sayit vs ELSA Speak
- Checked 2026-09
- No sponsorship — see sources below
Who each one is actually for
For scoring your own sentences, books, or exam answers — a per-phoneme diagnosis of whatever you choose to read, including IELTS/TOEFL practice.
For a structured, gamified curriculum — 8,000+ fixed lessons that teach every phoneme in a set sequence, with streaks and daily goals.
Want the longer read? Read the full sayit vs ELSA Speak breakdown.
Side by side
| sayit | ELSA Speak | |
|---|---|---|
| What's measured | Per-phoneme clarity on any text you read, scored against target IPA | Per-phoneme percentage scores inside fixed lesson content |
| Feedback depth | Target IPA vs. your sound, per word, plus a concrete articulation fix | A percentage score per phoneme/word, plus CEFR level prediction |
| Accent policy | Accent-tolerant — flags only contrasts that change meaning, not regional variation | Scores toward a fixed reference accent inside its lesson content |
| Exam prep | IELTS + TOEFL timed practice with a band estimate (2 of 4 criteria) | IELTS/TOEFL-themed lesson content, not timed mock sections |
| Platforms | Web (Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox), Chrome/Edge extension, iOS (waitlist) | iOS, Android, web (placement assessment only) |
| Price | Free; Pro $9/mo, Max $13.50/mo | Free; Pro from ~$13.33/mo billed annually |
| Free tier | 1 guest take, then a free account with 30 min/mo — no card | Yes — limited daily lessons |
| Privacy | Processed for feedback only; not sold or shared; raw audio not kept long-term | Standard cloud processing (no public on-premise option found) |
| Offline / on-prem | No — cloud-processed, needs a connection | No public on-premise option found |
Where each one actually wins
Where sayit is better
- You can practise your own material — a book, an email, an exam answer — instead of only ELSA's fixed lesson sentences.
- The free tier needs no card and shows the full result, not a blurred preview.
- IELTS/TOEFL timed practice with a band estimate is built in; ELSA's exam content is lesson-flavored, not a timed mock section.
- It's accent-tolerant by design — a regional accent isn't scored as an error, only contrasts that actually confuse a listener.
Where ELSA Speak is better
- 8,000+ structured lessons is far more content than sayit's four practice modes if you want a full course to work through.
- Gamification (streaks, daily goals, levels) is core to the product; sayit has none of that.
- A CEFR level prediction gives a broader placement than sayit's per-take pronunciation/fluency verdict.
- It's been public longer and has a larger community and review base to judge it by.
Straight answers
Can I use my own sentences in ELSA Speak?
Not in the way sayit works — ELSA's lessons use its own fixed content. sayit scores whatever you choose to read: a book passage, an email, an exam prompt.
Does ELSA Speak give an IELTS or TOEFL band?
It offers IELTS/TOEFL-themed lesson content and a CEFR prediction, not a timed mock section with a band estimate the way sayit's exam mode does.
Is ELSA Speak's free tier good enough to judge it by?
It gives you limited daily lessons, which is enough to see the phoneme-scoring mechanic, though the full 8,000+ library sits behind Pro.
Where the facts about the other side came from
- elsaspeak.com — pricing & platforms — checked 2026-09
- SoftwareFinder — ELSA Speak pricing (third-party; saasworthy.com 403'd this session) — checked 2026-09
Facts about sayit come from its own pricing, features and product pages, not a third party. Every ELSA Speak fact above was checked 2026-09; prices and features change, so treat this as a snapshot, not a guarantee.
See what sayit actually shows you
Record one sentence — free, no card — and see the per-phoneme verdict this whole comparison is about.