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Dragon vs SpeechBee
SpeechBee is our own app. If you used Dragon on a Mac, there is no current Mac version to buy: Dragon Professional is Windows software. SpeechBee replaces the dictation side of Dragon on a Mac; for voice commands, macOS Voice Control is the closer match.
By the SpeechBee team, who make SpeechBee. Checked on 13 October 2026
SpeechBee
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Side by side
| Dragon Professional | SpeechBee | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Nuance shows no price; third-party sellers list about $699 once | $9/mo, $79/yr, or $99 once |
| Platforms | Windows | Mac, iPhone, iPad |
| Mac version | Not sold; Dragon for Mac is a legacy product | Native Mac app (Apple silicon, macOS 14 or later) |
| Dictation into any app | Yes | Yes |
| Controlling the computer by voice | Yes, extensive commands | No; use macOS Voice Control |
| Custom vocabulary | Yes | Dictionary and snippets |
| Read text aloud | Not its focus | Yes, natural local voices |
| Where speech is processed | Installed Windows software | On your device |
Is there still a Dragon for Mac?
No current one. Nuance, now part of Microsoft, sells Dragon Professional as Windows software and asks buyers to contact it for pricing; third-party sellers list version 16 at about $699 as a one-time purchase. The old Mac product is no longer sold. Our Dragon alternatives for Mac guide covers every Mac option.
Writing versus commanding
Dragon combined two jobs: turning speech into text, and controlling the computer by voice. SpeechBee does the first. Hold a shortcut in any app, talk, let go, and your words appear at the cursor, with filler words removed (44 languages on the Mac) and names spelled the way your dictionary says. Snippets expand a short phrase like "my signature" into full text.
For the second job, macOS Voice Control is free and built in: open apps, click buttons by name, and edit text by voice. Many former Dragon users combine the two.
Reading, not just writing
Hi Maya, I'll send the revised proposal tomorrow morning.
Most people read faster than they speak. SpeechBee reads the sentence you selected out loud, while you keep working.
SpeechBee also reads selected text aloud in natural local voices, which helps you check a dictated draft by ear.
Price
Dragon Professional, where you can still buy it, is a one-time purchase of about $699 at third-party sellers, for Windows. SpeechBee is $9 a month, $79 a year or $99 once, for Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Try SpeechBee free for 7 days.
Voice to text and Read Aloud on your Mac, iPhone and iPad. After the week, $9 a month, $79 a year, or $99 once. Every plan has every feature.
Questions
Can I run Dragon on an Apple silicon Mac?
Not as a current Mac app. Dragon Professional is Windows software.
Does SpeechBee have voice commands like Dragon?
It understands spoken formatting such as "new paragraph" in English on the Mac, but it does not control the computer. Use macOS Voice Control for that.
Is SpeechBee accurate with technical terms?
Add names and terms to its dictionary once and SpeechBee spells them that way from then on.
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Sources
Checked on 13 October 2026.
- Nuance Dragon Professional
- Third-party Dragon listing
- Apple: Use Voice Control commands on Mac
- SpeechBee facts from our homepage and privacy policy