AudioCraft vs Speaches
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted self-hosted ai options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Speaches
OpenAI-compatible speech-to-text and text-to-speech server
| Feature | AudioCraft | Speaches |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 75 · Good | 83 · Excellent |
| Category | Self-Hosted AI | Self-Hosted AI |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Jupyter Notebook | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 16,384 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 23,644 | ★ 3,675 |
| First released | 2023 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Suno, ElevenLabs | OpenAI Audio API, ElevenLabs |
What are AudioCraft and Speaches?
AudioCraft
AudioCraft is an open-source library from Meta for audio generation research, including the MusicGen and AudioGen models. It can be self-hosted to generate music and sound effects from text prompts.
- Text-to-music generation
- Sound effect synthesis
- Pretrained models included
- Runs offline
Speaches
Speaches is a self-hosted server that provides OpenAI-compatible transcription, translation, and text-to-speech endpoints. It supports streaming and a range of open speech models for private voice applications.
- OpenAI-compatible audio API
- Streaming transcription
- Text-to-speech support
- Multiple open models
AudioCraft vs Speaches: key differences
AudioCraft is written in Jupyter Notebook, while Speaches is built with Python. Speaches is the lighter option, starting around 2,048 MB of RAM against 16,384 MB for AudioCraft. AudioCraft has the considerably larger community, at 23,644 GitHub stars versus 3,675. Speaches lists first-class Docker deployment; AudioCraft does not.
Why pick each one
Choose AudioCraft if…
- State-of-the-art music generation
- Text-to-audio and music
- Backed by Meta research
Watch out for
- Hefty GPU requirements
- Research-oriented tooling
- Model weights non-commercial
Choose Speaches if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (3.7k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is AudioCraft or Speaches better?
Neither is universally better. AudioCraft has the larger community, while Speaches is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are AudioCraft and Speaches free and open-source?
Yes. AudioCraft is licensed under MIT and Speaches under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run AudioCraft and Speaches with Docker?
AudioCraft: check the project docs for container support. Speaches: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, AudioCraft or Speaches?
Speaches has the smaller minimum footprint at 2,048 MB of RAM, compared to about 16,384 MB for AudioCraft. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.