Dictation software for ABA therapists & RBTs
Dictate ABA session notes while the details are fresh.
Dictate ABC observations, interventions, client response and goal progress while the session is still fresh. Review the text, then paste it into your existing record system. Choose Cloud for speed or local processing for sensitive and offline work.
Open source · 80,000+ downloads
What slows a session note
The session is still fresh. Typing the note is the delay.
You need clean dictation between clients, a practical mode for sensitive behavioral data, and a plan that fits your caseload.
A stranger transcribing behavioral data.
Traditional dictation services send the recording to a third party, so someone you've never met hears details about a child's behavior. Choose local processing and OpenWhispr transcribes on your own device instead, so no one else is in the loop.
Sensitive client data needs a deliberate path.
Choose local transcription when the session covers sensitive behavioral or health details, or you're between locations without signal. Your device processes the recording, so documentation continues wherever the session happens.
Typing is minutes you don't have between clients.
Typing an ABC note eats into your break, or pushes you late into the next session. OpenWhispr drafts it from your dictation while it's fresh, so you review and paste instead of type.
The quickest route should still be dependable.
When speed and consistent performance matter most, Cloud avoids a local model download and transcribes with audio discarded immediately after transcription.
What you get
Faster notes. Choose the mode that fits the session.
Get the note out while the session is fresh. Use Cloud for fast, consistent transcription or local processing for sensitive client data.
Cloud transcription without a local model download
Dictate an ABC note, progress update or session summary into your mic. Cloud gives you top accuracy and speed with consistent performance across hardware, then discards the transcription audio immediately.
Local processing for sensitive client data
Choose a local model when a session touches details about a client's behavior or health you'd rather keep off a server, or you're documenting offline between locations. You review the drafted note before it goes into the client's file.
Dictation wherever your cursor is
Press a hotkey and dictate straight into CentralReach, Rethink or your EHR. Clean, punctuated text lands where you are already working.
Client data sent to us
None
in local mode, transcription never leaves your device
Cost per RBT or BCBA
$0
unlimited local dictation, the whole caseload, forever
Free Cloud allowance
2,000 words
per week, alongside unlimited local dictation
How it works
A session note drafted before the next client walks in.
Start free, choose Cloud for the quickest high-performance setup or local for sensitive client data, then get the note drafted before the next session.
Download for free.
Mac, Windows or Linux. Choose Cloud for no local model download or local for sensitive client data.
Dictate the note.
Speak the ABC data, goal progress and session summary, and it's transcribed in whichever mode you chose: on your device, or via Cloud.
Review, paste, delete.
Edit the draft, paste it into CentralReach or your EHR, and delete the audio. You control all of it.
No convincing needed
10 reasons ABA therapists choose OpenWhispr
Choosing a dictation tool is a confidentiality decision before it's anything else. Here are the facts, and your compliance team can verify every one in the repo.
In local mode, audio never leaves your device
Choose local processing and there's no upload step: dictation and drafts are handled entirely on your machine.
Free for the whole caseload
Unlimited local dictation at $0, every RBT and BCBA, forever. No per-seat licence to renew.
In local mode, nothing goes to a third-party transcriber
Choose local processing and no outsourced service ever hears the file. The dictation stays between you and your machine.
Works fully offline
A client's home, the car, a hallway with no wifi. No signal required, so it never stalls mid-dictation.
Dictate into CentralReach or any EHR
A system-wide hotkey drops clean text wherever your cursor is: CentralReach, Rethink, WebABA, an email.
Optional AI formatting for your draft
Create a custom Note Action to format dictated details into an ABC-style draft, then verify every field against the session record before filing it.
You control storage and deletion
Local transcription processes dictation on your machine. Sync, Cloud transcription and connected AI providers use separate data paths, so choose them according to your practice's requirements.
Open source, auditable by anyone
Your compliance or IT team can read every line on GitHub. No faith required.
Handles ABA terminology
Add ABC, MO, SIB, FBA, program names and practice-specific acronyms to the custom dictionary for better transcription.
99 languages, even offline
The local Whisper model alone covers 99 languages, so you can document sessions in the language your team actually speaks with no internet required.
Before you download
The questions ABA therapists ask first.
Straight answers on confidentiality, cost and accuracy. If yours isn't here, ask us in Discord.
Does the audio ever leave my device?
Is this appropriate for confidential client behavioral data?
Can it handle ABA terminology and acronyms?
Will it work between sessions with no signal?
Does it draft the note, or replace my ABA record system?
Is it actually free?
What users say
Built by people who don't want to be recorded either.
From our Discord, GitHub and inboxes, the same instinct that matters when a client's records are on the line.
0
Confidential client files on a server
In local mode the audio never leaves your device. Nothing is stored on a server, and nothing is sent to a transcriber.
Started using OpenWhispr with my local models and hardware. I have to say, this is better than typing.
I switched to voice input for my Claude Code chats. Even when I stumble and rephrase mid-sentence, the transcription comes out clean and polished.
I needed a local model for when I'm travelling or have no WiFi, and this perfectly solves it. The UI and performance are great.
Pricing
Free forever.
Upgrade when you want more.
Free $0No card details needed | Pro $6.67/user/mo$80/user billed annually Start with Pro | BusinessMost Popular $13.33/user/mo$160/user billed annually Start with Business | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | RBTs and BCBAs who want a useful free start with local dictation and limited Cloud transcription | RBTs and BCBAs who want unlimited Cloud transcription plus mobile, sync, and API/MCP access | ABA practices documenting at volume with Agent mode and chat over data |
| Main reason to choose | Useful Free access, including local dictation and limited Cloud transcription | Unlimited Cloud transcription plus mobile, sync, and API/MCP access | Unlimited meeting recordings plus Agent mode and chat over data |
| Offline speech-to-textOffline speech-to-text runs entirely on your own device, it works without internet connection, and it's unlimited and free. | Included | Included | Included |
| Cloud speech-to-textCloud speech-to-text sends audio to OpenWhispr Cloud for the highest accuracy and speed, with no local models to download. | 2,000 words/week via OpenWhispr Cloud, or unlimited using your own API keys | Unlimited OpenWhispr Cloud speech-to-text | Unlimited OpenWhispr Cloud speech-to-text |
| Meeting recordings | 5 hours/month | 20 hours/month | Unlimited |
| Privacy & data handling | Offline audio stays on your device. Cloud audio is sent only to transcribe it, then never stored. | Offline audio stays on your device. Cloud audio is sent only to transcribe it, then never stored. | Offline audio stays on your device. Cloud audio is sent only to transcribe it, then never stored. |
| Setup experience | Hands-on: install app, choose local models, optionally add API keys | Easy: install app, upgrade, use unlimited cloud speech-to-text | Moderate: configure users, Agent mode, and data workflows |
| Advanced features |
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| Team management | None | None | Basic team / workflow use |
| Support | Community support | Email support | Priority support |
Need SSO, compliance features, admin controls, or dedicated support for a larger team?
We also offer a custom Enterprise plan with managed onboarding and tailored features.
Talk to us
Built in the open
Some conversations are confidential. We built for those.
OpenWhispr started with a simple objection: the notes that describe a client's most sensitive moments shouldn't have to pass through a stranger's server to become documentation.
We build in public. The repository has thousands of stars and hundreds of forks, and anyone at your practice can inspect the code. In local mode, dictation is processed on your machine.
And if anything breaks, you talk to the people who built it, in Discord.
Free · open source · Cloud or local
Dictate the details. Review the ABA session note.
Download OpenWhispr, dictate while the session is fresh, and review the text before pasting it into your existing record system.
Loading...Free on Mac, Windows & Linux. Community support is available in Discord.