Quick Answer
Last verified:
High confidence

Descript costs Free to $65 per month as of July 2026, with 5 plans available including a free tier. Plans: Free (free), Hobbyist at $24/month, Creator at $35/month, and Business at $65/month. Enterprise pricing is available on request. Pricing depends on your chosen tier, contract length, and negotiated discounts.

Use the interactive pricing calculator to estimate your exact cost based on team size and requirements.

  • Free tier: Yes

Descript offers 5 pricing tiers: Free, Hobbyist, Creator, Business, Enterprise. A free plan is available. Paid plans include Hobbyist at $24/per person/month, Creator at $35/per person/month, Business at $65/per person/month.

Descript lists $0-$65/month, but hidden costs like implementation and support add to the total as of July 2026. Key hidden costs: unpredictable billing model, media minute consumption, ai credit usage. Verified from 1 sources by CostBench.

Hidden Costs Breakdown

1

Unpredictable Billing Model

high overage

Descript's billing model, overhauled in September 2025, charges for 'media minutes' (every file uploaded) and 'AI credits' (AI-driven operations), replacing transcription-hour plans, which can lead to unpredictable costs and 'bill shock'.

industry

This change replaced transcription-hour plans with a system where every file uploaded counts against "media minutes," and AI-driven operations (like Studio Sound, filler removal, and avatar generation) consume "AI credits"

2

Media Minute Consumption

medium overage

Media minutes are debited when users upload or record audio/video, including 1 second per still image, and multi-file workflows can significantly increase consumption, potentially doubling the quota drain for the same content.

industry

Multi-file workflows, such as uploading separate tracks for a single interview (e.g., host track, guest track, camera files), can significantly increase media minute consumption, potentially doubling the quota drain for the same content

3

AI Credit Usage

medium overage

AI credits are debited for using AI tools, with specific costs like Studio Sound (10 AI credits per use), Eye Contact (10 per use), Dubbing (15 per minute), and Text-to-Speech (approximately 5 per minute), scaling with the size of the job.

industry

For example, Studio Sound costs 10 AI credits per use, Eye Contact costs 10 per use, Dubbing costs 15 per minute, and Text-to-Speech costs approximately 5 per minute

4

Top-up Purchases

medium overage

Users must purchase 'top-ups' if they run out of media minutes or AI credits, which are only available on Creator and Business plans, shared at the drive level, and expire 12 months after purchase.

industry

This change replaced transcription-hour plans with a system where every file uploaded counts against "media minutes," and AI-driven operations (like Studio Sound, filler removal, and avatar generation) consume "AI credits"

5

No Prorated Refunds

medium overage

Descript does not offer prorated refunds for unused time if a plan is canceled or downgraded partway through a monthly or annual billing term.

industry

No Prorated Refunds: Descript does not offer prorated refunds for unused time if a plan is canceled or downgraded partway through a monthly or annual billing term

Check current Descript pricing

Prices and terms change; verify against the live pricing page.

See Descript Pricing