The best dictation software for Windows
What your PC already does when you press Windows key + H, what's left to fix, and seven Windows dictation apps compared on cleanup, styles, offline and price.
The short answer: install AudioPen if other people read what you write. Double-tap Right Ctrl in any Windows app, talk, and it writes in the style you set for that app: casual in Slack, formal in an email. Windows key + H is free, but it needs the internet, and only Copilot+ PCs take out the ums.
What dictation does Windows already have?
What you get depends on your PC. Here's what each kind has.
- Every PC on Windows 10 or 11. Press Windows key + H in any text box and talk. Voice typing “uses online speech recognition”, so it needs an internet connection. Automatic punctuation is a setting you can turn on.
- Windows 11, version 22H2 or later. You also get Voice access. It runs on the PC and “works even without the internet”, and it controls the PC by voice as well as writing.
- A Copilot+ PC. Voice typing adds Fluid dictation, and it's on by default. As you speak, it fixes grammar, punctuation and filler words on the device, in English.
Two more come with apps you may already use. Dictate in Word needs a Microsoft 365 subscription and an internet connection. Google Docs voice typing (Tools, then Voice typing) works in Chrome, Edge and Safari. Each writes only inside its own documents, so neither helps you in Slack or Gmail.
Can Windows dictation fix grammar and filler words in every app?
On a Copilot+ PC, mostly yes: Fluid dictation tidies your words wherever voice typing works, in English. On other PCs, you do the cleanup yourself. Built-in dictation hands back your words as you said them, with the ums, the false starts and the sentence you began twice.
Clean words still aren't always the right words. A Slack reply and a note to a client need different voices, and Windows gives them the same one. In AudioPen you write your own styles and set one for each app or website, so the same ramble comes out as the message that app needs.
And when a plain transcript is all you need, you keep it:
“I usually use Medium the most, but sometimes I also just insert a transcript if I'm just talking to Claude and I don't care about the formatting too much.”
Windows dictation apps compared: cleanup, styles, offline and price
Tap a name to jump to its entry.
| App | Takes out filler words | Style per app | Works without internet | Runs on | Price for a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AudioPen | Yes, and rewrites in your style | Your own styles, set per app or website | An option; with it on, audio stays on your PC | Windows 10 or later, from the Microsoft Store | Free plan; Prime $99 (web price) |
| Windows voice typing | On Copilot+ PCs, in English | Not stated | No, it needs the internet | Windows 10 and 11 | Built in |
| Voice access | Not stated | Not stated | Yes | Windows 11, version 22H2 or later | Built in |
| Wispr Flow | Yes | Tone presets by app, English only | Not stated | Windows 10 or 11, x64 | $144 billed yearly, or $15 a month |
| SuperWhisper | Not stated; formats punctuation | Not stated for Windows | Yes, with local models | Windows 10 and 11 | $84.99 a year |
| Aqua Voice | Yes | Not stated | No | Windows 10 and 11 | $120 billed yearly, or $12 a month |
| Spokenly | On Pro, or with your own AI key | Not stated | Yes, with local models | Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit, from the Microsoft Store | $144 billed yearly |
| OpenWhispr | AI cleanup | Not stated | Yes | Windows | $80 billed yearly |
| Dragon Professional | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Windows 11 and 10 (version 16) | Ask Nuance |
Prices as of November 2026. After AudioPen, the list is in no particular order.
What is the best dictation software for Windows?
1.AudioPen
Use it when: Other people read what you write, in Slack, Outlook, Gmail or Word.
On Windows: Install AudioPen for Windows. Then, in any app, hold Right Ctrl (you can change the key), talk and let go, and your words land where your cursor is. In AI rewrite mode, a ramble comes back as clear writing in the style you set for that app. You can write your own styles, and Special Words teaches it your names and jargon.
2.Wispr Flow
Use it when: You want the same cleanup everywhere, with tone presets, in English.
On Windows: It works anywhere you can type, takes out filler words and adds punctuation. Its Styles shift your tone by where you're writing, from formal in documents to casual in messages, in English on a computer. More options are in Wispr Flow alternatives.
Watch for: It needs an x64 processor, and the free plan has a weekly word limit.
3.SuperWhisper
Use it when: You want dictation that runs on your PC with no internet.
On Windows: It types into any app on Windows 10 and 11 and handles punctuation and formatting. The free plan gives you unlimited dictation with Whisper models that run on your PC. See how it compares in SuperWhisper alternatives.
Watch for: The free plan has no AI processing. AI modes need Pro.
4.Aqua Voice
Use it when: You're always online and want the ums gone.
On Windows: Hold the key, talk and let go, and it types into whatever app you're using, with filler words cleaned up as you speak.
Watch for: The free plan stops at 2,000 words.
5.Spokenly
Use it when: You want local models in an app from the Microsoft Store.
On Windows: It types anywhere with a global hotkey, and its Whisper and Parakeet models work offline. More in our Spokenly comparison.
Watch for: Spokenly says its Mac and iPhone apps are the most mature.
6.OpenWhispr
Use it when: You want open-source dictation.
On Windows: It's open source under the MIT license, runs offline, and local dictation is free.
Watch for: Cloud use on the free plan stops at 2,000 words a week.
7.Dragon Professional
Use it when: Your workplace already runs Dragon.
On Windows: Nuance's dictation program. Version 16 is made for Windows 11 and also runs on Windows 10. Our Dragon comparison goes into more detail.
Watch for: Nuance shows no price, only a Contact us button.
You'll also run into Typeless and Willow Voice. Both say they take out filler words, and both cost $12 a month, billed yearly. Our guide to the best dictation apps covers the same choice on a phone and a Mac.
What replaces Windows Speech Recognition and Dragon?
Microsoft no longer develops Windows Speech Recognition and is replacing it with Voice access. If you used Speech Recognition to run your PC by voice, Voice access is the replacement.
Dragon Professional is still on sale, so nobody's forcing you off it. If you mostly used either one for emails and documents, AudioPen is the better swap: say it the way it comes to you, and it writes up the email or document you meant.