Mac Dictation Shortcut: How to Use It and Change It

The Mac dictation shortcut is the Microphone key in the top row of many Mac keyboards. Press and release it, and your Mac starts listening. To change the shortcut, open System Settings > Keyboard > Dictation and pick a new one from the Shortcut menu.

No Microphone key? You can always choose Edit > Start Dictation in the app you are using, or set a shortcut of your own. This guide shows how.

These steps follow Apple's guide for macOS 27. Recent older versions work almost the same way.

What is the dictation shortcut on Mac?

There are three ways to start Dictation:

• The Microphone key. Many Mac keyboards have a key with a microphone icon in the row of function keys. Press it once and let go.
• Your Dictation shortcut. This is the one set in the Dictation settings. You can change it at any time.
• The menu. In most apps, choose Edit > Start Dictation. This works even when you forget the shortcut.

Dictation has to be turned on first. If it is off, see how to dictate on Mac for the full setup.

How to change the dictation shortcut

1. Open the Apple menu and choose System Settings.
2. Click Keyboard in the sidebar. You may need to scroll down.
3. Go to Dictation. Make sure it is turned on.
4. Click the Shortcut menu.
5. Choose the shortcut you want.

That is it. The new shortcut works right away in any app with a text field.

One thing to know: depending on your Mac model, choosing a shortcut can also change the "Press fn key to" (or "Press 🌐 key to") setting on the same Keyboard page. For example, if you choose Press Fn (Function) Key Twice, that setting switches to Start Dictation by itself. If your Fn or Globe key suddenly does something new, this is why.

How to make your own dictation shortcut

If none of the shortcuts in the list suit you, make one:

1. Go to System Settings > Keyboard > Dictation.
2. Click the Shortcut menu and choose Customize.
3. Press the keys you want to use. Apple gives Option-Z as an example.

Pick a combination that you can press with one hand and that your everyday apps do not already use. If an app uses the same keys, the app may grab them first.

How to stop dictation

When you are done talking, press one of these:

• Escape
• The Microphone key, if your keyboard has one
• Your Dictation shortcut again

Dictation also stops by itself when it hears no speech for 30 seconds. If it stops much sooner, see why Mac dictation stops early.

On a Mac with Apple silicon, you can keep typing while Dictation is on. There is no need to stop it first. While it is on, you can also say punctuation commands like "comma" or "new line".

Why the Microphone key opens Siri

The Microphone key does two things:

• Press and release starts Dictation.
• Press and hold starts Siri, if Siri is turned on.

If Siri keeps popping up when you want to dictate, you are holding the key too long. Tap it instead.

Dictation shortcut not working? Try these fixes

1. Check that Dictation is on. Open System Settings > Keyboard and look at the Dictation switch. The shortcut does nothing while Dictation is off.
2. Test with the menu. Click in a text field and choose Edit > Start Dictation. If that works, the problem is only the shortcut, not Dictation itself.
3. Turn off Voice Control. When Voice Control is on, standard Dictation is not available. You dictate with Voice Control instead. Check System Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control.
4. Check your keyboard. Many external keyboards have no Microphone key. Pick a different shortcut in the Shortcut menu.
5. Pick a shortcut no app uses. If a custom shortcut only fails in one app, that app likely uses the same keys. Choose another combination.
6. Check the Fn or Globe key setting. If you changed the shortcut, the "Press fn key to" setting may have changed too. Set it back to what you want.

If Dictation starts but types nothing, the problem is usually the microphone or the input level, not the shortcut. Our Mac dictation fix guide walks through those checks.

When the built-in shortcut is enough

Apple's Dictation is free and already on your Mac. For short replies, searches and quick notes, the Microphone key is often all you need.

People look for something more when the shortcut is not the problem, but what happens after it is. For example, when Dictation stops during long writing, when they want speech to stay on the Mac every time, or when they work without internet.

A dictation shortcut that works the same in every app

TalkFlowy gives you one system-wide shortcut. Press it, speak, and your words appear live. Then AutoPaste puts the text into the app you are using and copies it to the clipboard. It works in any app with a text field: Slack, Gmail, Notion, Word, Google Docs, VS Code, Cursor, terminals and browsers.

Speech is turned into text by local AI models on your Mac. Your voice and text are not sent to a server, and it works 100% offline. It supports 50+ languages and can also transcribe audio and video files.

TalkFlowy needs an Apple Silicon Mac (M1 or newer) with macOS 14.6 or later. There is a free trial with all features and no credit card. To see how it compares with other tools, read our list of Apple Dictation alternatives or the best dictation app for Mac.