Microsoft Voice Access vs CaringDictate
Voice Access is free, it is already on your PC, and you should try it first.
Microsoft Voice Access is an accessibility feature built into Windows 11, version 22H2 and later. It lets you run the whole computer by voice — opening and switching between apps, browsing the web, reading and writing email, controlling the keyboard and mouse, working across multiple displays — and dictation is part of that larger job. It also lets you select, edit and correct text by voice, add your own words with Add to Vocabulary, and create custom shortcuts. Microsoft say it works even without the internet, because the recognition runs on your device. Microsoft is also replacing the older Windows Speech Recognition with it. It costs nothing.
CaringDictate does one narrower thing: dictation. It has no system-control layer and no voice editing. What the $49 buys is a start key you choose yourself, recognition that runs on your own machine, and support for Windows 10 as well as 11. If Voice Access covers what you need — and for a lot of people it will — use it and keep your money.
One tool is built to operate a computer. The other is built to write.
Microsoft Voice Access is an accessibility feature for running Windows by voice — "open Edge", "click cancel", "scroll down", "switch to Word". Dictation sits inside that larger job, along with selecting, editing and correcting text by voice, a vocabulary you can add your own words to, and shortcuts you define yourself. Microsoft ships it with Windows 11, supports it, documents it as running on your own device without needing the internet, and is replacing the older Windows Speech Recognition with it. For anyone who needs to operate a computer without a mouse or keyboard, that is a serious piece of software to get at no cost, and it should be the first thing you try.
CaringDictate is scoped much more narrowly. It does not open apps, click buttons or navigate windows, and it does not edit or correct text by voice. It is a dictation tool. What the narrower scope allows is a small set of choices aimed at writing: you pick your own start control — any key, a mouse button, or a spoken wake phrase — recognition runs on your own computer, you keep a personal word list, and it works on Windows 10 as well as 11.
Those are differences of design purpose, not of quality. Microsoft has built the more capable product here by a comfortable margin, and it is free.
What Voice Access can do
Worth knowing in full, because a lot of people never look past the dictation part. According to Microsoft's own documentation, Voice Access covers opening and switching between apps, browsing the web, reading and authoring email, controlling the keyboard and the mouse, working across a multi-display setup, dictating text, selecting text, editing text, correcting text, adding words with Add to Vocabulary, and creating your own voice shortcuts. Microsoft also state that it "works even without the internet".
If any of that sounds like what you have been looking for, the answer to your question is a free feature you already own. Open Settings, Accessibility, Speech, and turn on Voice Access.
Feature comparison
Microsoft Voice Access and CaringDictate, side by side.
From Microsoft's own Voice Access documentation, read in August 2026 — features change, so check Microsoft's support pages
| Feature | Microsoft Voice Access Free with Windows 11 built-in | CaringDictate $49 once one-time |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — included with Windows | $49 one-time, up to 3 computers |
| What it is designed to do | Hands-free control of the whole PC, with dictation included | Typing with your voice, plus recording and transcribing your own meetings |
| Controls the computer by voice | apps, clicking, scrolling, the keyboard and mouse | we do not offer this |
| Windows versions | Windows 11, version 22H2 and later | Windows 10 and 11 |
| Where recognition runs | On your device — Microsoft say it "works even without the internet" | On your computer |
| Correcting and editing by voice | select, edit and correct text by voice | we do not offer this |
| Custom vocabulary | Add to Vocabulary | |
| How you start and stop it | Its own voice commands and controls, plus custom shortcuts you create | A key you choose, a mouse button, or a spoken wake phrase |
Microsoft Voice Access
Free with Windows 11
built-in
- Price Free — included with Windows
- What it is designed to do Hands-free control of the whole PC, with dictation included
- Controls the computer by voice (apps, clicking, scrolling, the keyboard and mouse)
- Windows versions Windows 11, version 22H2 and later
- Where recognition runs On your device — Microsoft say it "works even without the internet"
- Correcting and editing by voice (select, edit and correct text by voice)
- Custom vocabulary (Add to Vocabulary)
- How you start and stop it Its own voice commands and controls, plus custom shortcuts you create
CaringDictate
$49 once
one-time
- Price $49 one-time, up to 3 computers
- What it is designed to do Typing with your voice, plus recording and transcribing your own meetings
- Controls the computer by voice (we do not offer this)
- Windows versions Windows 10 and 11
- Where recognition runs On your computer
- Correcting and editing by voice (we do not offer this)
- Custom vocabulary
- How you start and stop it A key you choose, a mouse button, or a spoken wake phrase
Independent comparison. CaringDictate is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Microsoft Voice Access. Microsoft Voice Access and its marks belong to their respective owner. The details above were taken from Microsoft Voice Access's own public documentation and pricing pages and may have changed since — please check their site for what is current, and look for discounts, regional pricing and free plans, which we may not have listed. If we have something wrong, email hello@caringdictate.com and we will correct it.
Common questions
Questions people ask about Microsoft Voice Access
What is the difference between Voice Access and voice typing (Win+H)?
They are two different built-in Windows features. Voice typing, the Windows key + H shortcut, puts dictated words into a text box. Voice Access is the fuller accessibility feature: it controls the whole computer by voice — opening apps, clicking, scrolling, working the keyboard and mouse — and includes dictation, text correction, custom vocabulary and custom shortcuts. If you only want to write, Win+H is the simpler starting point. If you want to run the machine by voice, Voice Access is the one built for that.
Is Voice Access free?
Yes, completely. It is part of Windows, Microsoft supports it, and Microsoft document it as running on your device and working without an internet connection. If it does what you need, that is the best outcome available and you should not pay anyone for anything.
Do I need Windows 11 for Voice Access?
Microsoft document Voice Access as a feature of Windows 11, version 22H2 and later. On Windows 10 the built-in option is voice typing (Windows key + H). CaringDictate runs on both Windows 10 and 11, which is one of the reasons people on Windows 10 end up looking at separate tools.
Can I use CaringDictate and Voice Access together?
Some people do — Voice Access for navigating and CaringDictate for the writing. We would not promise they will always behave perfectly together, though: any two programs that both want the microphone and both register global shortcuts can interact in ways that depend on your machine and your settings. Test it on your own setup during the trial rather than taking our word for it.
Which should I choose if my hands are the difficulty?
It depends on how much of the computer is affected. If the mouse is manageable and typing is the painful part, a dictation-only tool covers that. If operating the whole machine is hard, Voice Access is designed for precisely that, it is free, and it is already installed — start there. Add something else later only if you find a specific gap.
Why would anyone pay $49 when Voice Access is free?
For most people there is no reason to, and we would rather say that plainly. The reasons people do are narrow and practical: they are on Windows 10, where Voice Access is not part of the operating system; or they want to choose the exact key, mouse button or spoken phrase that starts dictation; or they want dictation as a small separate tool rather than as part of a full computer-control system. If none of those apply to you, use Voice Access.
Our recommendation
If you are on Windows 11, try Voice Access first. It is free, already installed, made and supported by Microsoft, and it does considerably more than we do. If it works for you, you have saved yourself $49 and we are genuinely glad.
If you need to control Windows by voice: Voice Access is the tool built for that. CaringDictate does not do that job at all and is not a substitute for it.
If you are on Windows 10: Microsoft document Voice Access as a Windows 11 feature, so the built-in option available to you is voice typing with Windows key + H. Try that before anything paid.
If you specifically want to choose your own start control, or want dictation as a small standalone tool: that is the narrow case CaringDictate was built for. There is a free seven-day trial and a 30-day refund, so you can decide on your own machine rather than on our say-so.
See also: Windows voice typing (Win+H) and Dragon.