The best way to transcribe voice/speech to text on my mac?

Here are some top options and tips to help you on your transcription voice to text:

1. Built-in Voice Typing (Dictation):

How to Access: Go to System Preferences > Keyboard > Dictation and turn it on. You can use it with any text input field.

Usage: Press the Fn key (or the Control key twice, depending on your settings) to start dictation.

Notes: This is a simple and effective built-in option, but ensure you're in a quiet environment for better accuracy.

2. Google Docs Voice Typing:

How to Use: To transcription voice to text. Open Google Docs in Chrome, go to Tools > Voice Typing, and click the microphone icon.

Notes: This requires a Google account, and a good internet connection, but it's quite accurate and free.

Before you transcribe speech to text on Mac. If the audio is muffled or has a lot of background noise, forget about it! It’ll mess everything up. Try to find a quiet spot or use a decent microphone. Your Mac’s built-in mic isn’t the best friend for this. And if you're going too fast, the transcription app or tool will struggle to keep up. Slow it down a bit, especially if you're using automatic transcription software. Trust me, taking a breath between points makes a world of difference.

When you transcribe speech to text. Use clear and specific language. Slang or vague terms can totally trip up the software. If you want it to understand "binge-watch," make sure to use clear phrases that it’s likely to get right. Don’t just hit “save” and call it a day! Go back and read through the transcription. You’ll be surprised at how many little errors crop up—like names spelled wrong or totally bizarre word swaps.

Dictation comes with macOS, which is completely free and requires no additional software. It converts speech to text in real time, supports multiple languages, and works with Notes, TextEdit, etc. With macOS native interface, seamless integration and clear microphone icon, it can transcribe speech to text in real time with a delay of less than 1 second.

First, tap Apple menu > System Settings, go to Keyboard > Dictation, turn on the dictation switch, tap Enable to confirm, and select the language.

Make sure the microphone is connected. In System Settings > Sound > Input, select Microphone and adjust the input volume.

Next, open Memo, Text Editor, or any app that requires transcription, and place the cursor in the text input area.

Then press the dictation shortcut and when you see the microphone icon, clearly say

Example: “Hello, this is a test”.

Pause and tap Done to check the accuracy of the transcribed text. Tap File > Save in the text editor to save the document.

Finally, open the saved file and confirm that the text is correct.

This is the free way to let you convert voice to text on Mac!

Audacity combined with Whisper.cpp, two completely free open source tools with no paid version, can be used to record voice and then use Whisper.cpp to transcribe voice to text without the need for the Internet, especially for long or offline scenarios.

Step 1. Open Audacity, select Microphone from the drop-down menu next to the microphone icon, click the red Record button, and speak clearly (e.g., “Test Speech to Text”). Tap Stop, then click File > Export > Export to WAV in order and save it to the folder you want.

Step 2. Tap Applications>Utilities>Terminal in that order. Navigate to the Whisper folder and type 'cd ~/Desktop/whisper.cpp' in Terminal. To download the models (tiny models are recommended for faster speeds), type.

. /models/download-ggml-model.sh tiny

Step 3. Run Whisper.cpp to transcribe audio/speech to text.

 . /main -m models/ggml-tiny.bin -f ~/Desktop/audio.wav -o txt 

Save the transcribed text as ~/Desktop/audio.txt. Finally, open audio.txt in a text editor and check the accuracy of the transcription.

Dictate messages and documents on Mac - Apple Support (CA)