FreeWhisper - Cloud-grade dictation on macOS for free
Most open-source dictation tools on macOS run local Whisper models. They work, but let's be honest about the tradeoffs:
Proper nouns, brand names, people's names? Local models butcher them constantly
Multi-language or code-switching? Hit or miss
You need a decent GPU or accept 5-10 second wait times on a MacBook Air
You're stuck downloading and managing multi-GB models
And the results are still noticeably worse than what cloud providers deliver
The paid cloud tools solve the quality problem, but they cost $10-20/month for what is essentially an API call with a UI on top.
FreeWhisper takes a different approach: it connects directly to Gladia and Cohere, two cloud providers whose transcription models are genuinely state-of-the-art, and both happen to offer very generous free tiers:
Gladia: 10 free hours/month, real-time streaming over WebSocket (you get words as you speak, not after)
Cohere: free trial API keys with reasonable rate limits
You bring your own API key. No account with me, no middleman, no tracking. The app is just a clean native macOS bridge between your mic and these APIs.
What you get:
Press a hotkey → speak → text lands at your cursor. Sub-second latency.
Accuracy that handles proper nouns, accents, technical jargon, and mixed languages properly, because you're using production-grade models, not a quantized local checkpoint
Native menu bar app, waveform overlay, hold-to-record or toggle mode
MIT licensed, fully open source
I've been using it daily for months. The difference in accuracy compared to local Whisper is night and day, especially on names and domain-specific vocabulary. And it's genuinely free for normal usage volumes.
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