Aqua Voice vs Superwhisper

Aqua Voice

• Developers dictating prompts into Cursor, Claude Code or a terminal
• Writing long messages and documents by voice on Mac or Windows
• Teams that need SSO, SCIM and Zero Data Retention

Superwhisper

• People who want dictation that runs on-device and offline
• Buyers who prefer a one-time license to a subscription
• Users who want to choose their own voice and language models

Aqua Voice

• The free allowance is a one-time 1,000 words; continued use needs a paid plan.
• Audio is processed in the cloud, and cloud dictation needs an internet connection.
• Realtime Mode and the Send It command need Max or Business, and Android is waitlist-only.
• Subscribing inside the iPhone app costs more: the App Store lists Pro at $12.99 a month or $119 a year.

Superwhisper

• AI-powered modes, cloud voice models, file transcription and speaker separation all need Pro.
• The Free plan is limited to 2 modes, and those run without AI processing.
• Cloud voice models send audio to hosted servers; only the local models keep audio on the device.
• A Linux version is listed as coming soon and is not yet available.

Aqua Voice

Dictation in any text field

Hold Fn on Mac or Alt on Windows, speak, and release to insert text at the cursor system-wide, with no per-app setup or browser extension. 49 dictation languages, with auto-detect.

Avalon speech model

Dictation runs on Avalon, a speech-recognition model the company trained on how people talk to computers: prompts, code and email. A language model then cleans up and formats the output.

Deep Context

An optional setting, off by default, that reads what is on screen so names, code identifiers and technical terms are transcribed correctly.

Edit Mode

Select text in any Mac or Windows app, hold the Aqua key and say the change, and the selection is rewritten in place. It is included for every desktop user.

Realtime Mode and Send It

On Max, words appear as you speak, and ending a hands-free dictation with "send it" inserts the message and presses Return for you.

Dictionary, Replacements and instructions

Teach it names and technical terms, expand short spoken phrases into longer text, and set plain-language style rules with Custom Instructions, which start on Pro.

Superwhisper

Dictation in any app

Speak and have the text typed into whatever app is in front of you, such as Slack, Gmail, Notion or a code editor. More than 100 languages and dialects are supported.

Local models that work offline

Whisper models run entirely on your device and are free to use without limits, so dictation works with no connection and audio is not uploaded.

Cloud voice models on Pro

Pro adds hosted voice models such as S1-Voice, Nova and Scribe, along with real-time transcription. With these models audio is sent to hosted servers.

Modes

A mode sets how speech is processed, from plain transcription to AI modes that rewrite it for a context such as email. Free allows 2 modes without AI; Pro is unlimited.

Meetings and file transcription

Records meetings and produces notes, and Pro adds system audio recording, speaker separation and transcription of audio or video files.

Custom vocabulary

Add names and terms the models tend to get wrong, plus text replacements. Both are included on the Free plan.

Aqua Voice

• Free$0

  A one-time allowance of 1,000 words with the Avalon transcription model. No credit card required.

• Pro$8

  per month, billed annually ($96), or $10 billed monthly

  Unlimited words, Custom Instructions and an expanded custom dictionary.

• Max$24

  per month, billed annually, or $30 billed monthly

  Everything in Pro, plus Realtime Mode that shows words as you speak, the "Send it" voice command and early access to new features.

• Business$19

  per seat / month, billed annually ($228), or $24 billed monthly

  Everything in Max, plus centralized billing, SSO/SAML and SCIM, advanced reporting, Zero Data Retention and team dictionaries. 2-seat minimum.

Superwhisper

• Free$0

  Unlimited dictation with local Whisper models, custom vocabulary, text replacements and up to 2 modes.

• Pro$8.49

  per month, or $84.99 per year

  Cloud voice models, AI-powered modes, unlimited modes, file transcription, system audio recording and speaker separation.

• Pro Lifetime$249.99

  one-time payment

  The same Pro features as the subscription, paid once. One license covers Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Seat-based licensing with SSO and centralized deployment for teams.

Aqua Voice

• Annual discount

  About 20% less with annual billing

  Pro is $8 a month billed annually against $10 month-to-month, and Max is $24 against $30. Business is $19 a seat against $24.

• Education

  70% off Pro and Max for students

  Signing up with a school email address (.edu or academic domains such as .ac.uk) gives 70% off: Pro from $2.40 a month and Max from $7.20 a month, both billed annually.

• Other savings

  Volume discounts above 20 users

  The pricing page invites teams with more than 20 users to contact Aqua for volume discounts and billing by active user.

Superwhisper

• Annual discount

  About 17% less with the yearly plan

  Pro costs $84.99 a year against $8.49 a month, which Superwhisper describes as a saving of about 17%.

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Pro license for $249.99

  A one-time payment of $249.99 buys Pro for life, with the same features as the subscription. All individual plans have a 30-day refund window.

• Education

  40% off for students and educators

  Verified students, faculty and academic institutions get 40% off list price. The discount is requested by email from an institutional address before purchasing.

• Nonprofit

  40% off for nonprofits

  Verified non-profit and charitable organizations get 40% off list price, requested by email before purchasing.