Where is dictation in iPhone settings?

Dictation is in the Settings app, under General, then Keyboard. Turn on Enable Dictation there, and the microphone key appears on the keyboard. The same screen holds the keyboards you add for other languages, so it is the place to check if Dictation does not respond in a language you need. The menu names below follow Apple's guide for iOS 27.

Open Settings, then General, then Keyboard

Dictation has one master switch, and Apple's steps put it in the keyboard settings. Open Settings, tap General, then tap Keyboard, and turn on Enable Dictation. If a prompt appears, tap Enable Dictation to confirm ¹.

To turn Dictation off, return to the same screen and turn off Enable Dictation ². The question on turning off dictation on iPhone covers that case in more detail.

Turning on the switch is what makes the microphone key appear

The switch matters because the microphone key depends on it. Until Enable Dictation is on, the keyboard has no microphone key to tap, and no amount of tapping in a text field will bring it back. That is why the Settings screen is the first place to look when someone asks where dictation is on an iPhone. Apple's guide describes the key as the way you begin to dictate once the switch is on, and it appears near the insertion point in a text field ³.

Other settings on the same screen shape what Dictation does

The Keyboard screen holds more than the one switch. To add a keyboard for another language, go to Settings, tap General, tap Keyboard, tap Keyboards, and tap Add New Keyboard ⁴. Dictation follows the keyboards you have added: when you use a keyboard for another language, you can use Dictation in that language as well ⁵.

Auto-Punctuation is also here. Turn it off in the same place if the phone's automatic commas and periods get in your way ⁶. Apple's About Dictation & Privacy link sits below these controls, and it explains what is shared when you dictate ⁷.

iOS 27 beta users may see an Advanced Dictation Preview switch

In the June 2026 iOS 27 beta, one blogger reported that an Advanced Dictation Preview switch is at the bottom of the same screen, and that you turn it on there ⁸. MacRumors reported that the upgraded dictation was not turned on by default in the first developer beta ⁹. That was a beta, so the switch may have moved or been renamed in the public release. Check the screen on your own phone rather than relying on the beta menu. Is dictation better in iOS 27? explains what the newer model changes.

What to do when you cannot find Dictation

1. Open Settings, then General, then Keyboard.
2. Turn on Enable Dictation and confirm the prompt if it appears.
3. Open a text field, such as a note, and check that the microphone key appears on the keyboard.
4. If it still does not work in one app, check that app's microphone access under Settings, then Microphone ¹⁰.

The guide to using dictation on iPhone gives the rest of the steps, and the troubleshooting guide covers the cases where the key is missing. For the short answer on what Dictation is, see what is dictation on iPhone? The overview of dictation on phones and tablets lists every guide in the subject.