To turn audio into text there are two families of tools: cloud services, where you upload the file and they send you back the transcript, and apps that transcribe on your computer, without the file leaving it. For an interview or a podcast, the difference is one of convenience. For the recording of a hearing or a meeting with a client, it is a decision about material covered by professional secrecy.
Cloud services
Information from the official websites, checked on 9 October 2026. The prices in dollars do not say whether they include taxes and may change.
| Otter.ai | Happy Scribe | TurboScribe | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Otter.ai, Inc. (California, US) | Happy Scribe Limited (Ireland), with a team in Barcelona | Leif Erikson Ventures, LLC (US) |
| Where it stores data | Amazon Web Services, in the US | Data centre in the European Union | Main infrastructure in the US |
| Spanish | Yes, since October 2024 | Yes | Yes, among its best languages |
| Free plan | 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation | 10-minute trial | 3 files a day of up to 30 minutes |
| Entry price | Pro: $16.99/month or $8.33/month billed annually (with promotions) | Basic: €17/month or €8.50/month billed annually, 120 minutes | Unlimited: $20/month or $10/month billed annually |
| Use for AI training | Trains on de-identified audio and transcripts | Only if you agree when you sign up | Does not train on your files |
| Certifications it states | SOC 2 Type 2 | SOC 2 Type 2 and GDPR | None appear on its pages |
Otter.ai
It is the best known in English and added Spanish in October 2024. It stores data on Amazon Web Services, in the US, covers transfers from the EU under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses, and its policy says it trains its AI on de-identified audio and on transcripts that may contain personal data. In August 2025 a class action was filed in California accusing it of recording meetings without the consent of all participants.
Happy Scribe
It is the European option: an Irish company with a team in Barcelona, a data centre in the EU, SOC 2 and a written confidentiality commitment on personal data. It only uses your content for training if you agree when you sign up, and that permission can be withdrawn. Deleted files are permanently removed after ten days. It works in the cloud, so the file does leave the firm.
TurboScribe
It runs on the Whisper models, with a flat rate and no minute limit for one person. It transcribes on its own machines, mainly in the US, does not train on your files and immediately erases what you delete. Its pages show no certifications or references to the GDPR, and its policy warns that EU users' data is transferred to the US.
The options on your computer
Transcribing locally means that the speech model runs on your computer and the file does not leave it. That term, diarisation (separating who is speaking) and timestamps are defined in the dictation and transcription glossary.
OpenAI's Whisper
It is the speech recognition model behind many of these tools. Its code and weights are published under the MIT licence, so it can be installed and run on your own computer. It has two drawbacks for a law firm: installing it requires using the command line, and like any model of this type it can write sentences nobody said, something documented by the AP news agency in 2024. OpenAI advises against using it in high-risk domains.
MacWhisper
A Mac app that uses local models and works offline. It has a free version and a one-off payment Pro version that adds telling speakers apart, exporting to Word and recording meetings. It only exists for Mac.
Juicios, in ablalo
The Hearings tab in ablalo is designed for courtroom recordings and law firm meetings, on Windows and Mac. It transcribes Spanish video and audio on your computer (MP4, MOV, WebM, MKV, M4A, MP3, WAV, OGG, Opus, FLAC and AAC), separates the speakers and you name them once, syncs the text with the video, saves notes with their exact minute and exports to Word the transcript with timestamps or only the notes. The recording and the text stay on your computer, and it is the same app you dictate with. If the recording is from a Zoom video call, the files it leaves and how to transcribe them are in transcribing a Zoom meeting to text.
What to ask before uploading a client's recording
- Where is it processed and where is it stored? In the EU, in the US or on your own computer.
- Is it used to train their models? And if it is optional, what the default is.
- How long is it kept after you delete it, and whether copies remain in a recycle bin.
- Do they sign a data processing agreement (Article 28 of the GDPR)?
- Do you have permission to record it and use it this way? If it is a meeting, tell all the participants beforehand.
If the answers are not clear, the simplest option is the one that doesn't make you ask them: transcribing on your own computer. If you use Word with Microsoft 365, it also has its own cloud transcription feature, which we explain in how to transcribe audio in Word. And if you are thinking about an AI recorder for meetings, we compare the two ways of working in Plaud alternative.
In short
Otter, Happy Scribe and TurboScribe transcribe Spanish well, but they all require uploading the file: Happy Scribe stores it in the EU, Otter and TurboScribe in the US, and Otter is the only one whose policy says it trains on what is uploaded. Whisper and MacWhisper work locally, with more installation work or only on Mac. For client and hearing recordings, transcribing on your computer avoids taking the file out of the firm.
Sources: Otter.ai, pricing, security and privacy policy; NPR on the class action; Happy Scribe, pricing, security and privacy; TurboScribe, pricing and security and privacy; OpenAI, Whisper; MacWhisper. Checked on 9 October 2026; prices and conditions may change.
Frequently asked questions
What program can I use to transcribe Spanish audio to text?
There are cloud services such as Otter.ai, Happy Scribe or TurboScribe, where you upload the file, and apps that transcribe on your computer, such as MacWhisper on Mac or the Hearings tab in ablalo on Windows and Mac. For confidential recordings, the latter keep the file from leaving the computer.
Does Otter.ai transcribe in Spanish?
Yes, since October 2024. It is a cloud service that stores data on Amazon Web Services, in the US, and its policy states that it trains its AI on de-identified audio and transcripts.
Does Happy Scribe store data in Europe?
Yes. Happy Scribe is an Irish company with a data centre in the European Union, it states SOC 2 and GDPR compliance and it only uses content for training if you agree when you sign up. Even so, the file is uploaded to its cloud.
Can Whisper be used locally for transcription?
Yes. Whisper is an OpenAI model with an MIT licence that can be installed and run on your own computer, although it requires using the command line and, like other models, it can write sentences that were never said, so it is worth checking the result.
How do I transcribe a court hearing recording without uploading it to the internet?
With an app that transcribes on your computer. The Hearings tab in ablalo transcribes video and audio of hearings and meetings on your computer, separates the speakers and exports to Word with timestamps.