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Ava: What It Does and What You Need

Checked November 10, 2026. Next full check February 2027.

Email to a family member

Captions group talk and shows who is speaking.

At a glance

MakerTranscense, Inc.
GroupLive captions
Works oniPhone, iPad, Android
CostNo-cost tier and paid plans. The App Store says the free plan gives basic captions in sessions up to 40 minutes. The Community plan is listed at $14.99 a month or $119.99 a year.
Good forPeople who join group talks or meetings and need to see who is speaking.

What it does

  • Writes live captions from your phone's microphone.
  • Colors the text by speaker in group talk.
  • Lets you add custom words and fix words.
  • Reads your typed text aloud.
  • Saves transcripts.
  • Translates into 16 languages on the Community plan.

What you need

  • An iPhone or iPad with iOS 18.6 or later, or an Android phone.

Good to know

  • Workplace and school plans, named Ava Pro and Ava Enterprise, are sold apart from the personal plans.
  • Prices come from the App Store listing on the checked date. They can change.

This guide is general information. It does not diagnose hearing loss and it does not replace a hearing evaluation. An app cannot tell you why you hear less. An audiologist can.

More in live captions

  • Google Live Transcribe

    Google LLC

    Turns speech around you into text on an Android phone.

    No costAndroid

  • Live Transcribe (Mighty Fine Apps)

    Mighty Fine Apps LLC

    An iPhone app that writes speech as text, with several caption modes.

    No cost to download, paid optionsiPhone, iPad

  • NALscribe

    National Acoustic Laboratories

    A live captioning app from a hearing research laboratory.

    No costiPhone, iPad

  • Live Captions (iPhone)

    Apple

    Captions audio on your iPhone and talk around you.

    Built iniPhone, iPad

Where Ava fits

Compare Ava with another app

Read more on our site

Questions to bring to your visit

Write these on your phone or print this page. Bring them to your hearing evaluation.

  • Which captions can I read at a glance in a group?
  • Can my hearing aids stream sound while I read captions?
  • Which places near me have a loop system or Auracast?

Sources

We read these pages on November 10, 2026. Prices and phone requirements change, so check the listing before you install.

Need help with this app?

Using captions all day? Your hearing may need a closer look. Call 650-342-9449.

California Hearing Center has offices in San Mateo and San Carlos. One phone number reaches both: 650-342-9449.

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