---
title: "Descript vs Opus Clip"
description: "Descript vs Opus Clip: produce the full episode or multiply its highlights. Compare prices, free-plan allowances and product features."
url: https://exemplary.ai/compare/descript-vs-opus-clip
facts_as_of: 2026-10-01
publisher: "Exemplary AI (https://exemplary.ai)"
---

# Descript vs Opus Clip

Produce the full episode or multiply its highlights

## At a glance

Descript edits complete podcasts and videos through a transcript. Opus Clip extracts short clips from finished long recordings.

## Prices, limits and features

Guide updated 2026-10-01. Descript: prices and features as of September 2026; Opus Clip: prices and features as of September 2026.

Descript vs Opus Clip: Prices, limits and features

| Feature | Descript | Opus Clip |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free plan | Yes (60 minutes (1 hr) / month of media, 100 AI credits (one-time), 720p export with watermark, 5GB cloud storage, uploads up to 1 GB. A real free plan, not a trial ("Do I need to enter a credit card to try Descript? No"). The 100 AI credits are one-time, not monthly.) | Yes (60 credits a month (1 credit = 1 minute of video processed); up to 1080p; watermark; no editing; clips can be exported for 3 days.) |
| Paid plan pricing | Hobbyist: US$24/mo, or US$16/mo billed yearly (Per person/month, in USD. Usage is metered in two pools: media minutes (any upload or recording, transcribed or not) and AI credits (Underlord, Studio Sound, translation, generative media). Allowances reset each billing cycle and unused minutes/credits do not roll over. Top-ups are available on Creator and Business only (not Free or Hobbyist).) | Starter: US$15/mo billed monthly ("Starter plan only available in monthly." Credits are minutes of source video processed (partial minutes round down; videos under a minute round up). Monthly-plan credits expire after 60 days; yearly plans get the whole year of credits up front, valid 12 months.) |
| Languages | 25 languages (transcription) | 25+ languages (video languages for clipping and captions) |
| AI clips from long video | Yes ("Create clips" AI tool (1-20 clips, 10 s to 5 min each). Pricing table: "Repurpose media: Create clips, highlights" is Limited on Free, included on Hobbyist and up; uses AI credits.) | Yes (Core product: AI clipping with a virality score; clip lengths from under 1 minute to 15 minutes.) |
| Transcription | Yes (Text-based editing on every plan; transcription is metered as media minutes.) | Partly (Transcribes to caption and clip; the source transcript is available through the API. No standalone transcript editor or export is on the pricing page.) |
| Subtitles / captions burned in | Yes ("Dynamic captions: Automatically create animated captions for your videos", unlimited on every plan.) | Yes (Animated caption templates with emoji and keyword highlights; watermark on Free.) |
| Translation | Yes (Translate captions and Dub speech: Limited on Free, included Hobbyist and up; lip-sync Creator and up; translation proofread Business and Enterprise only. Uses AI credits.) | Partly (Caption translation targets English only; voice-clone dubbing covers 25 languages (Pro).) |
| Speaker labels | Yes ("Detect 8+ speakers" on every plan; automatic speaker detection and labelling.) | Partly (The API transcript carries a speaker label "when diarization is available"; the pricing table lists speaker-based caption colours on Business only.) |
| YouTube timestamps / chapters | Yes (Markers/Add Chapters AI tool; "Copy chapters for YouTube" copies a formatted chapter list for the video description (YouTube ignores chapter metadata in files). Add chapters is Limited on Free.) | — |
| Audiograms | Yes (Waveform layers: "Add an animated audio visualizer for audiograms or podcast clips.") | — |
| Public API | Yes ("API access is available for all paying users at no additional cost." Usage draws from plan media minutes and AI credits. Page says it is in early access.) | Yes (Pro (beta, limited), Max and Business plans; clipping, captions, social posting, webhooks, MCP server.) |
| Mobile app | No (Help center: "Descript is not officially supported on mobile browsers or tablet devices like Chromebooks or iPads." Desktop apps are macOS and Windows, plus Descript for Web.) | Yes (iOS app; Android app (Android 12+) in 8 countries, English only at launch.) |
| Team workspaces | Yes (Shared drive with a general workspace; Creator scales to 3 editors, Business to 5. Custom workspaces are Enterprise-only.) | Yes (Pro: 2 users per pack, up to 4; Business: unlimited seats.) |

## Descript plan allowances

- **Media minutes per editor:** 60 minutes / month (Free)
- **Media minutes per editor:** 600 minutes (10 hrs) / month (Hobbyist)
- **Media minutes per editor:** 1800 minutes (30 hrs) / month (Creator)
- **Media minutes per editor:** 2400 minutes (40 hrs) / month (Business)
- **Max upload file size:** 1 GB (Free)
- **Max upload file size:** 10 GB (Hobbyist)
- **Max upload file size:** 20 GB (Creator)
- **Max upload file size:** 50 GB (Business)
- **Video export resolution:** 720p (watermarked) (Free)
- **Video export resolution:** 1080p (Hobbyist)
- **Video export resolution:** 4k (Creator and Business)
- **Web-link video export duration:** 1 hour (Free and Hobbyist)
- **Web-link video export duration:** 3 hours (Creator and Business)
- **Cloud storage:** 5GB (Free), 100GB (Hobbyist), 1TB (Creator), 2TB (Business)
- **Seats:** 1 (Free, Hobbyist), 1-3 (Creator), up to 5 (Business)

## Opus Clip plan allowances

- **Max video length:** 10 hours
- **Max upload size:** 10 GB per video (Free and Starter)
- **Max upload size:** 30 GB per video, plus public MP4 URLs (Pro and Business)
- **Processing credits per month:** 60 / 150 / 300 per pack (Free / Starter / Pro)
- **Clip export window:** 3 days (Free); 30 days (Starter)
- **Team seats:** 2 per pack, up to 4 (Pro)

## Where Descript wins

- A full text-based video and podcast editor (edit the video by editing the transcript) with Mac and Windows desktop apps, remote recording and screen recording, well beyond a transcription or clipping tool.
- Caption translation into 61 languages and AI dubbing into 30 languages, with lip-sync from the Creator plan.
- Large uploads: files up to 10 GB on Hobbyist ($16/mo billed yearly) and up to 50 GB on Business.

## Where Opus Clip wins

- A mature clipping product: virality score, AI reframing with moving-object tracking, AI B-roll, and scheduling to YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and X.
- Native iOS and Android apps.
- Pro exports to Adobe Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve, and dubs into 25 languages with a clone of your voice.

## Try it on your own material

Edit a full episode first, then find three self-contained highlights. Compare the time spent repairing the episode with the time spent producing shorts; do not score only the first automatic export.

## Create more from every recording

Exemplary AI turns a recording into a transcript in 99 languages, short clips, subtitles, audiograms and written content, all in one workspace. The Free plan includes 200 one-time credits; paid plans offer additional credits and features.

[Try Exemplary AI](https://exemplary.ai/signup)

[Explore plans](https://exemplary.ai/pricing)

## Before you subscribe

### How do Descript and Opus Clip differ?

Descript edits complete podcasts and videos through a transcript. Opus Clip extracts short clips from finished long recordings.

### How should I test these tools before subscribing?

Edit a full episode first, then find three self-contained highlights. Compare the time spent repairing the episode with the time spent producing shorts; do not score only the first automatic export.

### When were these prices and features updated?

The page was updated October 1, 2026. Descript's facts are dated September 2026; Opus Clip's facts are dated September 2026. Prices vary by billing period, currency and tax.

[Explore every comparison](https://exemplary.ai/exemplary-ai-alternatives)

> Exemplary AI is a browser-based AI tool that turns long videos and recordings into short captioned clips, transcripts in 99 languages, subtitles, translations into 116 languages, and written posts such as summaries, blog posts and YouTube chapters. It is built for YouTubers, podcasters and marketing teams; the Free plan includes 200 one-time credits with watermarked video exports. Pricing: https://exemplary.ai/pricing
