# Whisper Notes review (2026): is the free plan enough? > Offline transcription for iPhone and Mac, bought once Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. Whisper Notes is an offline speech-to-text app for iPhone, iPad and Mac that transcribes recordings, imported files and meetings on the device. The Mac app sold on the vendor's website adds hold-to-talk voice typing in any app and an on-device AI assistant for summaries. - **Category:** Voice Dictation - **Made by:** Whisper Notes - **Website:** https://whispernotes.app - **Runs on:** iOS, macOS - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you use Windows or Android, as the vendor says none is planned. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, Whisper Notes has a free plan, and paid plans start at $7.99 one-time on the App Store; Mac app from the website $14 one-time. - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** Mac app from the website: Fn voice typing and Whisper Large V3 Turbo, free for 5,000 words a week. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | iPhone & iPad | $7.99 one-time, App Store purchase | Unlimited transcriptions, 100+ languages and free updates; also covers the Mac App Store build. | | Mac (website) Free | $0 for 5,000 words a week | Mac app from the website with Fn voice typing and Whisper Large V3 Turbo, capped at 5,000 words a week. | | Mac (website) license | $14 one-time | Removes the weekly word limit on the Mac app from the website. | Read from https://whispernotes.app/ on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Whisper Notes before buying. ## Ways to pay less - **One-time purchase, no subscription** (Lifetime license): The vendor sells the iPhone app for $7.99 once and the website Mac app for $14 once, with updates included. Source: https://whispernotes.app/ ## Key features - **Fully offline transcription:** Recordings and transcripts are processed on the device with Whisper and Parakeet models, and the vendor says they never leave it. - **Fn voice typing on Mac:** Hold Fn in any app, speak and release; the text appears. This comes with the Mac app from the vendor's website. - **Import files and meetings:** Transcribes imported audio and video and, on Mac, records Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls, with on-device speaker labels. - **Export options:** Exports text with timestamps, SRT subtitles or Markdown; Mac also exports VTT. - **On-device summaries:** The Mac website app can summarize a transcript and answer questions about it using a downloaded local model; iPhone uses Apple Intelligence on supported devices. - **Shortcuts actions:** iPhone exposes actions in the Shortcuts app to start or stop a recording and transcribe a file. ## Good for - Apple users who want transcription that never leaves the device - People who prefer a one-time purchase over a subscription - Interviews, lectures and meetings recorded on iPhone or Mac ## Worth knowing - Apple devices only: the vendor says there is no Windows or Android version and none is planned. - The iPhone app needs iPhone 12 or later on iOS 18; the Mac website app needs Apple silicon. - Voice typing and the AI assistant belong to the Mac app from the website, not the App Store build. - The $7.99 App Store price and the $14 Mac website license are separate purchases. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.8 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. Whisper Notes transcribes on the device, with an iPhone and iPad app at $7.99 once and a Mac app with voice typing from its website. It's Apple only, and the voice typing and assistant are not in the App Store build. - **Value for money: A.** $7.99 once on the App Store and $14 once for the Mac licence, each under a year of the category's middle subscription ($8.49 a month). - **Free plan and trial: B.** The Mac app from the website is free for 5,000 words a week. The iPhone app is a paid purchase. - **Features: C.** Offline transcription, file and meeting import, exports, on-device summaries and Shortcuts, but voice typing and the assistant belong to the website Mac app only. - **Ease of use: B.** No store rating on record. An app you install and use, with nothing to set up. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** Apple only: iPhone, iPad and Mac. The vendor says no Windows or Android version is planned. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Whisper Notes's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among voice dictation apps - Whisper Notes's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 22 of the 42 other voice dictation apps we grade, and level with 8. - It stands best on value for money (A, above 21 of 42) and worst on features (C, above 1). The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/voice-dictation ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** To replace Whisper Notes you would be making dictation that types into any app on your computer. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. It costs $7.99, paid once. - You could not: Dictation that types into any app on your computer. - You could not: A bot that joins your calls and turns the talk into notes. - You could not: Speech turned into text you can trust. - You could not: Apps for macOS and iOS that stay in step with each other. - You could not: It plugs into other products, Shortcuts, Apple Intelligence and Zoom among them. - You could not: Hooks into the device itself: Shortcuts. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with Shortcuts, Apple Intelligence, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Obsidian **Tags:** Transcription, Dictation, Works offline, One-time purchase, Local-first, Meeting notes ## Alternatives - [MacWhisper](https://toolgpa.com/tools/macwhisper): Mac transcription and dictation app that runs models locally. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/macwhisper-vs-whisper-notes) - [Superwhisper](https://toolgpa.com/tools/superwhisper): Voice-to-text app with offline models and custom AI modes. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/superwhisper-vs-whisper-notes) - [VoiceInk](https://toolgpa.com/tools/voiceink): Open-source Mac dictation with local models and a one-time price. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/voiceink-vs-whisper-notes) - [Sotto](https://toolgpa.com/tools/sotto): Mac dictation and voice assistant with local models, bought once. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/sotto-vs-whisper-notes) - [Spokenly](https://toolgpa.com/tools/spokenly): Dictation app with free local models and optional cloud accuracy. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/spokenly-vs-whisper-notes) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://whispernotes.app/ Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/whisper-notes Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).