Questions, answered

What is SayWrite?

SayWrite is a dictation app for Mac that works in every app you type in, from ChatGPT and Cursor to Slack and Mail. You hold the Fn (Globe) key, talk, and clean text is typed wherever your cursor is: filler words dropped, punctuation added, your names spelled your way, and an optional AI Polish that rewrites a ramble into clear writing. It all runs on your Mac, so what you say is never uploaded.

Does SayWrite work offline?

Yes. With the speech model downloaded and prepared (about 465 MB of model files), dictation works with no internet connection. Model-file recovery may require the network. AI Polish also runs locally, using Apple Intelligence's on-device model or your own Ollama or LM Studio server on your Mac.

How much does SayWrite cost?

SayWrite has a 7-day free trial that starts in the app, with no card and no account. After that it costs $5 a month or $30 a year, charged when you buy, with unlimited use. Cancel anytime; full refund within 14 days of any payment. Every plan includes unlimited dictation and AI Polish, with no word limit and no password, and speech runs on your Mac.

Is SayWrite cheaper than Wispr Flow?

Yes. SayWrite is $30 a year (or $5 a month) after a 7-day free trial. Wispr Flow Pro is $144 a year ($12 a month billed annually) or $15 a month, and Wispr Flow's free plan allows 2,000 words a week on desktop, as of September 29, 2026. SayWrite has no word limit on any plan.

Does SayWrite have a word limit?

No. SayWrite has no weekly word limit, no minutes cap and no per-use AI charge, during the free trial or after it. Speech recognition and AI Polish run on your Mac, so there is no cloud cost per word to pass on.

What happens when the free trial ends?

Nothing is charged. The 7-day free trial starts when you first open SayWrite, needs no card or account, and when it ends SayWrite asks you to buy it ($5 a month or $30 a year) to keep dictating. Your history, dictionary and settings stay on your Mac. (Trials started at checkout on saywrite.app before October 22, 2026 keep their original terms; see your account.)

Is SayWrite for Mac the same as the SayWrite iPhone app?

No. SayWrite for Mac, from saywrite.app, is a Mac-only dictation app made by the SayWrite team; we don't make an iPhone or Windows app. Other apps with similar names on other platforms are unrelated to us.

I lost my license key. How do I get it back?

You don't need it. Open SayWrite › Settings › License and sign in with the email you used at checkout; we'll email you a link that turns SayWrite on. To manage your subscription or your Macs, sign in at saywrite.app/account the same way. If you still want the key itself, the license page (saywrite.app/license) can email it to you.

Sign in with email to turn on SayWrite

Can I use SayWrite on more than one Mac?

Yes, each subscription works on up to 2 Macs at a time, like a laptop and a desktop. Turn it on from SayWrite › Settings › License on each Mac by signing in with your email. To use a new Mac when both slots are taken, remove one in your account (saywrite.app/account) or replace it when you turn SayWrite on. Gift keys aren't limited.

See your Macs in your account

Which Macs does SayWrite run on?

SayWrite needs a Mac with Apple silicon (M1 or later) running macOS 15 Sequoia or later, plus about 465 MB for the speech model and extra space for the app and macOS caches. Intel Macs are not supported. It transcribes English only for now. AI Polish is optional and has its own requirements: macOS 26 with Apple Intelligence, or your own Ollama or LM Studio model.

What languages does SayWrite support?

SayWrite transcribes English. It uses NVIDIA's Parakeet TDT 0.6B v2 model, which is an English speech recognition model.

Was SayWrite called something else before?

Yes. SayWrite was called Speakeasy during its first builds, up to version 0.2.0. Since version 0.3.0 the app is called SayWrite, and settings and history carry over when it updates.

Is SayWrite private? Does my voice leave my Mac?

SayWrite never uploads your voice. Audio is transcribed on the Apple Neural Engine, kept only in a temporary file while it is processed, and deleted right after. SayWrite has no passwords, no analytics and no telemetry, and it doesn't send your words to any cloud service for transcription or cleanup. Once the text is typed into another app, that app's own privacy settings apply.

How can I check offline dictation and network activity?

Finish setup and prepare the speech model, turn AI Polish off, disconnect Wi-Fi, Ethernet and any phone hotspot, then try a non-sensitive sentence. This tests offline operation, not what happens online. Reconnect and use a network monitor during startup, dictation and idle time; test optional AI Polish separately. Model setup or recovery, updates, account and license services, and Send Feedback use the network. A single lsof snapshot can miss brief connections and cannot reveal encrypted request contents. See the Security page for the method and limits; this is not an independent audit.

Does SayWrite connect to the internet at all?

Speech processing stays on your Mac. Separate network uses include speech-model setup or recovery downloads (from Hugging Face), a daily check of the SayWrite update feed (you can turn it off), and, for subscribers only, turning SayWrite on for a Mac and a license renewal request to saywrite.app. Turning it on sends the license key or sign-in link, a random install ID, the Mac's model and the Mac's name, because each subscription works on up to 2 Macs at a time. The renewal request goes about once a week (daily in the last few days before the key expires), sending only the license key. Gift keys never connect. Send Feedback sends saywrite.app the message you type (plus your email and diagnostics if you include them, which you can preview) only when you click Send. If you enable it, SayWrite also talks to your own Ollama or LM Studio server at 127.0.0.1, which stays on your Mac.

Does SayWrite keep a history of what I dictate?

Yes, History is saved on your Mac only, so you can search and paste past dictations. You choose how long it is kept (7, 30, 90 or 365 days, or forever) and can clear it at any time. Text typed into password managers is never saved to History. Audio is never saved: each recording is deleted once it's transcribed.

How do I start dictating?

Click into any text field, hold the Fn (Globe) key, speak, and let go. SayWrite types the text where your cursor is and never presses Return for you. You can also tap Fn once to start and again to stop, or use Control-Option-D.

Why does SayWrite need Accessibility permission?

macOS only lets an app type into other apps and notice the Fn key while another app is in front if you grant it Accessibility access. SayWrite uses it to insert your text at the cursor. Without it, SayWrite copies the text to the clipboard instead. It also needs Microphone access to hear you.

Is SayWrite notarized by Apple?

Yes. SayWrite is signed with an Apple Developer ID and notarized, so it opens like any other app you download. Notarization is Apple's automated malware check, not a security audit.

Pressing Fn opens the emoji picker. How do I stop that?

Open System Settings, choose Keyboard, and set "Press 🌐 key to" to "Do Nothing". Then the Fn key only starts SayWrite. SayWrite warns you if this setting is wrong but never changes it for you.

What is AI Polish?

AI Polish rewrites what you just said into what you would have written with time: the point first, rambling cut, and your facts and voice kept. Hold Fn and tap Space while you talk to turn it on for that dictation. It runs on your Mac using Apple Intelligence's on-device model or your own Ollama or LM Studio. Like any AI rewrite, give names, numbers and instructions a quick read before you send.

Do I need Apple Intelligence or Ollama to use SayWrite?

Not for dictation: plain dictation works on any supported Mac right after setup. Only the optional AI Polish needs a local AI engine: Apple Intelligence's on-device model (macOS 26 or later with Apple Intelligence turned on) or your own Ollama or LM Studio server. AI features are off until you turn them on.

Can SayWrite remove filler words like um and uh?

Yes. Turn on filler-word removal and SayWrite drops um, uh, er, ah and hmm from your text. It also counts filler words, including "like" and "you know", on your Stats page so you can see your habits.

Can I transcribe audio or video files?

Yes. Drop an audio or video file (such as MP3, M4A, WAV, MP4 or MOV) into the Files section and SayWrite transcribes it on your Mac with timestamps. You can copy the text or export it as .txt, .md or .srt subtitles.

How is SayWrite different from Apple Dictation?

Both can run on your Mac. SayWrite adds cleanup and editing on top of dictation: filler-word removal, AI Polish and "do what I say" rewriting, spoken commands, snippets, a personal dictionary, per-app style, local History and speaking-speed Stats. Apple Dictation supports many more languages; SayWrite is English only.