Superwhisper alternative with free transcription

Local dictation, plus the parts Superwhisper charges for

Superwhisper's free plan already gives unlimited local dictation. File transcription and translation sit in Pro at $8.49 a month. Dictator does dictation, file transcription with speakers and timestamps, and translation (45 languages offline, 198 through AI within a monthly allowance) on the free plan, on Windows, macOS and Android, without an account.

BOZEX, developer of Dictator · checked October 2, 2026

Free, no sign-up Works offline 100 languages

Side by side

	Superwhisper	Dictator
Free plan	Dictation in any app, unlimited local Whisper models, meeting recording	Dictation in any window, unlimited local recognition, file transcription, live subtitles
Paid plan	Pro $8.49 a month; yearly and lifetime options	From $5.99 a month, only for cloud features
Transcribing audio and video files	Pro	Free, one file up to 30 minutes; longer on paid plans
Translation	Pro: any language into English	Free: 198 languages through AI with a monthly allowance, 45 offline
Live subtitles over any window	Not listed	Yes, free and unlimited
Offline models run best on	Apple Silicon Macs; Intel Macs work best with cloud models	Windows with a GPU and Apple Silicon Macs
Platforms	Mac, Windows, iOS, Android	Windows, macOS, Android

Superwhisper plans and hardware notes are taken from its own site on October 1, 2026. Dictator prices are from its own price list.

What you get on the free plan

Six global shortcuts

Record, paste, dictate-and-translate, translate the selection, translate the screen, live subtitles. All system-wide, all changeable.

Files with speakers

Drop a recording in, get text split by speaker with timestamps. Speaker separation runs on your machine on every plan.

The GPU you already have

A gaming or work graphics card transcribes faster than real time. No subscription is needed for the local part.

Your phone too

The Android keyboard dictates into any app and can send the translation instead of the original.

When Superwhisper is the better choice

On an Apple Silicon Mac Superwhisper is hard to beat: the local models are tuned for that hardware, the modes and custom prompts are well thought out, and there is a native iPhone app. If you want to bring your own AI keys or live entirely in the Apple world, stay there. Our iOS build is still in TestFlight.

Frequent questions

Is Superwhisper free?

Partly. Its free plan includes local dictation with Whisper models. File transcription, translation and cloud models are in Pro, $8.49 a month on October 1, 2026.

Does Dictator work without the internet?

Yes: recognition, live subtitles and 45 translation languages need no connection. Translation into all 198 languages goes through the cloud.

What hardware is required?

Any modern PC or Mac. A GPU makes recognition faster; without one it runs on the processor with a lighter model.

How long can a transcribed file be?

Up to 30 minutes per file on the free plan, 90 minutes on Basic, 4 hours on Pro and no limit on Premium. The number of files is not limited.