TongueType is a macOS voice dictation app powered by Whisper AI running locally on Apple Silicon. No cloud, no accounts, no subscriptions. Hold a key, speak, release. Your words appear. Supports 12 languages and audio file transcription. TongueType gives you a configurable press-to-talk hotkey, audio and video file transcription, and configurable post-processing rules. It's customizable and fun (try Rainbow Mode!) and it's built to be the fastest dictation workflow possible.
I'm Cory. I've been doing web development for a long time, but TongueType is my first macOS app.
In the age of AI, many developers find themselves typing words more than code. I type fast, but my fingers have become a bottleneck for many tasks. I wanted a solid dictation app that runs locally, responds instantly, and has the accuracy of a world-class AI model.
TongueType sits in your macOS menu bar and starts listening as soon as you press a hotkey. It transcribes your words and pastes them into whatever app you're currently in.
Press. Talk. Words appear.
macOS has had built-in dictation for a long time, but in my experience it's just not very good. I was surprised to see so many third-party dictation apps tied to a subscription and a bunch of cloud features I didn't want. While dictation itself isn't unique, TongueType focuses on being seamless: it feels tightly integrated with the OS because it gets out of the way and just works.
Under the hood, TongueType uses OpenAI's Whisper small model compiled to Core ML so it runs directly on Apple Silicon. Some additional info that sets TongueType apart from other apps:
💸 No subscription. Free to try. Pro is a one-time $19.99 for up to 5 Macs. Buy it once, keep it forever.
🔒 100% private. Local-only. Zero telemetry. No account. Nothing logged, nothing uploaded.
🎛️ Yours to shape. Custom post-processing rules, spoken symbols, cancel phrases ("scratch that"), 12 languages with auto-detect.
🌈 A little personality. 20 accent colors including Rainbow Mode. None of it was necessary. All of it was fun. (Turns out that's what makes an app feel like it's yours.)
I use TongueType constantly for prompting LLMs, writing emails, sending DMs, commenting code, typing commit messages...basically anywhere the thinking is already done and all that's left is getting the words out (which turns out to be a surprising amount of my day).
It's been surprising to discover that many people don't seem to like dictation apps. I'm not sure if that's because they haven't worked very well in the past or if it's just a hard habit to get into. (Admittedly, my kids helped me form the habit. They'd see my typing and rightfully ask "why aren't you using TongueType?!")
I'm genuinely curious to learn: what's the one thing that's kept you from sticking with a dictation app?
local-only and no subscription, rare combo! how do you handle the punctuation problem. say "comma" and it adds punctuation? how would "period" be decided as word or punctuation? congrats on your launch!
About TongueType for macOS on Product Hunt
“Local dictation for macOS without the subscription”
TongueType for macOS launched on Product Hunt on May 21st, 2026 and earned 105 upvotes and 5 comments, placing #12 on the daily leaderboard. TongueType is a macOS voice dictation app powered by Whisper AI running locally on Apple Silicon. No cloud, no accounts, no subscriptions. Hold a key, speak, release. Your words appear. Supports 12 languages and audio file transcription. TongueType gives you a configurable press-to-talk hotkey, audio and video file transcription, and configurable post-processing rules. It's customizable and fun (try Rainbow Mode!) and it's built to be the fastest dictation workflow possible.
TongueType for macOS was featured in Productivity (652.1k followers), Developer Tools (512.7k followers) and Apple (15.4k followers) on Product Hunt. Together, these topics include over 208.7k products, making this a competitive space to launch in.
Who hunted TongueType for macOS?
TongueType for macOS was hunted by Cory LaViska. A “hunter” on Product Hunt is the community member who submits a product to the platform — uploading the images, the link, and tagging the makers behind it. Hunters typically write the first comment explaining why a product is worth attention, and their followers are notified the moment they post. Around 79% of featured launches on Product Hunt are self-hunted by their makers, but a well-known hunter still acts as a signal of quality to the rest of the community. See the full all-time top hunters leaderboard to discover who is shaping the Product Hunt ecosystem.
Want to see how TongueType for macOS stacked up against nearby launches in real time? Check out the live launch dashboard for upvote speed charts, proximity comparisons, and more analytics.
Cory LaViska