Wispr Flow is typing the wrong language: the fix on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android
By Ryleigh Newman · Published
You dictate in one language and Wispr Flow types another, or English words come out in Chinese characters. Wispr's own fix is short: select only the language you are speaking and remove the rest. Auto-detect and long language lists are what let Flow guess wrong. The steps differ on each platform, so they are all below.
I built YapToText, a different dictation app for the Mac, so read what I say about Wispr Flow with that in mind. Every fact about Wispr Flow here comes from its own help center, read on October 10, 2026.
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.
This guide in other languages: العربية, Čeština, Dansk, Deutsch, Ελληνικά, Español, Suomi, Français, עברית, हिन्दी, Magyar, Bahasa Indonesia, Italiano, 日本語, 한국어, Norsk, Nederlands, Polski, Português, Română, Русский, Slovenčina, Svenska, ไทย, Türkçe, Українська, Tiếng Việt, 简体中文, 繁體中文
On this page: 10 sections
Why it happens
Flow detects one language per dictation, not per word. The languages you select narrow what it can choose from, and selecting just one tells Flow to use that language. With Auto-detect on, Flow chooses from every language it supports, which is where a wrong guess comes from. The help center gives Chinese and English as the example: with both selected, English words can appear in Chinese characters, or the other way round.
On Mac and Windows the Flow Bar has no language picker. Dictation always uses your full saved selection, so the fix is in Settings.
Mac and Windows
- Right-click the Flow Bar and open Settings.
- In General, click Change beside Languages.
- Turn off Auto-detect in the dialog header if it is on.
- Select the language you are speaking. Search for it if it is not listed.
- Remove the other languages with the x beside each one under Selected.
- Click Save and close.
Closing the dialog any other way throws your changes away. Saving with nothing selected and Auto-detect off shows a message asking for at least one language, and the dialog stays open with your edits. If you dictate in a language your selection does not include, Flow can show a notice that asks whether you are speaking a different language, with a button that opens the language settings. It appears at most once a day.
iPhone
- Open Settings in the Flow app.
- Tap Set language under General.
- Select the language you are speaking.
- Deselect the other languages.
- Swipe the sheet down to close it.
Each tap saves at once, there is no Save button. Selecting a language turns off Auto-detect, and removing the last language turns Auto-detect back on, so the list is never empty.
Android
- Open Settings, General, Languages.
- Tap each language you do not want, to remove it.
- Tap Add more and select the language you are speaking.
- Tap Done, then Save.
Android has no Auto-detect. Done only returns you to the list, and leaving without Save discards the change. Save stays grayed out until at least one language is selected.
Languages that need a careful choice
From Wispr Flow's help articles Use Flow with multiple languages and Flow is transcribing in the wrong language, read October 10, 2026.
| Situation | What Wispr's help center says |
|---|---|
| Mixed Hindi and English | Select Hinglish itself. Auto-detect never produces Hinglish, and Hindi plus English does not give Hindi in Latin letters |
| Variants of one language | Choosing one replaces the other: English and British English, Hindi and Hinglish, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, German and Swiss German |
| Urdu, Hebrew, Ukrainian | Flow cannot recognize these from speech alone. Select only one of the three at a time |
| Hindi with Urdu, Russian with Ukrainian | Keep both if you use both. Flow checks which one you spoke first, so that dictation can take slightly longer |
| Chinese characters | Detected Chinese is Simplified unless you select the Traditional option. Cantonese is a separate option |
Fixed on the computer, still wrong on the phone
Choices from your other devices reach an iPhone only if no language was ever set on that iPhone. If you never picked one there, the help center says to sign out of Flow on iOS and sign back in, and your languages appear under Settings, General, Set language. If you already picked one on the iPhone, signing in does not overwrite it, so set it there by hand. Selections also belong to the account: another account on the same device starts from the default languages.
Still wrong with one language selected
- Check the history. The detected language shown there is the one you spoke most in that recording, so a short switch midway does not change it. Judge the text, not the label.
- Try another microphone. The help center suggests a different microphone in a quiet room.
- Report it. On Mac or Windows, open the Help menu in the Flow Hub sidebar and choose Talk to support. The report includes app logs. Say which languages are selected and what you said against what Flow typed.
How YapToText handles languages
Wispr Flow from its help center, read October 10, 2026. YapToText from its own settings.
| Wispr Flow | YapToText | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you choose | Settings, General, Languages | AI Models, Your defaults, Language |
| Default | Your selection, or Auto-detect | Your Mac's system language |
| Auto-detect | On Mac, Windows and iOS | Yes, as Auto-detect language |
| A language per task | One saved selection for all apps | Each mode can carry its own language |
| Languages | More than 100, by its help center | 29 languages in 32 locales |
A mode with its own language helps when you write in two: say a Spanish mode for one app and English everywhere else, with no list to edit between them. The bilingual dictation page covers dictating in two languages, and the Wispr Flow languages page covers its full list.
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.
The short version
- The fix. Select only the language you speak, and turn off Auto-detect.
- Mac and Windows. Settings, Languages, Change, then Save and close.
- iPhone. Settings, Set language. Each tap saves.
- Hindi and English mixed. Select Hinglish.
- Phone still wrong. Sign out and back in, or set it on the phone.
If Wispr changes these steps, open an issue on GitHub and I will update this page. Every one gets read.
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.
Related
Sources
- https://docs.wisprflow.ai/articles/5899191431-flow-is-transcribing-in-the-wrong-language (checked 2026-10-10)
- https://docs.wisprflow.ai/articles/3191899797-use-flow-with-multiple-languages (checked 2026-10-10)
- https://github.com/ryleighnewman/YapToText (checked 2026-10-10)
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/yaptotext/id6786382289 (checked 2026-10-10)
Questions
Why is Wispr Flow typing in the wrong language?
Flow picks one language per dictation from the languages you selected, or from all of them with Auto-detect. Select only the language you speak and it uses that one.
How do I change the language in Wispr Flow on a Mac?
Right-click the Flow Bar, open Settings, click Change beside Languages, turn off Auto-detect, select your language, remove the others, and click Save and close.
Why does Wispr Flow write English in Chinese characters?
With Chinese and English both selected, Flow can pick the wrong one for a dictation. Select only the language you are speaking.
How do I get Hinglish in Wispr Flow?
Select Hinglish explicitly. Auto-detect never produces it, and selecting Hindi plus English does not give Hindi in Latin letters.
Why does my iPhone still use the wrong language?
Settings from other devices apply only if you never set a language on that iPhone. Set it there under Settings, Set language, or sign out and back in if you never chose one.