Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio
Async vs OpusClip vs Riverside
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
Pick it if: Podcasters and small teams who want recording, editing, clips and hosting in one place.
Pick it if: Creators, podcasters and marketers who record themselves talking and need a steady stream of short-form videos.
Pick it if: Businesses running a podcast, interview series or webinar who want guests to sound and look professional without a studio.
Overview
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | Record, edit and publish podcasts and videos, with AI that edits when you ask. | Turns long videos into short clips, and edits raw talking-head footage by chat. | Records podcasts and video interviews remotely in studio quality, with AI editing. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $0 | $15/mo | $29/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | No | Yes | No |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.3 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | No | Yes |
| Desktop app | No | No | No |
| Browser extension | No | No | No |
| API access | – | – | – |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | – | Yes | – |
| Makes images | Yes | Yes | No |
| Makes video | Yes | Yes | No |
| Writes code | No | No | No |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | Yes | – |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 11/ 17 | 11/ 17 | 8/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free $0 Trying the editor. | Free Free Trying it on a few videos. | Free Free Trying it with a test episode. |
Essentials $11.99/mo billed yearly Solo podcasters getting started. | Starter $15/mo Solo creators posting a few shorts a week. | ProOur pick $29/mo, or $24/mo billed yearly A business running a regular podcast or interview series. | |
ProOur pick $23.99/mo billed yearly Creators publishing weekly. | ProOur pick $29/mo Anyone posting daily or running a team. | Grow $39/mo, or $34/mo billed yearly Teams recording several shows or long interviews. | |
Teams $49.99 per creator/mo billed yearly Small teams producing a lot. | Business Custom Agencies and media companies at volume. | Webinar $99/mo, or $79/mo billed yearly Businesses that run webinars and live events. | |
Business Custom Larger organisations. | Business Custom Larger teams with several producers. | ||
| Which plan to pick | Pro suits most weekly podcasts, because Essentials' 4 recording hours a month runs out fast with guests. Yearly billing saves about 40% on the monthly price. | Free is enough to see if the clips are any good. Starter removes the watermark, but Pro is the plan most people end up on: it adds the scheduler, all 9 posting platforms, extra brand templates, 16:9 and 1:1 reframing and export to Premiere. Business only makes sense for agencies or media teams. | Pro on yearly billing covers most company podcasts. Move to Grow only if you record more than about five hours a month, and to Webinar only if you host live events. |
Key features
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | Async | OpusClip | Riverside |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, Async, OpusClip or Riverside?
They tie on our overall rating (Async 4.2/5, OpusClip 4.3/5 and Riverside 4.3/5). Async is best for recording remote podcast interviews and editing episodes by editing the transcript. OpusClip is best for turning podcasts into shorts and editing talking-head videos. Riverside is best for company podcasts with remote guests and recording client or customer interviews.
Which is cheaper, Async, OpusClip or Riverside?
Async: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $0. OpusClip: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $15/mo. Riverside: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $29/mo.
How we compare
Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.
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