--- title: "Glaido vs SpeechBee (2026): voice agent or private dictation?" description: "Glaido is cloud dictation with an Agent mode, free for 2,000 words a week or $17 a month billed yearly. SpeechBee transcribes on your Mac, iPhone and iPad for $79 a year or $99 once. Prices, privacy and features side by side." url: "https://speechbee.app/compare/glaido-vs-speechbee" --- # Glaido vs SpeechBee Both put your words into any app when you talk. Glaido goes further and lets your voice trigger an agent, with the work done in the cloud. SpeechBee stays on your device, types what you said, and reads text back to you. Which one fits depends on whether you want an assistant or a pen. By the SpeechBee team, who make SpeechBee. Prices checked on 15 October 2026. > ### The short answer > > - **Pick Glaido** if you want your voice to do things, not just write them, through its Agent mode, or you need Windows or SSO for a team. > - **Pick SpeechBee** if you want dictation that stays on your Mac, iPhone or iPad, works offline, costs less over a year, and reads text aloud too. > > We make SpeechBee. Everything about Glaido below comes from its own pricing page, linked at the bottom. ## Side by side | | Glaido | SpeechBee | |---|---|---| | Price | Pro $17/mo billed yearly ($204) | $9/mo, $79/yr, or $99 once | | Free option | Basic: 2,000 words a week, with AI auto-edits and Agent mode | 7 days free with every feature | | Where speech is processed | Glaido's cloud | On your device | | Works offline | No | Yes, after a one-time model download | | Platforms | Mac, Windows | Mac, iPhone, iPad | | Voice agent | Yes, Agent mode | No | | AI rewriting | AI auto-edits | Optional writing modes such as Email or Prompt for AI (macOS 26) | | Translation as you speak | Not listed on its pricing page | Yes, 20 languages, on your Mac (macOS 26) | | Read text aloud | No | Yes, with natural local voices | | Teams | Enterprise with SSO and SAML | No team plan | ## The real difference: an agent or a dictation tool Glaido's free plan already includes Agent mode. You speak, and instead of only typing your words it can act on them. That is a different job from dictation, and if that is what you want, SpeechBee does not do it. SpeechBee does one thing in more places. Hold a key in any app, talk, let go, and the text appears at the cursor. Filler words are gone, "new paragraph" starts one, and names you fixed once in the dictionary stay fixed. You decide what happens next, whether that is sending the email or the prompt. ## Privacy Glaido transcribes and edits in the cloud, so your audio leaves your computer and it needs a connection. SpeechBee processes your voice on the device. Audio stays in memory and is never uploaded or recorded. The optional writing modes run on your Mac with Apple Intelligence, and translation uses Apple's on-device translation. If you connect your own AI provider, text goes to that provider only when you ask for it. ## Price Glaido Basic is free for 2,000 words a week. Pro, with unlimited words, is $17 a month on yearly billing, which is $204 a year. Its pricing page says yearly billing saves 17%. SpeechBee is $79 a year, $9 a month, or $99 once, and one purchase covers your Mac, iPhone and iPad. **One year, in US dollars** - Glaido Pro, yearly: $204 - SpeechBee Yearly: $79 - SpeechBee Lifetime, once: $99 ## What SpeechBee does that Glaido does not - **Works offline,** on a plane or on hotel Wi-Fi, because the model runs on your device. - **Reads text aloud.** Select text in any Mac app, press your reading key, and a natural voice reads it. It is a good way to proofread what you just dictated. - **Translates as you speak** on macOS 26, between 20 languages, on the Mac. - **iPhone and iPad,** as a keyboard and an app, in the same purchase. - **Snippets,** so "my address" types your full address. ## What Glaido does that SpeechBee does not Agent mode, Windows, and Enterprise sign-in with SSO and SAML. If you want to talk to a computer that carries out tasks, or your company buys software centrally, Glaido is built for that. ## Questions ### Is Glaido free? Yes, up to a point. Glaido Basic is free for 2,000 words a week and includes AI auto-edits and Agent mode. Pro removes the word limit for $17 a month on yearly billing. ### Does Glaido work offline? No. Glaido processes speech in the cloud. SpeechBee transcribes on your device and works offline once its speech model has downloaded. ### Is SpeechBee cheaper than Glaido? Yes. SpeechBee is $79 a year or $99 once. Glaido Pro is $204 a year on yearly billing. ### Does SpeechBee have an agent mode? No. SpeechBee types what you say. Its writing modes can turn a dictation into an email, notes or a prompt for an AI assistant, but it does not carry out tasks. ### Does Glaido work on iPhone? Glaido's pricing page lists Mac and Windows. SpeechBee works on Mac, iPhone and iPad. ## Keep comparing - [The best AI dictation apps for Mac](https://speechbee.app/compare/best-ai-dictation-app-mac) - [Typeless alternatives](https://speechbee.app/compare/typeless-alternatives) - [The best Wispr Flow alternatives](https://speechbee.app/compare/wispr-flow-alternatives) - [AI dictation on a Mac](https://speechbee.app/guides/ai-dictation-mac) ## More on dictation - [Every dictation guide and comparison](https://speechbee.app/guides/voice-typing-mac) - [Handy vs SpeechBee](https://speechbee.app/compare/handy-vs-speechbee) - [MacWhisper pricing](https://speechbee.app/compare/macwhisper-pricing) - [MacWhisper vs SpeechBee](https://speechbee.app/compare/macwhisper-vs-speechbee) - [Monologue vs SpeechBee](https://speechbee.app/compare/monologue-vs-speechbee) - [OpenWhispr pricing](https://speechbee.app/compare/openwhispr-pricing) - [Every read-aloud guide and comparison](https://speechbee.app/guides/read-text-aloud) ## Sources Checked on 15 October 2026. - [Glaido pricing](https://glaido.com/pricing) - SpeechBee facts from our [homepage](https://speechbee.app/) and [privacy policy](https://speechbee.app/privacy)