Acousmos vs Wispr Flow
Both turn speech into clean, polished text anywhere you type. The difference is where your voice goes — and whether you keep it.
Wispr Flow is a cloud-only dictation tool with broad platform support (macOS, Windows, iPhone) and a free tier. Acousmos is Mac-only and privacy-first: transcription can run through your own API keys or fully local, offline models, and every word you speak is kept in a permanent, searchable archive on your Mac. If you want breadth, pick Wispr. If you want ownership, pick Acousmos.
Side by side
| Acousmos | Wispr Flow | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | macOS (Apple Silicon) | macOS · Windows · iPhone |
| Where transcription runs | Managed cloud, your own keys, or fully local | Cloud only |
| Works offline | Yes — local models (Pro) | No |
| Bring your own API keys | Yes (Pro) | No |
| Permanent searchable voice archive | Core feature — local, exportable, yours forever | History, no archive product |
| Trained on your data | Never | Controlled by "Privacy Mode" setting |
| AI clean-up & formatting | Built-in styles + per-app routing | Built-in |
| Custom dictionary | Yes, with auto-learning | Yes, auto-learning |
| Languages | 100+ · deep EN/中文 incl. IME handling | 100+ languages |
| Free option | 1-month full Pro trial, no card | Free tier: 2,000 words/week (Mac) |
| Price | Plus $12.99/mo · Pro $17.99/mo — 2 Macs included | Pro $15/mo ($12/mo annual) |
Wispr Flow details from wisprflow.ai (pricing and privacy pages), July 2026. Corrections welcome: support@acousmos.com.
Beyond the table, Acousmos also ships: per-app smart routing, a Playground for comparing AI styles and engines side by side, translation mode, usage stats, snippets, and a three-layer custom dictionary that learns from your edits. Every paid plan covers 2 Macs.
Cloud-only vs yours.
Where your voice goes
Wispr Flow's privacy documentation is clear that transcription happens in the cloud — there is no local processing mode, and data handling is governed by its "Privacy Mode" setting. That's a legitimate design; it's just not ours. Acousmos stores audio, transcripts, and history locally by default, never trains on your voice, and on Pro can run entirely through your own provider keys or fully local models — nothing touches our servers, even in airplane mode.
The archive
Dictation tools treat your words as disposable: spoken, typed, gone. Acousmos treats them as an asset. Every dictation — audio and text — is saved to a private, full-text-searchable archive on your Mac, in an open format you can export anytime. It stays yours whether or not you keep a subscription. Wispr Flow keeps a history, but a permanent local voice archive is not its product.
Where Wispr Flow is genuinely stronger
Cross-platform reach (Windows and iPhone today, Android rolling out), a real free tier, and a lower Pro price. If you dictate across devices and cloud processing doesn't bother you, it's a good tool.
Questions.
Does Wispr Flow work offline?
No. Wispr Flow's own privacy documentation states that transcription happens in the cloud; there is no offline or local-model mode. Acousmos Pro can run fully local models that work offline, including in airplane mode.
Is Wispr Flow cheaper than Acousmos?
The prices are comparable: Wispr Flow Pro is $15/month ($12/month billed annually); Acousmos is $12.99/month for Plus and $17.99/month for Pro, and every plan covers 2 Macs. The real difference is what the money buys — Acousmos adds local models, bring-your-own-keys, and a permanent searchable archive.
Which should I choose?
Choose Wispr Flow if you need Windows or iPhone support, want a free tier, and are comfortable with cloud-only processing. Choose Acousmos if you are on a Mac and want your dictation to stay on your machine — local models, your own API keys, no training on your voice, and an archive you own forever.
Is Acousmos a good Wispr Flow alternative?
If what you want from a Wispr Flow alternative is ownership, yes: Acousmos adds local offline models, bring-your-own-keys processing, and a permanent searchable archive of everything you dictate — audio and text. The one-month Pro trial makes it easy to run Acousmos as a full Wispr Flow replacement for a few days before deciding. If you need Windows or iPhone support, platform reach is the reason to stay with Wispr Flow.
One month of Pro, free.
No signup, no card. Or compare speech-to-text engines with your own voice in Arena first.