Verba vs the rest, the Mac dictation that doesn't just type, it acts
An honest, sourced comparison across 24 features. Verba is the only Mac dictation app that runs on-device by default, lets you bring your own AI (or your Claude plan with no key), and ships JARVIS, a voice agent that acts on 1,000+ connected apps. Every value below is verified from each vendor; nothing inflated.
| Feature | Verba$9.99/mo | Wispr Flow$15/mo (monthly); $12/mo billed annually | superwhisper$8.49 to $8.99/mo (Pro; ~$84.99/yr; $249.99 lifetime) | Aqua Voice$8/mo (annual) / $10/mo (monthly) | MacWhisperNo monthly plan on Gumroad (one-time €59/$99 lifetime); App Store "Whisper Transcription" subscription ~$6.99/mo (or $29.99/yr); optional Assistant add-on $9.99/mo | Willow Voice$15/mo (monthly) or $12/mo billed annually (Individual); free plan 2,000 words/week | VoiceInk$0/mo (no subscription; one-time lifetime $25-$49) | TalkTasticFree during beta (no public paid monthly price verified) | Apple Dictation$0 (free, built into macOS/iOS) | Otter.ai$16.99/mo (Pro monthly; free Basic tier, $8.33/mo billed annually) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On-device/offline transcription | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ~ partial | ✓ | ✓device Whisper; audio | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cloud transcription | ✓optional, BYOK OpenAI | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ partial | ✓cloud-first AI dictati | ~ partial | ~ partial | ~ partial | ✓ |
| Type-anywhere (auto-paste at cursor) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓works in any text fiel | ✓ | ✓pastes appropriate tra | ✓ | ✗ |
| AI rewriting/cleanup of the transcript | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓auto fixes grammar/pun | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ~ partial |
| Multiple editable rewrite modes/prompts | ✓6 built-in dictation m | ~ partial | ✓ | ~ partial | ✓ | , | ✓ | ~ partial | ✗ | ~ partial |
| Reads your screen (vision/context) | ✓Context mode | ~ partial | , | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ partial | ✓time screenshot of the | ✗ | ✗ |
| Live translation to a target language | ✓Translate mode | ~ partial | ~ partial | ✗ | ~ partial | , | , | , | ✗ | ~ partial |
| Bring-your-own AI key (BYOK) | ✓API key or OpenRouter | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | , | ✗ | ✗ |
| Use your Claude subscription with no API key | ✓Claude Code (Max/Pro) | ✗ | , | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | , | ✗ | ✗ |
| Local model for rewriting | ✓fully offline, can aut | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | no/unknown (only on-devi | ✗ | ✗ |
| Voice agent that ACTS on connected apps | ✓speak an intent, serve | ✗ | ~ partial | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ partial | , | ✗ | ~ partial |
| Number of connected third-party apps | 989 in catalog (site mar | 0 (works in any app, but | 30+ | 0 (no app-action integra | none (no app-action inte | , | , | ~8 named integrations (A | 0 (no app integrations) | ~12 native (Zoom, Meet, |
| Voice task manager / to-dos | ✓to-dos with deadline r | ✗ | no/unknown | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | , | ✗ | ~ partial |
| Long structured notes | ✓10 note formats (Clean | ~ partial | , | , | ~ partial | ~ partial | , | ~ partial | ✗ | ✓ |
| Per-app tone/mode auto-matching | ✓modes auto-select when | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓smart writing-style me | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Custom vocabulary/dictionary | ✓persisted DictTerm lis | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓user-editable dictiona | ✓ | , | ✗ | ✓ |
| Mac native menu-bar app | ✓native Swift, Apple Si | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓native Mac app (hotkey | ✓ | ✓bar app; requires macO | ~ partial | ~ partial |
| Windows app | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| iOS/Android app | ✗ | ✓ | iOS yes, Android no | ~ partial | ~ partial | ✓iOS + Android apps | ~ partial | ✗ | ~ partial | ✓ |
| Gamification/achievements | ✓XP/levels, daily goal, | ✗ | no/unknown | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | , | , | ✗ | ✗ |
| Number of UI languages | 15 | , | , | , | , | , | , | , | 40+ dictation languages/ | , |
| One-time purchase option | ✓$149 lifetime (Founder's) | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | , | ✗ | ✗ |
| Privacy: audio never uploaded by default | ✓on-device (Parakeet/Wh | ✗ | ~ partial | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓device Whisper; 'the a | ~ partial | ✗ |
| Price per month | $9.99/mo (or $84/year; $149 lifetime; unlimited raw free) | $15/mo (Pro monthly); $1 | $8.49 to $8.99/mo (Pro) | $8/mo billed annually ($ | ✗ | $15/mo monthly, or $12/m | $0/mo, one-time lifetim | Free during beta; no ver | $0 (free, included with | $0 Basic (free), $16.99 |
Verified mid-2026 from each vendor's site, pricing page and public reviews. Found an error? Tell us and we'll fix it, this table stays honest.
Head-to-head
Verba vs Wispr Flow
The cloud incumbent everyone compares to, polished, but it uploads everything.
Compare →Verba vs TalkTastic
AI dictation for Mac power users, free while it's in beta.
Compare →Verba vs Superwhisper
Local-capable and loved, but it writes your audio to disk by default.
Compare →Verba vs MacWhisper
A great local transcription utility, but it's file-first, not type-anywhere.
Compare →Verba vs Aqua Voice
Sharp natural-language editing, at the cost of being cloud-only.
Compare →Verba vs Willow Voice
Style-matching done well, but offline is opt-in and it's cloud by default.
Compare →Verba vs VoiceInk
Open-source and private, but you're on your own for the AI-writing polish.
Compare →Verba vs Apple Dictation
Free and built in, but there's no AI cleanup at all.
Compare →Verba vs Otter.ai
Built for meeting notes, not for typing into the app you're in.
Compare →Unlimited raw dictation free forever · Pro $9.99/mo · cancel anytime