ObjectivesTo compare respiratory function, swallowing and voice quality of bilateral abductor vocal fold paralysis (BAVFP) patients undergoing laser and diathermy‐assisted posterior cordotomy.DesignProspective study.SettingTertiary academic hospital.ParticipantsThirty patients were included in the study (groups 1 and 2, 15 patients each). Mean age was 53 ± 14.27 years with a range of 31‐78 years (12 [40%] males, 18 [60%] females).Main outcome measuresSufficient airway, complications, FEV1, FEV1/FVC, peak expiratory flow rate (PEF), voice quality VAS, fundamental frequency, jitter, shimmer, NHR, amplitude perturbation quotient (APQ) and pitch perturbation quotient (PPQ) scores.ResultsA sufficient laryngeal airway was achieved in all patients. Six patients (20%) developed postoperative granulation tissue (2 in group 1 and 4 in group 2).There was a statistically significant improvement in FEV1, FEV1/FVC and PEF measurements at the postoperative sixth month compared to preoperative measurements in both of the groups (P < .05).Preoperative median voice quality VAS scores in groups 1 and 2 were 8 (IQR = 1) and 8 (IQR = 3), respectively. Postoperative sixth‐month voice quality VAS scores in groups 1 and 2 were 6 (IQR = 1) and 6 (IQR = 0), respectively. Postoperative VAS scores were significantly lower in both groups (P < .05).The postoperative changes in fundamental frequency, NHR, jitter, shimmer, APQ and PPQ were not statistically significant in both of the groups (P > .05).ConclusionsLaser and diathermy‐assisted posterior cordotomy are both minimally invasive, effective techniques with a long‐term sufficient laryngeal airway. Despite lower quality of voice VAS scores, objective acoustic outcomes were not significantly lower in both of the groups.