Transcription Services

Transcription is the side hustle equivalent of a steady paycheck — not exciting, not glamorous, but consistent work that pays on time. You listen to audio recordings and type what you hear. General transcription pays $0.50-1.50 per audio minute. Medical and legal transcription pay $1.50-4.00 per audio minute because they require specialized vocabulary.

The honest assessment: AI transcription (Whisper, Otter.ai, Descript) has decimated the general transcription market. If you are competing with AI on basic audio-to-text conversion, you will lose. The money is now in specialized transcription where accuracy is legally or medically required, and in post-editing AI transcripts for quality assurance. A human reviewing and correcting an AI transcript is faster than transcribing from scratch and still commands good rates.

The best transcriptionists earn $20-35/hour by specializing in legal depositions, medical records, or academic research interviews — all areas where 99%+ accuracy is mandatory and AI alone cannot deliver. If you type 70+ WPM and have strong attention to detail, this is reliable part-time income. Just do not expect to get rich.