Dictation.io vs Voice Notebook (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Dictation.io if

• Fits if you want to dictate into a browser tab without installing anything
• Works for people who dictate a note now and then

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want to dictate into other apps, since it only types into its own page
• Not for you if you use an iPhone or iPad, as the FAQ says it isn't compatible
• Watch out: it needs the internet because recognition runs on Google's servers
• Too light for bigger jobs: one tab at a time, and no file transcription

Pick Voice Notebook if

• Fits if you want free voice typing on a phone as well as in Chrome
• Works for people transcribing audio or video files without paying

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you don't use Chrome, as the web version works there only
• Watch out: the footer copyright reads 2011-2016, so it looks lightly maintained
• Not for you if you want offline dictation on anything but Android
• Tight if you want to save: saving texts and commands needs a registration
• Watch out: the iOS app shows ads, and iOS Premium is $5.99 with no period stated

Dictation.io

• Needs Google Chrome on Windows, Mac or Linux; the FAQ says it is not compatible with iPhone or iPad.
• It does not work offline, because speech recognition happens on Google's servers.
• Only one browser tab can use speech recognition at a time.
• It is a single dictation page, with no apps, file transcription or account features.

Voice Notebook

• The web version works only in Chrome.
• Saving texts, voice commands and custom languages needs a free registration.
• Offline dictation is described only for the Android app, with lower accuracy, and needs language packs.
• The site's footer copyright line reads 2011 to 2016, so it looks lightly maintained.

Dictation.io

Real-time dictation

Speech is converted to text as you talk, ready to edit in the page, using Google's speech recognition engine.

Many languages

The languages page lists dozens of supported languages, including English, Spanish, French, Hindi, Arabic, Japanese and Korean.

Voice commands

Say a command to add a new line, punctuation or a smiley, with command lists published per language.

Local storage

Text is stored in your browser, and the site says nothing is uploaded other than the speech sent to Google for recognition.

Optional publishing

A Publish button posts your text as a GitHub Gist with a secret URL that anyone who has the link can open.

Voice Notebook

Voice typing in Chrome

Press Start recording and speak; buttons insert punctuation, change letter case and undo the last sentence.

Audio and video transcription

It can transcribe a file from your computer, an HTML5 audio or video URL, or a YouTube clip.

Dictate into any site or app

A Chrome extension types into text fields on any site, and integration modules do the same in applications on Windows, Mac and Linux.

Voice commands and custom terms

Registered users can set voice commands, add custom languages and keep a table that maps spoken phrases to replacement text.

Phone apps

Android and iOS apps handle dictation and file transcription; the Android app can work offline once language packs are installed.

About 50 languages

The language menu lists roughly 50 speech languages, from Afrikaans to Vietnamese.

Dictation.io

• Free$0

  The vendor describes Dictation as a free online speech recognition tool; no paid plan is listed.

Voice Notebook

• Free$0

  Web dictation and audio transcription, plus the free phone apps. The iOS app shows ads and caps transcribed file length.

• iOS Premium$5.99

  in-app purchase; the listing does not show a billing period

  Removes ads, adds a no-sleep switch and Bluetooth support, lifts the transcribed file length limit and unlocks the dictionary Open button.