Whisper App for Mac: 6 Ways to Run Whisper Locally in 2026

There is no official Whisper app for Mac. Whisper is a free, open-source speech recognition model from OpenAI, and the "Whisper apps" you find are made by other developers who run that model on your Mac.

The right Whisper app for Mac depends on what you want to do. Some apps transcribe recordings. Others type into any app as you speak. A few are free tools for Terminal.

We make TalkFlowy, an offline dictation app, so we have a stake in this topic. We still name the best pick for each case. All prices were checked on each app's official site on October 22, 2026. Prices change, so check again before you buy.

The short answer: which Whisper app to pick

• You want to transcribe recordings, meetings or videos: MacWhisper.
• You want a simple, low-cost app for audio files: Aiko.
• You want live dictation and AI rewriting, on many devices: Superwhisper.
• You want low-cost live dictation with open-source code: VoiceInk.
• You are comfortable in Terminal and want it free: whisper.cpp or OpenAI's whisper package.
• You want offline dictation in any app plus file transcription, with no subscription: TalkFlowy (not a Whisper app, see below).

What is Whisper, and why run it locally?

Whisper is a speech recognition model that OpenAI released as open source. Its code and model weights use the MIT license, so anyone can build an app with it.

Running Whisper locally means the model runs on your Mac. That has three benefits:

1. Privacy. Your audio is not uploaded to a server.
2. No internet needed. It works on a plane or a bad connection.
3. No per-minute fees. You are not billed for each hour of audio.

Most Mac Whisper apps run best on Apple Silicon (M1 or newer). Bigger Whisper models are more accurate but slower and need more memory.

1. MacWhisper: best for transcribing recordings

MacWhisper is the best-known Whisper app for Mac. You drag in an audio or video file and get a transcript. It also has an editor, transcript search and subtitle export.

Its sales page says all transcription is done on your device. Besides Whisper, it supports other local models such as Nvidia Parakeet. Pro adds batch transcription, speaker recognition, meeting recording and a command-line tool. It also has system-wide dictation.

Price: free version with fewer features. Pro is €65 one time for one personal license, with volume packs for teams.

Mac: macOS 14 or later. Its page recommends M-series Macs and says it also works on Intel Macs.

Pick it if: most of your work is recordings, or you have an Intel Mac. Want something simpler or built for dictation? See our MacWhisper alternatives.

2. Aiko: best simple app for audio files

Aiko, by developer Sindre Sorhus, runs OpenAI's Whisper model on your device. It transcribes recordings and audio or video files. It does not upload your files.

It is deliberately simple. Its site says it does not support live transcription yet, so it is not a dictation app.

Price: $24 one time on the App Store. The developer offers a free 14-day trial through TestFlight.

Mac: the current App Store version requires macOS 26 or later. Older versions for earlier macOS releases are on the developer's site.

Pick it if: you want a clean, one-purpose app for the occasional recording.

3. Superwhisper: best for live dictation with AI rewriting

Superwhisper types into any app as you speak. It can use local Whisper models offline, and it also offers cloud models. Its "modes" use AI to rewrite what you say, for example into a formal email.

Price: free plan with unlimited use of its Whisper models. Pro is $8.49 a month, with yearly and lifetime options. Pro adds file transcription, translation to English and your own AI API keys.

Mac: its FAQ says local models only run really well on Apple Silicon. Intel Macs work best with its cloud models. It also has apps for Windows, iPhone and Android.

Pick it if: you want AI to restyle your text, or you need dictation on several kinds of devices. If it is not the right fit, compare Superwhisper alternatives.

4. VoiceInk: best low-cost live dictation

VoiceInk is a live dictation app that runs transcription locally on your Mac. Its code is open source under the GPL v3 license. An optional AI cleanup feature sends text, not audio, to a cloud service you choose.

Its site describes live dictation with shortcuts and push-to-talk. It does not list file transcription.

Price: one-time licenses: $25 for 1 Mac, $39 for 2 Macs, $49 for 3 Macs. There is a free trial and a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Mac: its site says it works only on Apple Silicon Macs and needs macOS 14.4 or later.

Pick it if: you want cheap, local dictation and like that the code is public.

5. whisper.cpp and OpenAI's whisper: free, for Terminal users

If you are comfortable with the command line, you can run Whisper yourself for free.

• whisper.cpp is a fast C/C++ version of Whisper under the MIT license. Its README says Apple Silicon is a "first-class citizen", with the GPU used through Metal. You build it from source and run whisper-cli on a 16-bit WAV file. Convert other formats with ffmpeg first.
• OpenAI's whisper is the original Python package. You install it with pip install -U openai-whisper and also need ffmpeg (brew install ffmpeg on a Mac).

These are not apps. There is no window, no live typing into Slack or email, and no editor. Many Mac apps, including several above, build on whisper.cpp or similar engines.

Pick it if: you want to script batch transcription or you enjoy tinkering.

6. TalkFlowy: offline dictation and file transcription, no subscription

TalkFlowy is not marketed as a Whisper app. It solves the same problem many people want Whisper for: private speech to text that runs on your Mac.

• Speech is transcribed by local AI models on your Mac. It works 100% offline, and your voice and text are not sent to a server.
• Press a system-wide shortcut, speak, and words appear live. AutoPaste inserts them into the app you are using and copies them to the clipboard.
• Works in any app with a text field: Slack, Gmail, Outlook, Notion, Word, Google Docs, VS Code, Cursor, Xcode, terminals and browsers.
• Transcribes audio and video files on your Mac, not only live dictation.
• 50+ languages and dialects, with one-click switching.

Price: free trial with every feature and no credit card. Then a one-time license: Personal (1 Mac) $89, Pro (up to 3 Macs) $249, and Custom plans for 10 to 50 Macs. No subscription and no per-minute fees.

Mac: Apple Silicon (M1 or newer) with macOS 14.6 or later. It does not run on Intel Macs, Windows, iPhone or iPad.

Pick something else if: you need speaker labels on long recordings (MacWhisper), an Intel Mac, or the lowest price for dictation alone (VoiceInk).

Do you need a Whisper app at all?

Maybe not. Apple's built-in Dictation is free and good for short messages. On many Macs and languages it runs on the device. It stops after 30 seconds of silence and cannot transcribe files.

Try it first. Our guide on how to dictate on Mac shows how. If you then want offline dictation that never sends your voice away, read offline speech to text on Mac. For a wider comparison that includes cloud tools like Wispr Flow, see the best dictation app for Mac. If your main job is recordings, see how to transcribe audio to text on Mac.