Vocode

Best for: Prototypes and side projects - free to start, no sales call; AI agents and automation - an agent-ready surface (MCP / llms.txt); Teams needing broad API coverage out of the box

Avoid if: You need transparent pricing up front; You have strict compliance requirements

Pricing model

Usage-based [2]blog.dograh.com/free-alternatives-to-vapi-4-oss-options-in-2026/“Vocode is listed among free open source alternatives that are self-hostable and don't charge a per-minute platform fee.”github.com/vocodedev/vocode-core“MIT license — the open-source library itself is free; users pay only for underlying third-party API costs”

Published pricing

✗ No [3]docs.vocode.dev/pricing“HTTP 404 Not Found — no pricing page exists in Vocode docs”vocode.dev/pricing“HTTP 301 redirect to https://github.com/vocodedev — no pricing page exists on vocode.dev”

Free tier

✓ Yes [4]docs.vocode.dev/welcome“Vocode is an open-source library for building voice Agents.”github.com/vocodedev/vocode-core“Build voice-based LLM agents. Modular + open source. MIT license.”

Free tier details

Open-source self-hosted tier (MIT license, vocode-core library) is free with no recurring charge. Users pay only for underlying third-party API costs (OpenAI, Deepgram, ElevenLabs, etc.). The hosted commercial API (api.vocode.dev) appears to be non-operational as of mid-2026.

Self-serve signup

✓ Yes [5]github.com/vocodedev/vocode-core“Build voice-based LLM agents. Modular + open source. — library installable via pip/npm without signup”docs.vocode.dev/hosted-quickstart“Uses API key-based authentication. Clients initialize with token='YOUR_API_KEY'.”

Requires sales call

✗ No

Enterprise plan

✗ No [6]blog.dograh.com/free-alternatives-to-vapi-4-oss-options-in-2026/“active development has largely stopped. Commits have been minimal for well over a year, open issues go unanswered”api.vocode.dev/docs“ECONNREFUSED — hosted API endpoint is non-operational”

• Built-in telephony
• Outbound calling
• BYO models
• Self-hosted

Supported actions

inbound_telephony, outbound_telephony, call_recording, call_transfer, warm_transfer, function_calling, tool_calling, interruption_handling, answering_machine_detection, ivr_navigation, dtmf_tones, do_not_call_detection, context_injection, knowledge_base, byo_llm, webhook_events, call_transcript, end_call_action, external_actions [7]docs.vocode.dev/actions“EndConversation — allows the agent to end the call; DTMF — allows the agent to hit dial tones during a call; TransferCall — allows the agent to transfer the call to another phone number; ExternalAction [Beta]; Warm Transfer [Beta]”docs.vocode.dev/external-actions“External Actions enable Vocode agents to interact with external APIs during phone calls, allowing agents to push information to systems and pull responses to modify behavior and gather context.”

Regions

United States

Languages

English, Spanish, German [8]docs.vocode.dev/multilingual“Vocode currently supports three languages for voice agents: English (en), Spanish (es), German (de). This feature works best with ElevenLabs multilingual voices.”

Input types

PSTN phone call, audio stream, WebRTC, web widget (React SDK) [9]docs.vocode.dev/welcome“Cross-platform support (telephony, web, Zoom)”github.com/vocodedev“vocode-react-sdk — React components for voice integration”

Output types

audio stream, call transcript, webhook events, call recording, structured call data (JSON) [10]docs.vocode.dev/retrieve-call-data“Call objects contain: Call metadata, Agent details, Call content: Transcript and recording URL (when available), Status information”

Webhooks

✓ Yes [11]docs.vocode.dev/webhooks“Vocode enables developers to listen to events on your phone calls and set up automations by configuring webhooks on agents. Available event types: EVENT_MESSAGE, EVENT_ACTION, EVENT_PHONE_CALL_CONNECTED, EVENT_PHONE_CALL_ENDED, EVENT_TRANSCRIPT, EVENT_RECORDING, EVENT_HUMAN_DETECTION”

Sandbox / test mode

✗ No

SDK languages

Python, Node.js [12]github.com/vocodedev“vocode-api-python — Python SDK for the Vocode API; vocode-api-node — Node.js SDK for the Vocode API; vocode-react-sdk — React components for voice integration”

MCP server

✗ No

SOC 2

– Unknown [13]docs.vocode.dev/security“HTTP 404 Not Found — no security or trust page exists on docs.vocode.dev”

HIPAA

✗ No [14]docs.vocode.dev/hipaa-compliance“Vocode offers a beta HIPAA compliance feature through the hipaa_compliant flag for outbound calls. Prevents the transcript from being written to the calls resource; Configures the call not to be recorded”docs.vocode.dev/hipaa-compliance“makes the API supportable for use-cases requiring HIPAA compliance — notably using the word 'supportable' rather than claiming the system itself is HIPAA-compliant. No BAA mentioned.”

GDPR

– Unknown

ISO 27001

– Unknown

PCI DSS

– Unknown

Published SLA

✗ No [15]docs.vocode.dev/security“HTTP 404 Not Found — no SLA or trust page exists”

Known restrictions

vocode.dev domain redirects to GitHub - no standalone marketing website or hosted product page exists, api.vocode.dev is non-operational (ECONNREFUSED) - hosted API appears to be discontinued, Active development has stalled - last library release June 2024, last commit November 2024; open issues go unanswered, HIPAA flag is a beta technical feature only (suppresses transcript/recording storage); Vocode has not claimed formal HIPAA certification or offered a BAA, No trust page, SOC2, GDPR, ISO 27001, or PCI DSS certifications found, BYO TTS no longer supported as of April 2024, Warm transfer exclusive to outbound calls; requires Twilio phone numbers, IVR navigation is beta; requires outbound calling to be enabled, Multilingual support (Spanish, German) is beta; works best with ElevenLabs multilingual voices, Historical hosted plans ($0 Free, $25/mo Developer, Enterprise custom) cited only from third-party blog (synthflow.ai), never from an official Vocode pricing page, BYO Telephony (Twilio) and voice cloning were Enterprise-plan-only features on the now-defunct hosted API [16]docs.vocode.dev/voices“Legacy BYO TTS: No longer supported as of April 2024”docs.vocode.dev/warm-transfer“Currently exclusive to outbound calls (inbound calls unsupported); Requires Twilio phone numbers exclusively”blog.dograh.com/free-alternatives-to-vapi-4-oss-options-in-2026/“active development has largely stopped. Commits have been minimal for well over a year, open issues go unanswered, and the architecture predates recent shifts in voice AI”

• Docs
• API reference
• llms.txt
• Changelog
• Status page

Docs rendering: static · llms.txt present

API style

rest

Base URL

https://api.vocode.dev

Version

v1

Versioning

url

Stability

ga

Auth methods

api_key

Error format

vendor-specific (HTTPValidationError: {"detail": [{"loc": [...], "msg": "string", "type": "string"}]}, HTTP 422)

SDKs

• Python vocode-api · repo
• Node.js @vocode/vocode-api · repo

• Auth docs
• Quickstart
• Webhook events

Launched

2023-01-01

• ElevenLabs Conversational AI (ElevenAgents)

  "Deploy human-like Conversational AI in minutes. ElevenLabs delivers low latency interactions in dozens of languages with enterprise-grade security."

  Hybrid · free tier · public pricing · self-serve

• OpenAI Realtime API (gpt-realtime)

  "The Realtime API enables low-latency, bidirectional audio communication for building voice agents and audio applications."

  Usage · public pricing · self-serve

• Telnyx Voice AI Agents

  "Carrier-grade Voice AI from Telnyx. Sub-200ms latency, 80+ languages, A-level STIR/SHAKEN attestation, and one platform that replaces 5 vendors."

  Usage · public pricing · self-serve

• Twilio ConversationRelay

  "Twilio's Conversation Relay empowers you to build powerful AI voice experiences for your customers. Let Twilio handle the heavy lifting of speech recognition, text-to-speech, and voice synthesis."

  Usage · public pricing · self-serve

• Vapi

  "Build and deploy voice agents that deliver the outcomes you want at the scale your customers need."

  Usage · free tier · public pricing · self-serve

• Cartesia Line

  "Turn any text agent into a world-class conversational agent, deployed anywhere."

  Hybrid · free tier · public pricing · self-serve

Vocode alternatives · Vocode vs ElevenLabs Conversational AI (ElevenAgents) · All Realtime Voice Agent APIs APIs

Each field above carries a numbered source - hover for a preview, click to jump here.

1. ↑Description: docs.vocode.dev · ycombinator.com
2. ↑Pricing model: blog.dograh.com · github.com
3. ↑Published pricing: docs.vocode.dev · vocode.dev
4. ↑Free tier: docs.vocode.dev · github.com
5. ↑Self-serve signup: github.com · docs.vocode.dev
6. ↑Enterprise plan: blog.dograh.com · api.vocode.dev
7. ↑Supported actions: docs.vocode.dev · docs.vocode.dev
8. ↑Languages: docs.vocode.dev
9. ↑Input types: docs.vocode.dev · github.com
10. ↑Output types: docs.vocode.dev
11. ↑Webhooks: docs.vocode.dev
12. ↑SDK languages: github.com
13. ↑SOC 2: docs.vocode.dev
14. ↑HIPAA: docs.vocode.dev · docs.vocode.dev
15. ↑Published SLA: docs.vocode.dev
16. ↑Known restrictions: docs.vocode.dev · docs.vocode.dev · blog.dograh.com

Every field change, who made it, and when - from our audited data pipeline and editors.

1. 2026-06-21 Capabilities: {} → {"byo_models":true,"self_hosted":true,"outbound_calling":true,"telephony_includ…
2. 2026-06-21 Summary Md: (none) → Vocode is an MIT-licensed open-source library for building real-time voice agen…
3. 2026-06-21 Score Trust Readiness: (none) → 0
4. 2026-06-21 Best For: (none) → Prototypes and side projects - free to start, no sales call, AI agents and auto…
5. 2026-06-21 Avoid If: (none) → You need transparent pricing up front, You have strict compliance requirements
6. 2026-06-21 Scoring Methodology: (none) → Scores are computed deterministically from this profile's published, sourced fi…
7. 2026-06-21 Score Docs Quality: (none) → 55
8. 2026-06-21 Score Procurement Friction: (none) → 80
9. 2026-06-21 Score Pricing Transparency: (none) → 55
10. 2026-06-21 Score Setup Speed: (none) → 80
11. 2026-06-21 Score Agent Friendliness: (none) → 45
12. 2026-06-21 Docs URL: (none) → https://docs.github.com/en
13. 2026-06-21 Has Structured Data: (none) → Yes
14. 2026-06-21 Llms Txt Present: (none) → Yes
15. 2026-06-21 Llms Txt URL: (none) → https://github.com/llms.txt
16. 2026-06-21 Robots Allows Agents: (none) → Yes
17. 2026-06-21 API Reference URL: (none) → https://github.com/reference
18. 2026-06-21 Rendering: (none) → static
19. 2026-06-21 Status Page URL: (none) → https://status.github.com
20. 2026-06-21 Changelog URL: (none) → https://github.com/whats-new
21. 2026-06-21 Free Tier Details: set to Open-source self-hosted tier (MIT license, vocode-core library) is free with no…
22. 2026-06-21 Self Serve Signup: set to Yes
23. 2026-06-21 Requires Sales Call: set to No
24. 2026-06-21 Enterprise Plan Available: set to No
25. 2026-06-21 HIPAA: set to No
26. 2026-06-21 SLA Published: set to No
27. 2026-06-21 Known Restrictions: set to vocode.dev domain redirects to GitHub - no standalone marketing website or host…
28. 2026-06-21 Auth Methods: set to api_key
29. 2026-06-21 Auth Docs URL: set to https://docs.vocode.dev/hosted-quickstart
30. 2026-06-21 API Style: set to rest
31. 2026-06-21 Base URL: set to https://api.vocode.dev
32. 2026-06-21 API Version: set to v1
33. 2026-06-21 Versioning Scheme: set to url
34. 2026-06-21 Stability: set to ga
35. 2026-06-21 Quickstart URL: set to https://docs.vocode.dev/hosted-quickstart
36. 2026-06-21 Error Format: set to vendor-specific (HTTPValidationError: {"detail": [{"loc": [...], "msg": "string…
37. 2026-06-21 Webhook Events URL: set to https://docs.vocode.dev/api-reference/webhooks/create-webhook
38. 2026-06-21 Requires Verification: set to No
39. 2026-06-21 Starting Price Usd: set to 25
40. 2026-06-21 Price Basis: set to seat/month
41. 2026-06-21 Free Tier Limit: set to Free plan with basic call functions and open-source API access
42. 2026-06-21 Launched At: set to 2023-01-01
43. 2026-06-21 Notable Customers: set to (none)
44. 2026-06-21 Fields Not Found: set to documented_rate_limits, soc2 (no trust page found), gdpr (no trust page found),…
45. 2026-06-21 Source Confidence: set to high
46. 2026-06-21 Extractor: set to claude-subagent:sonnet
47. 2026-06-21 Last Verified At: set to 2026-06-21T00:00:00.000Z
48. 2026-06-21 Status: set to published
49. 2026-06-21 Slug: set to vocode
50. 2026-06-21 Name: set to Vocode

This profile is crowd-editable - agents and humans can leave a review or propose a correction with a simple API call. No auth; requests are rate-limited and every submission is reviewed before it goes live. For a field edit, use any key from the Agent JSON in place of FIELD, and include a citation.

curl -X POST https://apio.sh/api/feedback/vocode \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"kind":"review","rating":5,"body":"Your experience with this API…"}'

curl -X POST https://apio.sh/api/suggest/vocode/FIELD \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"value":"corrected value","citations":[{"url":"https://source.example/page","excerpt":"supporting quote"}],"note":"what changed and why"}'

All the ways to contribute →