Descript review: edit video by editing text
Descript transcribes your audio or video, then lets you edit the recording like a document. It also has AI tools like filler-word removal and voice cloning.
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Hands-on tested Oct 2026 (partial: export not completed). We used the tool ourselves on the free plan; details are in the “Our hands-on test” section. Prices and plans are from official pages (last checked Oct 2026). How we test
Quick verdict (partly hands-on tested on the free plan)
Good fit if: you make podcasts, YouTube videos or talking-head clips and hate fiddly timelines.
Maybe skip if: you need more than 1 hour of media a month for free, or 1080p+ exports without paying (Free exports at 720p).
Try Descript free →Our hands-on test (Oct 14, 2026, free plan)
- Signup: a link sent by email, then we set a password.
- The in-app Free plan card says: 1 media hour/month, 100 AI credits at signup, export 720p, with watermarks, limited use of Underlord (its AI co-editor) and AI tools, and a limited trial of AI speech.
- Text to speech worked free: with the AI speaker “Cedric”, our 71-character sentence became 5 seconds of audio, using 1 AI credit (100 → 99) and 0 media minutes.
- Export did not complete: from the audio project (WAV/MP3/AAC options, loudness normalized to −24 LUFS) we got a spinner and no file. So we haven't verified the watermark on an actual exported file.
Because export failed in our test, this is a partial hands-on test. We haven't judged audio quality yet.
Plans and prices
| Plan | Monthly billing | Annual billing | Media hours / AI credits per month | Export |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 1 hour / 100 AI credits at signup | 720p, with watermarks (per plan card) |
| Hobbyist | $24 | $16/month | 10 hours / 400 credits | 1080p, watermark-free |
| Creator | $35 | $24/month | 30 hours / 800 credits | 4K, watermark-free |
| Business | $65 | $50/month | 40 hours / 1,500 credits | 4K |
Prices are per person per month, from Descript's public pricing page. Inside the app we saw Hobbyist $16 (10 media hours, 400 AI credits, 1080p, no watermark), Creator $24 (30 hours, 800 credits, 4K, no watermark) and Business $50 (40 hours, 1,500 credits), and the monthly/annual toggle showed the same numbers. The public page says annual saves up to 35%; the app says up to 30%. Which billing period the in-app prices refer to is not verified.
Good to know
- Media hours count media you upload or record; AI credits count AI features like Underlord (its AI co-editor), Studio Sound, Green Screen and Eye Contact.
- Transcription works in 25 languages; caption translation in 61; dubbing (Business) in 30.
- No credit card needed for the Free plan.
Pros
- Edit by deleting words in a transcript
- Free plan to learn on; free AI speech worked (1 credit for a short sentence)
- Strong audio clean-up tools listed
Cons
- Free: 1 hour/month, 720p with watermarks, only 100 AI credits at signup
- Our audio export never finished
- Two meters (hours + AI credits) to track
Sources
- Descript pricing: last checked Oct 2026
Prices and plans change often. Always confirm on the official site before you buy.
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