Dictation for Mac
Smart dictation. One payment. Your choice of privacy.
Stenox turns your voice into text in your Mac apps, with word replacements, app profiles, and optional AI Polish. Keep speech and cleanup on your Mac, or choose a supported cloud provider for either step.
Can I get smart dictation without a subscription?
Yes. Stenox costs C$69 CAD once for 2 Macs, plus applicable taxes. Permanent access to purchased features. Future major upgrades may cost extra. Local speech and local Polish do not require a paid cloud API or subscription. Optional cloud providers have their own terms and costs.
Try the full app for seven days. Start the trial online in Stenox; no account or card is required. After the trial, a license is required to start new work.
What makes Stenox a smart dictation tool?
Stenox turns speech into text, applies enabled filler removal and your word replacements, and lets you choose settings for different apps. Optional AI Polish can rewrite a dictation when you ask. Polish is initially off and uses your selected local model or Gemini; ordinary dictation does not automatically run an AI rewrite.
See dictation and optional Polish →Can I use AI dictation without uploading my audio or text?
Yes. Choose local Parakeet, Whisper, or Cohere Transcribe for speech, and choose Local for any enabled AI Polish. Prepare the models first and check your active profile, which can override these choices. Cloud speech sends audio to its provider; Gemini Polish sends text and writing instructions. Meeting insights have a separate provider choice.
Choose your processing settings →Can I dictate into my existing Mac apps?
Place your cursor in an editable field in Notes, a browser, an editor, or another app, then use your recording shortcut. Stenox transcribes when you stop and inserts or copies the result according to your output setting. Microphone and Accessibility permissions are required. If a field does not accept insertion, copy the result into it.
Set up your first dictation →Can I control names, technical terms, and writing style?
Define word replacements so Stenox substitutes the terms you choose. App profiles can switch your speech and cleanup settings for different contexts. Optional Polish uses your configured writing instructions. Review names, numbers, and important details after an AI rewrite; it can make mistakes.
Configure app profiles →Which Macs support Stenox?
Stenox requires an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 15 Sequoia or later, with enough free storage for your selected models. Download and prepare those models before using local speech or local Polish. The current Mac app does not support Intel Macs.
Check installation requirements →Does local processing mean Stenox never uses the internet?
No. Local processing keeps that speech or text processing on your Mac. Model downloads, trial and license verification, calendar connections, and optional cloud services have separate network requirements. History and sessions are stored locally, but Stenox does not encrypt its active SQLite databases. Local storage and encryption are different protections.
Read the data-flow and storage details →Can I dictate offline on my Mac?
Yes, after downloading and preparing local models and starting your trial or activating your license online. Choose local speech and Local for any enabled Polish, including in your active app profile. Cloud features still require internet access.
Paid licenses are checked every seven days. You can work offline for up to 30 days from the last successful check. Temporary connection failures do not move that deadline. After it expires, reconnect and verify before starting new work; history, export, and ongoing work are preserved. The seven-day trial does not gain the paid offline allowance.
Prepare Stenox for offline use →Which processing setup should I choose?
You can make the speech and cleanup choices independently. These examples describe dictation; Notetaker has separate insights settings.
| Your priority | Choose | What leaves your Mac for processing |
|---|---|---|
| Local dictation | Local speech, Polish off | No audio or text is sent to a processing provider. |
| Local AI cleanup | Local speech + Local Polish | No audio or text is sent to a processing provider. |
| Cloud AI cleanup | Local speech + Gemini Polish | Text and writing instructions are sent when you request Polish. |
| Cloud speech | A supported cloud speech provider | Recorded audio is sent for transcription. Polish is a separate choice. |
Local processing does not disable model downloads, licensing requests, or other enabled integrations. Read the privacy policy.
How do I compare dictation apps fairly?
Check what the purchase covers, whether speech and cleanup can both run locally, and what is sent when you enable a cloud feature. Then try your own names, vocabulary, and target apps. A one-time app purchase and optional provider fees are separate costs.