Voice to text on Mac, built in or with Koi
How to use voice to text on Mac with Apple's built-in Dictation, step by step, and when Koi does more: Whisper offline, 57 languages, unlimited on every plan.
How we picked
What makes a good voice notes app on a Mac?
A voice notes app turns what you say into text you can keep. The good ones get four things right: where your speech becomes text, on the Mac or on a server; how much you can say before you hit a limit; what you can do with the note afterwards; and whether the app is there when you have a thought away from your desk.
We make Koi, so it's first on this list because it's ours, not because of a score. The rest are in the order we'd suggest them. We didn't run tests. Every fact about another app comes from that app's own site, with prices in USD, checked October 16, 2026.
One thing to know up front: Koi has no iPhone app, so it can't catch a thought on a walk, and it can't transcribe a voice memo you already recorded. If either of those is the job, start with Apple Notes, Voicenotes or Monologue below.
The list
The best voice notes apps for Mac in 2026
1. Koi
Best for: Talking straight into a real editor on your Mac, offline, plus calls and classes
Click New document on Koi's dock, or press ⌘N, then tap Fn + ⌥ and talk. Words appear while you speak, the ums and stammers go, and “new line” or “new paragraph” said on its own does what it says. Speech is turned into text on your Mac with Whisper, so it works offline, in 57 languages, with no weekly minutes and no cap on length. The same keys type into any other app too, and what you dictate is kept in Recents, marked as dictated.
The note then lands in a proper editor: headings, to-do lists, tables, 11 chart types and LaTeX equations, with export to Word or PDF and Copy as Markdown. Tap Fn + ⌃ to record a meeting or a class in person, with its sound kept on the page to play back, or an online call with You and Them written down apart. Say yes when it ends and Koi's AI, which is online, adds a summary and your to-dos from the transcript's words.
The catch: Mac only (macOS 14 or later, Apple silicon and Intel), no sync, no free plan. Pro is $20 a month after a 3-day trial that needs a card, or Lifetime from $59 once. More on Koi's notes and documents.
2. Apple Notes
Best for: Free recordings with a live transcript, synced to your iPhone
Apple Notes can record audio inside a note and write a live transcript as you go. Apple's guide says it needs a Mac with M1 or later and works in 10 languages, and Apple Intelligence can summarize the recording. On macOS 26, call recordings from the Phone app land in Notes with their transcripts too.
It's free, already on your Mac, and syncs to your iPhone and iPad through iCloud. Apple's guide doesn't cover recording a Zoom or Meet call. Notes exports PDF and Markdown, but not Word.
3. Voicenotes
Best for: Voice memos on every device, with meetings and Ask across all of them
Voicenotes started as a voice memo app and now records meetings without a bot, takes dictation on the Mac (hold fn) and lets you ask questions across everything you've said. It runs on Mac, iPhone, Android, Apple Watch, Wear OS and the web, with a Windows beta.
The free Basic plan gives 100 transcription minutes a week, shared between meetings, memos and dictation, and keeps 30 days of history. Pro is $9 per user a month. Its help pages say dictation is a Pro feature after a one-time free allowance. Transcription happens in the cloud, and its privacy policy says true end-to-end encryption isn't feasible. Some reviewers on Trustpilot report recordings that failed to upload.
4. AudioPen
Best for: Turning a ramble into a clean note, email or post
AudioPen's idea is “think out loud, get clear writing”: you ramble, it rewrites. Its Mac app, for Apple silicon only, also types into any app from a hotkey, and transcribes on the Mac, offline. The rewrite itself runs in the cloud, and AudioPen says voice note audio is deleted within 48 hours.
Free recordings stop at 3 minutes. Prime is $33 for 3 months, $99 a year or $159 for 2 years, with recordings up to 15 minutes. Reviewers on Product Hunt mention the 15-minute cap most. It runs on the web, Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android, Apple Watch and Chrome.
5. Monologue
Best for: Dictation, voice notes and meetings across Mac, iPhone, iPad and Watch
Monologue, from Every, does dictation into any app, longer voice notes with summaries, and meeting notes without a bot. Its local models on the Mac work offline, though smart formatting and syncing need a connection. Your notes are reachable from other tools through its MCP server, API and command line.
The trial includes 1,000 dictation words and 10 notes. Pro is $15 a month or $144 a year, and comes with an Every subscription. It's the closest app to Koi on this list, with the phone apps Koi doesn't have.
6. Mem
Best for: An AI that files and answers from your voice notes, if hour limits suit you
Mem now sells itself as an AI chief of staff: notes, an agent that works across them, Voice Mode and meeting capture without a bot, on Mac, Windows, iPhone and the web. It's a cloud service.
Since August 2026 its plans are metered. Free has 25 AI messages and 3 hours of voice, Plus is $9 a month for 50 messages and 10 hours, and Pro is $29 for 100 messages and 25 hours. One App Store reviewer says a recording stopped at 2 hours on Pro.
7. Letterly
Best for: Voice notes with rewrite styles, from your phone or your Mac
Letterly records a voice note and rewrites it in the style you pick. It also types into other apps and records meetings up to 90 minutes, in 90+ languages, on iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows and the web.
It records offline, but its help pages say transcription needs the internet. Free covers 10 notes with recordings up to 3 minutes. Pro comes monthly, yearly or as a lifetime purchase, but the prices aren't published on its site.
8. Drafts
Best for: Quick capture that you send on to other apps
Drafts is built for quick capture: the thought goes down first, then actions send the text wherever it belongs. Version 54 added a new dictation screen with custom dictionaries. It runs on Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
Drafts is free, and Pro is $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year. It's an inbox rather than a document app, with no tables or charts, so the note usually ends up somewhere else.
Comparison
Voice notes apps for Mac compared
From each app's own site, checked October 16, 2026. Paid prices are the cheapest individual plan.
| Speech to text | Limits | Paid | Platforms | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Koi | On the Mac | None on dictation or recordings | $20 a month, or Lifetime from $59 | Mac | A real editor, offline, plus calls and classes |
| Apple Notes | Built in, M1 or later | 10 languages | Free | Mac, iPhone, iPad | Free recordings synced to iPhone |
| Voicenotes | Cloud | 100 minutes a week free | $9 a month | Mac, Windows beta, iPhone, Android, Watch, web | Memos on every device |
| AudioPen | On the Mac; rewrite in the cloud | 3 minutes free, 15 on Prime | $99 a year | Web, Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android, Watch | Clean rewrites of a ramble |
| Monologue | Local models on the Mac | 1,000-word trial | $15 a month | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Watch | Dictation and notes on Apple devices |
| Mem | Cloud | 3 hours of voice free | $9 a month | Mac, Windows, iPhone, web | An AI that works across your notes |
| Letterly | Cloud | 10 notes free | Not published | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android, web | Rewrite styles |
| Drafts | Not stated | None listed | $29.99 a year | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Watch | Fast capture to send elsewhere |
Where it's heard
On your Mac or in the cloud?
A voice note app either turns your speech into text on the Mac, or sends the audio to a server that does it. Koi always does it on the Mac, and so do AudioPen's Mac app and Monologue's local models. Voicenotes, Mem and Letterly transcribe in the cloud.
Turning speech into text on the Mac means it works with no Wi-Fi and the audio has nowhere to be stored but your disk. The cloud apps make up for it with phone apps and sync, so a memo from your walk is waiting on your laptop. Several apps mix the two: AudioPen hears you on the Mac but rewrites in the cloud, and Koi's summaries and its assistant use cloud AI, only when you ask.
Limits
How long can a voice note be?
This is where the apps differ most, and the free plans are where you feel it. AudioPen stops free recordings at 3 minutes and Prime ones at 15. Letterly's free notes stop at 3 minutes. Voicenotes gives 100 free minutes a week, shared with its meetings and dictation. Mem's plans count hours of voice.
Koi has no minutes to count, because dictation runs on your Mac: it's unlimited on every plan, and so are recordings. Only Koi's AI, the summaries and the assistant, is counted.
Meetings
Voice notes that also record meetings and classes
Most of these now record meetings too. Voicenotes, Monologue and Mem capture a call without sending a bot into it, and Letterly records meetings up to 90 minutes. Apple Notes takes calls from the Phone app on macOS 26.
Koi records an online call with your microphone as You and the Mac's sound as Them, plus a video of the screen, all kept on your Mac. In person, for a meeting or a class, it keeps the sound to play back, and a class gets a summary, the key points and flashcards if you say yes to notes. See recording calls with Koi, or how to make flashcards from a PDF or a class. For notes that write themselves in the cloud, see our Granola AI alternatives.
Tell people before you record, and check the rules where you and they are. Koi doesn't announce itself to a call or a room.
Recordings
Can it transcribe a voice memo you already have?
Not with Koi. It transcribes as you talk, and it can't open an audio or video file. If you have a folder of old voice memos, a file transcriber is the right tool, and our MacWhisper alternatives page compares the ones that do it on your Mac.
Choosing
Which voice notes app should you pick?
- Want it free, synced to your iPhone? Apple Notes, on an M1 or later Mac.
- Talk into a real editor on your Mac, offline, with no minutes to count? Koi.
- Need memos from your phone and Watch on your Mac? Voicenotes or Monologue.
- Want your ramble rewritten into clean writing? AudioPen or Letterly.
- Want an AI to work across all your notes? Mem.
- Just need to catch a thought fast? Drafts.
If you mostly want to type by voice into other apps rather than keep notes, our list of dictation apps for Mac is the better place to start.
Keep exploring
Notes on your Mac, with tables, charts and math
Koi for Mac is an offline notes app with tables, 11 chart types, LaTeX, to-dos and flashcards. Export to Word or PDF, and start by typing or by talking.
An Apple Notes alternative for Mac, with charts, LaTeX and Word export
An Apple Notes alternative for Mac with charts drawn from a table, LaTeX, Word export and calls recorded into a note. Mac only, no sync, and not free. Compared.
The best notes apps with LaTeX for Mac
The best notes apps with LaTeX for Mac: Typora, Bear, Obsidian, Notion, Craft, Capacities, Ulysses and Koi, compared on numbering, exports and price.
Support
Frequently asked questions
Apple Notes if you want it free and synced to iPhone. Koi for offline voice to text into a real editor, plus recorded calls and classes. Voicenotes or Monologue if you also need phone apps.
Apple Notes is free and transcribes recordings on M1 or later Macs. Voicenotes gives 100 free minutes a week, Drafts is free, and AudioPen's free plan allows 3-minute recordings.
Koi always turns speech into text on the Mac. AudioPen's Mac app transcribes offline but rewrites in the cloud, and Monologue's local models work offline. Voicenotes, Mem and Letterly need the internet.
No. Koi is Mac only and has no sync, so notes stay on the Mac they were made on. Apple Notes, Voicenotes and Monologue all have iPhone apps.
No. Koi transcribes as you talk, in any app, and records calls and classes, but it can't open an audio or video file. Use a file transcriber like MacWhisper for that.