Superwhisper vs Spokenly: which free local dictation app wins?

For most Mac users who want free, local dictation, Spokenly gives you more without paying: its free plan includes both Whisper and Parakeet models, offline use and your own API keys. Superwhisper is the better pick if you'll pay for a polished Pro tier with AI modes, meeting recording and file transcription, especially as a one-time lifetime license.

We make Sayburst, which comes up at the end. The Superwhisper and Spokenly facts below are from superwhisper.com, Superwhisper's plans page, spokenly.app and Spokenly pricing, checked October 31, 2026. This is desk research from official pages, not a hands-on test.

#Side by side

#Free plans: Spokenly gives away more

Both apps let you dictate into any app on your Mac with local models, forever, without paying. The details differ.

Spokenly's free plan includes Whisper and Parakeet, offline use, realtime transcription and bring-your-own API keys, with no account. Its FAQ is blunt about it: no word caps, no trial clock, no credit card. If you already pay for an OpenAI or similar key, you can wire it in for AI cleanup and pay the provider directly.

Superwhisper's free plan covers local Whisper dictation, custom vocabulary, text replacements and up to two modes without AI, and Superwhisper says nothing you dictate on it leaves your device. Parakeet, cloud models, AI modes and your own API keys all sit behind Pro. You get a 3,000-word trial of everything first.

#Paid plans: different shapes

Superwhisper Pro costs $8.49 a month, $84.99 a year, or $249.99 once, and one license covers unlimited Macs and Windows PCs plus iPhone and Android. It adds cloud voice models, local Parakeet and Cohere Transcribe, unlimited and AI modes (Super reads what's on screen; Mail formats email), context awareness, realtime transcription, file transcription, speaker separation, system audio recording and Meetings on Mac. Price details: Superwhisper pricing.

Spokenly splits it in two. Local+ is $29 once for Notch and Capsule recording styles, settings sync across devices and priority support; cloud models still need your own keys. Pro is $144 a year (or $15 month to month) for managed cloud models such as GPT-4o Transcribe, Deepgram Nova 3 and Soniox, plus hosted AI cleanup, so you don't need any keys at all.

If you're cost-sensitive and comfortable pasting in an API key, Spokenly's free tier or $29 Local+ is hard to beat. If you want a long list of Pro features under one license with no recurring bill, Superwhisper's lifetime license is the cleaner deal.

#Features beyond dictation

• Superwhisper leans into modes and meetings: per-app modes, an on-screen-aware Super Mode, meeting recording with notes on Mac, and translation into English.
• Spokenly leans into automation and developers: Agentic Actions for voice-driven tasks on macOS, and an MCP voice input in its sideloaded Mac app that lets Claude Code, Codex and Cursor ask you for a spoken answer mid-task. It also transcribes files on all four platforms, with speaker labels and subtitle export on desktop, and has a Local Only Mode that restricts network access.

#Privacy: both can stay local

Both apps can keep your voice on the Mac, which is the main reason people pick them over cloud-only tools. The catch is the same in both: the moment you switch on a cloud model, audio leaves the machine. Spokenly says it plainly, local models keep audio on the device and cloud models send it for processing. On Superwhisper, the free plan is local-only, and Pro's cloud voice models are opt-in per mode.

So the practical question is which features you'd need cloud for. On Spokenly, AI cleanup without your own keys means Pro and its hosted processing. On Superwhisper, Pro advertises both cloud and local AI models plus your own keys, so you can pick per mode, including a rewrite that stays on the Mac.

#Which should you pick?

• Spokenly if you want the most capable free local setup, you're on Linux, or you want to bring your own AI keys without a subscription.
• Superwhisper if you want meeting recording, AI modes and Android support, and you'd like to pay once for all of it.

#A third option: Sayburst

Sayburst is a narrower tool than either: dictation on your Mac, done carefully. Hold fn, talk, let go, and cleaned-up text lands in whatever app you're in. Speech runs on your Mac (Parakeet v3 by default, Whisper for 99 languages), works with no internet after the model download, and costs $29 once for one Mac or $49 for three, after a 7-day free trial.

It also has a notes shortcut that's handy if you keep a daily note. Press it, say a thought, and it's appended as a timestamped bullet under today's date in a Markdown file you choose, which works with Obsidian. Say:

"Idea for the onboarding email, um, lead with the, the import button and not the pricing table."

And today's note gets a new bullet, stamped with the time:

Idea for the onboarding email: lead with the import button and not the pricing table.

The "um" and the doubled "the" are gone before it reaches the file.

Sayburst also keeps a dictation if it can't be typed (you switched apps, a password field had focus) and offers it back; ⌃⌥⌘V pastes the last one anywhere.

It's Mac-only, with no meeting recorder and no Linux build, so Spokenly or Superwhisper fit better if you need those. See how it lines up: Sayburst vs Superwhisper, Spokenly vs Wispr Flow, and the full list on /compare.

Our take

Spokenly is the stronger free and cheap option, with Parakeet and your own API keys at no cost and Linux support. Superwhisper is the stronger paid product, with meetings, AI modes and a lifetime license. If you only need clean dictation on your Mac, Sayburst does it locally for a one-time $29.

Questions people ask

Is Spokenly or Superwhisper better?

Spokenly gives more away free, including local Parakeet models and bring-your-own API keys, and runs on Linux. Superwhisper has the deeper Pro feature set, with AI modes, meeting recording, speaker separation and a lifetime license.

Are Superwhisper and Spokenly free?

Both have free plans with unlimited local dictation. Spokenly's free plan includes Whisper and Parakeet plus your own API keys. Superwhisper's free plan includes local Whisper models, custom vocabulary, replacements and up to two non-AI modes.

Do Superwhisper and Spokenly have a one-time price?

Superwhisper sells Pro as a $249.99 lifetime license. Spokenly's one-time option is Local+ at $29, which adds styles, settings sync and priority support but not managed cloud models; Spokenly Pro is a subscription.

Which works on Linux?

Spokenly lists macOS, Windows, Linux and iOS. Superwhisper lists Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, without Linux.