BetterDictation: A macOS speech-to-text app that uses on-device Whisper to turn spoken words into typed text in any application. Brainote: Brainote is an AI note-taking and study app that transcribes audio, video, and speech into text and turns it into summaries, notes, and study materials. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist BetterDictation when dictating emails, documents, and notes hands-free across mac apps matters most, and Brainote when summarizing audio, video, pdfs, and youtube content into study materials matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
A macOS speech-to-text app that uses on-device Whisper to turn spoken words into typed text in any application.
Brainote is an AI note-taking and study app that transcribes audio, video, and speech into text and turns it into summaries, notes, and study materials.
BetterDictation is a system-wide dictation tool for macOS that converts speech into typed text inside any application. Users trigger it with a keyboard shortcut (Option+Space) and can choose push-to-talk or toggle-to-talk modes; the transcribed text is then inserted directly where the cursor sits. It runs OpenAI's Whisper model locally on Apple's Neural Engine, so basic transcription works fully offline and, per the vendor, no audio recordings or transcripts are stored. It supports 100+ languages and applies automatic punctuation. The app requires Apple Silicon (M1 or newer); Intel Macs are not supported. An optional Pro add-on adds stammer correction, automatic formatting, and post-processing of dictations. It is aimed at people who write or capture text frequently, such as founders, engineers, and writers, who want to dictate emails, documents, notes, and messages rather than type them. Because it works across all apps, it can be used to capture spoken notes alongside meetings, though it is a general dictation utility rather than a dedicated meeting-recording assistant.
Best suited for
Brainote is an AI-powered note-taking and study application available on the web, iOS, and Android. It captures content from multiple sources, including recorded voice memos and audio, uploaded PDFs, YouTube links, web pages, and handwritten notes via image OCR. Its core engine transcribes audio, video, and speech to text and then generates concise summaries and structured notes. For meeting and lecture scenarios, Brainote can transcribe recordings, convert meeting minutes into text, and produce organized AI meeting notes alongside study guides. Beyond transcription, it offers an AI chat assistant to clarify and refine notes, plus learning-focused tools such as automatically generated flashcards, quizzes, and spaced-repetition review. Transcripts and summaries can be exported for sharing. The product is marketed primarily toward students and learners preparing for exams, but its transcription and summarization capabilities also serve professionals capturing meetings and lectures. The free tier provides limited generation, while a Pro subscription unlocks unlimited use. No third-party meeting-platform integrations are advertised on its site.
Best suited for
BetterDictation is a free tier with paid upgrades (paid); Brainote is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | BetterDictation | Brainote |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | System-wide dictation that inserts text into any macOS application | AI transcription of audio, video, and speech to text |
| Standout feature | On-device transcription using OpenAI's Whisper on Apple's Neural Engine | Voice memo and audio recording capture |
| Team usage | Offline operation for basic dictation with no cloud round-trips | Automatic summaries, notes, and study guides from recordings |
| Integrations | Support for 100+ languages with automatic punctuation | Multi-source input: PDFs, YouTube links, web pages, and handwritten-note OCR |
| Languages & capture | Push-to-talk and toggle-to-talk recording modes | AI chat assistant to refine and clarify notes |
| Best-fit workflow | Optional Pro post-processing: stammer correction and automatic formatting | Flashcard and quiz generation with spaced-repetition review |
BetterDictation
Choose BetterDictation if you need dictating emails, documents, and notes hands-free across mac apps — strengths include runs locally on-device for privacy; vendor states no audio or transcripts are stored.
Brainote
Choose Brainote if you need recording and transcribing meetings or lectures into shareable notes and minutes — strengths include available across web, ios, and android with a permanently free tier.
BetterDictation
Brainote
It depends on your workflow. BetterDictation is strong for dictating emails, documents, and notes hands-free across mac apps, while Brainote is strong for recording and transcribing meetings or lectures into shareable notes and minutes. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
BetterDictation is a free tier with paid upgrades and Brainote is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Sure. Running both makes sense when their strengths don't overlap and the budget allows.
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