1Our pick · The all-in-one local AI assistant
Typilot.
The only entry on this list that does voice plus typing, polish, meetings, notes, and 27 inline AI commands - all locally, on macOS, Windows, and Linux. No cloud round-trip. Lifetime license option. Disclosure: we built it - that is why it is at the top.
2
Superwhisper
Commercial local Whisper dictation for Mac, Windows, and iOS - polished, lifetime option available.
Pros
- +Fully local Whisper transcription - audio never leaves the device
- +Mac, Windows, and iOS support - unlike Resonant
- +Mature commercial app with guided setup and a polished iOS companion
- +Lifetime license at $249 - no ongoing subscription
- +Free tier available with limited model choice
Cons
- −Voice dictation only - no meeting diarization, AI commands, or autocomplete
- −No Linux build
- −Fewer local model options than Resonant (no omniASR multilingual breadth)
3
Handy
Free MIT-licensed dictation for Mac, Windows, and Linux - the widest platform support at zero cost.
Pros
- +Completely free - no subscription, no account, no word cap
- +MIT-licensed open source - codebase publicly auditable
- +Supports Whisper, Parakeet V2/V3, and Moonshine - broad STT model choice
- +Mac, Windows, and Linux support (Resonant is Mac-only)
- +23,000+ GitHub stars and an active release cycle
Cons
- −Raw transcription only - no meeting detection, diarization, or AI commands
- −Press-to-record with 2-5 second processing pause after release
- −No mobile app and no AI cleanup layer
Free (MIT open source)
4
Spokenly
Free local Whisper and Parakeet dictation for Mac, Windows, and iPhone - BYOK for cloud speed.
Pros
- +Completely free to use with local Whisper Large-v3 and NVIDIA Parakeet
- +Mac, Windows, and iPhone support
- +BYOK cloud routing to OpenAI, Deepgram, Groq, Anthropic, or Google at zero markup
- +MCP server and Agent mode for AI coding agents
- +No account required, no word cap
Cons
- −Dictation-only - no meeting detection or on-device diarization
- −No Linux build
- −No per-app writing styles or AI cleanup layer comparable to Resonant
5
VoiceInk
Open-source macOS dictation for Apple Silicon - GPL v3, one-time price, per-app Power Mode.
Pros
- +Fully local Whisper inference - audio stays on device
- +GPL v3 open source - codebase is auditable on GitHub (4,300+ stars)
- +Power Mode applies per-app context settings automatically
- +One-time price from $25 - no annual subscription required
- +4.9/5 rating from over 1,100 users
Cons
- −macOS-only - requires Apple Silicon and macOS 14.4 or later
- −No meeting detection, diarization, or AI command layer
- −Narrower language coverage than Resonant
6
OpenWhispr
Free MIT open-source dictation and meeting transcription for Mac, Windows, and Linux - MCP server included.
Pros
- +Free local tier with Whisper and NVIDIA Parakeet - build from source, pay nothing
- +MIT-licensed - codebase publicly auditable on GitHub (3,700+ stars)
- +Meeting auto-detection for Zoom, Teams, and FaceTime with on-device voice fingerprinting
- +MCP server and public API for AI coding agents
- +Mac, Windows, and Linux support
Cons
- −No inline AI commands, text polish, or autocomplete layer
- −Lazy Edition pre-built binary costs $8/mo or $80/yr
- −Fewer local model variants than Resonant (no omniASR 1,600+ language breadth)
7
MacWhisper
Mac-only local Whisper front-end at a low one-time price - best for batch audio file transcription.
Pros
- +Local Whisper inference, one-time price from $59
- +Best-in-class batch transcription of pre-recorded files (drag and drop folders)
- +Mature support for large-v3 and distil-large-v3 model variants
- +Tiny install footprint
Cons
- −File transcription focus - live in-app dictation is secondary
- −No meeting detection, diarization, or AI commands
- −Mac-only, no Windows or Linux