Windows voice typing (Win+H)
Free with Windows
built-in
- Price Free
- Platforms Windows
- What it is built to do Quick dictation into any text box, built into Windows
- Try it first Already installed — press Windows key + H
For hands that have earned a rest
Voice typing built for people who shouldn’t have to fight to type.
Type with your voice in most programs on your computer. Speech recognition runs on your own machine, you pick the key that starts it, and it is a one-time $49. Free 7-day trial, no sign-up — try the free tools built into Windows first, and only pay if you need something they don't cover.
Free trial — no sign-up, no card. $49 once to keep it. 30-day money-back guarantee.
Guides for people who find typing hard, including
- arthritis
- ALS
- IBM
- Parkinson's
- multiple sclerosis
- essential tremor
- stroke recovery
- fibromyalgia
- carpal tunnel
- and anyone whose hands say 'enough'
A small note from the people behind this
This was built because someone we love was struggling, and paying a lot for the privilege.
He pays thirty dollars a month to have his meetings written down, and he still finds it hard going. He is not a technical person. Sorting it out, or moving to something else, was never going to be his idea of a good evening. So he lived with it, because typing had got too slow for him to keep up.
We built CaringDictate so the people who need dictation most aren't the ones being charged the most. So someone who shouldn't have to fight a tech support menu doesn't have to fight one. So a one-time payment buys software that works, in most programs, forever.
Forty-nine dollars. Once. Yours to keep. If it doesn't help in thirty days, we refund you and wish you well.
How it works
Three minutes from install to typing with your voice.
No tutorials, no menus to learn. You install it once, answer three plain-English questions, and start talking.
-
Install in two clicks
Download the installer, double-click, accept the wizard's three questions. That's the entire setup. No accounts, no API keys, no settings panels.
-
Click into any text box. Press your hotkey.
One key starts dictation. Default is the Right Ctrl key, or you can pick any key or mouse button that's comfortable. The whole interface is that one key.
-
Talk. Watch the text appear.
Speak the way you'd talk to a friend. Words appear in whatever program you were just using — Word, email, a browser search bar, Facebook, anywhere. Press your hotkey again to stop.
What you get for $49
The whole product — no upsells, no tiers.
Everything is included. There is no Pro version, no Family Pack, no monthly add-on. You buy CaringDictate once and that's the end of the transaction.
-
One price. Yours to keep.
$49 once. Free updates included. No annual fee, no renewal letters, no surprises.
-
Works in most programs
Email, Word, Facebook, browser search, messaging — anywhere a text cursor blinks, you can talk, in any of 20 languages.
-
One key. Or just your voice.
Press one key to start, press it again to stop — or say your own wake phrase and never touch the keyboard at all.
-
Runs offline. Private.
Speech recognition runs on your own computer, not in the cloud. The internet is used for installing, downloading models, licence checks and updates — not for dictating.
-
Built for non-technical users
A three-minute setup wizard with three plain-English questions. No menus, no settings to wrangle.
-
30-day full refund
If it does not help inside 30 days, email us. Full refund, no questions, no forms.
Also included
It records your meetings, and keeps them on your PC.
Switch it on and CaringDictate notices when a call starts in any program — Zoom, Teams, WhatsApp, WeChat, your browser — records it, and transcribes it afterwards on your own computer. It can label who spoke, show who talked how much, and write a summary with the action items. None of it is uploaded, and none of it costs extra.
- Off until you turn it on, and visible on screen whenever it runs
- Search every transcript you have by any word inside it
- Save as Word, PDF, text, Markdown or subtitles
Guides by situation
Fourteen conditions. One quiet workaround for all of them.
Each of these has a dedicated page with plain-English notes on how voice typing helps — and what its limits are. We don't sugar-coat. We don't make medical claims. We do tell the truth.
-
Inclusion Body Myositis
When hand strength makes typing slow going, a plain guide to writing by voice instead.
-
ALS / Motor Neuron Disease
What to think about when typing becomes slow or tiring, and how voice typing fits alongside the other tools people use.
-
Rheumatoid Arthritis
When pain and stiffness make keystrokes hurt, speaking is one way to get words onto the screen instead.
-
Hand Osteoarthritis
A practical guide to voice typing when hand and thumb joints make a keyboard uncomfortable.
-
Multiple Sclerosis
For the days when fatigue makes the keyboard feel like too much — what voice typing can and cannot do for you.
-
Parkinson's Disease
A guide to voice typing with Parkinson’s, including the honest questions about speech changes.
-
Essential Tremor
When hitting keys accurately is the hard part, a guide to writing by voice and choosing a control you can reach.
-
Stroke Recovery
Voice typing during stroke recovery — what it is useful for, and what to check before relying on it.
-
Carpal Tunnel & RSI
Resting your wrists while still getting writing done — a guide to voice typing for repetitive-strain conditions.
-
Cerebral Palsy
The voice-typing options adults with CP tend to look at, including the specialist tools built for atypical speech.
-
Spinal Cord Injury
Using a computer by voice — how ordinary dictation software fits alongside dedicated access technology.
-
Muscular Dystrophy
A guide to voice typing when muscle weakness is progressive, and what to weigh up when choosing a tool.
-
Fibromyalgia
If you want to type less, speaking your writing is one of the alternatives worth trying.
-
Post-Surgery & Hand Injury
Healing from a cast, splint or surgery? A short-term guide to writing by voice until your hands are ready.
An honest comparison
What each option costs, and what each is for.
The main dictation options side by side, at each vendor's published price. Hover the checkmarks for the small print.
Plans and prices change, so each vendor's own site is the place to check theirs
| Feature | Windows voice typing (Win+H) Free with Windows built-in | Microsoft Voice Access Free with Windows 11 built-in | Apple Dictation Free with macOS built-in | Dragon Professional v16 One-time licence one-time | Wispr Flow Free plan, or Pro subscription | Otter.ai Free plan, or Pro subscription | CaringDictate $49 once one-time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free | Free | Not published on Nuance’s product page — ask Nuance or a reseller | Free plan, plus paid tiers — see wisprflow.ai | Free plan, plus paid tiers — see otter.ai | $49 one-time |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows 11, version 22H2 and later | Mac, iPhone, iPad | Optimised for Windows 11, compatible with Windows 10 | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Windows 10 and 11 |
| What it is built to do | Quick dictation into any text box, built into Windows | Full voice control of the PC — apps, clicking, scrolling — plus dictation, vocabulary and correction. Microsoft say it works without the internet | System-wide dictation on Apple devices, with a shortcut you can customise | The full professional toolkit: custom voice commands and macros, trainable vocabulary, transcription of recorded audio files. Nuance claim 99% accuracy from first use | Dictation with AI cleanup that tidies what you said into polished prose, plus a custom dictionary, snippets and 100+ languages | Live meeting transcription for Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, with speaker identification, AI chat and exports | Dictation into most Windows programs with a start key you choose, plus recording and transcribing your own meetings — recognition runs on your computer either way |
| Try it first | Already installed — press Windows key + H | Already installed on Windows 11 | Already installed on a Mac | Ask Nuance or a reseller | Free plan, and a 14-day Pro trial with no card | Free Basic plan | Free 7-day trial, no sign-up |
Microsoft Voice Access
Free with Windows 11
built-in
- Price Free
- Platforms Windows 11, version 22H2 and later
- What it is built to do Full voice control of the PC — apps, clicking, scrolling — plus dictation, vocabulary and correction. Microsoft say it works without the internet
- Try it first Already installed on Windows 11
Apple Dictation
Free with macOS
built-in
- Price Free
- Platforms Mac, iPhone, iPad
- What it is built to do System-wide dictation on Apple devices, with a shortcut you can customise
- Try it first Already installed on a Mac
Dragon Professional v16
One-time licence
one-time
- Price Not published on Nuance’s product page — ask Nuance or a reseller
- Platforms Optimised for Windows 11, compatible with Windows 10
- What it is built to do The full professional toolkit: custom voice commands and macros, trainable vocabulary, transcription of recorded audio files. Nuance claim 99% accuracy from first use
- Try it first Ask Nuance or a reseller
Wispr Flow
Free plan, or Pro
subscription
- Price Free plan, plus paid tiers — see wisprflow.ai
- Platforms Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android
- What it is built to do Dictation with AI cleanup that tidies what you said into polished prose, plus a custom dictionary, snippets and 100+ languages
- Try it first Free plan, and a 14-day Pro trial with no card
Otter.ai
Free plan, or Pro
subscription
- Price Free plan, plus paid tiers — see otter.ai
- Platforms Web, iOS, Android
- What it is built to do Live meeting transcription for Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, with speaker identification, AI chat and exports
- Try it first Free Basic plan
CaringDictate
$49 once
one-time
- Price $49 one-time
- Platforms Windows 10 and 11
- What it is built to do Dictation into most Windows programs with a start key you choose, plus recording and transcribing your own meetings — recognition runs on your computer either way
- Try it first Free 7-day trial, no sign-up
"Why not just use the free Windows one?"
You probably should. Press Win + H and dictate a paragraph — it is free, already installed, and for plenty of people it is all they need. On Windows 11, also turn on Voice Access under Settings → Accessibility → Speech: it adds full voice control of the computer, custom vocabulary and text correction, and Microsoft say it works even without the internet. If either of those does the job, use it and keep your $49.
CaringDictate is narrower in what it controls — it types, it does not drive your whole computer — with recognition on your own machine, a start control you choose yourself (any key, a mouse button, or a spoken phrase), and the option to record and transcribe your meetings on the same PC. See the full comparison, including the cases where the free tools are the better answer.
Pricing
Try it free for seven days.
Everything is included. Below is the complete list of what you get — there is no Pro tier, no add-on, no upsell.
Best value — once
CaringDictate License
$49 once. yours to keep.
One payment. All 3.x updates included. No subscription.
Download Free TrialTry it free for 7 days — pay $49 only if you keep it. 30-day money-back guarantee.
- Full CaringDictate Windows application
- All 3.x updates included
- Free email support — answered by a human
- Install on up to 3 of your own computers
- Speech recognition runs on your own computer, not in the cloud
- 30-day no-questions-asked money-back guarantee
- Works in most Windows programs: Word, Outlook, Chrome, Facebook, and more
- Setup wizard takes 3 minutes
- Includes hotkey customization and audio chime options
- A range of speech models, from small and fast to large and more accurate
No one priced out
If $49 is out of reach right now, it's on us.
Email wecare@caringdictate.com — no questions asked — and we'll send you a free copy.
We mean it literally. You don't have to explain your situation, prove anything, or fill out a form. If the price is a wall between you and being able to type again, the price comes down. This started with a dad who has a muscle disease that makes typing hard — leaving people like him out was never the point.
Prefer not to email? Request it here
We can do this because the people who can pay $49 once make it possible. Thank you for being one of them.
Ready when you are
Type with your voice. Today.
Download the free trial, install it in two clicks, talk in most programs. Seven days free — and if it doesn't help, you simply never pay.
Free 7-day trial. $49 once. Free updates included. 30-day refund.