VoiceInk: local voice-to-text dictation for macOS

Name: VoiceInk
Price: 25 USD
Author: Pax (Beingpax)

by Pax (Beingpax)

Don’t want to install VoiceInk? Drop the file here.

The first 20 minutes of any recording are transcribed free: a recording up to 20 minutes transcribes in full, a longer one is previewed, and a pack from $6 (500 minutes) transcribes the rest and opens every export, and credits never expire.

Press a shortcut, speak, and the text lands where your cursor is. VoiceInk runs the model on your Mac; it is for dictating, not for the hour-long recording you already have.

macOS · $25 one-time for one Mac

Get VoiceInk Official site & pricing

TL;DR

VoiceInk is Mac dictation: hold a shortcut, speak, and text appears at your cursor. Local whisper.cpp, Parakeet and SenseVoice models; GPL-3.0 source, $25 one-time for the built app.

Dictation and transcription are different jobs. For a recorded interview, lecture or podcast you want as a transcript and subtitles, upload the file instead.

What it is

VoiceInk is a native macOS app that turns speech into text as you dictate, using local models: whisper.cpp, NVIDIA Parakeet (through FluidAudio) and SenseVoice Small. It switches settings per app or URL, keeps a personal dictionary and has push-to-talk shortcuts. The source is on GitHub under GPL-3.0, and the compiled app is sold at tryvoiceink.com: the Solo licence is $25 once for one Mac (checked 11 October 2026), with a free trial. It needs macOS 15 or later. The latest release is v2.21 (28 September 2026).

Best for: Mac users on macOS 15 or later who type a lot and want dictation that runs locally, with a one-time price.
Watch out for: macOS 15+ only. It is a dictation tool: it types what you say into the app in front of you. The project does not accept pull requests.

For the recording, not the dictation

Keep VoiceInk for typing by voice. When the job is a recording (a call, a lecture, a voice memo from your phone), transcribe the file:

Drop the audio or video file into the box at the top of this page, or paste a link (YouTube, a podcast or RSS feed, Google Drive, Twitch or Kick). Nothing to install and no GPU needed.
The language is detected automatically and the transcript stays in the language that was spoken (WhipScribe does not translate).
Read the summary free. A pack from $6 (500 minutes) opens the full transcript and the downloads: TXT, DOCX, SRT, VTT and JSON. Packs are one-time purchases and credits never expire.
Files can be up to 10 hours or 5 GB per file. You also get a summary, chapters and an SRT to caption the video.

Install / use

brew install --cask voiceink

Key specs

Job

Dictation into any app

Models

whisper.cpp, Parakeet, SenseVoice

Price

$25 once (Solo, 1 Mac)

Licence

GPL-3.0 source

Requires

macOS 15+

What people actually do with VoiceInk-style transcription

The tool is the means. These are the jobs — each one priced at published rates, each one wired up on its own page.

Transcribe a whole back catalogue in one runThe archive is the asset, but one-at-a-time upload means it never gets done.…1,000 hours ≈ $480, onceTranscribe every new file in a Drive folderFiles accumulate in a folder nobody opens, and the knowledge in them is invisible to search.…≈ $0.29 per audio hour on the $24 packCut short-form clips out of a webinar automaticallyThe clips worth posting are buried somewhere in a 60-minute recording and finding them by scrubbing costs more than the…60-min webinar ≈ $0.72

Wire it into Amazon S3 n8n Make.com Google Drive Zapier Slack

Features

Speaker diarization	Not stated
Word-level timestamps	Not stated
Streaming / real-time	Yes
Languages supported	—
HIPAA eligible	No

VoiceInk vs Whipscribe

Feature	VoiceInk	Whipscribe
Category	Desktop apps	Transcription APIs
Pricing	$25 one-time for one Mac (Solo licence); GPL-3.0 source you can build yourself	$6–$24 one-time packs (credits never expire) · first 20 minutes free
Speaker identification	No	Named in the summary, key quotes and chapters
Word timestamps	No	Yes
Streaming	Yes	No
Languages	—	99
Platforms	macOS	Web, API, MCP

Alternatives to VoiceInk

MacWhisper

Jordi Bruin

Polished Mac app for Whisper — the default pick if you're on macOS.

freemium

SuperWhisper

Sindre Sorhus

Always-on system-wide dictation for macOS and iOS, powered by local Whisper.

freemium

Aiko

Sindre Sorhus

Whisper transcription that stays on your Apple device.

paid, one-time · 14-day trial

Frequently asked about VoiceInk

Is VoiceInk free?

The source code is free under GPL-3.0 and you can build it yourself. The ready-made app is paid: the Solo licence is $25 once for one Mac on tryvoiceink.com (checked 11 October 2026), after a free trial.

Which models does VoiceInk use?

Local models: whisper.cpp, NVIDIA Parakeet through FluidAudio, and SenseVoice Small. Processing happens on the Mac.

Can VoiceInk transcribe an audio file?

VoiceInk is built for dictation into other apps, not as a file transcriber. For a recording you already have, a file transcriber (on-device like MacWhisper, or hosted like WhipScribe) is the right tool.

What macOS version does VoiceInk need?

macOS 15.0 or later.

Does VoiceInk accept contributions?

It accepts bug reports and feature ideas as issues but not pull requests. You are free to fork it under GPL-3.0.

What is VoiceInk?

VoiceInk is Mac dictation: hold a shortcut, speak, and text appears at your cursor. Local whisper.cpp, Parakeet and SenseVoice models; GPL-3.0 source, $25 one-time for the built app.

Can VoiceInk transcribe live audio?

Yes — VoiceInk supports streaming / live input, not just finished files.

Is VoiceInk HIPAA compliant?

VoiceInk does not claim HIPAA compliance. For PHI, run it on infrastructure you control or choose a service that will sign a BAA.

What are the limitations of VoiceInk?

macOS 15+ only. It is a dictation tool: it types what you say into the app in front of you. The project does not accept pull requests.

Who is VoiceInk best for?

Mac users on macOS 15 or later who type a lot and want dictation that runs locally, with a one-time price.

What should I know before choosing VoiceInk?

Dictation and transcription are different jobs. For a recorded interview, lecture or podcast you want as a transcript and subtitles, upload the file instead.

Does VoiceInk run offline?

VoiceInk runs on your own machine as a desktop app. Check whether the model runs locally or calls a cloud service — some desktop tools do both.

Can I use VoiceInk in the browser?

No — VoiceInk is a macOS application, not a web app. You install it rather than sign in to it.

Where is the VoiceInk source code?

On GitHub at github.com/Beingpax/VoiceInk. It is maintained by Pax (Beingpax).

What kind of tool is VoiceInk?

In this directory VoiceInk is filed under dictation, desktop app as a desktop app.

Whipscribe is a hosted transcription service. If you want transcripts without running infrastructure, paste a URL or drop a file in the form below — you'll have a transcript in seconds.

Transcribe your recordings

Using VoiceInk today? Send your next recording here and compare the transcript. Transcribe any language, any recording · Transcription services from $0.29 an hour · Transcribe from any meeting or recording platform · How to transcribe, step by step

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Have the recording already?

Skip the setup and send the file or the link: see how to transcribe an MP3 of any length, a podcast episode as text from its link and an SRT subtitle file from any recording.

Comparing tools before you pay?

If you would rather pay a service than run software yourself: see the best transcription services side by side, the cheapest way to transcribe an hour of audio and our transcription service with prices and turnaround.