Superwhisper is the best-known dictation app for Mac power users. It is also expensive: $8.49 a month, $84.99 a year, or $249.99 for a lifetime license. If you want fast voice typing on your Mac without paying that much, Dictami is a simpler alternative at $5.99 a month or $29.99 once. This page compares the two honestly, including where Superwhisper wins.
Pick Superwhisper if you want the deepest toolbox: dozens of local and cloud models, custom prompt modes per app, meeting transcription, and one license across Mac, Windows, and iOS.
Pick Dictami if you want simple offline dictation on your Mac at a fraction of the price, with a lifetime license that costs less than four months of Superwhisper Pro.
| Dictami | Superwhisper | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $5.99 | $8.49 |
| Yearly | $71.88 (monthly x 12) | $84.99 |
| Lifetime (one-time) | $29.99 | $249.99 |
| Free trial | 7 days, no card, no account | Free tier + limited Pro trial |
| Refund window | 14 days | 30 days |
The math: Superwhisper's lifetime license pays for itself after about 29 months versus its own monthly plan. Dictami's lifetime license pays for itself after 5 months versus its own monthly plan. Dictami lifetime costs roughly one eighth of Superwhisper lifetime.
| Dictami | Superwhisper | |
|---|---|---|
| Offline dictation on Mac | Yes | Yes (local models) |
| Works in any Mac app | Yes | Yes |
| Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3) | Yes | Yes |
| Hold-to-dictate hotkey | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic punctuation | Yes | Yes (modes) |
| Custom prompt modes | No | Yes (Pro) |
| Cloud models via own API key | No | Yes (Pro) |
| Meeting transcription | No | Yes (Pro) |
| Windows / iOS apps | No (Mac only) | Yes, one license covers all |
Superwhisper pricing per superwhisper.com (Pro $8.49/mo, $84.99/yr, $249.99 lifetime), confirmed October 1, 2026. Dictami pricing per dictami.com.
Credit where it is due. Superwhisper's model catalog is the largest in the category: Whisper Tiny through Large-v3 Turbo plus Parakeet models locally, and Deepgram, ElevenLabs, or OpenAI in the cloud on Pro. Its custom modes let you set per-app prompts, so dictation into Slack reads differently from dictation into your code editor. If you dictate on Windows or iPhone too, one Superwhisper license covers everything. For that kind of power user, $249.99 lifetime is defensible.
Price and simplicity. Most people do not need thirty models and per-app prompts. They need to hold a key, speak, and get clean punctuated text in whatever app is open, without internet. Dictami does that on Apple Silicon Macs, offline, with no account and no card required to try it for 7 days. And the lifetime license is $29.99, less than four months of Superwhisper Pro monthly.
Yes. Dictami offers offline Mac dictation at $5.99 a month or $29.99 lifetime, versus Superwhisper Pro at $8.49 a month or $249.99 lifetime.
Yes. Dictami runs offline on Apple Silicon Macs, so your voice never has to leave your machine for basic dictation.
Yes. There is a 7-day free trial and it does not ask for a card or an account.
Choose Superwhisper if you need custom AI modes, cloud models, meeting transcription, or Windows and iOS support. Choose Dictami if you want affordable offline dictation on Mac with a cheap lifetime license.
No. There is a $5.99 monthly plan, but the $29.99 lifetime license has no recurring payments.
7-day trial inside the app. No card, no account.
Download Dictami