Autistic individuals often show differential sensory perception, including hypo- or hypersensitivities to sound. Previous research also suggests that autistic individuals often have difficulty processing intentional and affective cues in speech acoustics. However, general speech processing difficulties remain underexplored. We investigated self-reported auditory perception using the Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Questionnaire among autistic (self-identifying (n = 18) and clinically diagnosed (n = 45)) and non-autistic adults (N = 66). The study was conducted in the Netherlands, but the questionnaire and call for participation were in English and open to anyone regardless of country of residence. Both clinically diagnosed and self-identifying individuals with autism reported significantly lower scores on the Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Questionnaire score and on the Speech subscale compared with non-autistic individuals, indicating challenges in overall quality of auditory perception, speech comprehension. Clinically diagnosed individuals also showed lower scores on the quality and spatial subscales compared with non-autistic individuals. Post hoc analysis further suggested that speech hearing is particularly challenging for many autistic individuals. In addition, our finding that self-identifying and clinically diagnosed autistic individuals show similar patterns of hearing difficulties emphasizes the need for more inclusive research practices that collect the experiences of all the individuals in the autistic community in the study of sensory perception in autism.