Type at the speed you speak, without leaving your machine.

Localvox is an open-source dictation app that transcribes your voice entirely on-device. Hold a hotkey, speak, and the text appears wherever you're typing.

Linux macOS Windows

Three steps. No setup between them.

No accounts, no window switching, no waiting for a server to respond.

1

Hold your hotkey

Press and hold anywhere on your desktop — no need to click into Localvox first.

2

Speak naturally

A speech model running locally on your machine transcribes what you say, in real time.

3

Release, and it's typed

The text appears exactly where your cursor is — in a browser, editor, terminal, anywhere.

Nothing you say ever leaves this computer.

Localvox downloads a speech model once, then runs entirely offline. There's no account to create, no server in the loop, and no internet connection required to use it day to day — your voice and your words stay exactly where you typed them.

The whole project is open source, so you don't have to take that on faith.

your device
Microphone
Local speech model
Text at your cursor

Built to get out of your way.

The details that make dictation feel reliable rather than approximate.

Teach it your words

Add names, acronyms, or jargon it tends to mishear, and Localvox will recognize them correctly from then on.

Kubernetes Aditi whisper.cpp + add a word

Hardware-aware by default

Localvox checks your CPU, RAM, and GPU on first launch and picks a speech model sized for your machine — no manual configuration.

Rebindable hotkey

Set the push-to-talk combination that fits how you already work.

Works in any app

If you can type there, you can dictate there — no per-app integration required.

Free and open source

Licensed under MIT. Read the code, change it, or contribute to it.

Get Localvox for Linux

Available today on Linux. macOS and Windows builds are in progress.

Linux .AppImage / .deb / .rpm Download
macOS Coming soon
Windows Coming soon

FAQ

Does Localvox work without an internet connection?
Yes. Once the speech model has been downloaded, transcription happens entirely on your machine. You can use Localvox on a plane, with your Wi-Fi off, anywhere.
Is my voice data ever sent anywhere?
No. Audio is processed locally and is never uploaded, logged, or stored beyond what's needed to produce the transcription in the moment.
Which apps does it work in?
Any app where you can type — browsers, editors, terminals, chat apps, and anything else — since Localvox types directly at your cursor rather than integrating with individual apps.
Is Localvox free?
Yes. It's free and open source under the MIT license, with no subscription and no usage limits.
What platforms are supported?
Linux is fully supported today. macOS and Windows support exists in the codebase but hasn't yet been tested on real hardware — support for both is in progress.
Can I contribute?
Yes, the full source is on GitHub. Issues, pull requests, and testing on macOS or Windows are all welcome.