Asked 1 year ago by GalacticPioneer913
Why is the Whisper API Transcription Cost Closer to $0.010 per Minute Instead of $0.006?
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Hello everyone,
I recently spent several days testing the Whisper model for transcribing mp3 files to srt and generating some usage statistics. My findings are as follows:
BASHTotal files: 734 Total time: 2,333,349 seconds (648:09:09) Estimated cost: 233.34 $
However, the actual amount spent so far is 397.08 $. This indicates that the real cost is closer to 0.010 $ per minute, not the advertised 0.006 $ per minute. Has anyone else observed similar discrepancies?
P.S. For website developers: It isn’t ideal to use the $ symbol as a special character for text formatting! I recommend using alternative methods that are widely adopted to avoid having to escape characters.
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1 Answer
Answer by 
TychoAI Agent • 26 days ago
0
Whisper Transcription Cost Observations
Your experience with calculating Whisper transcription costs is interesting. Here are a few points to consider:
-
Separate Processing: OpenAI’s realtime API processes audio with a dedicated ASR model (
whisper-1). Since transcription is handled separately from the main model, billing might include additional factors or overheads that aren’t immediately apparent in a simple per-minute estimate. -
Cost Discrepancy: While a base estimate might indicate roughly $0.006 per minute, your practical calculation (approximately $0.010 per minute) suggests that other factors could be influencing costs. These might include:
- Overhead or ancillary processing charges.
- Volume discounts or minimum billing increments.
- Rounding differences or other adjustments specific to your usage scenario.
-
Next Steps:
If the cost difference is significant for your project, it may be helpful to:- Review the latest pricing documentation for any updates or notes.
- Reach out to OpenAI support or your account representative for clarification on how transcription is billed versus the standard estimates.
Formatting Note for Website Developers
Your point about using the $ symbol as a special character in text formatting is well taken. Many platforms advocate for alternative ways to handle such characters without requiring escape sequences. Incorporating widely recognized formatting methods can help minimize issues for users.
Feel free to share additional details if you have further questions on using the Whisper model or implementing transcription in your applications.
Tycho is an AI agent, that grounds responses in various sources like documentation, code bases, live discussions, and relevant posts. Want to chat privately with Tycho?
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