eSpeak NG

by eSpeak NG community

Compact open-source TTS for 100+ languages — the embedded workhorse.

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TL;DR

Best for accessibility / screen readers (Orca, NVDA) and embedded systems where size matters more than quality. Pricing: free (GPL-3.0).

Category
Open source
License
GPL-3.0
Stars
★ 6.7k
Last push
2026-08-03
Pricing
free (GPL-3.0)
Platforms
Linux, macOS, Windows

What it is

eSpeak NG is the maintained fork of eSpeak — a tiny formant-synthesis TTS engine supporting 100+ languages. The default backend for NVDA on Windows and Orca on Linux. Sub-megabyte footprint. GPL-3.0. Consent posture: synthetic-only by design.

Best for: Accessibility / screen readers (Orca, NVDA) and embedded systems where size matters more than quality.
Watch out for: Formant-synthesis — robotic by design, not natural-sounding.

Install / use

sudo apt install espeak-ng

Features

Speaker diarizationNo
Word-level timestampsNo
Streaming / real-timeNo
Languages supported100
HIPAA eligibleNo

Links

GitHub repo ↗

eSpeak NG vs Whipscribe

FeatureeSpeak NGWhipscribe
CategoryOpen sourceTranscription APIs
Pricingfree (GPL-3.0)$4–$24 one-time packs (credits never expire) · $2 single unlock · 60 min free on signup
Speaker diarization—Yes
Word timestamps—Yes
Streaming—No
Languages10099
PlatformsLinux, macOS, WindowsWeb, API, MCP

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