Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Deepgram VS Ably

Compare Deepgram VS Ably and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Deepgram logo Deepgram

Search engine for speech

Ably logo Ably

The realtime platform that just works. We power more WebSocket connections than any other pub/sub platform, serving over 2 billion devices monthly.
  • Deepgram Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-17
  • Ably Ably homepage
    Ably homepage //
    2024-08-05

We help teams deliver resilient AI UX and high-performance live experiences that stay fast and in sync worldwide. We provide the global realtime layer for AI agents, chat, notifications, live dashboards, and collaboration - engineered to handle peak demand without self-managed infrastructure.

Teams like HubSpot and Intercom use Ably to avoid the cost and complexity of building and operating realtime systems, while still getting predictable performance at serious scale, handling 2T+ API operations per month. Ablyโ€™s Pub/Sub, Chat, and AI Transport products are unified by design, with developer-friendly APIs and SDKs that integrate across your stack.

Ably

Website
ably.com
$ Details
freemium
Release Date
2016 January
Startup details
Country
United Kingdom
Founder(s)
Matthew O'Riordan, Dr. Paddy Byers
Employees
50 - 99

Deepgram features and specs

  • High Accuracy
    Deepgram is known for its high accuracy in speech recognition, making it a reliable choice for transcriptions and other speech-to-text applications.
  • Real-Time Processing
    The platform offers real-time processing capabilities, which are particularly useful for live transcription and other applications requiring immediate results.
  • Customizable Models
    Deepgram provides options to fine-tune and train custom speech recognition models to better suit specific industry needs and terminologies.
  • Scalability
    The service is designed to scale easily, making it suitable for both small projects and large-scale enterprise applications.
  • Multilingual Support
    Deepgram supports multiple languages, broadening its utility for businesses operating in diverse linguistic environments.

Possible disadvantages of Deepgram

  • Cost
    Deepgram can be expensive, particularly for startups or small businesses with limited budgets.
  • Complex Setup
    Setting up and fine-tuning the API may require significant technical expertise, which could be a barrier for some users.
  • Limited Free Tier
    The free tier has limited features and usage, pushing users towards the paid plans for more advanced capabilities.
  • Integration Challenges
    While powerful, integrating Deepgram with existing systems and workflows can sometimes be complex and time-consuming.
  • Data Privacy Concerns
    Using a cloud-based speech recognition service may raise data privacy concerns for some users, particularly those in highly regulated industries.

Ably features and specs

  • Scalability
    Ably is designed to handle a massive number of concurrent connections and messages, making it scalable for both small and large applications.
  • Real-time Messaging
    Ably provides robust real-time messaging capabilities with low latency, supporting use-cases like live chat, gaming, and real-time data streaming.
  • Global Presence
    Ably has a globally distributed network, ensuring low latency and high availability for users around the world.
  • Advanced Features
    It offers advanced features such as message history, presence, and push notifications, which can enhance the functionality of real-time applications.
  • Security
    Ably includes built-in security features such as TLS encryption, token-based authentication, and private channels to ensure secure communication.
  • Extensive Documentation
    The service provides extensive and well-organized documentation, making it easier for developers to integrate and utilize its features.
  • SDKs and Libraries
    Ably offers a wide range of SDKs and libraries for different programming languages and platforms, easing the development process.
  • Reliable Delivery
    It ensures reliable message delivery with features like message queuing and message de-duplication.

Possible disadvantages of Ably

  • Complexity
    Due to its wide range of advanced features, the initial learning curve can be steep for new users.
  • Cost
    For large-scale applications or extensive use of advanced features, the costs can add up, making it potentially expensive.
  • Vendor Lock-in
    Relying heavily on Ablyโ€™s platform-specific features may result in vendor lock-in, making it challenging to switch to other services in the future.
  • Dependence on Internet Connection
    As a cloud-based service, Ablyโ€™s performance is highly dependent on the quality and reliability of the internet connection.
  • Third-party Integration
    While Ably offers various integration options, integrating certain third-party services may require additional custom development or may not be as seamless.

Analysis of Ably

Overall verdict

  • Ably is a reliable and efficient real-time messaging platform, well-suited for applications requiring high performance and scalability. It is generally well-regarded within the developer community for its ease of use and robust feature set.

Why this product is good

  • Features
    Ably provides a comprehensive suite of features such as pub/sub messaging, presence, and history.
  • Security
    It implements robust security practices including TLS encryption, token-based authentication, and private channels.
  • Integration
    Supports numerous protocols and provides SDKs for various programming languages, making it easy to integrate with different systems.
  • Reliability
    Ably offers high availability and low latency, ensuring messages are delivered in real-time.
  • Scalability
    The platform can handle millions of active connections and is designed for horizontal scaling.

Recommended for

  • developers building real-time applications like chat apps, dashboards, or multiplayer games
  • businesses in need of a scalable solution for live updates and notifications
  • teams looking for a platform with strong security and compliance credentials
  • organizations requiring integration with existing development workflows and tools

Deepgram videos

Deepgram CEO Scott Stephenson | Machine Meets World

More videos:

  • Review - Deepgram Brain Speech-to-Text Editor

Ably videos

How to build a collaborative environment around your product

More videos:

  • Demo - How to build an avatar stack with Ably Spaces
  • Demo - Ably 101: Serverless WebSockets at scale

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Deepgram and Ably)
AI
100 100%
0% 0
Developer Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Transcription
100 100%
0% 0
Realtime Backend / API
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using Deepgram and Ably. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Deepgram and Ably

Deepgram Reviews

  1. Fast

    It's fast - but for an API, not the fastest speech-to-text. For a long while I hadn't done research and trusted them. Then tried Whisper and Picovoice. On-device latency is nothing comparable with cloud APIs. If latency is important go with Whisper or Picovoice. If customization is also important go with Picovoice.

    don't get me wrong it's still faster than amazon, Microsoft or Assemblyai

    ๐Ÿ‘ Pros:    Fast|Fast sales|A free demo|Supports multiple languages
    ๐Ÿ‘Ž Cons:    Slow support for free customers|Limited free version

AI Voice Agent Platform For Business: A Complete Guide 2026
If your voice agent relies on precise understanding of customer speech, go for Deepgram. It is a highly reliable option if you are looking for a ready-made customer service agent.
10 Best Custom AI Voice Agents for 2026: My Hands-On Review
Deepgram, a powerful voice AI platform that has an option for flexible deployment with enterprise-level security. Its models include speech-to-text (STT) , text-to-speech (TTS), and spoken language understanding.
10 Best Free Transcription Software & Tools for Quick Transcripts
Deepgram is an AI transcript platform that uses machine learning to develop accurate transcripts. This software tool works at an incredibly high speed with real-time enablement available. The system links completed transcripts with sales and customer service, making it a great choice for businesses.
Source: riverside.fm

Ably Reviews

We have no reviews of Ably yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Deepgram might be a bit more popular than Ably. We know about 34 links to it since March 2021 and only 26 links to Ably. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Deepgram mentions (34)

  • Deepgram: $200 Free STT That Makes Voice Coding Actually Work
    Deepgram changed the maths. Their Nova-3 model does real-time streaming transcription fast enough that the text appears as you speak, not after. And the free tier gives you $200 in credit, which is roughly 12,000 minutes of transcription. That's a lot of talking before you pay a penny. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • The 8 Best Platforms To Build Voice AI Agents
    Deepgram is a voice AI application creation platform. Developers can use its API to build audio apps with text-to-speech, speech-to-speech, and speech-to-text models. To experience and see how Deepgram works, visit the URL above and try the interactive, real-time voice demo on the home page. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • From Cameras to Action: Realโ€‘World Applications of Vision and Speech AI
    Modern ASR systems (such as Whisper, Deepgram, or custom domain-tuned models) are now robust enough to operate in factories, warehouses, and construction sites where noise floors routinely exceed safe listening levels. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • The ultimate open source stack for building AI agents
    Start by hooking up speech-to-text (STT) using something like OpenAIโ€™s Whisper if youโ€™re going open source, or Deepgram if you want a super-accurate plug-and-play API. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • 10 Ways AI Can Speed Up your Mobile App Development
    Deepgram specializes in real-time transcription optimized for specific industries and use cases. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

Ably mentions (26)

  • AWS us-east-1 outage: How Ablyโ€™s multi-region architecture held up
    During this weekโ€™s AWS us-east-1 outage, Ably maintained full service continuity with no customer impact. This was our multi-region architecture working exactly as designed; error rates were negligibly low and unchanged throughout. Any additional round trip latency was limited to 12ms, which is below the typical variance in any client-to-endpoint connection, and well below our 40โ€“50ms global median; this is... - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • Real-Time Sync Alternatives: Vaultrice vs. localStorage, DIY, Firebase, Pusher
    Services like Pusher and Ably are experts in real-time messaging. They provide robust APIs for pub/sub channels, allowing you to broadcast events to clients reliably. - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • CometChat Alternatives โ€“ Comparing the Top 10 Competitors
    Ably is a real-time infrastructure platform that focuses on delivering low-latency, reliable messaging across global distributed systems. It's designed for developers building event-driven applications, including chat, but also supports broader use cases like live dashboards, GPS tracking, and collaborative tools. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Real-Time Authorization in a Chat Application with Permit.io and WebSockets
    For our web socket-based application, weโ€™ll be using Next.js and Ably, a service that allows us to easily integrate and manage real-time capabilities in our apps powered by web socket. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Curiosity: Using Ably.io Realtime Messaging as a Lightweight Database
    Ably offers various solutions for developers, with their most popular being realtime messaging based on the pub/sub model. When you publish a message to a channel, all devices connected to that channel receive it instantly. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Deepgram and Ably, you can also consider the following products

Eleven Labs - The most realistic and versatile AI speech software, ever. Eleven brings the most compelling, rich and lifelike voices to creators and publishers seeking the ultimate tools for storytelling.

Pusher - Pusher is a hosted API for quickly, easily and securely adding scalable realtime functionality via WebSockets to web and mobile apps.

Vapi - Voice AI Infrastructure for the Internet

Socket.io - Realtime application framework (Node.JS server)

Speechmatics - The most accurate and inclusive speech-to-text API ever released.

PubNub - PubNub is a real-time messaging system for web and mobile apps that can handle API for all platforms and push messages to any device anywhere in the world in a fraction of a second without having to worry about proxies, firewalls or mobile drop-offs.