Roundup
The best free dictation apps for Mac
Dictidy is a free, open-source macOS app that dictates by voice and rewrites selected text anywhere you type, all from one shortcut, with dictation running on-device. It is one of a handful of genuinely free Mac dictation options. Here is an honest look at the best free ones, what "free" should actually mean, and which to pick.
macOS 13.3+ · Apple Silicon · MIT licensed · No telemetry
What "free" should mean
Plenty of apps call themselves free but attach a catch: a weekly word cap, a trial that expires, an account you must create, or a "free to build from source" path that only helps developers. For this roundup, genuinely free means:
- No word cap or minute cap on the core dictation feature.
- No time-limited trial that turns the app off later.
- No account required to use it.
- No paid unlock for the main job (speaking to text).
By that definition, Apple Dictation and Dictidy are fully free. Some other well-regarded apps are only partly free (a limited tier, or a paid prebuilt binary). All of that is called out below.
The free options, compared
| App | Truly free? | Cleanup | Rewrite existing text | Open source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Dictation | Yes, built in | No | No | No |
| Dictidy | Yes, no caps | Yes, on-device | Yes | Yes (MIT) |
| superwhisper (free tier) | Free tier, limited | Yes | No | No |
| VoiceInk | Free to build from source; paid binary | Yes | No | Yes (GPL v3) |
Competitor details reflect public information at the time of writing and can change. Check each app's site for current pricing and features.
Apple Dictation
The built-in option. It is free, private on Apple Silicon, and fine for short verbatim notes. It has no AI cleanup, so filler words and rough grammar land exactly as you said them, and it does not rewrite existing text. If your needs are simple, it may be all you want. When they get more complex, you will feel the limits fast.
Dictidy (our pick for best free)
Dictidy is free and open source under the MIT license, with no trial, no word cap, no account, and no paid tier. Dictation runs on-device with Whisper large-v3-turbo, so your audio never leaves your Mac. Cleanup (removing filler words, fixing grammar, tightening structure) runs on-device by default, or with your own Claude API key if you opt in. It also does something most free apps do not: rewrite text you have already written, in place, in any app. That combination (free, open source, on-device, cleanup, and rewrite-anywhere) is why we rate it the best free option.
superwhisper (free tier)
superwhisper is a polished, on-device dictation app with a free tier, plus paid plans and a lifetime option above it. The free tier is a good way to try it, and cleanup is solid. It is closed source, and the fully unrestricted experience is paid, so it is excellent but only partly free.
VoiceInk
VoiceInk is a well-liked open-source (GPL v3) Mac dictation app using local Whisper models. It is free if you build it from source, which is great for developers, while the prebuilt binary is paid (it funds updates and support). It is dictation-only, without rewrite-existing-text. A fellow indie open-source project worth supporting if the build-from-source path suits you.
Our recommendation
If you only need quick verbatim notes, Apple Dictation is already on your Mac and costs nothing. If you want clean, finished text (filler words gone, grammar fixed) and the ability to rewrite what you have already written, without a subscription or a build step, Dictidy is the best free pick: free, open source, on-device, and it does the whole job. superwhisper and VoiceInk are genuinely good; they are just not free in the same unconditional way.
FAQ
What is the best free dictation app for Mac?
Apple Dictation is the best free built-in option for quick verbatim notes. For a free app that also cleans up filler words and grammar and can rewrite existing text, Dictidy is our pick, because it is free and open source (MIT), runs dictation on-device, and adds cleanup plus rewrite-anywhere. superwhisper and VoiceInk are excellent too, but their fully free paths are limited or require building from source.
Is Apple Dictation good enough?
Apple Dictation is free, built in, and private on Apple Silicon, and it is fine for short verbatim notes. It has no AI cleanup, no filler-word removal, no rewrite, and weaker accuracy on names and jargon, which is why many people add a dedicated app on top of it.
Is Dictidy really free with no catch?
Yes. Dictidy is free and open source under the MIT license, with no trial, no word cap, no account, and no paid tier. Dictation runs on-device, and cleanup runs on-device by default, so there is no cloud bill either.
What should free actually mean for a dictation app?
Genuinely free means no word or minute caps, no time-limited trial that expires, no account required, and no paid unlock for the core dictation feature. By that definition Apple Dictation and Dictidy are fully free, while free tiers with word caps or paid binaries are only partly free.
Try Dictidy
It is free, open source, and dictation runs entirely on your Mac. See for yourself.