Mac dictation not working? 9 fixes that actually help

You press the shortcut and nothing happens. Or the microphone icon appears but no words come out. Work through these in order; most people are fixed by the third.

#1. Check that Dictation is on

Open System Settings › Keyboard and scroll to Dictation. The switch should be on. If you've just turned it on, give macOS a minute to download the language files.

#2. Check the shortcut

In the same section, look at Shortcut. The default is pressing fn (🌐) twice, or Control twice on some keyboards.

• External keyboards often don't send an fn key to macOS. Pick Press Control Key Twice or a custom shortcut instead.
• If Press 🌐 key to (further up the Keyboard page) is set to emoji or input switching, a single fn press is taken before dictation sees it. See stop fn from opening the emoji picker.

#3. Pick the right microphone

Still under Dictation, the Microphone source menu decides what Dictation listens to. If it's set to a headset that's switched off, or a display with no mic, Dictation hears silence. Choose your Mac's built-in microphone to test.

#4. Check the input level

Open System Settings › Sound › Input, pick the same microphone, and speak. The input level bars should move. If they don't, the problem is the microphone, not Dictation.

#5. Download the language

Under Dictation › Languages, make sure the language you speak is added. On Apple silicon, many languages run on the device only after they're downloaded. Until then they may need an internet connection.

#6. Check Screen Time restrictions

If this is a work or family-managed Mac, Screen Time › Content & Privacy can block Siri and Dictation. Your administrator may have turned it off.

#7. Turn it off, restart, turn it on

Turn Dictation off, restart your Mac, then turn it back on. This forces macOS to set Dictation up again, and clears up a surprising number of "it just stopped working" cases.

#8. Try another app

Some apps, especially ones with custom text fields like certain games, terminals and web apps, don't accept system dictation well. Try TextEdit. If it works there, the problem is the app.

#9. Update macOS

Dictation bugs are fixed in point releases. System Settings › General › Software Update.

#When Dictation works but isn't good enough

Sometimes Dictation runs fine and the problem is everything around it: it stops after a pause, can't spell your colleagues' names, and leaves every "um" in place. That's where a dedicated dictation app helps.

Sayburst replaces the toggle with hold fn, talk, let go. Transcription runs on your Mac with Parakeet or Whisper, fillers are removed, your vocabulary is spelled right, and the text adapts to the app: paragraphs in Mail, short and casual in Slack. If something goes wrong mid-recording, the audio is already saved, so you never lose a dictation.

Questions people ask

Why is dictation not working on my Mac?

The usual causes are dictation being turned off, a shortcut that conflicts with something else, the wrong microphone selected, or a language that isn't downloaded. Check System Settings › Keyboard › Dictation first.

How do I reset dictation on Mac?

Turn Dictation off in System Settings › Keyboard, restart your Mac, then turn it back on. This makes macOS set it up again, including re-downloading on-device language files.

Does Mac dictation need the internet?

On Apple silicon Macs, many languages run on the device once downloaded. Other languages and some features still use Apple's servers.