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Dictation apps for Mac

Until now you opened five pricing pages in five tabs to find out which dictation app keeps your voice on your Mac and what it costs. You don’t have to do that anymore. We have put eight of them into one table, and every line on another app links the page it comes from and the day we checked it.

Updated

Try 30 days free

Side by side

On-device or cloudOfflinePlatformsPrice
shepetalOn your Mac, and your voice stays there.Works offline.You go online once, to download speech recognition.Mac, with macOS 14 or later.$23.99 once. Yours forever.$0.99 a month.You can try it free for 30 days.
Wispr FlowIn the cloud. Its privacy page: “Transcription always happens in the cloud.” wisprflow.aias of No offline transcription. Its privacy page says each dictation is sent to its servers and transcribed there. wisprflow.aias of Dictation on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. wisprflow.aias of Free: $0/mo, with 2,000 words a week on desktop. Pro: $15/user/mo billed monthly, or $12/user/mo billed annually. Growth and Enterprise plans for teams. wisprflow.aias of
SuperwhisperOn your device or in the cloud, your choice. Its docs say that with on-device processing, nothing you say leaves your device. superwhisper.comas of Yes. Its docs say on-device transcription works without an internet connection, and other processing of your text needs the internet. superwhisper.comas of macOS, Windows, iOS and Android. superwhisper.comas of Free plan. Pro: $8.49/month, $84.99/year or $249.99 once. superwhisper.comas of
MacWhisperOn your Mac, or in the cloud with services you connect. macwhisper.comas of Yes. Its site: “Process sensitive content locally without data ever leaving your Mac.” macwhisper.comas of Mac. macwhisper.comas of Free: €0 / month. Pro: €64 / license, paid once, with lifetime updates. macwhisper.comas of
Apple DictationOn your Mac or on Apple’s servers. Its privacy page says Keyboard Settings show whether dictation is processed on your device; otherwise, Apple’s servers process it. apple.comsupport.apple.comas of On a Mac with Apple silicon, for supported languages, says Apple’s guide for macOS Sonoma 14. support.apple.comas of Part of macOS and iOS. support.apple.comsupport.apple.comas of Part of macOS, turned on in System Settings. support.apple.comas of
Aqua VoiceIn the cloud. Its Mac page says Aqua processes audio in the cloud. aquavoice.comas of No. Its Mac page: “there is no offline mode.” aquavoice.comas of Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. aquavoice.comas of Free: 1,000 free words. Pro: $8 / month billed annually, or $10 / month month-to-month. Max and Business plans too. aquavoice.comas of
WillowIn the cloud. Its privacy policy: “Willow uses cloud infrastructure to provide fast and accurate voice dictation.” willowvoice.comas of Yes, in its offline mode. Its site: “Dictate without an internet connection, powered entirely by your device.” willowvoice.comas of Mac, Windows and iPhone, with Android marked “Coming soon”. willowvoice.comwillowvoice.comas of Free plan. Pro: $15 user/mo, or $12 user/mo with annual billing (“Save 20%”). Business and Enterprise plans for teams. willowvoice.comas of
VoiceInkOn your Mac. Its site: “Your voice data never leaves your Mac.” Its Cloud Enhancement, for the transcribed text, is optional. tryvoiceink.comas of Not on its pages.Mac with Apple Silicon and macOS 14.4 or later, and an iOS version. tryvoiceink.comtryvoiceink.comas of Solo: $25, 1 macOS device. Personal: $39, 2 macOS devices. Extended: $49, 3 macOS devices. One-time purchase, lifetime access. tryvoiceink.comas of

Every line on another app here comes from its own pages, and each one links the page and the day we checked it. shepetal is independent of these apps and of the companies that make them.

Start simple

Pick the one thing that matters most to you and read that column first, then install the app that fits and use it for a week in the apps you write in every day, because that is where you find out if it works for you.

On your Mac

shepetal processes every dictation on your Mac and your voice stays there. It goes online once, to download speech recognition, and after that you can dictate on a plane or on a train with the wifi switched off.

MacWhisper and VoiceInk also process your voice on your Mac, Superwhisper lets you choose between your device and the cloud, and Wispr Flow, Aqua Voice and Willow transcribe in the cloud. tryvoiceink.commacwhisper.comsuperwhisper.comwisprflow.aiaquavoice.comwillowvoice.comas of

Which to pick

Pick Wispr Flow if

  • You want the same app on Windows, iOS and Android, and a free plan you can keep using.

Pick Superwhisper if

  • You want to choose between processing on your device and in the cloud.

Pick MacWhisper if

  • You also want to transcribe recordings you already have. macwhisper.comas of

Pick Apple Dictation if

  • You want to use what is already part of macOS.

Pick Aqua Voice if

  • You want one subscription for your Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. aquavoice.comas of

Pick Willow if

  • You dictate on Mac, Windows and iPhone and want the same app on all three.

Pick VoiceInk if

  • You have a Mac with Apple Silicon and want to pay once for two or three of them.

Pick shepetal if

  • You want every dictation processed on your Mac, which is the only way shepetal works.
  • You want to pay once and keep it.$23.99 once. Yours forever.
  • You want to pay by the month.$0.99 a month.

Read next

Sources

  • Wispr Flow, On-device or cloud: In the cloud. Its privacy page: “Transcription always happens in the cloud.” https://wisprflow.ai/privacy, checked .
  • Wispr Flow, Offline: No offline transcription. Its privacy page says each dictation is sent to its servers and transcribed there. https://wisprflow.ai/privacy, checked .
  • Wispr Flow, Platforms: Dictation on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. https://wisprflow.ai/pricing, checked .
  • Wispr Flow, Price: Free: $0/mo, with 2,000 words a week on desktop. Pro: $15/user/mo billed monthly, or $12/user/mo billed annually. Growth and Enterprise plans for teams. https://wisprflow.ai/pricing, checked .
  • MacWhisper, On-device or cloud: On your Mac, or in the cloud with services you connect. https://www.macwhisper.com, checked .
  • MacWhisper, Offline: Yes. Its site: “Process sensitive content locally without data ever leaving your Mac.” https://www.macwhisper.com, checked .
  • MacWhisper, Platforms: Mac. https://www.macwhisper.com, checked .
  • MacWhisper, Price: Free: €0 / month. Pro: €64 / license, paid once, with lifetime updates. https://www.macwhisper.com, checked .
  • Aqua Voice, On-device or cloud: In the cloud. Its Mac page says Aqua processes audio in the cloud. https://aquavoice.com/mac, checked .
  • Aqua Voice, Offline: No. Its Mac page: “there is no offline mode.” https://aquavoice.com/mac, checked .
  • Aqua Voice, Platforms: Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. https://aquavoice.com/pricing, checked .
  • Aqua Voice, Price: Free: 1,000 free words. Pro: $8 / month billed annually, or $10 / month month-to-month. Max and Business plans too. https://aquavoice.com/pricing, checked .
  • Willow, On-device or cloud: In the cloud. Its privacy policy: “Willow uses cloud infrastructure to provide fast and accurate voice dictation.” https://willowvoice.com/privacy-policy, checked .
  • Willow, Offline: Yes, in its offline mode. Its site: “Dictate without an internet connection, powered entirely by your device.” https://willowvoice.com, checked .
  • Willow, Platforms: Mac, Windows and iPhone, with Android marked “Coming soon”. https://willowvoice.com, https://willowvoice.com/pricing, checked .
  • Willow, Price: Free plan. Pro: $15 user/mo, or $12 user/mo with annual billing (“Save 20%”). Business and Enterprise plans for teams. https://willowvoice.com/pricing, checked .
  • VoiceInk, On-device or cloud: On your Mac. Its site: “Your voice data never leaves your Mac.” Its Cloud Enhancement, for the transcribed text, is optional. https://tryvoiceink.com, checked .
  • VoiceInk, Platforms: Mac with Apple Silicon and macOS 14.4 or later, and an iOS version. https://tryvoiceink.com/pricing, https://tryvoiceink.com, checked .
  • VoiceInk, Price: Solo: $25, 1 macOS device. Personal: $39, 2 macOS devices. Extended: $49, 3 macOS devices. One-time purchase, lifetime access. https://tryvoiceink.com/pricing, checked .

30 days free

$23.99

once. Yours forever.

$0.99

a month.

Try 30 days free

If you have more questions, the FAQ and the Privacy Policy answer them.