Dictation for Apple-silicon Macs
Press ControlOption, say what you want written, and Saywave types it at your cursor. Transcription runs on your Mac and works in supported text fields across your apps.
No account or payment detailsmacOS 14 or later · Apple silicon
One online activation saves your free lifetime licence for this Mac using an app-specific device identifier. No audio or transcripts are sent. By downloading, you agree to the Terms and acknowledge the Privacy Policy.
How it works
Saywave lives in the menu bar, so there is no window to open. It types straight into the field and never reads or replaces your clipboard. Prefer push-to-talk? Switch to it from the menu bar and hold the keys while you speak.
An email, a note, a chat or a commit message, in any supported app.
The indicator shows your input level and a live preview.
The transcript is typed at the cursor when you finish.
Secure fields and some custom app controls may not accept automated insertion. The result then stays in History, so you can copy it yourself.
Privacy
Recording, transcription and cleanup happen on the device. Saywave goes online for three named tasks, and none of them sends your audio or transcripts.
No audio. No transcripts.
Features
Cleanup
Raw keeps the model's transcript as it is. Clean removes filler words and adjusts punctuation and capitalization on the device, in the language you spoke.
um I think we should uh ship it on friday
In Clean mode, say “new line”, “new paragraph” or “bullet point” to format as you go, in supported languages.
Speech engine
All three run on your Mac. Speed and accuracy vary with language, audio, model and hardware.
Dictionary
If Saywave keeps writing a name or term wrong, enter what it writes and the spelling you want. The fix applies on every model.
Meetings
Capture your microphone and your Mac's audio during a call, and Saywave writes a speaker-labelled transcript on your Mac. Search it, name the voices, and export it as Markdown or plain text.
Tell everyone before you record and get the consent the law requires.
Speaker 1Can we move the launch to Thursday?
Speaker 2Thursday works. I’ll update the plan.
Free licence
Every feature, free. No trial, payment card or subscription.
Version 1.10 · macOS 14 or later · Apple silicon
One online activation saves your free lifetime licence for this Mac using an app-specific device identifier. No audio or transcripts are sent. By downloading, you agree to the Terms and acknowledge the Privacy Policy.
Once activated, your free licence never expires. See the licence terms.
Speech transcription and basic cleanup run locally after the selected model downloads. Model downloads, update checks and licence activation use the internet; they do not send your audio or transcripts. AI rewriting, translation and generated summaries are not available in this release.
Apple silicon (M1 or later) running macOS 14 or later · Apple silicon. Performance varies with the selected model and available memory.
Yes. Every feature is free, with no trial, account or subscription, and once activated your licence never expires.
No account or payment details are needed. The app activates automatically online once. Your signed licence then works offline without expiry. Save a private backup using Copy licence code in Settings → License to restore it on the same Mac. Contact support for hardware replacement.
Accuracy varies by speech engine, language, microphone, background noise, speaking style, recording length, and Mac. Dictionary replacements apply after recognition on every model. Saved names with an empty left field are kept, but may not change the transcript.
With macOS Accessibility permission, Saywave types the result directly into the active text field. Dictation never reads or replaces your clipboard. Some secure, custom, or restricted fields may not accept automated insertion; the result then stays in History so you can copy it.