Does Microsoft Teams have speech to text?

Microsoft Teams has speech to text in two places: live transcription in meetings and audio or video clips in chats. Neither one types your spoken words into a message box. To write a Teams message by voice, use the dictation that comes with your operating system, which types into whichever text box has the cursor. This page explains each case and what to do when it fails. Our full guide to voice to text in Teams, Slack and Notion covers the three apps side by side.

Live transcription turns meeting speech into text

In a meeting, Teams can transcribe what people say as they say it. When live transcription starts, every participant sees a notification that the meeting is being transcribed ¹.

This is a record of the call. It is useful for minutes or for catching up on a meeting you missed, but it does not help you draft a reply. The text goes to the meeting, not into your message.

Clips record your voice and send it as audio

The second feature is a clip, which you record from the message area. Microsoft says an audio clip runs for up to one minute ².

A clip is sent as a recording, so the person reading it hears your voice. Nothing you say is typed into your message. If you need a written reply, a clip does not solve the problem.

Microsoft's documentation describes no dictation button for Teams chat

We found no Microsoft page that describes a dictation button in the Teams chat box, as of 2026-10-17. Some vendor pages and blogs say the compose box has one. Others say it does not. Microsoft's own pages do not settle the question either way, so do not rely on a button you have not seen in your own Teams app.

The route Microsoft does document is Windows voice typing. It needs three things: a working microphone, an internet connection, and the cursor in a text box ³. It runs on online speech recognition ⁴, so your speech leaves the PC for processing.

On Windows, Win+H types into the Teams message box

1. Click in the Teams message box, so the cursor sits in the text box.
2. Press Windows key + H on a hardware keyboard ⁵.
3. Wait for the "Listening" alert, then speak.

Read the text before you send it. Names, numbers and question marks are the usual problems.

On a Mac, Dictation types anywhere you can type

Apple says that with Dictation on a Mac, you can speak to enter text anywhere you can type it ⁶. Start it with the shortcut you chose. Our guide to Dictation on a Mac has the steps. We have not tested every version of Teams on every version of macOS, so run a short test first.

When Teams dictation does nothing, check the microphone

Most failures come from the microphone rather than from Teams. Microsoft's troubleshooting starts by asking you to choose the microphone you want to use in Settings, under System, Sound, Input ⁷.

If nothing appears after you speak, Microsoft says to adjust the input level of the microphone ⁸. Check the internet connection too, since voice typing needs one ³. Test in a blank message to yourself before you rely on it in a live conversation. For the same problem in another app, see why dictation does not work in Outlook.

When the built-in tools are not enough

The built-in tools are free and work in most text boxes. They may not suit you if you need dictation with no internet connection, or if you want one tool across many apps. Yap, which we make, is an on-device dictation app for Mac and Windows. You can see what it does on the Windows page and the Mac page. Our comparison of dictation software covers the alternatives.

What to do

1. Decide what you need. Use a clip for a recording, the meeting transcript for a record of the call, and voice typing for a written message.
2. For a written message on Windows, click into the Teams compose box and press Windows key + H.
3. For a written message on a Mac, click into the compose box and use your Dictation shortcut.
4. If nothing types, check the microphone and its input level, then test again in a blank message.
5. If the built-in route does not meet your needs, test a system-wide dictation app in the same message box.

For the other two apps, read how to use voice to text in Slack and whether you can dictate in Notion. The glossary entry for voice typing explains the term Microsoft uses, and online speech recognition explains why the internet matters. Our overview of dictation in your apps links every guide on the subject.