Guide
Offline dictation on a Mac
Dictating on a plane, on a train, or about something confidential means one thing: the speech recognition has to run on your Mac. Here is how to check whether Apple's dictation does, which apps always do, and how to set things up before you lose your connection.
By the SpeechBee team, who make SpeechBee. Checked on 12 October 2026
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Why offline matters
Two reasons, and they overlap. Connection: cloud dictation stops working without internet, which is when you are on a plane or a bad hotel network. Privacy: if speech is processed on your Mac, your voice never goes to anyone else's server. That matters for client work, health information, legal drafts and anything under NDA.
Apple Dictation offline
Apple says you can check whether your general dictation, such as messages and notes, is processed on your device and not sent to its servers. Open System Settings, click Keyboard, and read the text below Dictation. Whether it is depends on your language and Mac. Dictation in a search box may still be sent to Apple.
If your language is processed on device, Apple Dictation works offline. It still stops after 30 seconds of silence and has no custom dictionary on Mac.
Local dictation apps
These apps run speech recognition on your Mac:
| App | Local models | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 SpeechBee | Parakeet by default, optional Whisper on Mac | Never uploads audio; also reads text aloud locally |
 superwhisper | Whisper, free tier | Cloud AI models optional |
 VoiceInk | Local models | $25 once for one Mac |
 Spokenly | Whisper and Parakeet, free | Local-only mode blocks network requests |
 OpenWhispr | Free local dictation | Open source |
 MacWhisper | Whisper | Best for recordings and files |
One caution: some of these apps also offer optional cloud models or AI cleanup. Those features do send text or audio out. If offline is the point, stick to the local models.
Set up before you travel
- Install the app and download its model at home. Speech models are large. SpeechBee's default model is about 600 MB.
- Test with Wi-Fi off. Turn off Wi-Fi and dictate a sentence to confirm it works.
- Add your names and terms to the dictionary while you are thinking about it.
- Check the microphone. A headset microphone helps in noisy places like trains.
SpeechBee
SpeechBee is our app, and it was built to work this way. After a one-time download, dictation runs entirely on your Mac, iPhone or iPad. Your audio is processed in memory, never uploaded and never recorded. Hold a key in any app, talk, and the text appears at the cursor with filler words removed and names corrected from your dictionary. Its reading voices run on the device too, so Read Aloud also works offline.
It understands 25 languages, or up to 99 on Mac with the optional Whisper model. It needs an Apple silicon Mac with macOS 14 or later. 7 days free, then $9 a month, $79 a year, or $99 once.
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.
Dictation that works on a plane. 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 use dictation on a Mac without the internet?
Yes, if the speech recognition runs on your Mac. Check Keyboard settings to see whether Apple Dictation is processed on device for your language, or use a local dictation app.
Is Mac dictation private?
Apple says general dictation can be processed on your device without being sent to its servers, depending on language and settings, and you can check this in Keyboard settings. Local apps never send your audio anywhere.
Does Wispr Flow work offline?
No. Wispr Flow transcribes on its servers. See Wispr Flow vs SpeechBee.
How big are offline dictation models?
Usually hundreds of megabytes. SpeechBee's default model is about 600 MB, downloaded once.
Which offline dictation app is free?
Spokenly and OpenWhispr offer free local dictation, and superwhisper's free tier includes local Whisper models.
Keep reading
Sources
All checked on 12 October 2026.
- Apple: Use Dictation on Mac
- superwhisper, VoiceInk pricing, Spokenly pricing, OpenWhispr pricing and MacWhisper
- Wispr Flow privacy
- SpeechBee facts from our homepage and privacy policy