Adobe Podcast Enhance Speech is a quick way to clean a voice recording. You upload a file in your browser, and it removes noise and echo. For a short clip, that is often all you need.
People look for something else for a few common reasons. Every file has to be uploaded, and nothing works without the internet. The free plan takes one file at a time. Each file can be up to 30 minutes and 500 MB, with 1 hour of cleanup a day in total. Bulk upload and a strength control need the Firefly Pro plan, at $19.99 a month. That plan allows 4 hours a day, with files up to 2 hours long.
Below are six alternatives. For each one you will see who it suits, where it runs, how you pay and one honest limit.
Gleam Audio for offline batch cleanup
Gleam Audio suits anyone who cleans speech files every week and wants them to stay private. It runs on macOS, Windows and Linux, and nothing is uploaded. It works with no internet at all. It goes online only to check for updates and your license.
Remove noise uses an AI model trained on human speech. There is no noise sample to find. One Strength slider sets how much of the room to keep. Enhance evens out loudness with presets for podcasts, audiobooks, music streaming and broadcast. Cut, Split and Convert are built in too.
Remove noise, Enhance and Convert run on a whole list of files at once. Every result is a new file, so your originals never change.
The app is free for personal use, up to 20 files a week. A license is pay what you want, from $5, and you buy it once. It adds commercial use and removes the limit. The source is on GitHub under the AGPL.
Honest limit: it is tuned for speech, and it has no echo or reverb tool. It also has no transcript editor and no video tools. See Gleam Audio vs Adobe Podcast for a closer look.
Auphonic for a finished episode in the cloud
Auphonic suits podcasters who want a whole post-production pass in one go. It is a web service. You upload your audio or video files to it.
It reduces noise, reverb and breaths, and you can set the amount of each. Its leveler balances speakers and music. You can also set a loudness target, such as -16 LUFS for podcasts, plus a true peak limit. Watch folders, an API and a command line tool help with automation.
The free plan covers 2 hours of audio a month. Free productions come with a jingle. More time comes from monthly credits or one-time credits that never expire.
Honest limit: your audio has to be uploaded, and batch productions need a paid plan. See Gleam Audio vs Auphonic.
Descript Studio Sound inside an editor
Descript suits creators who also need to edit the talk itself. It is a text-based audio and video editor, with a desktop app for Mac and Windows. Studio Sound is its voice cleanup effect.
Studio Sound reduces background noise and echo. An Intensity slider sets how strong it is. You turn it on for each file in a project.
The free plan includes 1 hour of media a month, and Studio Sound is limited on it. Paid plans are billed monthly or yearly, per person.
Honest limit: Studio Sound needs an internet connection and uses AI credits. It is also a full editor, which is more than you need for cleanup alone. See Gleam Audio vs Descript.
iZotope RX for detailed repair
iZotope RX suits audio editors who need to fix hard problems by hand. It runs on Mac and Windows, as a standalone editor and as plugins for other audio and video apps.
The edition chart lists Voice De-noise, De-reverb and Repair Assistant in every edition. Dialogue Isolate, Spectral De-noise, Spectral Repair and the Batch Processor start at Standard. Elements costs $99, Standard $399 and Advanced $1,399. There is a free trial.
Honest limit: the standalone editor and batch tools start at $399. It has dozens of tools, so expect to spend time learning it. See Gleam Audio vs iZotope RX.
Hush for local cleanup on a Mac
Hush suits Mac users who want offline cleanup with very few settings. Its App Store page says it runs entirely on your Mac.
It removes broadband noise like ventilation, traffic and wind. It also reduces room reflections, which helps with echo. It takes single files or whole batches. Hush costs $89.99 on the App Store, and the app is yours to keep.
Honest limit: it is Mac only and needs macOS 12 or later. The App Store page strongly recommends Apple silicon. See Gleam Audio vs Hush.
Audacity for a free editor
Audacity suits anyone who wants a free, open source editor. It runs on Windows, macOS and Linux.
Its Noise Reduction effect first learns from a stretch that holds only noise. Then it removes that noise from the rest. It works best on steady sounds like hum or a fan. Macros can apply the same steps to a folder of files.
Honest limit: you have to find a clean noise sample first. Audacity’s manual also says it will not remove one-off sounds like a door slam. See Gleam Audio vs Audacity.
How to choose
Start with where your audio is allowed to go. If it must stay on your computer, look at Gleam Audio, Hush, iZotope RX or Audacity. If uploading is fine, Auphonic and Descript do more than cleanup.
Then think about volume. For a folder of speech files each week, Gleam Audio and Hush both clean a batch in one run. Gleam Audio also works on Windows and Linux. If echo is the main problem, pick a tool with echo or reverb reduction. For careful repair of single sounds, iZotope RX is the deepest option.
Last, look at how you want to pay. Audacity is free. A Gleam Audio license and Hush are both one-time buys. Adobe, Descript and Auphonic use plans or credits.