FnScribe – Open-source, offline dictation for macOS
I built FnScribe because I'm pretty privacy concious and wanted a wispr flow-like app that kept everything local and on device. Currently works for Mac (sillicon and intel). It's dead simple. Hold the fn key, speak and release. I use a quantized Wisper small.en model for transcription. It inserts the text into the active application. There's also a hands-free model for longer dictation. Audio transcription is kept in memory. There's no account or transcription history. Clipboard contents are restored after it inserts it. GPLv3, Mac-only, English only..still in alpha. Hope you enjoy it! Would…
FnScribe – Open-source, offline dictation for macOS launched on August 28, 2026 with 36 votes, #653 of 23,274 launches that month and more than 95% of that year's launches. The site was not reachable when checked in October 2026.
In plain words
FnScribe is a privacy-focused dictation tool for macOS that transcribes speech locally using an offline Whisper model. Users hold the function key and speak to insert text into any application, or use hands-free mode for longer passages. It runs from the menu bar, keeps no transcription history or accounts, and restores clipboard contents after insertion. Available for Apple Silicon and Intel Macs running macOS 13 or later, it is open-source under GPLv3 and currently in alpha.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
Contribute to AlgorithmicResearchGroup/fnscribe development by creating an account on GitHub.
Hold a shortcut, speak, and release—or use hands-free mode for longer thoughts. FnScribe transcribes your voice locally and inserts the result into the app you are using. It lives in the menu bar and stays out of the way until you need it. FnScribe requires an Apple Silicon or 64-bit Intel Mac running macOS 13 Ventura or later. The default push-to-talk shortcut is the fn /Globe key. To change it, click the menu-bar microphone, click the shortcut button, and press a new key combination. For hands-free dictation, press fn + Space once to start and again to stop. You can also turn a push-to-talk recording into hands-free mode by pressing Space while continuing to hold fn . Press Escape at any…from github.com
In the maker’s words, at launch
I built FnScribe because I'm pretty privacy concious and wanted a wispr flow-like app that kept everything local and on device. Currently works for Mac (sillicon and intel). It's dead simple. Hold the fn key, speak and release. I use a quantized Wisper small.en model for transcription. It inserts the text into the…
Does a similar job
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DictlyOct 2025 · dictly.app · ▲240TL;DR: I built a native macOS dictation app that transcribes locally and instantly. Text appears as you speak (measured ~100 ms first‑character latency). No accounts, no servers, no tracking. Links: • Website: https://dictly.app • Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/de/app/dictly-no-keys-just-clarity/id... • Free download; optional Pro tier (pipelines, unlimited history, etc.) What it does Real‑time transcription — streaming text while you talk, not after you stop. Quick‑Capture Overlay (macOS) — global hotkey, drop text into any app/field.…
BetterWispr – Free, open-source dictation for Mac10d ago · betterwispr.com · ▲220Hold a shortcut, speak, and BetterWispr types clean text into any Mac app. Local speech models, a style for each app, meeting notes and insights. Free and open source, with no account required.
Qwen Scribe – local transcription and dictation for Apple SiliconJul 2026 · github.com · ▲97Private, local transcription and system-wide dictation for Apple Silicon. - VladUZH/qwen-scribe
DictatoFeb 2026 · dicta.to · ▲93I built a macOS dictation app where everything runs on-device. Transcription, auto-correct, translation. No audio or text leaves your machine. It ships with 4 transcription engines you can swap between: WhisperKit (99 languages), NVIDIA Parakeet TDT 0.6B (25 European languages, fastest of the bunch), Qwen3-ASR 0.6B (30 languages), and Apple Speech on macOS 26+. They all run through CoreML/Metal. Whisper is the most versatile, Parakeet wins on raw latency for European languages, Qwen3 does better with CJK. I went with a protocol-based architecture so you pick the engine that fits your…
SaylineJan 2026 · sayline.app · ▲83I built a voice dictation app for macOS mostly because I was tired of how awful Siri is and I didn't want to pay a subscription for cloud tools. The app uses NVIDIA's Parakeet v3 (TDT) as the primary engine. Inference is handled by the FluidAudio library. It's insanely fast on M-series chips. For Intel users, I added local Whisper support ranging from Tiny up to Large v3 Turbo (quantized to save space). The interesting part was the AI integration. I originally tried to pipeline the ASR output into Apple's Intelligence Foundation Model. It was a nightmare, because the content moderation…
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