Vibe vs Whispering (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Vibe and Whispering share a 2.8 GPA, both are free, so the choice depends on which platforms you need.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Vibe
Free open-source desktop app that transcribes audio offline
Free
Whispering
Open-source dictation app that uses your own models or API keys
Free
Which one is for you
Pick Vibe if
- Fits if you want to transcribe recordings or meetings on your own computer
- Works for people who'd rather their audio never left the machine
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to dictate straight into other apps, since this is a transcription app
- Not for you if you want a phone or web version, as it's desktop only
- Watch out: summaries through Claude need your own connection to that service; Ollama keeps them local
- Watch out: pull requests are limited to a few collaborators, per the README
Pick Whispering if
- Fits if you want dictation software whose code you can read for yourself
- Works for people who already have a Groq or OpenAI key and would rather pay the provider directly
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if API keys sound like homework, because cloud transcription needs your own
- Not for you if you record long sessions, as the site itself suggests a dedicated recording app
- Tight if you're on Windows and want local transcription in a language other than English
- Watch out: the Mac download is Apple Silicon only, and there's no phone app
- Watch out: the browser version has no system-wide shortcuts, and the hosted web build is no longer republished
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAVibeGood | 2.8GPAWhisperingGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree to download and run, with no paid tier. A program anyone can download counts as free. | AFree and open source under the AGPL-3.0 license, against a category that mostly wants about $8 a month. Local transcription costs nothing at all, and cloud use is billed by the provider on your own key, with the site quoting Groq at $0.02 to $0.04 an hour of audio. |
| Free plan and trial | ANothing is locked: it's free and open source, and it runs offline. | AThe full desktop app is free with no paid tier above it and nothing held back. Stick to the bundled local engines and you never pay anyone a penny, and Groq has a free tier if you do want the cloud. |
| Features | COffline transcription from files, microphone and system audio, several models, summaries, speakers, export formats, a CLI and an HTTP API. It does not type into other apps, which is what dictation tools do. | CThe basics plus a pick-your-own-engine twist: shortcut or voice-activated recording, local Parakeet, Moonshine and Whisper C++, and chained AI steps to fix grammar or translate. The gaps are in the listing, though: Windows local use is English-only, and it's built for short bursts, not long sessions. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You install it and choose a model, and summaries need a connection to Ollama or Claude. | CNo rating on record, and this one asks something of you. Anything beyond the bundled local engines means signing up with Groq, OpenAI or ElevenLabs and pasting in API keys, and the Mac download is Apple Silicon only. |
| Platforms and integrations | CDesktop only: macOS, Windows and Linux. No web, iOS or Android app. | CA computer program, in the end: Mac, Windows and Linux, with no phone app, and the README says the hosted web build is no longer republished. What it does connect to is providers, Groq, OpenAI, ElevenLabs, Anthropic, Gemini, Ollama and LM Studio, rather than apps you use. |
| Best for | free offline transcription of files and audio | open-source dictation on your own API keys |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Vibe and Whispering. How we grade
Price against what you get
Vibe has no paid plan and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Whispering has no paid plan and scores 2.0.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other voice dictation apps on the chart, none scores higher than Vibe for less, and none scores higher than Whispering for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Vibe also covers transcription.
In commonFree planmacOSWindowsLinuxOpen sourceWorks offlineLocal-firstDictation
At a glance
| Vibe | Whispering | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | None | The app is free and open source under the AGPL-3.0 license. Local transcription costs nothing; cloud transcription is billed by the provider whose API key you add. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | thewh1teagle | Epicenter |
| Price read from | github.com | epicenter.so |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Vibe
- It is a transcription app, not a system-wide dictation tool that types into other apps.
- Desktop only: macOS, Windows and Linux are listed, with no web, iOS or Android app.
- Summaries through the Claude API need your own connection to that service; Ollama keeps them local.
- Pull requests are limited to a few collaborators, per the repository's README.
Whispering
- Cloud transcription and AI transformations need your own provider API keys, and the provider bills the usage.
- The macOS download is for Apple Silicon only, and Windows builds include just the English-only Parakeet engine for local transcription.
- It is built for short dictation; the site suggests a dedicated recording app for long sessions.
- The browser version has no system-wide shortcuts, and the project's README on GitHub says the hosted web build is no longer being republished.
Key features
Vibe
- Offline transcription
- The README says transcription is fully offline and that no data leaves your device.
- Several local models
- Supports Whisper, Nemotron 3.5 and Parakeet TDT v3 models, with custom models addable in settings.
- Files, microphone and system audio
- Transcribes audio and video files in batches, microphone input and system audio, with a realtime preview.
- Export formats
- Saves transcripts as SRT, VTT, TXT, HTML, PDF, JSON or DOCX, and can translate to English.
- Summaries and speakers
- Speaker diarization is built in; summaries use the Claude API or a local Ollama model.
- CLI and HTTP API
- A command-line interface and an HTTP API with Swagger docs let scripts drive transcription.
Whispering
- Shortcut-driven dictation
- Press a keyboard shortcut, speak, and the text is copied and pasted where the cursor is. The recording shortcut can be changed in settings.
- Voice-activated mode
- With voice activity detection turned on, recording starts when you begin speaking and stops after a short pause, so no key has to be held.
- Cloud providers with your own keys
- Audio goes straight from the device to Groq, OpenAI or ElevenLabs under your own API key, with no Whispering server in between. Groq also has a free tier.
- Local transcription engines
- Version 7.11.0 bundles Parakeet, Moonshine and Whisper C++ for on-device transcription, with Whisper C++ covering 65 languages. Speaches, a local transcription service, is also supported.
- AI transformations
- Chain steps that send the transcript to a model from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini, Groq or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint, or run find-and-replace, to fix grammar, translate or summarize.
- Recordings stored on the device
- Recordings, transcripts and transformation settings are kept locally. Anonymized usage analytics are collected through Aptabase and can be switched off in settings.
Plans
Vibe
Free$0
Open-source app under the MIT license; no paid plan is listed.
Whispering
Whispering$0
The full desktop and browser app. Cloud providers bill usage to your own API key: the site lists Groq at $0.02 to $0.04 per hour of audio.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Vibe or Whispering?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Vibe and Whispering are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Vibe or Whispering?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Vibe and Whispering have a free plan.
Which platforms do Vibe and Whispering run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Whispering lists a web app. Both list macOS, Windows and Linux apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.