Voiceover, dubbing or lip-synced dubbing: what is the difference?

As streaming platforms battle for global dominance, dubbing is critical for engaging the global audiences that decide the fate of their shows. For audiences, it’s how they can seamlessly access stories in their language. For content owners, it’s the gateway to new markets and revenue streams. But not all dubbing is the same. The cinematic precision of lip-sync dubbing is not right for every content type; the straightforward practicality of voiceovers works perfectly for news, and lectoring is often used in specific regions for specific content types. Each dubbing type plays a distinct role in shaping audience experiences and ultimately dictates the global success of the content in question.

Let’s break down the main dubbing styles—how they work, who’s using them, and what they mean for content owners looking to expand their reach.

Lip-sync dubbing: where precision meets immersion

Lip-sync dubbing is the crème de la crème of localization. It’s what makes a Spanish-language telenovela feel just as dramatic in English or a French action film lose none of its intensity in Hindi. By carefully aligning the dubbed dialogue with the actors’ lip movements, this method delivers an almost seamless experience—giving the impression that the actors are speaking your language all along. Because lip-sync is typically a time-consuming and expensive dubbing method, it’s usually reserved for dramatic content like feature films.

How it’s done

Traditionally, lip-sync dubbing is a painstaking process:

1. Script adaptation: Scripts are not just translated—professional writers adapt them to match the timing, meaning, and rhythm of the original dialogue.

2. Perfect translation: Once the script has been adapted, it is translated by professional translators into the target language 

3. Casting perfection: Voice actors are selected for their ability to capture the tone, emotion, and cadence of the on-screen characters.

4. Fine-tuning: The dubbing process requires editors and engineers to align the voiceover precisely with the visuals, often frame by frame.

Lip-synced dubbing is still largely produced using the traditional dubbing process with voice actors and sound engineers, however, a few AI dubbing companies do offer the service. At Papercup, our focus is on creating the most natural-sounding AI voices on the market. We know that if the foundations of good dubbing—perfect translations and pacing—aren’t there, lip-syncing will do nothing to improve the audience experience. 

However, some AI dubbing companies offer lip sync technology and do it well. Deepdub is making waves by offering faster and more cost-effective solutions for feature films. Companies like Rask AI and Synthesia offer lip sync with decent dubbing, perfect for corporate, marketing, sales, and educational videos. Still, they aren’t capable of delivering the quality required for dramatic, high-stakes content like feature films. Human oversight, as opposed to fully automated solutions, remains crucial to preserve the emotional authenticity of these content types throughout the localization process.

What is lip-synced dubbing used for?

• Dramas and scripted series
• Blockbuster feature films
• High-end animated productions

Why it works

For content owners, it opens doors to global markets where subtitles lack engagement. For audiences, it means watching without the distraction of mismatched audio or text—a game-changer for immersion.

The catch

Lip-sync dubbing is expensive and time-consuming and may not always be feasible for content owners balancing tight budgets and fast turnarounds.

Voiceover dubbing: the happy medium of localization

Instead of syncing every word to actors’ lips, voiceover dubbing overlays a translated voice track on top of the original audio. This method drives greater audience engagement than subtitles but doesn’t demand the same time and cash investment as lip-synced dubbing. At Papercup, this is our speciality. This approach allows our clients to drive audience engagement via perfectly translated dubs that reflect the intention and tone of the original content.

Styles of voiceover dubbing

• UN-style voiceover: You’ve probably heard this in political speeches or documentaries. The original speaker’s voice is faintly audible for a few seconds, then fades out as the voiceover takes over.

• Straight voiceover: Think educational videos or training modules that replace the original audio entirely.

How it’s done (and how AI is changing it)

Before AI dubbing blasted onto the scene, voiceover dubbing required much the same input as lip-synced dubbing: adaptation, translation, recording and sound engineers to overlay the audio—the works. Now, AI tools offer high-quality voices faster and cheaper than old methods—especially for high-volume content like e-learning, corporate training, news or factual series. At Papercup, our machine learning does the heavy lifting—and near-instantly produces a translation, which is then narrated by AI voices—but human professional translators are still required to polish the final output for quality.

What it’s used for

• Documentaries and news reports
• Training and corporate content
• Factual series and reality 
• Corporate or explanatory video content
• Social media content 

The upside

For content owners, voiceover dubbing perfectly balances cost and efficiency. AI-enhanced workflows make scaling across languages more accessible, especially for low-budget projects.

The trade-off

While voiceover dubbing is more immersive than subtitles, it’s less immersive than lip-synced dubs produced by voice actors. AI-dubbed voiceover with human oversight (known as human-in-the-loop)is ideal for content types like reality, lifestyle, news or documentary with the  informational content is key to the audience’s engagement. This sort of voiceover dubbing often falls short for narrative-driven stories where connection and emotion matter most.

Lectoring: a regional favorite

Lectoring is a mode of dubbing that is popular in certain parts of the world, like Poland or Russia. In this style, a single narrator reads the translated dialogue over the original audio without mimicking the tone or pacing of the actors. This dubbing method is functional, straightforward and delivers information that is crucial to audience understanding as opposed to prioritizing emotional connection or a seamless viewing experience in another language.

How it works

Lectoring skips the nuances of lip-sync and voiceover. A narrator records the translated dialogue in a single track, then layered onto the original audio.

AI can handle it

Lectoring hasn’t seen much innovation. The reason? Its limited global appeal. Most audiences outside of Eastern Europe prefer more immersive dubbing styles. While lectoring can certainly be handled by AI tools, it’s more cost-effective for companies to opt for voiceover dubbing, given that this method has use cases in a range global regions.

Where it’s popular

Lectoring dominates in Eastern Europe, particularly in Poland and Russia, where audiences have grown up with this minimalist approach to foreign content.

Why it works

For content owners, it’s cheap, fast, and culturally expected in certain regions. For viewers familiar with the style, it offers an unintrusive way to enjoy foreign content.

Dubbing is not one-size-fits-all

Dubbing is a strategic choice influenced by content type, audience expectations, and budget. Whether it’s the immersive precision of lip-sync dubbing, the flexible efficiency of voiceover, or the culturally specific lectoring style, each approach has its strengths (and occasional weaknesses).

As AI continues to transform localization, dubbing is becoming faster, smarter, and more scalable. The real challenge for content owners is deciding which approach delivers the right balance of quality, speed, and audience connection for their stories. And in a global marketplace where every second of attention counts, that decision has never been more critical.