Free dictation for Mac
Free dictation for Mac,
with no word limit.
Most AI dictation apps have a free plan, and the cloud ones come with a catch: a weekly word cap, a one-time allowance or a weaker model. Here is what each free plan actually gives you, and why a local app can be free without limits.
Written by the TypeAloud team. TypeAloud is a free, open-source dictation app for Mac; wherever this page mentions it, we are describing our own product.
What the free plans include
| Free plan | Where speech is transcribed | |
|---|---|---|
| TypeAloud | Everything, no limit | On your Mac |
| Wispr Flow | 2,000 words a week on desktop | Cloud |
| Typeless | A weekly word limit | Cloud |
| Aqua Voice | 1,000 words to start | Cloud |
| Willow Voice | A lighter model, some weekly limits | Cloud |
| Superwhisper | Unlimited with local Whisper; Pro features locked | On your Mac |
| Spokenly | Local models and your own API key free; Pro $9.99/month | On your Mac, or cloud |
| macOS Dictation | Built in; one language at a time, no history | On-device on Apple Silicon |
Competitor details checked on 26 Oct 2026 against wisprflow.ai/pricing, typeless.com/pricing, aquavoice.com/pricing, willowvoice.com/pricing. Prices and limits change; the official pages are authoritative.
Why cloud apps have to cap you
When a dictation app transcribes in the cloud, every word you speak costs it server time. A free plan is a sample, sized so that regular users run out and upgrade. 2,000 words a week is about 15 minutes of talking. See Wispr Flow pricing and Typeless pricing for the paid side.
Why a local app does not
TypeAloud downloads a speech model once, about 1 GB, and runs it on your Mac. After that, transcription costs nothing to anyone, so there is nothing to meter. It also works offline, needs no account, and is open source.
What free does not include
TypeAloud writes what you said; it does not rewrite it into polished prose the way Wispr Flow or Typeless do. It is a desktop app, tested mainly on macOS, with no phone app. If those matter more than the price, the roundup compares the paid options.
Common questions
- Is there really no limit?
- Yes. With a local model there is no word count, no time cap and no account. Hold the shortcut as long as you like.
- What is the catch?
- A one-time model download of about 1 GB, an Apple Silicon Mac for the best speed, and no AI rewriting.
- Is macOS Dictation not free and unlimited?
- Yes: it is free and has no length limit. It ends after 30 seconds without speech, listens in one language at a time and keeps no history. See TypeAloud vs macOS Dictation.
- Which Macs can run TypeAloud?
- TypeAloud runs on macOS 10.15 or later, on both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs. Local dictation is fastest on Apple Silicon. The recommended model is a one-time download of about 1 GB.
About TypeAloud
TypeAloud: free dictation for Mac, transcribed on your Mac.
Hold Ctrl+Shift, speak, release, and the text appears at your cursor. No word limit, no account, open source.
Download for Mac