99 for Async Essentials on monthly billing. For heavy text to speech use, Async Pro and Teams include more characters per dollar, so the cheaper option depends on volume.

How much does Async cost now?

According to Async’s help center, Essentials costs $19.99 a month or $11.99 billed yearly, Pro costs $39.99 or $23.99, and Teams costs $84.99 or $49.99. Business pricing is custom, and a free plan is available with no credit card.

How much text to speech does Async include?

Async’s help center lists about 2 hours (120k characters) of text to speech on Essentials, about 10 hours (500k characters) on Pro and about 40 hours (2M characters) on Teams. The free plan includes about 15 minutes (12k characters) lifetime.

Which is better for recording interviews?

Async is better for recording interviews because its plans include remote recording hours inside an all-in-one studio with transcription and editing. ElevenLabs does not offer remote recording; it focuses on generating, cloning, dubbing and cleaning up speech.

Can I clone my voice on Async?

Yes. Async lists voice cloning on its pricing page, noted as available in its iOS app, but does not name the plan tier. ElevenLabs offers Instant Voice Cloning from Starter and Professional Voice Cloning from Creator, with documented audio requirements.

Which has more AI voices?

ElevenLabs offers thousands of voices in its library, with model coverage up to 90+ languages on Eleven v4. Async lists more than 1,000 AI voices in 15+ languages. Both catalogs are large enough for most podcast intros, ads and narrated segments.

Can ElevenLabs remove background noise from a podcast?

Yes. ElevenLabs Voice Isolator separates voices from background noise at about 1,000 credits per minute of audio. A 40-minute episode would use about 40,000 credits, so heavy cleanup users usually need the Creator plan or above.

Which is better for translating podcast episodes?

ElevenLabs offers dedicated dubbing with published costs, from 2,000 credits per minute for watermarked automatic dubs, and models covering up to 90+ languages. Async includes AI dubbing and lip sync on its Teams plan, which suits video podcasts.

Does Async have an API?

Async announced a developer Voice API with low-latency text to speech models alongside its rebrand, but API pricing is not listed on its pricing page. ElevenLabs publishes API prices, from $0.04 per 1,000 characters on Flash models.

Can I use ElevenLabs and Async together?

Yes. Many podcasters record and edit in a studio like Async, then use ElevenLabs for specialist jobs such as cloning a host voice, dubbing an episode or cleaning noisy audio with Voice Isolator. Generated audio files import into any editor.

Should podcasters choose ElevenLabs or Async?

Choose Async if your show is recorded and you want recording, editing and transcription in one studio. Choose ElevenLabs if your show is scripted, needs a cloned or distinctive voice, or publishes in several languages. Use both if your show needs each.