From one-off clips to apps: a path that starts free
Many people find AI voice platforms while working on a specific project: a podcast intro, a mobile game prototype, a voice for a smart-home announcement. PlayHT used to be one of the names that came up, but since Meta acquired it in July 2025, many PlayHT users have been looking for a new home for their voice projects.
Speechma gives you a free starting point. Use the AI voice generator in your browser to test voices and produce finished audio at no cost. If your project later needs automated speech inside an app or website, the Speechma API gives you access to 1,000+ of our voices with plans from $9/month (Starter: 1M characters per month) and an instant key.
Speechma vs PlayHT: what is available today?
PlayHT facts below come from PlayHT’s own website (pricing page and blog) and TechCrunch’s report on the acquisition, checked in October 2026.
| Feature | Speechma | PlayHT |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Active, free, no sign-up | Acquired by Meta in July 2025; the PlayHT team joined Meta |
| Pricing | Free; optional SpeechmaPRO.com and Speechma API | Its pricing page no longer lists plans or prices |
| Free web use | Yes, no account | No current free plan listed |
| Developer API | From $9/month, Starter 1M characters | No current API pricing listed |
| Voices | 1,700+, 75+ languages and locales | No current voice or language count listed |
| Voice cloning | Free, 10 languages | No current plan listed |
| Create a voice from a description | Free Voice Design | Not listed |
| AI dubbing and transcription | Free | Not listed |
| Commercial use | Included | No current license terms listed with plans |
Competitor details verified from their official pricing pages in October 2026; prices can change. PlayHT’s blog shows no posts after April 2025, and independent reports say the service was wound down by the end of 2025.
Speechma tools you can use today
Text to speech
Up to 2,000 characters per conversion, free, with 1,700+ voices in 75+ languages.
Voice cloning
5–30 second sample, scripts up to 1,000 characters, speed 0.8×–1.25×.
Voice design
Write “a warm, middle-aged American man with a calm, reassuring tone” and get a new voice.
Voice changer
Re-speak a recording of up to 5 minutes in a different target voice.
Game and character voices
Narrator, trailer and storyteller style AI voices for quick prototypes.
Speechma API
Plans from $9/month with an instant key when you are ready to automate.
Example: voices for an indie game prototype
Say you are building a small RPG and need placeholder lines. Use Voice Design to describe each character: “an old, raspy wizard, slow and mysterious” or “a young, cheerful shopkeeper with a Southern US accent.” Write short lines such as “Back so soon, traveler? The roads grow darker every night.” Generate, download, and drop the files into your engine. When the game grows, the API can generate lines programmatically.
For more ideas, see AI voices for video games.
What happened to PlayHT?
In July 2025, Meta confirmed it had acquired PlayAI, the company behind PlayHT, and that the whole PlayAI team would join Meta to work on AI characters, Meta AI, wearables and audio content. Since then, PlayHT’s pricing page no longer shows plans or prices, its blog has no posts after April 2025, and independent reports say the service was wound down by the end of 2025. If you had voices or scripts on PlayHT, keep your own copies of your scripts and audio and plan to re-create voices elsewhere.
If you are moving your projects, Speechma is an easy place to start: no sign-up, commercial use included, and a single site that also handles dubbing, speech to text and music generation. Power users can step up to SpeechmaPRO.com for 10,000 characters per conversion, no captcha and no ads.
Checklist before choosing any AI voice tool
- Test your actual script, not a demo sentence; names and numbers reveal weak spots.
- Confirm commercial-use terms for where you will publish.
- Check how many characters you need per month to estimate cost.
- Listen on phone speakers and headphones, where most audiences hear it.
- Make sure you have consent for any voice you clone.
Popular projects people build with Speechma
Podcasters generate intros, outros and sponsor reads with a consistent voice. Online sellers narrate product videos for Shopify and Amazon listings. Course creators turn lesson scripts into clean narration. Small businesses record phone greetings and IVR menus such as “Thanks for calling Riverside Dental. For appointments, press one; for billing, press two.” And app developers prototype voice features in the browser before connecting the API.
Disclaimer
PlayHT and Play.ht are trademarks of their respective owner. Speechma is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by PlayHT. PlayHT details were taken from PlayHT’s website and published news coverage in October 2026 and are provided in good faith; this information can change.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free alternative to PlayHT?
Does Speechma have an API like PlayHT?
Can I clone my own voice for free?
Can I use the voices commercially?
Why do I need a security code?
Is PlayHT still available?
Is Speechma part of PlayHT?
Make better voiceovers, faster
- New voices and features the day they launch
- Script templates and tricks that make AI voices sound human
- Creator stories, community picks and early access
