Text-to-speech cost calculator: ElevenLabs vs Gemini
Type how many characters your script has. The table shows the audio length, the cost in dollars and, for ElevenLabs, the credits it uses, based on the reading speed and prices we measured.
| Model | Audio (min) | Cost (API list price) | Per minute | ElevenLabs credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eleven v4 | 0.6 | $0.0402 | $0.0624 | 502 (5% of Free plan) |
| Eleven v4 Turbo | 0.6 | $0.0201 | $0.0311 | 251 (3% of Free plan) |
| Eleven Flash v2.5 | 0.6 | $0.0201 | $0.0316 | 251 (3% of Free plan) |
| Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS | 0.6 | $0.0079 | $0.0136 | n/a (billed in tokens) |
| Gemini 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS | 0.6 | $0.0053 | $0.0091 | n/a (billed in tokens) |
Where the numbers come from
Measured on 2026-11-05: one 502-character English paragraph read three times by each model over its API (see the full test). Reading speed, credits per character and Gemini token counts are medians from those runs. Prices were read from ElevenLabs' API pricing page and Google's Gemini pricing page the same day. Both vendors can change prices; check their pages before you commit.
This is an estimate, not a quote: other languages, many numbers or a slower voice change the audio length, and Gemini bills mostly on the audio it returns. Subscription plans are not priced here, only the pay-as-you-go API rate and the share of the Free plan's 10,000 monthly credits.
Try it on your own text
You can run a script of your own on the ElevenLabs Free plan: open ElevenLabs. This is a partner link: RanThis is an independent affiliate of ElevenLabs and may earn a commission if you sign up or upgrade through it. We have no affiliate relationship with Google.