Speech-to-Text Applications

There are numerous applications and services that translate spoken speech into text for both Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS. This article provides general recommendations for speech-to-text applications.

Built-In Applications

Cortana

Cortana is a speech-recognizing digital assistant to which you can dictate text and works within Windows 10 applications.

To enable Cortana's speech recognition feature:

  1. Click the  Start Menu.
  2. Click  Settings.
  3. Click Time and Language.
  4. Click Speech in the left-side navigation pane.
  5. Click Speech, Inking and Typing Privacy Settings.
  6. Click Turn On Speech Services and Typing Suggestions to activate Cortana and speech recognition.

To use Cortana:

  1. Press the  Windows key and the H key at the same time. Cortana will appear in a small box and will begin listening.
  2. Speak into your microphone.
  3. See also Microsoft's article on how to use Cortana's dictation feature and voice recognition features.

Office 365

Office 365 offers dictation services to easily create documents, notes, presentations, and emails. View instructions on how to enable and use Office 365 dictation services from Microsoft.

Siri

Siri is a speech-recognizing digital assistant. With Siri's Voice Control feature enabled, you can navigate and interact with your Mac using just your voice.

To enable Siri's Voice Control feature:

  1. Click the  Apple menu, click System Preferences, and then click Accessibility.
  2. Click Voice Control in the sidebar.
  3. Select Enable Voice Control. 
  4. When Voice Control is enabled, you see an onscreen microphone representing the mic selected in Voice Control preferences. To pause Voice Control and stop it from listening, say ”Go to sleep” or click Sleep. To resume Voice Control, say or click ”Wake up.”

To use Siri:

  1. Click the Siri icon in the menu bar, dock, or touch bar; say "Hey Siri"; or press and hold the Command key and space bar to activate Siri.
  2. See also Apple's article on how to use Siri's Voice Control feature, which includes guides on enabling number overlays, showing grids, and dictation.

Third-Party Applications

  • Dragon is a dictation application that allows you to dictate and edit documents by voice.
  • Otter.ai offers dictation that allows you to dictate and edit documents by voice.
Print Article