Wispr Flow

Dictation that runs on your own machine and types cleaned-up text into whatever application has focus — email, a form, a chat box, a quote.

Writing & editing Apps

Checked 15 Sep 2026

Open wisprflow.ai

What you'd use it for

Turning what you would otherwise type into an email, message or form into spoken words that land in the same box, without leaving the app you are already in.

Types dictated speech straight into whatever application has focus, from a Gmail draft to a CRM notes field
Learns names, product codes and personal vocabulary from your corrections over time
Runs a spoken Command Mode for editing and formatting instructions, not just transcription
Works across more than 100 languages on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android
Keeps a shared dictionary and text snippets you can trigger by voice

The verdict

Wispr Flow is exactly as small a first step as this entry claims — install it, grant the microphone, and you are dictating into whatever has focus within a few minutes. Free gives you 2,000 words a week on desktop, enough to try it seriously before paying; Pro's real upgrade is removing that weekly cap and adding a shared dictionary, not adding capability the free tier is missing. It suits anyone who types more slowly than they talk and does not mind a microphone listening while they work. It does not suit anyone who needs accurate names and jargon from day one, since that only arrives after weeks of corrections, or anyone sending client-facing text straight from the dictation box without a reread.

What it costs

Tier	Price	For	Includes
Free	$0/mo	One person testing whether dictation actually fits how they work.	2,000 words a week on desktop and 1,000 on mobile, across 100+ languages on Mac, Windows, iOS and Android; learns names and jargon; dictionary and snippets; limited Notetaker access.
Pro	$15/user/mo, or $12/user/mo billed annually	Anyone who would rather talk than type, and does it all day.	Unlimited dictation, longer notetaker history, shared dictionary and snippets, priority support.
Growth	$23/user/mo, or $18/user/mo billed annually	Teams with a compliance requirement attached.	SAML SSO, HIPAA enforcement, admin control over model training, per-user usage reporting.
Enterprise	Custom, annual only	Organisations needing provisioning and audit.	SCIM, audit logs, domain capture, custom contracts, dedicated support with SLAs.

Read from Wispr Flow's own pricing page on 15 Sep 2026. Vendors change prices without notice.

What you need to start

macOS 12 Monterey or later, or 64-bit Windows 10/11 (Windows ARM and Snapdragon devices are not supported)
8GB RAM recommended for dictation, 16GB RAM and 2GB free storage if you want the Windows Notetaker feature
A working microphone and a live internet connection
A free account signed in with email, Google, Apple, Microsoft or SSO, no credit card required

A few minutes to install, sign in and grant permissions, then a short practice dictation before it is typing for real.

Your first run Install the app, sign in, grant microphone and accessibility permissions, then a short practice dictation shows text appearing on screen before it starts typing for real; most people get through the whole flow in a few minutes.

Where it breaks

It listens through your microphone, which is a decision worth making deliberately rather than by clicking accept. Accuracy on names, product codes and local place names is poor until you have taught it, and teaching it takes a few weeks of corrections. And dictated text reads like dictated text — fine for a first draft, obvious in a customer email you did not re-read.

Native on macOS and Windows, plus iOS and Android keyboards. Notetaker runs on Mac and Windows only -- the vendor says more platforms are coming -- and the free plan gets a limited weekly allowance of it rather than none. Because it types into the focused application, it works in software that has no AI features of its own, which is most of the software a small business runs on.

First entry in this reference. There is no previous check to compare it against.

When not to use it

Not for anyone who needs dictation to handle unfamiliar names, product codes or jargon correctly from day one — expect weeks of corrections first. Not for drafting sensitive client email straight into the send box without rereading, since dictated text still reads like dictated text. Not for a Windows laptop with under 16GB of RAM if the Notetaker feature specifically is the draw.

Wispr Flow is on this list because it is the least intimidating way to put AI on your own machine. It does one thing, the thing is obvious within thirty seconds, and it works inside the software you already use rather than asking you to move.

That last part is the whole point. A tool that runs on your machine and reaches your applications is a different category from a tool that lives in a tab, regardless of how clever the tab is. Dictation is a modest use of that capability. It is still the capability.

Why it earns its place ahead of cleverer tools

The most common reason a business owner never leaves the browser tab is not cost and not scepticism. It is that the next step is presented as a project. Wispr Flow is not a project. Install it, grant the microphone, hold a key, talk.

If that is the only thing you ever run on your own machine, you have still learned the lesson that matters: software running there can act on your behalf in places a browser tab cannot reach.

Where it stops

It types. It does not decide, look anything up, or act. It cannot see the quote you are dictating a reply to unless something else puts that quote in front of it — which is what Claude on the desktop does, one step along the same idea.

Alternatives

Writing & editingApps

Grammarly

An AI writing assistant that lives inside the apps you already type in, correcting and rewriting as you go rather than waiting for you to paste something into a chat box.

Checked 15 Sep 2026