How do you dictate an email on iPhone?

To dictate an email on iPhone, open a new message in Mail, tap in the body, tap the microphone key on the keyboard, and speak. Email needs no special setup, because Dictation works in any text field on iPhone once it is switched on. The main work is checking the draft before you send it, because speech can produce errors that a quick read misses.

Dictation works in any text field, so email needs no special setup

On iPhone, Dictation lets you dictate text anywhere you can type it ¹. Email is one of those places. You place the insertion point in the body, tap the onscreen keyboard or the field where the microphone key appears, and begin to speak ². If the key is missing, Dictation is not switched on yet. The switch in the Settings app is the first thing to check.

The subject line and recipient fields work the same way, but a name or an address is the riskiest thing to dictate. Type those by hand, or check them carefully before you send.

Let the phone add commas and periods, and say the rest

In supported languages, Dictation inserts commas, periods and question marks as you speak ³. You do not need to say them. To start a new paragraph in the message, say "new paragraph", and "new line" adds a single line break ⁴. For a fuller list of marks and where the automatic ones go wrong, see how to dictate punctuation on iPhone and the spoken punctuation entry.

Speaking a reply is faster, but it leaves more errors in the final text

In a 2018 controlled study on an iPhone 6 Plus, speech reached 153 words per minute in English, against 52 words per minute on the keyboard. The gap was real, and it is the reason dictation suits long replies ⁵. Speaking the example 1,200 words of replies a day takes about 7.8 minutes at that rate, against about 23.1 minutes typed at the keyboard rate. Our calculation puts the saving at about 15.2 minutes a day ⁶.

The same study found that speech left more errors in the final text. The uncorrected error rate was 1.30 percent for speech, against 0.79 percent for the keyboard ⁷. Those numbers come from short phrases in a quiet room, so treat them as a guide. Read the draft before you send it, most of all where it contains names, dates or figures. Our guide to dictation on iPhone gives the speed figures in more detail.

Dictating through AirPods depends on the Bluetooth microphone mode

If you speak through AirPods, the microphone is part of a Bluetooth connection. Apple says Bluetooth has two modes, and the second is the one used for speaking through the microphone while also listening to audio ⁸. Our sources do not give separate Apple steps for dictating into Mail with AirPods on iPhone, so test the setup on your own phone before you rely on it in a meeting or on a walk.

What to do when you dictate an email

1. Open Mail, start a new message, and add the recipient and subject.
2. Tap in the body where the text should begin.
3. Tap the microphone key on the keyboard, then speak in full sentences.
4. Say "new paragraph" where you want a break, and tap the key again to stop.
5. Fix errors by touch. Voice editing commands are not required for this.
6. Read the whole message, check names and figures, and then send.

The guide to iPhone dictation covers the switch, the microphone key and the offline behavior. For the same steps on notes, see how to dictate notes on iPhone. The overview of dictation on phones and tablets lists every guide on the subject.