Vocco vs superwhisper
Two local-first dictation apps for Mac with the same default key, hold right ⌘. superwhisper offers more models, platforms and AI modes. Vocco is narrower: it is built around speech that mixes Chinese and English, and its one-time Pro, with file transcription and speaker labels, costs a fraction of superwhisper's.
Pick superwhisper if you want unlimited free dictation, a wide choice of local and cloud models, AI modes that rewrite your text, or apps for Windows, iPhone and Android.
Pick Vocco if you often switch between Chinese and English in one sentence, or if you want meeting transcription with speaker labels for one small payment.
I make Vocco. superwhisper details below are quoted from superwhisper.com and its docs as they read on October 22, 2026. Corrections are welcome at support@vocco.co.
Side by side
| Vocco | superwhisper | |
|---|---|---|
| Where transcription happens | On your Mac | Local or cloud models; on the free plan "Nothing you dictate leaves your device" (source) |
| Default hotkey | Hold right ⌘ | Hold right ⌘ (source) |
| Chinese model | Qwen3 ASR 0.6B, plus SenseVoice, Paraformer, Whisper | Whisper Large v3 Turbo (Chinese) among others (source) |
| Language switching mid-sentence | Handled by the default engine, no setting (benchmark) | "Use Automatic only when you mix languages inside a single dictation" (source) |
| AI rewriting modes | No | Yes |
| File transcription | Included; files up to 15 minutes on the free version | Pro feature |
| Speaker separation | Pro feature, on-device | Pro feature, "always runs on your Mac" |
| Platforms | Mac only (Apple silicon, macOS 14+) | macOS 14+, Windows 10/11, iOS, Android |
| Free use | Free version: 30 minutes of dictation a week, live or file transcription up to 15 minutes each; new installs get 14 days of Pro | Free plan with unlimited local Whisper dictation; Pro trial of 3,000 words |
| Price | Pro $29 once at launch (until November 30, 2026), then $39 | $8.49/month, $84.99/year or $249.99 once |
| Refunds | 14 days | 30 days |
Mixed Chinese and English
superwhisper's own advice is to set your language explicitly rather than Automatic, and to use Automatic only when you mix languages within one dictation. For people who speak Mandarin with English terms in every other sentence, that "only when" is most of the time.
superwhisper labels its Chinese option "Whisper Large v3 Turbo (Chinese)". We have not tested superwhisper's own build. We have tested the standard Whisper large-v3-turbo, which is one of Vocco's engines: on 300 utterances of real Mandarin–English conversation from the ASCEND corpus, it had a higher error rate than Qwen3 ASR, Paraformer and SenseVoice. The benchmark page lists the numbers and the cases each one gets wrong.
Where superwhisper is better
- A bigger free plan. Unlimited local dictation at no cost. Vocco's free version allows 30 minutes of dictation a week.
- More models and AI modes. Cloud models, local models and modes that rewrite or format what you said.
- More platforms. Windows, iPhone and Android, which Vocco does not have.
- Longer refund window. 30 days against Vocco's 14.
Where Vocco is better
- Chinese–English switching without picking a language first.
- Recordings for less. Even the free version transcribes files up to 15 minutes, with SRT export; Pro removes the limits and adds speaker separation.
- Lower lifetime price. $29 at launch, then $39, against $249.99.
Questions
Is superwhisper free?
superwhisper has a free plan with "unlimited dictation with local Whisper models". Pro is $8.49 a month, $84.99 a year or $249.99 once. File transcription and speaker separation are Pro features.
Does superwhisper handle Chinese and English in one sentence?
superwhisper's language-detection page says "Use Automatic only when you mix languages inside a single dictation" and notes that on Automatic, non-English dictation sometimes comes out as English text. Its Chinese option is a Whisper Large v3 Turbo model. Vocco's default engine is Qwen3 ASR, which scored lower error than Whisper large-v3-turbo on mixed Mandarin–English in our benchmark.
Do Vocco and superwhisper use the same hotkey?
Yes. Both default to holding right ⌘ to talk. If you try both, change one of them.
How this page was made: superwhisper details are quoted from superwhisper.com and superwhisper.com/docs on October 22, 2026; Vocco details checked against Vocco 1.0.8 on October 28, 2026. Drafted with AI assistance and checked against those sources.
Try Vocco on your Mac
Free to use, with no account and no card; the first 14 days are full Pro. Pro is one payment for all your Macs: $29 at launch until November 30, then $39.
macOS 14 or later · Apple silicon