Willow Voice and Wispr Flow are two of the most similar dictation apps you can buy. Both turn your speech into polished text in any app, both start when you hold fn on a Mac, both charge $15 a month for Pro, and both sell team plans with compliance paperwork. The differences are in the details: Android, offline mode, how long you can talk in one go, and what the free plan gives you.
LumeVoice is our product, and it competes with both, so read this with that in mind. We haven't used Willow or Wispr Flow for this comparison. Everything below comes from their websites, pricing pages, help centers and App Store listings, checked on October 20, 2026.
The short verdict#
- Choose Wispr Flow if you need Android, dictate for more than 8 minutes at a time, want a meeting Notetaker, or are a student (3 months of Pro free, then 50% off).
- Choose Willow Voice if you want an offline mode on a Mac or iPhone, AI drafting and rewriting with Scribe on your iPhone as well as your computer, or a free plan with no word cap.
- Either works if you use a Mac, a Windows PC and an iPhone, want cleanup without setup, and are happy to pay $144 a year.
Willow Voice vs Wispr Flow at a glance#
| Willow Voice | Wispr Flow | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Mac, Windows, iPhone; Android coming soon | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android |
| Works offline | Yes, on Mac and iPhone (Pro) | No, cloud only |
| Free plan | No word cap on a lighter model; 20 Scribe uses a week | 2,000 words a week on desktop; less on phones |
| Pro | $15/month or $144/year | $15/month or $144/year |
| Lifetime license | No | No |
| Longest single dictation | 5 minutes free, 8 minutes paid | 20 minutes on desktop |
| Voice editing | Scribe: drafts, replies and rewrites, including on iPhone | Command Mode: Mac and Windows, paid plans |
| Meeting notes | Not listed on its pricing page | Notetaker on Mac and Windows |
| Languages | 100+ | 100+ |
| Security audits | SOC 2 Type II | SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 |
| HIPAA BAA | Yes, individuals included | Yes, individuals included |
| Students | 30% off Pro | 3 months free, then 50% off |
| US App Store rating | 4.6 (1,067 ratings) | 4.8 (17,685 ratings) |
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As of October 20, 2026, from each company's website, help center and App Store listing.
Price: same Pro, different free plans#
Pro costs the same at both: $15 a month, or $12 a month billed annually ($144 a year). In the US App Store, both list Pro at $15.00 a month and $143.99 a year (Willow, Wispr Flow). Neither sells a lifetime license.
The free plans are built differently:
- Willow Basic gives unlimited dictation on Frontier Mini, which Willow calls its weaker speech model, with limited personalization, 20 Scribe uses a week and dictations of up to 5 minutes (Willow pricing).
- Wispr Flow Free caps words instead. On Mac and Windows you get 2,000 words a week, after which Flow slows down, and it stops at 5,000. iPhone slows after 550 words and stops at 750; Android slows after 1,000 and stops at 1,500. Counts reset on Sunday (Wispr Flow plans). The free plan also includes limited use of its Notetaker.
Discounts. Willow takes 30% off Pro for students, educators, nonprofit staff, military and veterans, with proof (Willow discounts). Wispr Flow gives students with a .edu email who are new to Pro 3 months free, then 50% off ($6 a month, billed annually). Its help center also lists educator, nonprofit, military, senior and accessibility categories, with terms confirmed by support (Wispr Flow discounts).
Trials, referrals and refunds. Neither pricing page advertises a Pro trial, though Wispr Flow's help center still describes a standard 14-day one. Both give you and a friend a free month of Pro through referrals. Willow's Switch Program goes further for people coming from another app: Pro is free until your current yearly plan ends (Switch Program). Willow doesn't publish a refund policy; Wispr Flow says there's no automatic prorated refund and that you can ask support (canceling Wispr Flow).
Teams. Wispr Flow's Pro plan works for teams with no seat minimum. Growth, which adds single sign-on and organization-wide HIPAA controls, is $18 per user per month billed annually ($23 month to month), or $26 a month billed annually with the Notetaker; Enterprise is custom. Willow lists Business at $35 a month, or $28 billed annually, without a seat count, and a custom Enterprise plan with no seat minimum.
| 3-year cost | Willow Voice Pro | Wispr Flow Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Paid monthly | $540 | $540 |
| Paid yearly | $432 | $432 |
| Student, yearly | $302.40 (30% off, if the code applies to yearly billing) | $216 (three annual payments of $72 after the free months) |
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Prices as of October 2026; vendors change them, so check their sites.
For a deeper look at either price list, see Willow Voice pricing and Wispr Flow pricing.
Platforms#
Mac. Both start when you hold fn, and both have a hands-free mode. Wispr Flow supports macOS 12 Monterey or later on Apple Silicon or Intel (Wispr Flow requirements). Willow lets you set up to four hotkeys.
Windows. Both run on Windows. Wispr Flow needs Windows 10 or 11 on an x64 processor, so Windows on Arm isn't supported, and dictation starts with Ctrl + Win. Willow's Windows app comes from its website with a hotkey you choose, and Willow's blog says its offline mode doesn't cover Windows.
iPhone. Both are iPhone-only keyboards. Willow needs iOS 18 or later and Wispr Flow iOS 18.3 or later. Willow puts Scribe in its keyboard; Wispr Flow says Command Mode can't edit text in place on iOS yet (Command Mode).
Android. Only Wispr Flow, on Android 13 or newer. Willow's download page lists Android as coming soon.
Neither lists Linux, Chromebooks or iPad among its platforms.
Privacy and security#
Both send your voice to the cloud by default, and both say their AI providers are bound by zero data retention agreements.
- Willow: Private Mode is on by default. Willow's privacy policy, updated August 5, 2026, says audio is processed transiently and isn't retained by Willow or its providers, dictated text isn't kept, and transcript history stays on your device. An opt-in setting, Help Willow Improve, keeps anonymized text but never audio. Willow says it runs on US cloud infrastructure, and its offline mode keeps dictation on your Mac or iPhone.
- Wispr Flow: "Transcription always occurs on the cloud," its data controls page says. You choose whether Wispr may use your audio, transcripts and edits to improve its models, and on Growth and Enterprise that's off and locked. Dictation cloud storage is optional: turn it off and your dictation stays on your device, with audio discarded once it's transcribed. Local history can be kept, deleted after 24 hours or never saved (Wispr Flow privacy).
Both hold SOC 2 Type II reports, and Wispr Flow is also ISO 27001 certified. Both offer a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement that individuals can accept in the app (Willow); accepting Wispr Flow's turns off its Notetaker and Scratchpad. On iPhone, both apps' App Store privacy labels list usage data that may be used to track you across other companies' apps and websites (Wispr Flow's also lists identifiers).
Features#
Cleanup. Both remove filler words, add punctuation, format lists and handle corrections mid-sentence (Wispr Flow calls this Backtrack). Both adapt tone to the app you're in, keep a dictionary and expand saved snippets (Willow calls them shortcuts), and both offer shared team dictionaries.
Editing and AI writing. Willow's Scribe drafts a message from a rough description, replies using what's on your screen, or rewrites selected text, and it works in the iPhone keyboard too (Introduction to Scribe). Free accounts get 20 uses a week. Wispr Flow's Command Mode edits selected text, drafts replies and runs searches on Mac and Windows; it's for paid plans and switched on in its Experimental settings.
Meetings. Wispr Flow's Notetaker records meetings on Mac and Windows without a bot joining the call. Willow's pricing page doesn't list a meeting recorder.
Long dictations. Wispr Flow allows up to 20 minutes per session on desktop (longer sessions). Willow stops at 5 minutes on Free and 8 minutes on paid plans.
Languages. Both handle 100-plus languages. Willow says it can switch languages mid-dictation; Wispr Flow detects one language per dictation.
Files. Wispr Flow can't transcribe audio files you already have, and Willow doesn't list file transcription.
Who should pick which#
- You're on Android, or will be: Wispr Flow.
- You fly often or work without reliable internet: Willow, on a Mac or iPhone.
- You write long first drafts by voice: Wispr Flow, for its 20-minute sessions.
- You want AI to write from a rough description: Willow's Scribe.
- You sit in a lot of meetings: Wispr Flow's Notetaker.
- You want to pay nothing and dictate a lot: Willow Basic.
- You're a student: Wispr Flow is cheaper; if you're an educator, nonprofit worker or veteran, compare both offers.
Where LumeVoice fits#
LumeVoice is our product, so read this as the maker's view. Like both of these, it's cloud-based with no offline mode, and it types clean text where your cursor is: filler words and stutters removed, self-corrections applied, lists formatted. It starts when you hold fn on a Mac or Ctrl + Win on Windows, the same defaults Wispr Flow uses, and runs on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android on one plan.
- Choose it over both if you'd rather pay once ($249 for Lifetime) or pay less per year ($79.99/year against $144).
- Choose it over Willow if you need Android today, or want a bigger discount: 50% off for students and teachers, and 50% off for anyone who finds typing hard (accessibility discount).
- Don't choose it if you rely on Scribe or Command Mode, need a Notetaker, a team plan or a BAA, or need to dictate offline. It has none of those.
Our head-to-heads go deeper: LumeVoice vs Willow Voice and LumeVoice vs Wispr Flow. Plans and prices are on our pricing page.
Try LumeVoice on Your Own Words
Hold fn on a Mac or Ctrl + Win on Windows, talk, and LumeVoice types the finished text where your cursor is. On iPhone it's the Lume keyboard, and on Android a floating bubble over your keyboard. Your audio isn't stored after processing, your history stays on your device, and nothing you say is used to train a model. Every new account starts with 3,000 free words, no card required.
The bottom line#
Willow Voice and Wispr Flow charge the same for Pro and share most of their basics. Wispr Flow covers more ground: Android, 20-minute sessions, a meeting Notetaker and a better student deal. Willow has the things Wispr Flow doesn't: an offline mode on Mac and iPhone, Scribe on every platform including iPhone, and a free plan with no word cap. Pick the one whose extras you'll use every week, and try both free plans on real work first.
