The download button of Skype is grey. Why?
Because the owner of the recording switched the downloads off, or because the plan of the account does not include them. The permission is the one of Skype.
Skype recording
Skype call recording to text
Skype call recording to text: upload the recording of the Skype call and get the text of it with a timecode on every segment, the speakers on request, and TXT, SRT, VTT, CSV or DOCX out. Free $0, 3 files a day.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps
In short
Here is the whole path: take the recording of the Skype call from Skype, send the file to the widget on this page, and the text comes back one segment per line. The free plan is $0 and gives 3 files a day.
How to get the file and turn it into text
- 1
Open the export page
The export portal of Skype is opened and the request of a copy of the history is made there.
- 2
Wait for the link
The status of the export is on the same page, under Available Exports; the link to the files appears there when they are ready.
- 3
Take the file before the deadline
The export can be requested until June 15, 2026, and the deletion of the data starts right after the request.
- 4
Read the first lines before you share them
The engine keeps the time of every segment, so a correction in the editor does not move anything else. Read the beginning and the names before the file goes out.
- 5
Send the file to the engine
Drop the file on the widget above, or pick it from the device. Set the language, switch the speaker split on when more than one person talks, and send.
What comes back from the engine
- TXT
One segment per line, the way a person wrote it down. It is the format to paste into a ticket, a chat or a document.
- TXT, CSV
The start and the end time of every segment, and the speakers named separately when you ask for it.
- SRT, VTT
SRT and VTT with the time of every line, so the recording can carry its own subtitles.
- Markdown, DOCX
The transcript is edited through the API and exported as Markdown for a wiki, or as DOCX for a review.
What Skype keeps, and what it gives
| What | What the platform says |
|---|---|
| Where the file is | Skype was retired on May 5, 2025, so the recordings of the old calls stay in the history of Skype until it is exported or deleted. |
| What the file is | The recording of Skype for Business is published by the Recording Manager, and it keeps the audio, the video, the IMs and the presented content that you leave in it. |
| What can go wrong | A copy of the history can be asked for in the export portal until June 15, 2026, but after April 1, 2026 it may not be the full history. |
| What usually fails | The deletion of the data starts as soon as the request is made, and it cannot be undone. |
| What to watch out for | A large history can take up to 30 days to export, and the link to the files appears only when they are ready. |
| Length of one file | up to 30 minutes on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro |
| Free plan | $0: 3 files a day, up to 30 minutes per file, no card |
| Pro plan | $10 a month when you pay yearly ($120 a year), or $20 a month |
The case
What the recording does not give you
A Skype file is already on your disk, and it already holds the whole meeting. What it does not hold is a text you can search, quote or hand over. A recording cannot be skimmed, and a recording that is played again from the start is a recording nobody has. Our own engine reads the file once, keeps the time of every sentence and hands the recording of the Skype call back as a document you can work with.
Tips
Split a long Skype recording into two files and not into one big one.
A file called meeting-2026-10-24 tells you nothing in November.
Set the language yourself when you know it, or leave it on automatic detection.
A meeting of four voices needs the speaker split, otherwise the names stay empty.
Questions about Skype files
Is there a free plan for a Skype file?
Yes: $0, 3 files a day, up to 30 minutes per file and no card. The paid plan is $10 a month when you pay yearly.
Can I send the Skype file from my phone?
Yes, the widget takes the file from the device it runs on. The steps above are written for a computer, but a downloaded file is a downloaded file.
Can the text of the Skype file be searched later?
Yes, it is a document and not a sound file. Every segment keeps its time, so you can search a word and quote it with the minute it was said.
Related pages
Zoom call to text
Zoom call to text: where Zoom keeps it, and what the engine does with it.
Google Meet recording to textGoogle Meet recording to text: where Google Meet keeps it, and what the engine does with it.
Microsoft Teams recording to textMicrosoft Teams recording to text: where Microsoft Teams keeps it, and what the engine does with it.
Transcribe any audio fileThe plain version of the service: a file in, a text with the times out.
Sources
- SMicrosoft support: Skype is retiring in May 2025 (read 2026-10-24)support.microsoft.com · checked
- SMicrosoft support: the Recording Manager of Skype, save and publish (read 2026-10-24)support.microsoft.com · checked
Reading: 4 minutesUpdated 
Transcribsi editorial team
Drop a recording — the text arrives in a minute
Speakers by name, a time on every line, export to TXT, SRT, VTT, CSV and Markdown.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps