Azure AI Speech
- Free tier
- Yes
- Limits tracked
- 1
- Last checked
- Last change
- None recorded
About Azure AI Speech
Fine-grained control through SSML, plus custom voices by application.
Azure AI Speech is speech synthesis where SSML tags let you build up how text is read in detail. Pitch, rate, pauses, volume, pronunciation, lexicons and speaking style can all be set, and one document can switch between several voices (some tags do not work with HD voices, Personal voice or embedded speech). Custom voices for your own use require a limited-access application. Audio longer than 10 minutes can be made with asynchronous batch synthesis, and the Audio Content Creation tool lets you edit without writing code. Microsoft’s code of conduct asks that synthetic speech be disclosed as such.
Characteristics
- SSML sets pitch, rate, pauses, volume, pronunciation, lexicons and speaking style, with several voices in one document
- Custom voices for your own brand (professional fine-tuning, Personal voice), by application
- Batch synthesis creates audio longer than 10 minutes asynchronously
- Speech SDK, REST API, Speech CLI and the no-code Audio Content Creation tool
Summarized by TierDiff from the vendor's own documentation, checked on Oct 16, 2026. Sources: Microsoft Learn — Text to speech overview, Microsoft Learn — Language and voice support, Microsoft Learn — Code of conduct for text to speech
What the free tier includes
Each number is copied from azure.microsoft.com as it read on Oct 23, 2026. Open a quote to see the exact sentence.
| Limit | Free amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Characters per monthText you can turn into speech each month | 500,000 characters / mo | azure.microsoft.comchecked Oct 23 Show the quote…month1 | Text to Speech (per character billing) | Neural | 0.5 million characters free per month | Speech Translation (per… |
Azure AI Speech next to other text to speech
The same limits for 10 services in this category. Azure AI Speech is the highlighted row.
| Service | Characters per month | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Azure AI Speech Speech synthesis with fine SSML control of pitch, rate and pronunciation; custom voices. This page | 500K | azure.microsoft.comchecked Oct 23 |
| Amazon Polly AWS speech with lexicons and speech marks (viseme timing); free tier lasts 12 months. Trial only | not published | pricing.us-east-1.amazonaws.comchecked Oct 23 |
| Cartesia Speech API built around response speed for voice agents; one model covers 44 languages. | not published | cartesia.aichecked Oct 23 |
| CoeFont Japanese-centered voice synthesis: 10,000+ voices incl. voice actors, or record your own. | 800 | coefont.cloudchecked Oct 23 |
| ElevenLabs Speech generation that can shape regional accents; voice cloning and Voice Design. | not published | elevenlabs.iochecked Oct 22 |
| Fish Audio Voice AI platform with text to speech, voice cloning and speech to text in a web app, API and SDKs. Not read automatically | not published | fish.audio |
| Google Cloud Text-to-Speech Speech API with voice families chosen by use; JPY billing and a Tokyo region available. | 4M | cloud.google.comchecked Oct 23 |
| Murf AI Voiceover editor plus an API; Japanese voices with rate, pitch and pause controls. Not read automatically | not published | murf.ai |
| Speechify Reader app that reads text, documents and web pages aloud; a separate API covers Japanese voices. Not read automatically | not published | speechify.com |
| VOICEVOX Zundamon and other character voices, free on your own PC; commercial use with a credit. Free software | not published | voicevox.hiroshiba.jpchecked Oct 16 |
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