Wispr Flow

Turn speech into text across desktop apps using your own shortcut.

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What you need

Use a Wispr Flow account and sign in with Google, Apple, Microsoft, SSO, or email and password. Plans include Flow Basic, Flow Pro with a team variant, and Flow Enterprise. Check the official Wispr Flow pricing page for current plan details.

How to install

Go to wisprflow.ai/downloads and choose Mac with Apple Silicon, Mac with Intel, or Download for Windows.
On macOS, open the download, drag Wispr Flow into Applications and launch it from the menu bar. On Windows, run the installer and launch Wispr Flow from the Start menu; its icon appears in the system tray.
Click Sign in via browser, complete sign-in in the browser and return to the app. If the handoff times out, start it again.
Grant permissions. On macOS, click Allow on the microphone card and macOS dialog, then Allow on the accessibility card. On Windows, allow microphone access if prompted.
Finish the tutorial: test the microphone, press the keys you want for your shortcut, and choose your languages or keep auto-detect on. Setup is complete when the Flow Hub appears.

Nuances

On macOS, System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone and Accessibility must both allow Wispr Flow. Accessibility is what lets Flow insert speech into other apps.
Screen Recording is needed only for Notetaker on macOS 13 or earlier, not for normal dictation.
Supported devices run macOS 12 or later, or Windows 10 or 11 on x64. ARM Windows, Linux, iPad, virtual machines and remote desktop environments are not supported.
By default, dictation data may be used to evaluate, train and improve models. Settings > Data & Privacy > Privacy Mode turns that off. Private Cloud Sync separately controls whether transcripts are stored server-side.
Flow needs an internet connection and does not transcribe offline. All customer data is processed and stored in the United States, with GDPR covered through a DPA and EU Standard Contractual Clauses.

If it will not work

If dictation records but no text appears, recover it with Ctrl+Cmd+V on Mac or Shift+Alt+Z on Windows. On macOS, toggle Wispr Flow off and on under System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility. Test in Notes to see whether the target app is blocking paste.
If the shortcut is dead in Terminal, iTerm2, a password field or Slack on Mac, leave the password field, uncheck Terminal > Secure Keyboard Entry or quit the offending app. Hold-to-talk usually still works.
If permissions stop working after an update, quit Flow from the menu bar, toggle each permission off and on, then reopen it.
Flow does not work inside Citrix, RDP or VDI. Install it on the local machine, never inside the remote session.
If it is still blocked, tell us before the session, not on the day.

Still blocked or need company approval?Go to the IT section in the full guide

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How to install

Go to wisprflow.ai/downloads and choose Mac with Apple Silicon, Mac with Intel, or Download for Windows.

On macOS, open the download, drag Wispr Flow into Applications and launch it from the menu bar. On Windows, run the installer and launch Wispr Flow from the Start menu; its icon appears in the system tray.

Click Sign in via browser, complete sign-in in the browser and return to the app. If the handoff times out, start it again.

Grant permissions. On macOS, click Allow on the microphone card and macOS dialog, then Allow on the accessibility card. On Windows, allow microphone access if prompted.

Finish the tutorial: test the microphone, press the keys you want for your shortcut, and choose your languages or keep auto-detect on. Setup is complete when the Flow Hub appears.

Nuances

On macOS, System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone and Accessibility must both allow Wispr Flow. Accessibility is what lets Flow insert speech into other apps.

Screen Recording is needed only for Notetaker on macOS 13 or earlier, not for normal dictation.

Supported devices run macOS 12 or later, or Windows 10 or 11 on x64. ARM Windows, Linux, iPad, virtual machines and remote desktop environments are not supported.

By default, dictation data may be used to evaluate, train and improve models. Settings > Data & Privacy > Privacy Mode turns that off. Private Cloud Sync separately controls whether transcripts are stored server-side.

Flow needs an internet connection and does not transcribe offline. All customer data is processed and stored in the United States, with GDPR covered through a DPA and EU Standard Contractual Clauses.

If it will not work

If dictation records but no text appears, recover it with Ctrl+Cmd+V on Mac or Shift+Alt+Z on Windows. On macOS, toggle Wispr Flow off and on under System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility. Test in Notes to see whether the target app is blocking paste.

If the shortcut is dead in Terminal, iTerm2, a password field or Slack on Mac, leave the password field, uncheck Terminal > Secure Keyboard Entry or quit the offending app. Hold-to-talk usually still works.

If permissions stop working after an update, quit Flow from the menu bar, toggle each permission off and on, then reopen it.

Flow does not work inside Citrix, RDP or VDI. Install it on the local machine, never inside the remote session.

If it is still blocked, tell us before the session, not on the day.