Dictation with no word limit: who counts your words
By Ryleigh NewmanPublished
Most cloud dictation apps meter their free plan: so many words a week, a month, or once. The reason is cost. Every word they turn into text runs on their servers. An app that runs the speech model on your own Mac has nothing to meter, which is why the local apps tend to have no word limit at all. YapToText, the app I make, is one of those: free, with no count, no account and no paid tier. Here is how much each app gives you before it asks for money.
This app is completely free. You don't have to make an account. There are no subscriptions, no difficult downloads, and nothing is locked. Made for Apple silicon Macs. Source on GitHub.
Free allowances, side by side
Each row comes from the app's own pricing page, read on the date shown in October 2026. The linked page for each app has the detail and the source.
| App | Free use | To lift the limit | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wispr Flow | 2,000 words a week on desktop, 1,000 on a phone | Pro, $15 a month or $12 billed yearly | Oct 22 |
| Typeless | 8,000 words a week | Pro, $30 a month or $12 billed yearly | Oct 7 |
| Aqua Voice | 1,000 words | Pro, $8 a month billed yearly or $10 monthly | Oct 21 |
| LumeVoice | 3,000 words, once | Pro, $14.99 a month, $79.99 a year, $249 once | Oct 22 |
| Monologue | 1,000 words and 10 notes, as a trial | Pro, $15 a month or $144 a year | Oct 7 |
| DictaFlow | 2,000 words a month | Pro, $9 a month or $84 a year | Oct 21 |
| OpenWhispr | Local models unlimited, its cloud 2,000 words a week | Pro, $80 a year | Oct 22 |
| Willow Voice | Unlimited on its smaller model, 5 minutes at a time, 20 Scribe uses a week | Pro, $15 a month or $12 billed yearly | Oct 7 |
| superwhisper | Unlimited with local models, no AI modes | Pro, $8.49 a month | Oct 7 |
| Spokenly | Unlimited with local models | Pro for its cloud features | Oct 21 |
| Otter | 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes at a time | Pro | Oct 7 |
| YapToText | Everything, no count | None | Oct 22 |
A weekly allowance resets, a one-time allowance does not: 3,000 words once is a trial, 2,000 a week is a small plan. For a sense of scale, a page of writing is around 500 words, and the speaking speed guide has how fast people talk.
How fast an allowance runs out
Speech is fast. At about 150 words a minute, 1,000 words is under seven minutes of talking and 2,000 is about thirteen. If you dictate your email, a weekly allowance of 2,000 words can be gone by Tuesday. If dictation is how you write because typing is hard, the way it is for me, a word cap is a cap on how much you can write.
The apps with no limit, and their catch
- superwhisper and Spokenly. Unlimited on their local models. The AI features cost money.
- OpenWhispr. Unlimited local dictation, a weekly cap on its own cloud.
- Handy, FluidVoice and the other open-source apps. No limit, no account. See open-source dictation apps.
- Apple Dictation. Free and built in, with no word count, though it stops after 30 seconds without speech. The 30 second limit explains it.
- YapToText. Free, with no limit on dictation, Quick Edit, cleanup or file transcription, because all of it runs on the Mac. It needs a Mac with Apple silicon.
Related
Sources
- https://wisprflow.ai/pricing (checked 2026-10-22)
- https://lumevoice.com (checked 2026-10-22)
- https://openwhispr.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-22)
- https://github.com/ryleighnewman/YapToText (checked 2026-10-22)
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/yaptotext/id6786382289 (checked 2026-10-22)
Questions
Is there a dictation app with no word limit?
Yes. Apps that run their speech model on the Mac usually have none: YapToText, Apple Dictation, and the local models in superwhisper, Spokenly and OpenWhispr. Cloud apps such as Wispr Flow, Aqua Voice and Typeless cap their free plans.
How many free words does Wispr Flow give?
2,000 words a week on a Mac or Windows PC and 1,000 on a phone, as read on wisprflow.ai in October 2026.
Why do dictation apps limit words?
A cloud app pays for every word its servers transcribe, so the free plan is metered. An app that runs on your Mac uses your Mac to do the work, so there is nothing to meter.