{"uid":"cap_T73c0EEeqpSxV54nlgaF0","slug":"text-to-speech-lite-kokoro-82m-fb4ed152","name":"Text-to-Speech Lite (Kokoro-82M)","description":"Convert text to speech with Kokoro-82M, ten times cheaper than /api/tts. Returns base64-encoded mp3 or pcm. The same request shape and the same ten OpenAI voice names as /api/tts, mapped to Kokoro's own voices; the voice is synthetic-sounding where the OpenAI tiers are not, which is the whole trade. Use this for high-volume narration, notifications and agent speech where the cost per call matters more than the timbre; use /api/tts or /api/tts-hd when it does not.","url":"https://agent402.tools/api/tts-lite","method":"POST","headers":{},"bodySchema":{"type":"object","properties":{"text":{"type":"string","description":"Text to convert to speech (max 2000 chars)"},"voice":{"type":"string","description":"Voice: alloy, ash, ballad, coral, echo, fable, nova, onyx, sage, shimmer (default: alloy) - mapped to the nearest Kokoro voice, which is named back in the response"},"format":{"type":"string","description":"Audio format: mp3 or pcm (default: mp3). The other formats are on /api/tts"}}},"responseSchema":{"type":"json","example":{"audio":"<base64-encoded audio>","chars":20,"model":"hexgrad/kokoro-82m","voice":"af_alloy","format":"mp3","provider":"openrouter"}},"example":null,"exampleRequest":null,"tags":["x402"],"displayCostAmount":"0.005","displayCostAsset":"USDC","priceDynamic":false,"priceHint":null,"priceStatus":"priced","priceSource":"probe","requiresHandshake":false,"reviewCount":0,"rating":{"score":"0.00","successRate":"0.00","reviews":0,"stars":null,"state":"unrated"},"availabilityStatus":"unknown","priceObserved":null,"sessionDeposit":null,"pricing":{"kind":"static","summary":"$0.005/call","primary":{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.005","per":"call","confidence":"exact"},"accepted":[{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.005","per":"call","confidence":"exact"}]},"paymentMethods":[{"uid":"pm_EhUWeOhPPi24QiNENgcuK","protocol":"x402","methodType":"crypto","chain":"base","mode":"charge","costAmount":"0.005","costPer":"request","priority":0,"asset":"0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913","unit":"request","depositMicros":null,"planRef":null}],"brandName":null,"brandSlug":null,"brandBaseUrl":null,"brandDocsUrl":null,"whatItDoes":"Converts text to speech using the Kokoro-82M model at a low cost, returning base64-encoded MP3 or PCM audio","exampleAgentPrompt":"Convert this 200-character notification message to speech using the nova voice and return it as an MP3: 'Your order has shipped and will arrive by Friday. Thank you for shopping with us!'","exampleUseCases":[{"title":"High-volume agent notification audio","prompt":"I need to generate spoken audio for thousands of short notification messages cheaply — use the alloy voice and return MP3s. Here's the first one: 'Your appointment is confirmed for 3pm tomorrow.'"},{"title":"Automated podcast narration","prompt":"Turn this 1800-character article summary into a narrated MP3 using the shimmer voice so I can add it to my podcast feed: 'Scientists have discovered a new species of deep-sea fish…'"},{"title":"In-app voice alert synthesis","prompt":"Generate a PCM audio clip of this alert message using the echo voice for my app's audio playback system: 'Warning: battery level is critically low, please charge your device now.'"}],"resultDescription":"A JSON object containing: base64-encoded audio data (MP3 or PCM), the character count of the input, the model used (hexgrad/kokoro-82m), the actual Kokoro voice name used, the audio format, and the provider (openrouter).","failureModes":["Text exceeds 2000 character limit — request rejected","Invalid voice name supplied — may default or error","Unsupported audio format requested — only mp3 and pcm supported on this endpoint","Payment not provided or insufficient (x402 protocol) — 402 response","OpenRouter upstream unavailability — 502 or timeout"],"whenToPreferThis":"Choose this endpoint when cost per call is the primary concern and you can tolerate a more synthetic-sounding voice. It is ten times cheaper than /api/tts and is best for high-volume use cases such as bulk narration, agent speech, or notification audio where premium voice timbre is not required. Use /api/tts or /api/tts-hd instead when voice naturalness matters more than cost.","instructions":null,"reviewSummary":null,"reviewSummaryHighlights":null,"reviewSummaryConcerns":null,"reviewSummaryGeneratedAt":null,"activationCount":0,"lastUsedAt":null,"lastSuccessfullyRanAt":null,"lastHealthCheckAt":"2026-09-14T17:51:12.200Z","isFirstParty":false}