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Tracked since2026
0 reviews trackedThe Bottom Line
Entry price
Free plan available, paid tiers above
Biggest pro
Strong emphasis on privacy with transient audio and local processing options.
Biggest con
Requires API keys for cloud-based transcription and formatting, which may incur costs from third-party providers.
TL;DR - Vaani
- Provides instant, privacy-first voice dictation for macOS.
- Supports multiple transcription and AI formatting providers, including offline local processing.
- Offers advanced features like per-app profiles, smart text cleanup, and custom snippets.
Pricing: Free plan available
Best for: Growing teams
What is Vaani?
Vaani is a macOS voice dictation application designed for speed and privacy. It allows users to dictate text into any application instantly using a customizable hotkey. The app supports multiple transcription providers, including cloud-based options like advanced models, as well as an entirely offline mode using local Whisper. Beyond transcription, Vaani offers multi-provider AI formatting to clean up text, remove filler words, fix punctuation, and apply intelligent formatting. It also features context-aware text injection, per-app profiles for customized settings, and a history of past dictations. Vaani is built with a strong emphasis on privacy, ensuring audio is transient and not stored on any server, with an option to keep all processing on-device.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Strong emphasis on privacy with transient audio and local processing options.
- Flexible choice of transcription and formatting providers, including free tiers and offline mode.
- Enhances productivity with instant dictation and intelligent text cleanup.
- Customizable hotkeys and per-app settings for tailored workflows.
- No subscription required, making it a cost-effective solution for macOS dictation.
Cons
- Requires API keys for cloud-based transcription and formatting, which may incur costs from third-party providers.
- Initial setup involves granting Accessibility and Microphone permissions, which might be a concern for some users.
- Only available for macOS.
Key Features
Global Hotkey for dictationMulti-Provider Speech-to-Text (STT) (Groq Whisper, OpenAI Whisper, Deepgram Nova-2, local whisper.cpp)Multi-Provider LLM Formatting (Groq Llama, OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, OpenRouter)Offline Mode with local whisper.cppSmart Text Cleanup (removes filler words, fixes punctuation, AI formatting)Context-Aware Text Injection (5 methods with per-app policies)Per-App Profiles for settings customizationSnippets & Dictionary for custom commands and word replacements
Pricing Plans
Free TrialPricing checked Jun 27, 2026
Free
$0 USD per month
- Unlimited public/private repositories
- Dependabot security and version updates
- 2,000 CI/CD minutes/month (Free for public repositories)
- 500MB of Packages storage (Free for public repositories)
- Issues & Projects
- Community support
Team
$4 USD per user/month
- Everything included in Free
- Access to GitHub Codespaces
- Repository rules
- Multiple reviewers in pull requests
- Draft pull requests
- Code owners
- Required reviewers
- Pages and Wikis
Enterprise
Starting at $21 USD per user/month
- Everything included in Team
- Data residency
- Enterprise Managed Users
- User provisioning through SCIM
- Enterprise Account to centrally manage multiple organizations
- Environment protection rules
- Repository rules
- Audit Log API
How Vaani's pricing compares
At $4/mo, Vaani is the most affordable of its 5 direct competitors.
Entry paid plan, monthly. Pricing checked Jun 27, 2026.
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Vaani FAQ
What macOS versions are supported by Vaani?
Vaani requires macOS 12.0 (Monterey) or later to function, and it supports both Apple Silicon and Intel architectures.
How does Vaani ensure user privacy?
Vaani is designed with privacy in mind; audio is transient and nothing is stored on any server. For maximum privacy, users can select the local (whisper.cpp) mode, which keeps all transcription and processing entirely on-device without requiring internet access or API keys.
Can I use Vaani without an internet connection?
Yes, Vaani can be used entirely offline by selecting 'Local (whisper.cpp)' as the transcription provider. This mode runs on-device and does not require internet access or API keys.
What kind of AI formatting capabilities does Vaani offer?
Vaani's AI formatting can clean up dictated text by removing filler words like 'um' and 'uh', fixing punctuation, and applying general AI-driven text formatting. Users can choose from various LLM providers for this feature.
How does Vaani handle text injection into different applications?
Vaani uses context-aware injection, detecting the active application and choosing the most suitable of five insertion methods. It also allows for per-app policies, enabling users to customize injection behavior for specific applications.
Is it possible to customize dictation settings for individual applications?
Yes, Vaani supports 'Per-App Profiles,' allowing users to configure different transcription providers, languages, and formatting settings that activate automatically when a specific application is in focus.
What are 'snippets' in Vaani and how do I use them?
Snippets in Vaani are custom slash-command shortcuts that expand into predefined text or phrases. You can use them by typing '/' followed by the snippet name while dictating, and Vaani will replace it with the full text.
What should I do if Vaani shows a 'damaged and can't be opened' error after installation?
This error typically occurs because macOS blocks unsigned applications. A one-time workaround is to open your terminal and run
xattr -cr /Applications/Vaani.app after dragging the app to your Applications folder. This removes the quarantine attribute, allowing the app to open.Source: github.com