MacWhisper: Seamless AI Speech-to-Text Transcription for Mac

Mac
100% Secure & Clean, Ads Free
MacWhisper: Seamless AI Speech-to-Text Transcription for Mac

Good typing speed is necessary if you work with computers and documents. But in the age of AI, why rely solely on your keyboard for typing?

With MacWhisper, you can simply speak your thoughts, structure them as you go, and edit later. Whether it’s a 2,000-word term paper or meeting notes, this app saves you hours of effort—and it doesn’t stop there.

Getting to Know MacWhisper

MacWhisper is a powerful yet user-friendly macOS application designed to streamline audio transcription. Developed by Jordi Bruin, it harnesses the capabilities of OpenAI’s state-of-the-art transcription technology to effortlessly convert audio files into text.

MacWhisper isn’t just a simple speech-to-text converter. It offers a wide range of features to cater to various needs.

Key Features

  • Batch transcribe multiple audio files simultaneously.
  • Record and transcribe audio directly within the app.
  • All transcription is done on your device, no data leaves your machine.
  • Get accurate text transcriptions in seconds (up to ~30x realtime)
  • Extract transcripts from online sources like podcasts and YouTube videos.
  • Edit and delete segments from the transcript.
  • Support multiple languages (fastest model is English only).
  • Utilize AI prompts to further analyze and process your transcriptions.
  • Options to export transcripts, subtitles, and more to different formats
  • Support 100 different languages.

Free Limitations

MacWhisper is free, but the free version has some restrictions.

  • You do not have access to the Menu-bar app or Global mode.
  • However, you can record audio and get it tagged right.
  • Similarly, you can’t access batch transcription.
  • Only a few models are available.
  • Some customization features are unavailable.

But you can go for MacWhisper Pro if you need these features.

Getting Started with MacWhisper

Setting up MacWhisper and using it for the first time is easy.

You can download the application for free from the official website. Once the app loads up, you will be asked to download a transcription model.

whisper models

Some of these models might not be available depending on whether you have a paid version. You can choose one of the suitable models based on quality, speed and size.

Once MacWhisper has downloaded the model, you are good to go.

whisper dashboard

Here’s how it works:

You can input an audio recording from multiple sources.

  1. You can speak what you want to write.
  2. Upload an audio recording that you already have.
  3. You can also upload a podcast episode if you wish.

Getting to Use MacWhisper

As we said, there are different ways to transcribe your speech into text with impressive accuracy.

  • New Recording: You can use this option to record audio using the MacWhisper window and turn it into text. This option is great for transcribing lengthy pieces.
  • Record App Audio: This option lets you record audio from macOS apps and transcribe it. You may find it handy while transcribing online meetings.
  • Global: Thanks to this feature, you can launch MacWhisper regardless of the app you are using. It lets you quickly transcribe audio and copy the text into the clipboard.
  • Transcribe Podcast: MacWhisper is smart enough to understand different audio speakers. You can use this feature to transcribe entire podcast episodes.
  • Dictation: The latest addition to MacWhisper, the Dictation mode lets you use accurate audio-to-text transcription on any text field. You can easily set up a hotkey.

There are also additional options, such as batch transcription and cloud transcription.

Cloud transcription is best for those who do not have a powerful Mac. In that case, you can use the Whisper API to get the job done, but the API will cost you money, and you have to set it up.

MacWhisper Review (TheSweetBits Take)

Here are a few aspects of MacWhisper I have been testing for months.

Note: For the record, I have tested all these features on a MacBook Air M2 running macOS Sequoia. Though I have tried transcription in other languages, I will use English as the source for this review.

Ease of Use

With a faster internet connection, MacWhisper does not take more than a few minutes to set up. Once you have set up the hotkeys, it is seamless to transcribe audio from multiple sources.

whisper ease

The intuitive UI makes it easy to record audio or convert existing files. You can simply drag and drop the file you want to transcribe and wait for a few seconds. Depending on the mode, MacWhisper lines up available customization options as well.

I have always loved the Global mode the most because of its accessibility. In this mode, you can launch the MacWhisper interface anywhere on your Mac. You can configure the mode to paste the text or copy it to the clipboard automatically.

However, Dictation has taken this spot after MacWhisper launched the latest update. Dictation makes things easier because everything runs in the background. You can speak while holding the hotkey, and you will have the transcribed content in a few seconds. You can tweak this output further using an AI service.

whisper dictation

Both options are great when writing on something like Microsoft Word or Notion.

Overall, Mac Whisperer is an install-and-forget thing for the most part.

Accuracy and Performance

Everyone does not need the same level of accuracy or speed when it comes to transcription. You can select a suitable transcription model, which is a great choice here. And I will suggest a few things.

MacWhisper keeps adding new models to the library and makes it easy to choose the right one.

When transcribing English, you can choose the Base (English) model or the Small (English) model. Both of these are available in the free version. These two models are accurate enough for most tasks. However, the transcription struggles with proper nouns or brand names.

whisper english

If your documents contain proper nouns, you may need something more powerful. Thus, if you want a good balance between quality, speed, and accuracy, you should get Medium (English) or Large V3 (English). This model will take up 1.5 GB of space on your Mac and takes a little toll on RAM when running at full speed.

There are also some languages where AI training data is not widely available, thus affecting the transcription option.

We have used the MacWhisper transcription tool to write blog posts and research content. The research content made use of some complex vocabulary, and the accuracy of MacWhisper was great.

You can expect better performance if you have an M4-powered Mac with more than 8GB of RAM. I noticed that MacWhisper keeps adding more efficient models to the library. It also means you can try more accurate (and larger) models.

Customization: Basics and Beyond

MacWhisper offers quite a bit of room for flexibility. You get to choose what works for you during and after the transcription.

whisper style

For instance, you can use the Find & Replace feature to deal with frequent/potential errors. Similarly, you can ask MacWhisper to ignore specific segments. Lastly, you also have an option to add speakers to your transcripts.

It’s also great that you can adjust the UI. MacWhisper lets you choose between the transcript and segments mode. And you can always change the font size and add timestamps to the transcript.

MacWhisper has also introduced a powerful video player that enhances the transcription experience. It seamlessly displays translated text as separate subtitles, allowing you to follow along with the video without constantly switching between the transcript and the video, making the editing process much smoother.

If you only need the transcribed content and not the video itself, MacWhisper offers the option to download just the audio portion of a YouTube video. This feature not only saves storage space but also lets you focus on the transcription without the distraction of video content.

The latest version also makes the post-transcription edits easier than ever. For instance, you can quickly set up options for AI or Translation. Because MacWhisper offers support for both Apple and third-party services, overall performance is also up these days.

whisper translation

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Performs transcription entirely on-device, ensuring data privacy.
  • Supports over 100 languages, including advanced transcription models for specific needs.
  • Batch transcription for processing multiple audio files simultaneously.
  • Offers Dictation mode for real-time audio-to-text transcription in any text field.
  • Includes features like Find & Replace, timestamp addition, and segment editing.
  • Seamless integration with macOS, including Global mode for system-wide transcription access.
  • Offers accurate transcription with models tailored for speed, quality, and memory usage.

Cons

  • Advanced features like batch transcription and Global mode require the Pro version.
  • High system requirements for optimal performance with larger transcription models.
  • Cloud transcription requires Whisper API setup and additional costs.

Who Will Benefit from MacWhisper

MacWhisper is an essential transcription tool for various users, including:

  • Podcasters: Quickly transcribe episodes for show notes and summaries, enhancing workflow during recordings.
  • Journalists: Accurately transcribe interviews and press conferences while ensuring data privacy with local processing.
  • Researchers: Efficiently transcribe qualitative data from interviews and discussions, with support for multiple languages.
  • Students: Capture lectures and seminars in written form for better study aids and accessibility.
  • Content Creators: Convert video content into text for subtitles, making it more accessible to audiences.
  • Non-Profit Organizations: Utilize an affordable transcription solution, particularly with available discounts for eligible groups.

Pricing and Availability

The MacWhisper Pro license is available for 49 Euros ($50). But you can save some money by purchasing more than one license. This license gives you access to the entire set of features and some power-efficient transcription models, including Distil.

The good part is that you do not need the Pro version unless you require global mode and additional language models. It is also a good time to mention that you should have a Mac with at least 16GB of RAM to run the medium and pro versions of Whisper.

System Requirements

MacWhisper requires a lot of computer memory to work well. To use the Medium and Large models, your Mac should have more than 8GB of RAM. However, it’s nice to find that more resource-efficient models are finding their space in the library.

  • Supported OS: Sonoma and Sequoia (14.0 and higher)
  • Recommended Hardware: M-series Macs (also works on Intel Macs)
  • Legacy Support: Monterey (2.22) and Ventura (10.9.2)

Supported Languages

  • English, Chinese, German, Spanish, Russian, Korean, French, Japanese, Portuguese,
  • Turkish, Polish, Catalan, Dutch, Arabic, Swedish, Italian, Indonesian, Hindi, Finnish,
  • Vietnamese, Hebrew, Ukrainian, Greek, Malay, Czech, Romanian, Danish, Hungarian, Tamil,
  • Norwegian, Thai, Urdu, Croatian, Bulgarian, Lithuanian, Latin, Maori, Malayalam, Welsh, Slovak,
  • Telugu, Persian, Latvian, Bengali, Serbian, Azerbaijani, Slovenian, Kannada, Estonian,
  • Macedonian, Breton, Basque, Icelandic, Armenian, Nepali, Mongolian, Bosnian,
  • Kazakh, Albanian, Swahili, Galician, Marathi, Punjabi, Sinhala, Khmer, Shona,
  • Yoruba, Somali, Afrikaans, Occitan, Georgian, Belarusian, Tajik, Sindhi, Gujarati, Amharic,
  • Yiddish, Lao, Uzbek, Faroese, Haitian Creole, Pashto, Turkmen, Nynorsk, Maltese, Sanskrit,
  • Luxembourgish, Myanmar, Tibetan, Tagalog, Malagasy, Assamese, Tatar, Hawaiian,
  • Lingala, Hausa, Bashkir, Javanese, Sundanese.

Final Words

As you might have understood, we became a fan of MacWhisper in no time.

MacWhisper is a worthy investment for people who must type a lot daily. These days, we spend half of the time than we used to for writing an article. Why? Speaking the words and editing them is much faster than thinking and typing.

Because you run the transcription models on-device, there are no privacy concerns. So, MacWhisper is a better choice for confidential material than the other transcription tools we have used.

Visit MacWhisper to start using MacWhisper and learn more.

Sign In

Register

Reset Password

Please enter your username or email address, you will receive a link to create a new password via email.