0.5s
Faster than proofreading
A 30-second take transcribes in about half a second on Apple silicon.
The most advanced dictation on the Mac.
Speak anywhere; clean text lands at your cursor a second later. And your voice never leaves your Mac.
listening…
Dictation mode
The day job, done properly.
State-of-the-art accuracy that runs on your Mac, even when you ramble. Cleanup strips the ums and adds the punctuation. And it starts your way:
⌃1
Press
Tap your shortcut to start, or hold the push-to-talk key like a walkie-talkie. Your call.
Talk
Say it how it comes out. Ums, restarts, and run-ons are fine.
Done
Tap again, or just let go. Clean, punctuated text appears at your cursor.
Interpreter mode
Say it how you feel it.
Send it how you should.
Dictation types what you meant to say. The Interpreter is Presto's second mode, and nobody else ships it: rant first, pick a voice, review the rewrite, then send. For the messages you shouldn't send as spoken.
You said
“There is NO way we're doing another round of revisions for free. This is the fourth time they've moved the goalposts and I'm losing my mind.”
Pick a voice. Click again to re-roll.
Live sample. In the app this runs on Apple's on-device model, so the rant stays between you and your Mac.
Turn Wi‑Fi off. Keep dictating.
Transcription runs on your Mac's Neural Engine. Cleanup runs on Apple's built-in model. Nothing is uploaded, ever.
- No account. Download, grant mic access, talk.
- No API key. Nothing to configure, nothing to pay per word.
- No telemetry. We collect nothing. There's nothing to collect.
Fast enough to forget it's there.
Never clips your last word
Presto keeps listening for a beat after you release the key, because people let go while they're still finishing the sentence.
Cleanup with a brain
Filler words out, punctuation in. And it never answers your dictation, it only cleans it.
Everything you said, kept
Every transcript is saved and searchable. Audio auto-deletes after 7 days, so history stays useful without hoarding recordings.
Sounds like a small spell
A custom sound set marks start, stop, and done, so you never talk into a dead mic.
Will it run on your Mac?
- macOS 26 (Tahoe) or later
- Apple silicon (any M-series chip)
- About 1 GB of disk for the speech model
- No internet needed after first launch
That's the whole list. No account, no API key, no GPU. And the free trial is the compatibility test: if it installs, it runs.
Make it yours
- Every shortcut is remappable. The keys you see on this page are just the defaults. Record any combination you like for toggle, push-to-talk, cancel, and the Interpreter.
- Your own rewrite voices. Describe a voice in plain words and Presto drafts it for you: Diplomatic, Executive Brief, Hype Man.
- Tune the feel. Sounds on or off, how long audio history sticks around, how long it keeps listening after you stop.
- Guided setup. A five-step welcome tour walks you through the three macOS permissions with live checkmarks. Most people are dictating within two minutes.
MailSlackNotesMessagesGoogle DocsVS CodeSafariand anywhere else you can type
The honest comparison
Three ways to pay for dictation. Only one keeps your voice on your Mac.
| Feature | Presto | Superwhisper | Wispr Flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $49 once | $8.49 a month, or $249 lifetime | $15 a month |
| Works offline | Always | Local modes exist, cloud by default | No, cloud only |
| Audio processed | On your Mac. Always. | Their servers by default | Their servers |
| Interpreter mode | Built in: rant, pick a voice, review, send | Closest thing: AI modes, bring your own API key | Closest thing: auto edits while you speak |
From public pricing pages, July 2026.
One price
Pay once. That's it.
$59$49
- 14-day trial, full app, no account
- License covers 2 Macs
- A year of updates included
- macOS 26 or later, Apple silicon
No subscription. If it's not for you, one email gets a refund inside 14 days.
Questions, answered
Does my audio ever leave my Mac?
No. Transcription runs on the Neural Engine with NVIDIA's Parakeet model, and cleanup uses Apple's built-in on-device model. There is no server, no account, and no analytics. The app works with Wi‑Fi off.
What do I need to run it?
A Mac with Apple silicon on macOS 26 or later. The rewrite features use Apple's on-device models, which is why the requirement is strict.
Is this a subscription?
No. $49 once, and the app is yours. That includes a year of updates. If we ship a major paid upgrade someday, upgrading is optional and v1 keeps working.
Why isn't it in the Mac App Store?
Sandboxed apps can't type text into other apps, and that's the whole product. So Presto is a notarized direct download, like most serious Mac utilities.
What happens when the trial ends?
The app stops transcribing until you enter a license. Your history and settings stay put, and nothing is uploaded either way.
Can I change the keyboard shortcuts?
All of them. Toggle, push-to-talk, cancel, and the Interpreter each have a recorder in Settings; press the keys you want and that's your shortcut. A Restore Defaults button brings back the originals.
Does it work in every app?
Anywhere you can place a cursor: mail, docs, Slack, code editors, browser fields. It types wherever you were typing.
Say it. Presto, it's typed.
Download the trialRequires macOS 26 or later on an Apple silicon Mac.