SaypadThe best dictation apps for Mac in 2026
Ten ways to dictate on a Mac, free and paid. The biggest difference between them is whether your speech stays on your Mac or goes to a server. After that it comes down to price and whether you want AI to clean up your text.
Disclosure: we make Saypad, so read its entry with that in mind. It's listed first, but it isn't the right pick for everyone, and we say where other apps do better. Prices and limits come from each product's own site and were checked on 4 November 2026. They change often, so confirm them before you buy.
Which one to pick
- Free, offline, no account: Saypad, or Spokenly if you also need Windows, Linux or iPhone.
- AI that removes filler words and tidies your text: Wispr Flow. Aqua Voice, Willow and Typeless are in the same category, and all four work through a server by default.
- Recordings and meetings: MacWhisper.
- Open source: VoiceInk.
- Local models now, with paid AI features later: Superwhisper.
- Nothing to install: Apple Dictation.
Quick comparison
| App | Free version | Where speech is processed | Paid option | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saypad | Everything, no word limit | On your Mac | None | Mac |
| Apple Dictation | Built into macOS | On your Mac where supported; Keyboard settings show it | – | Mac |
| Wispr Flow | Limited words per week | On Wispr's servers | $15/month or $12/month yearly | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android |
| Superwhisper | Unlimited with local Whisper models, up to 2 modes | On your Mac; cloud models on Pro | $8.49/month, $84.99/year or $249.99 once | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android |
| MacWhisper | File transcription and basic system-wide dictation | On your Mac with local models | Pro €64 once | Mac |
| VoiceInk | Open source, free if you build it yourself | On your Mac | From $25 once | Mac |
| Spokenly | Unlimited with local models, no account | On your Mac; cloud with your own keys or Pro | $29 once or $12/month yearly | Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone |
| Aqua Voice | 1,000 words | Cloud; offline varies, says Aqua | From $10/month yearly or $12 monthly | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android |
| Willow | Unlimited on a weaker model | Cloud; its security page mentions offline use | $15/month or $12/month yearly | Mac, Windows, iPhone |
| Typeless | Limited words per week | On Typeless's cloud servers | $30/month or $12/month yearly | Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android |
1. Saypad: free and local
Hold fn in any app, talk and let go. The text is typed where your cursor is. Whisper runs on your Mac, every dictation is saved with its audio, and after pasting Saypad checks that the text actually landed. There's no account, word limit or paid plan.
It types what you said and doesn't rewrite it with AI. It needs an Apple Silicon Mac with macOS 15 or later and a 187 MB download, and there's no Windows or phone version.
2. Apple Dictation: already on your Mac
There's nothing to install. Apple says you can dictate text of any length, and that it stops after 30 seconds without speech. On macOS 27, Apple Intelligence improves spelling, punctuation and capitalization on the device, in English, on M3 or later Macs with at least 12 GB of memory. In our one-sentence comparison, Apple's on-device engine stumbled on technical words, and it keeps no history of what you dictated.
3. Wispr Flow: AI cleanup on every platform
Flow removes “um” and “uh”, formats spoken lists, and handles corrections like “at 2… actually 3”. It also adjusts your tone to the app you're writing in, though that feature has limits on language and platform. Audio goes to Wispr's servers, and Wispr says it's deleted once transcribed unless you turn on cloud storage. Pro adds unlimited dictation. Apple Dictation vs Wispr Flow goes into more detail.
4. Superwhisper: local first, with AI on Pro
The free plan gives you unlimited dictation with local Whisper models, custom vocabulary, text replacements and up to two modes. Cloud models, AI modes and file transcription need Pro. One Pro license covers your Macs, Windows PCs and phones, and there's a lifetime option. See Saypad compared with Superwhisper.
5. MacWhisper: built for recordings
MacWhisper is mainly for files: lectures, interviews, podcasts and videos, using local models. Pro adds meeting recording, speaker recognition, batch transcription, better dictation and AI prompts, for a single €64 payment with lifetime updates. If you need dictation only, a dedicated app may suit you better. See Saypad compared with MacWhisper.
6. VoiceInk: open source
VoiceInk runs local models on Apple Silicon Macs, and its code is under GPL-3.0, so you can read it and build it for free. The ready-made app costs $25 for one Mac, $39 for two or $49 for three, paid once. Those prices were marked as a sale when we checked.
7. Spokenly: free local models on more platforms
This is the closest app to Saypad on price. On-device Whisper and Parakeet models are free with no word cap, and you don't need an account. Unlike Saypad, it also runs on Windows, Linux and iPhone, and it can use cloud models with your own API keys. Local+ ($29 once) adds extras, and Pro adds managed cloud models and AI cleanup.
8. Aqua Voice: cloud dictation for several devices
Aqua pastes text at your cursor and formats it for the app you're in. The free plan is 1,000 words with no card, which is enough to try it but not to keep using it. Pro has unlimited words, and Max ($19/month yearly or $24 monthly) adds realtime mode and voice commands. See Saypad compared with Aqua Voice.
9. Willow: AI writing help with a free tier
Willow's free plan has unlimited dictation on what Willow itself calls a weaker model, plus 20 uses a week of its AI writing tool, Scribe. Pro moves you to its best model with unlimited Scribe. Willow runs on cloud infrastructure in the US and says it stores no audio after transcription. Android is listed as coming soon. See Saypad compared with Willow.
10. Typeless: turns rough speech into clean writing
Typeless focuses on turning messy speech into finished text, and it also translates. It covers the most platforms in this list, including Linux and Android. Audio is processed on its cloud servers, and its privacy policy says that audio is discarded straight away and not stored. The free plan limits words each week, and Pro is much cheaper billed yearly ($12/month) than monthly ($30).
Only want free options? See the best free dictation apps for Mac.
Deciding between two? See Superwhisper vs Wispr Flow or Wispr Flow pricing. Coming from Dragon? See what to use now Dragon for Mac is gone.
Other head-to-heads: Typeless vs Wispr Flow, Aqua Voice vs Wispr Flow, Willow vs Wispr Flow and MacWhisper vs Superwhisper.
Questions
What's the best dictation app for Mac?
It depends on what you need. For free offline dictation with no account, try Saypad (we make it) or Spokenly. For AI cleanup of filler words and grammar, try Wispr Flow. For transcribing recordings and meetings, MacWhisper is built for that. If you only dictate short messages, start with Apple Dictation, which is already on your Mac.
Which Mac dictation apps work offline?
Saypad, Superwhisper with local models, MacWhisper, VoiceInk and Spokenly with local models all run on your Mac. Apple Dictation can too, and Keyboard settings tell you whether your dictation is processed on the device. Wispr Flow and Typeless use their own servers. Aqua Voice says offline availability varies by platform and version, and Willow's security page mentions offline use, so check with them if it matters to you.
Can I dictate on a Mac without paying?
Yes. Saypad, Apple Dictation, Superwhisper's free plan and Spokenly's free plan have no word limit. Willow's free plan is unlimited too, but on what Willow calls a weaker model. Wispr Flow and Typeless limit free words per week, and Aqua Voice gives you 1,000 free words.
Which ones need an account?
Saypad and Spokenly's free version don't. Typeless starts with creating an account, and when we compared setup in October 2026, Wispr Flow, Aqua Voice and Willow also asked you to sign in before the first dictation.
Did you test accuracy across all ten?
No. This page compares prices, limits, platforms and where speech is processed, using each vendor's own pages. We only ran our own tests on some of them, such as Saypad against Apple Dictation.
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