BetterDictation: A macOS speech-to-text app that uses on-device Whisper to turn spoken words into typed text in any application. Cresta: Enterprise contact-center AI platform combining real-time agent assist, autonomous AI agents, and conversation intelligence. 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 Cresta when analyzing every interaction to identify behaviors that drive outcomes matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
A macOS speech-to-text app that uses on-device Whisper to turn spoken words into typed text in any application.
Enterprise contact-center AI platform combining real-time agent assist, autonomous AI agents, and conversation intelligence.
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
Cresta is an enterprise customer-experience AI platform that unifies human and AI agents across voice and digital channels. It captures conversations through integrations with major contact-center systems such as Genesys, NICE, Salesforce, Twilio, and Amazon Connect, then analyzes those interactions at scale to surface behavioral insights and deliver real-time guidance. Its Agent Assist listens to live conversations and provides agents with in-the-moment suggestions, knowledge, and next-best actions, while a Knowledge Agent proactively surfaces context-aware answers without manual prompting. Cresta's conversation intelligence analyzes 100% of interactions to identify the behaviors that drive outcomes, and its automated quality management scores conversations across the board so supervisors gain visibility without manual sampling. The platform also offers autonomous AI agents that can resolve customer conversations end to end, plus an Agent Operations Center that gives supervisors real-time visibility and intervention tools across both human and AI-led conversations. Cresta is built for large enterprise contact centers in industries such as financial services, travel and hospitality, telecommunications, insurance, and healthcare that need real-time assistance, coaching, and analytics at scale. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
BetterDictation is a free tier with paid upgrades (paid); Cresta is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | BetterDictation | Cresta |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | System-wide dictation that inserts text into any macOS application | Real-time Agent Assist with live suggestions and knowledge |
| Standout feature | On-device transcription using OpenAI's Whisper on Apple's Neural Engine | Conversation intelligence analyzing 100% of interactions |
| Team usage | Offline operation for basic dictation with no cloud round-trips | Automated quality management and scoring across all calls |
| Integrations | Support for 100+ languages with automatic punctuation | Knowledge Agent that proactively surfaces context-aware answers |
| Languages & capture | Push-to-talk and toggle-to-talk recording modes | Autonomous AI agents for end-to-end conversation resolution |
| Best-fit workflow | Optional Pro post-processing: stammer correction and automatic formatting | Integrations with Genesys, NICE, Salesforce, Twilio, and Amazon Connect |
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.
Cresta
Choose Cresta if you need assisting contact-center agents in real time during customer conversations — strengths include delivers real-time guidance during live conversations, not just post-call review.
BetterDictation
Cresta
It depends on your workflow. BetterDictation is strong for dictating emails, documents, and notes hands-free across mac apps, while Cresta is strong for assisting contact-center agents in real time during customer conversations. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
BetterDictation is a free tier with paid upgrades and Cresta is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
You can — some teams pair them when each covers a different part of the meeting workflow.
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