Side-by-side comparison · Video & Audio
ElevenLabs vs Grok Imagine 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: Anyone who needs narration, voiceovers or spoken audio without hiring voice talent or a studio.
Pick it if: X users and social creators who already pay for Grok and want quick images and short clips.
Pick it if: Businesses running a podcast, interview series or webinar who want guests to sound and look professional without a studio.
Overview
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | Lifelike AI voiceovers, dubbing and audiobooks from text, in thousands of voices. | Grok's image and video maker: turn a prompt or photo into a short clip with sound. | Records podcasts and video interviews remotely in studio quality, with AI editing. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Paid | Freemium |
| Starting price | $6/mo | $8/mo | $29/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | No | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | Yes | Yes | No |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.6Winner | 3.9 | 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 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 5.0 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.5 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | No | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop app | – | No | No |
| Browser extension | Yes | No | No |
| API access | Yes | Yes | – |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | No | Yes |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | No | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | No | Yes | – |
| Makes images | No | Yes | No |
| Makes video | No | Yes | No |
| Writes code | No | No | No |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | No | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | – | – |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 11/ 17 | 8/ 17 | 8/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Trying voices and personal projects. | Plus $8/mo Trying Imagine alongside X Premium. | Free Free Trying it with a test episode. |
Starter $6/mo, or $5/mo billed yearly Occasional voiceovers you'll publish. | PremiumOur pick $30/mo People making images and clips most weeks. | ProOur pick $29/mo, or $24/mo billed yearly A business running a regular podcast or interview series. | |
CreatorOur pick $22/mo, or $18/mo billed yearly Anyone producing audio every week. | Super $100/mo Heavy video users. | Grow $39/mo, or $34/mo billed yearly Teams recording several shows or long interviews. | |
Pro $99/mo, or $83/mo billed yearly High volume and API work. | Ultra $200/mo Power users generating all day. | Webinar $99/mo, or $79/mo billed yearly Businesses that run webinars and live events. | |
Scale $299/mo, or $249/mo billed yearly Small teams and products built on voice. | Business Custom Larger teams with several producers. | ||
Enterprise Custom Large or regulated organisations. | |||
| Which plan to pick | Starter at $6 is enough for occasional voiceovers with a commercial licence. Most creators land on Creator at $22 for the professional voice clone and more minutes. Pro and Scale are for teams or anyone building products on the API. | If you already pay for Grok Premium, use what you have. Don't buy Grok just for Imagine. A dedicated video tool like Kling or Hailuo gives better clips for the money. | 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 | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | ElevenLabs | Grok Imagine | Riverside |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, ElevenLabs, Grok Imagine or Riverside?
ElevenLabs scores highest overall in our ratings (ElevenLabs 4.6/5, Grok Imagine 3.9/5 and Riverside 4.3/5). ElevenLabs is best for video voiceovers and cloning your own voice. Grok Imagine is best for animating a photo for a social post and quick memes and reaction clips. Riverside is best for company podcasts with remote guests and recording client or customer interviews.
Which is cheaper, ElevenLabs, Grok Imagine or Riverside?
ElevenLabs: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $6/mo. Grok Imagine: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $8/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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