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VV vs VoiceInk: both local, one you can read
VoiceInk publishes its source, which makes its privacy claim checkable rather than believable. That is a real advantage and worth taking seriously before you buy ours.
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Give VoiceInk its due first
VoiceInk is open source, published on GitHub, and says that voice data never leaves your Mac
, with optional cloud enhancement that handles transcribed text rather than audio. It is a one-off purchase — $25 for one Mac, $39 for two, $49 for three — with lifetime updates and a 14-day money-back guarantee. It requires Apple Silicon on macOS 14.4 or later.
The open source part is not a marketing bullet. Every other app on the market, ours included, asks you to trust a privacy claim you can only test from the outside. VoiceInk lets you read the code. If that matters to you — and for some people it is the whole decision — it is a category difference, not a feature difference.
Side by side
| VoiceInk | Vaitly Voice | |
|---|---|---|
| Recognition | Local | Local |
| Source available | Yes, on GitHub | No |
| Requirements | Apple Silicon, macOS 14.4 or later | Apple Silicon (M1 or later), macOS 14 Sonoma or later |
| Pricing | One-off $25 / $39 / $49 by Mac count | Free tier, $5.99/mo, $49/yr, or $39 once |
| Free tier | Trial with money-back guarantee | 1,000 words a week, indefinitely, no sign-in |
| Refund | 14-day money-back guarantee | 14 days, no questions asked |
| Custom vocabulary with spoken forms | Check current release | Yes |
| Spoken snippets | Check current release | Yes |
| Local history with audio | Check current release | Yes, retention you set |
| iOS | Sold separately | Not available |
VoiceInk details read on tryvoiceink.com on 11 September 2026. We have deliberately left three feature rows as "check current release" rather than assert something about a project that ships quickly — verify on their site or in the repository.
Where the two diverge
Auditability versus features
This is the trade in one line. VoiceInk's source is readable; Vaitly Voice's is not. Vaitly Voice ships vocabulary with spoken forms, snippets, a replayable history with the audio, and a local rewrite step. Both are legitimate ways to spend a development budget.
Pricing shape
VoiceInk prices by the number of Macs, one payment, lifetime updates. Vaitly Voice has a permanent free tier, a subscription for people who prefer that, and two lifetime options. If you want one payment and nothing else, VoiceInk's model is simpler. If you want to use a dictation app for free indefinitely at 1,000 words a week, Vaitly Voice's is.
What happens when the developer stops
An honest point in VoiceInk's favour. If we stop developing Vaitly Voice, your installed copy keeps working — the model is on your disk — but nothing gets fixed. If VoiceInk stops, the code is still there and somebody can build it. For a tool you intend to use for a decade, that is a genuine consideration.
Choosing
Take VoiceInk if
- You want to read or audit the code.
- You prefer one payment with no free tier to manage.
- You want an iOS companion and are willing to buy it separately.
- You value a project that could outlive its maintainer.
Take Vaitly Voice if
- You correct the same names daily and want vocabulary that learns spoken forms.
- You want spoken triggers that expand into blocks of text.
- You want a history with the audio, so a lost dictation is recoverable.
- You want to use dictation free, indefinitely, before deciding.
Where these facts came from
Anything stated about another product was read on that product's own site or documentation on the date shown, and is re-checked at least quarterly. If something below has changed, tell us and we will correct it.
- VoiceInk says it "processes all voice transcription locally on your device" and that "your voice data never leaves your Mac," with optional cloud enhancement that handles transcribed text rather than audio. source, checked .
- VoiceInk is open source and published on GitHub for anyone to read, audit or build themselves. source, checked .
- VoiceInk is a one-off purchase: Solo $25 for one Mac, Personal $39 for two and Extended $49 for three, each with lifetime updates and a 14-day money-back guarantee. source, checked .
- VoiceInk requires an Apple Silicon Mac on macOS 14.4 or later; an iOS app is sold separately. source, checked .
Questions
Is open source more private?
It is more verifiable, which is not quite the same thing but is often what people mean. A closed app can be perfectly private and you must test it from the outside; an open one lets you check the claim at the source. Both still deserve the aeroplane-mode test, because what you run is a binary either way unless you built it yourself.
Is VV open source?
No. The app is closed source and signed with a Developer ID certificate from Vaitly Limited and notarised by Apple. We publish third-party notices for the components we use, and our privacy and security pages state exactly what does and does not leave your Mac — but you cannot read our code, and if that is your requirement we are not your answer.
Can I run both?
Yes. Different shortcuts, no conflict. Given both have low-cost entry points, running both for a week is the cheapest way to decide.
Which is better value?
VoiceInk at $25 one-off is very good value if it does what you need. VV's Founder Lifetime at $39 is comparable. The real question is features versus auditability, not price — they are close enough that price should not decide it.