Which AI dictation apps work on Windows?

Several AI dictation apps run on Windows, and they differ most in where your audio goes. Wispr Flow lists Windows among its platforms ¹, and it removes filler words and adds punctuation as you dictate ². Its audio goes to a server, which deletes it once transcribed unless you have turned on its cloud storage setting ³. Handy is a free, open-source app that runs on Windows, macOS and Linux ⁴. Claude Code's voice dictation runs on Windows too, but it streams your audio to Anthropic and works only with a Claude.ai sign-in ^{5 6}.

This answer covers the apps we could verify on Windows from their own pages. It does not cover every product, and a listed platform is not a promise that every feature works the same on every PC. The Windows dictation guide covers the built-in tools and the wider choice.

Cloud apps clean up your speech, and your audio leaves the PC

Wispr Flow is a cloud example of AI dictation on Windows. The company says it removes filler words and adds punctuation as you dictate ². Its privacy page says your audio is deleted as soon as it is transcribed, unless you have turned on Dictation cloud storage ³. So the audio does leave your PC for transcription.

Read the privacy page of any cloud app for its storage and training settings before you dictate work you must keep private.

Other cloud apps have their own storage settings, so read each app's policy. The AI dictation apps comparison sets out what we found for each app.

The cloud model has one practical cost. Your dictation depends on a connection, and the free plans have limits ⁷. Read the limits on the day you will use the app, not on the day you sign up.

Local apps keep recognition on the PC, with a trade-off

Some apps run the recognizer on your own computer. Handy is free and open source, so you can test local dictation at no cost ⁸. Expect more setup than with a commercial app, and check the model sizes against your PC's memory before you commit.

Superwhisper is another example. Its Free plan dictates with local Whisper models and no AI processing, and the company says nothing dictated leaves the device ⁹. So the Free plan gives you local recognition without the editing step. Check which plan includes the editing you want before you pay.

The trade-off is usually between privacy and editing. A local app can keep your words on the PC, but whether it also edits the draft depends on the app and the plan, so check that separately. Neither kind is the right answer for every job. The right one depends on what you dictate.

Claude Code dictation is for prompts, and it sends audio to Anthropic

Claude Code's /voice command turns speech into text for your prompt. The docs say audio is streamed to Anthropic's servers for transcription and is not processed on the computer ⁵. It is available only when you sign in with a Claude.ai account, not with an API key or a cloud provider ⁶.

The recording itself is local. Claude Code says audio recording uses a built-in native module on macOS, Linux and Windows ¹⁰. Microphone permission must also be granted on Windows, so check that before you use /voice.

If you need dictation in Word or your email client, Claude Code is not the tool, because /voice is for your prompts.

It depends on five things, and the cloud choice is the first

• Confidential or regulated text. If the audio must not leave the PC, use a local app and confirm it works with the network off. Do not rely on a policy page alone.
• Your vocabulary. Names, product codes and specialist terms are the words to test first. The custom vocabulary entry explains what to look for.
• Where you dictate. Check whether an app types into any text field or only into its own window.
• Price. Free tiers can have weekly limits. Compare the cost for 12 months, not the first month.
• Your hardware. Local models need memory and disk space. A cloud app needs a steady connection.

For the terms behind these choices, see AI dictation and cloud dictation. For a fuller comparison of the paid apps, see the AI dictation apps comparison.

What to do this week

1. Write down whether the audio you dictate may leave your PC. That answer removes half the list.
2. If it may not, start with a local app and test it with the network turned off.
3. If it may, open the privacy page of the app you are considering and find its storage and training settings. Note the default.
4. Dictate 500 words of real work with the microphone you will use every day. Count the corrections, and time the whole job.
5. Compare the free limit against your real daily use. If an app cannot handle your hardest words, the price does not matter.

Also see the best free dictation software for Windows and whether Windows dictation is good. Yap, which we make, is an on-device dictation app for Mac and Windows, so weigh our own product with the same test you would apply to any other app.