Kokoro
Tiny 82M TTS with astonishing quality
Speech (STT / TTS)Text-to-speech (model)Apache-2.0Runs locallyPythonBeginner
🐳 Docker pulls
📦 PyPI downloads / month
📦 npm downloads / month
🚀 Latest release ·
What is Kokoro?
Kokoro is an 82-million-parameter TTS model that rivals far larger systems: near-instant synthesis, multiple voices and languages, deployable anywhere from servers to browsers.
Why people choose Kokoro
- Remarkable quality at only 82M parameters
- Real-time synthesis even on CPU
- Permissive Apache license for products
Kokoro at a glance
| Category | Speech (STT / TTS) |
| Type | Text-to-speech (model) |
| License | Apache-2.0 |
| Runs locally | Yes |
| Built with | Python |
| Skill level | Beginner |
| Best for | fast, lightweight production TTS |
Latest releases
Open-source alternatives to Kokoro
Other open-source speech (stt / tts) tools worth comparing:
WhisperOpenAI's open speech-to-text baseline
faster-whisperWhisper, much faster and lighter
WhisperXWhisper plus word timestamps and diarization
PiperFast, local neural text-to-speech
Coqui TTSDeep-learning TTS with voice cloning
BarkText-to-audio with voices and effects
F5-TTSZero-shot voice cloning that actually convinces
whisper.cppWhisper in pure C/C++, runs anywhere
OpenVoiceClone a voice and control its emotion
StyleTTS 2Human-level speech synthesis
pyannote.audioKnow who spoke when
Silero VADDetect speech in audio, instantlyKokoro head-to-head
Kokoro vs WhisperKokoro vs faster-whisperKokoro vs WhisperXKokoro vs PiperKokoro vs Coqui TTSKokoro vs BarkKokoro vs F5-TTSKokoro vs whisper.cppKokoro vs OpenVoiceKokoro vs StyleTTS 2Kokoro vs pyannote.audioKokoro vs Silero VAD
FAQ
Is Kokoro free?
Kokoro is free and open-source (Apache-2.0 license), so you can use, self-host and modify it at no cost.
Can I run Kokoro locally?
Yes. Kokoro is designed to run on your own machine or server, keeping your data private.
What is the best alternative to Kokoro?
Popular open-source alternatives include Whisper, faster-whisper, WhisperX. See the comparisons above to choose.
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