Speech-to-text software for podcasters
Record the episode. Get the transcript. Pay nothing per minute.
Turn each recorded episode into a transcript, then dictate show notes, descriptions and posts into any app. Choose local transcription for offline work, or Cloud for high accuracy and speed without downloading models.
Open source · 80,000+ downloads
The problem with per-minute transcription
Transcription shouldn't cost more than your hosting.
A transcript and show notes are part of shipping many episodes. Many tools bill by the minute or cap usage by the month.
Paying by the minute to transcribe your own voice.
A weekly one-hour show, metered per minute, turns into a real monthly bill that never ends. OpenWhispr transcribes on your machine: unlimited hours, $0, and the Free plan is not a trial.
Show notes take longer than the episode.
You talked for an hour, then typed for two. Press a hotkey and speak the summary, the guest bio and the links straight into your host or your docs. Clean, punctuated text, at speaking speed.
Auto-captions butcher your guests' names.
A transcript that mangles your guest's name or your show's title is a correction job. Add the name to OpenWhispr's dictionary to improve how it appears in dictated notes and AI-drafted summaries.
Pulling one quote means scrubbing the whole episode.
Clips, quote graphics and newsletters all start with finding the line. With a transcript on your machine you search text, copy the quote and move on. No scrubbing.
What you get
Transcripts, show notes, summaries. No meter on any of them.
Make transcripts and show notes on your own machine in 100+ languages, without adding another monthly transcription bill.
Unlimited local transcription
Import the episode you already cut, and it is transcribed on your device with local Whisper-class models. No per-minute fees or monthly hour caps for local transcription, with nothing uploaded in local mode.
Show notes at speaking speed
Press a hotkey and speak your summary, description or newsletter straight into Notion, Buzzsprout, Substack, wherever your cursor is.
A dictionary that knows your show
Add your show's title, recurring guests and niche vocabulary to the custom dictionary. It improves how those names and terms are handled in dictation and AI-drafted notes.
Unreleased audio uploaded
None
in local mode the episode never leaves your machine
Cost per episode
$0
unlimited local transcription and dictation, every episode, forever
Transcription mode
Local or Cloud
Local runs on your device. Cloud prioritizes accuracy and speed with no model download.
How it works
A transcript and show notes before you close the editor.
Choose local transcription when you need offline work or want audio to stay on your machine. Choose Cloud for high accuracy and speed without downloading local models.
Download for free.
Mac, Windows or Linux. Pick a local model during setup.
Record or dictate.
Record a session for a local transcript, or press the hotkey and speak your show notes into any app.
Review, paste, publish.
Edit the text, paste it into your host or your docs, and ship the episode. You control all of it.
No convincing needed
10 reasons podcasters choose OpenWhispr
Transcription cost recurs with every episode. These are the practical details to compare.
Unlimited local transcription
No per-minute fees or monthly hour caps for local transcription on the Free plan.
Free for your whole show
Unlimited local dictation and transcription at $0: you, your co-host, your editor. No per-seat licence.
Dictate straight into your host
A system-wide hotkey drops clean text wherever your cursor is: Buzzsprout, Notion, Substack, YouTube Studio.
Summaries drafted, not just transcribed
Connect your own AI key, or run a local model, to turn a transcript into an episode summary or description.
A dictionary for your guests' names
Teach it the show title, recurring guests and niche terms once. The custom dictionary improves how it handles them in dictated notes and drafted summaries.
Works fully offline
Transcribe on the flight home from the conference. Local models never need a signal.
Pull quotes without scrubbing
The transcript is text on your machine. Search it, copy the line, make the clip.
Unreleased audio stays on your machine
In local mode nothing is uploaded. Embargoed interviews and unshipped episodes never touch a server.
Open source, auditable by anyone
OpenWhispr is open source under the MIT License.
100+ languages
Record in the language your audience actually speaks, transcribed locally.
Before you download
The questions podcasters ask first.
Straight answers on cost, accuracy and privacy. If yours isn't here, ask us in Discord.
What's the best speech-to-text software for podcasting?
Is it really free?
Will it get my guests' names and niche terms right?
Does it transcribe my recorded episodes, or only what I say live?
Does it work offline?
Do unreleased episodes stay private?
What users say
Built for people who'd rather talk than type.
What people say about OpenWhispr.
0
Invoices for your own words
Local transcription runs on your machine. There is no meter, no hour cap, and no bill at the end of the month.
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.
FreePopular $0No card details needed | Pro $6.67/user/mo$80/user billed annually Get unlimited Cloud transcription | Business $13.33/user/mo$160/user billed annually Start with Business | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Podcasters who want free, unlimited local transcription and are fine with a quick local setup | Podcasters who want easy cloud transcription and mobile dictation | Networks and teams producing shows at volume |
| Main reason to choose | Unlimited local transcription, with your audio staying on your machine | Unlimited cloud speech-to-text without managing local models or keys | Unlimited cloud recordings plus advanced workflow features for a team |
| 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 |
|
|
|
| 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.
Talk to us
Built in the open
Your words are the show. You shouldn't rent them back.
OpenWhispr started with a simple objection: turning your own voice into text shouldn't cost by the minute or pass through someone else's server.
We build in public on GitHub. Local transcription is not just a privacy-policy promise. It is a property of the code you can inspect.
And if anything breaks the night before an episode drops, you talk to the people who built it, in Discord.
Free · open source · local-first
Stop paying by the minute for your own voice.
Download OpenWhispr, pick a local model at setup, and your next episode gets transcribed, summarized and shipped on your own computer.
Loading...Free desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux.