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ElevenLabs vs Fish Audio: Fish Audio Plus costs $15 for up to 200 minutes, while ElevenLabs Creator costs $22 for about 121 minutes — Fish Audio is cheaper per minute at mid-volume. ElevenLabs offers more languages (74) and API access on every plan; Fish Audio counters with lower prices and separate API billing option. Checked 1 Nov 2026.
Best for: Cost-conscious creators who need high monthly minutes — Fish Audio Plus delivers up to 200 minutes for $15.
Not for: Users who need 74-language coverage, credit rollover, or API access on a free plan — ElevenLabs keeps those edges.
Starting price: $0 on both free tiers; $6/month ElevenLabs Starter vs $15/month Fish Audio Plus for paid entry (1 Nov 2026).
ElevenLabs vs Fish Audio: side-by-side
Both sell AI voice generation by monthly credits, but the units differ: ElevenLabs bills 1 credit per character, while Fish Audio’s FAQ puts a minute of generation at roughly 600–625 credits. The table below lines up the published plans from both official pricing pages, checked 1 Nov 2026.
| Feature | ElevenLabs | Fish Audio |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | $0 — 10,000 credits/month (~10 min) | $0 — 8,000 credits/month (~7 min) |
| Entry paid plan | Starter $6/month — 30,000 credits (~30 min) | Plus $15/month — 250,000 credits (~200 min) |
| Mid paid plan | Creator $22/month — 121,000 credits (~121 min) | Pro $100/month — 2,000,000 credits (~1,620 min) |
| Credit unit | 1 credit per character | ~600–625 credits per minute |
| Commercial use from | Starter ($6/month) | Plus ($15/month) |
| Voice cloning | Instant (Starter), Professional (Creator) | Enhanced cloning (Plus), professional slots: 1 on Plus, 5 on Pro |
| Credit rollover | Paid plans: up to 2 months | None — credits reset monthly |
| API billing | Key free on all plans; usage billed in credits | Billed separately; no subscription needed |
| Languages | 74 | Not published on the pricing page |
Same-job pricing maths: 60 minutes a month
Take a podcaster producing 60 minutes of finished audio a month. On Fish Audio, the Plus plan at $15 a month includes 250,000 credits and up to 200 minutes of generation — 60 minutes fits with room to spare, at an effective $0.25 per minute of actual use ($15 ÷ 60). In the first year, Plus drops to $5.50 a month ($66 billed annually), which is about $0.09 per minute for the same 60.
On ElevenLabs, Starter’s $6 buys about 30 minutes — not enough — so the same 60 minutes needs Creator at $22 a month (121,000 credits, about 121 minutes). That is $0.37 per minute of actual use ($22 ÷ 60). Per minute of capacity, Fish Audio Plus works out to $0.075 ($15 ÷ 200) against Creator’s $0.18 ($22 ÷ 121) — Fish Audio is roughly 2.4 times cheaper per minute at this tier.
The gap narrows at the extremes. At the entry level, ElevenLabs Starter at $6 undercuts Fish Audio Plus at $15 for anyone needing under 30 minutes. At high volume, Fish Audio Pro ($100, ~1,620 minutes) competes with ElevenLabs Pro ($99, ~600 minutes) — Fish Audio gives nearly three times the minutes per dollar there. First-month offers also shift the math: ElevenLabs Creator was $11 for the first month (50% off) and Starter $1 (shown until Nov 8) when checked.
Free tier vs free tier
ElevenLabs’ free tier is the larger one: 10,000 credits a month, about 10 minutes of speech, against Fish Audio’s 8,000 credits and up to 7 minutes. Both are non-commercial — ElevenLabs’ terms bar commercial use for free users, and Fish Audio’s pricing page states the free tier has no commercial use. Neither free tier includes voice cloning: ElevenLabs gates instant cloning to Starter, Fish Audio gates enhanced cloning to Plus.
Fish Audio’s free tier adds two friction points ElevenLabs does not: generations are capped at 500 characters each (against no published per-generation cap on ElevenLabs’ free tier), and only standard generation speed is available. ElevenLabs’ free tier counters with 3 Studio projects and the same 128 kbps base audio quality as its paid tiers. For the full ElevenLabs free breakdown, see our ElevenLabs free plan guide.
Strengths and weaknesses
ElevenLabs’ structural strengths are breadth and flexibility: 74 languages, API keys free on every plan including free, credit rollover for up to two months on paid plans, and 192 kbps audio with PCM output from Pro upward. Its weakness is unit cost — per-minute pricing runs roughly double Fish Audio’s at comparable tiers, and the free tier’s 10 minutes, while larger than Fish Audio’s 7, still ends fast.
Fish Audio’s strength is price per minute: Plus delivers up to 200 minutes for $15, and the first-year 50% discount ($5.50/month Plus, $37.50/month Pro) is the steepest published discount in this comparison. Its API billing is separate with no subscription required, which suits developers who want voice without a monthly plan. Its weaknesses: no credit rollover at all, a smaller free tier, commercial use only from $15 up, and no published language count on the pricing page. Note Fish Audio’s own Halloween promotion — 50% off all Creator plans, expiring around Nov 4 — was live when checked 1 Nov 2026.
ElevenLabs vs Fish Audio: pros and cons
Pros
- Fish Audio Plus is the cheapest path to high minutes: up to 200 minutes for $15 a month.
- ElevenLabs covers 74 languages with API access free on every plan, including free.
- ElevenLabs paid plans roll unused credits over for up to two months; Fish Audio has no rollover.
- Fish Audio’s API is billed separately with no subscription required — pay only for voice.
Cons
- ElevenLabs costs roughly double per minute at comparable tiers ($0.18 vs $0.075 capacity rate).
- Fish Audio’s free tier is smaller (7 minutes vs 10) with a 500-character per-generation cap.
- Fish Audio commercial use starts at $15 (Plus); ElevenLabs starts it at $6 (Starter).
- Fish Audio publishes no language count and no credit rollover on any plan.
- Both free tiers are non-commercial — neither suits client or monetized work.
Who should pick which
Pick Fish Audio if your priority is minutes per dollar: podcasters, audiobook drafters, and anyone generating over an hour of speech a month get the lowest unit cost on Plus, especially in the discounted first year. The separate API billing also suits developers who want voice generation without committing to a subscription.
Pick ElevenLabs if you need 74-language coverage, credit rollover to smooth uneven months, API access on the free tier for testing, or the commercial license at the lowest entry price ($6 Starter vs $15 Plus). Light users under 30 minutes a month pay less on ElevenLabs Starter than on anything Fish Audio sells. Compare the wider field in our ElevenLabs alternatives roundup and the free AI voice generators list.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, ElevenLabs or Fish Audio?
Fish Audio, per minute. Fish Audio Plus costs $15 a month for up to 200 minutes of generation ($0.075 per minute of capacity), while ElevenLabs Creator costs $22 for about 121 minutes ($0.18 per minute). At the entry level the order flips: ElevenLabs Starter is $6 for ~30 minutes, undercutting Fish Audio Plus at $15.
Does Fish Audio have a free plan?
Yes. The free tier gives 8,000 credits a month — up to 7 minutes of generation — with up to 500 characters per generation, 3 public voice slots, and standard speed. It has no enhanced voice cloning and no commercial use. ElevenLabs’ free tier is slightly larger at 10,000 credits (~10 minutes).
Can I use Fish Audio for commercial projects?
Yes, from the Plus plan ($15/month) upward — Fish Audio’s pricing page lists commercial use as a Plus feature and notes premium subscribers can use verified voices they own commercially. The free tier has no commercial use. ElevenLabs starts its commercial license lower, at $6/month on Starter.
Which has better voice cloning, ElevenLabs or Fish Audio?
On published features: ElevenLabs offers instant voice cloning from Starter ($6) and professional voice cloning from Creator ($22). Fish Audio offers enhanced voice cloning from Plus ($15), with 1 professional voice slot on Plus and 5 on Pro ($100). Neither free tier includes any cloning. We have not tested output quality, so compare the feature lists against what your project needs.
Do unused credits roll over on Fish Audio or ElevenLabs?
On ElevenLabs, yes for paid plans: unused credits roll over for up to two months (up to 3× the quota) while the subscription stays active; the free plan gets no rollover. On Fish Audio, no: the pricing FAQ states credits reset each month with no rollover on any plan.
Which is better for API use, ElevenLabs or Fish Audio?
It depends on billing preference. ElevenLabs gives every plan — including free — an API key, with usage billed in credits from the subscription balance. Fish Audio bills its API separately with no subscription required, which suits developers who want voice without a monthly plan. Check our ElevenLabs API pricing guide for per-character maths.
Sources checked
Fish Audio plans, credit allowances, and feature lists come from the official Fish Audio pricing page (https://fish.audio/plan/), checked 1 Nov 2026. ElevenLabs plans and credit rates come from the official pricing page (https://elevenlabs.io/pricing), checked the same day. The Halloween promotion wording is Fish Audio’s own published offer, shown with a countdown expiring around Nov 4 when checked.
Last updated 1 Nov 2026. Prices checked on the official ElevenLabs and Fish Audio pricing pages on that date; confirm at checkout.