Smalt vs MacWhisper
A MacWhisper alternative built around your calls
Smalt and MacWhisper both turn speech into text on your Mac, with no upload. MacWhisper is the better tool for files, podcasts and subtitles. Smalt is built for the live part of the day: dictation, meeting notes with a summary, and answers from your files during calls.
Side by side
| Smalt | MacWhisper | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, all your Macs | Free version; Pro €64 once |
| Where speech is transcribed | On your Mac | On your Mac; cloud optional with your keys |
| Dictation into any app | Yes | Yes |
| Meeting recording without a bot | Yes | Yes |
| Summary, decisions and action items | Yes, on device with Apple Intelligence | Custom AI prompts, through cloud providers with your keys |
| Answers during the call, from your folders | Yes, optional | No |
| Audio and video file transcription | No | Yes |
| Subtitles (.srt, .vtt), exports | No; notes are Markdown | Yes |
| Speaker recognition | Me and Others only | Yes |
| Translation | No | Yes |
| Languages | 25 European languages | 100+ |
Choose MacWhisper if
- You transcribe recordings, interviews, podcasts or videos.
- You need subtitles, many export formats or translation.
- You need speakers told apart, or a language outside Europe.
Choose Smalt if
- Most of your speech-to-text happens live: emails, messages, prompts and calls.
- You want every call to end with a summary, decisions and action items, written on your Mac.
- You want a card with the answer from your own notes while the client is still asking.
- You want one app that does those three things, free.
Plenty of people will use both: MacWhisper for files, Smalt for the day.
Questions
Can Smalt transcribe audio and video files like MacWhisper?
No. Smalt transcribes live: your dictation and your calls. For files, podcasts and subtitles, MacWhisper is the better tool.
Do both work offline?
Yes. Both transcribe on your Mac. Smalt uses Parakeet v3 on the Neural Engine; MacWhisper offers several local models.
What does Smalt do that MacWhisper doesn't?
It writes a summary with decisions and action items after each call, and it can show answers from your own folders while a question is being asked.
What does each cost?
Smalt is free, on all your Macs. MacWhisper has a free version and a Pro license at €64 once.
MacWhisper facts checked on 21 October 2026 from macwhisper.com. Spot something out of date? Write to feedback@getsmalt.com.