Aqua Voice is the wider OS pick: Mac, Windows, and iOS. VoiceInk is the Mac-first privacy pick with local/offline transcription and a $25-$49 one-time license. We make Ottex; it is here as the dictation-plus-meetings alternative.
Ottex
Mac, iOS · Free tier · $14/mo · PAYG
Ottex is unusually broad for a young Mac/iOS-first tool: it turns dictation and meetings into emails, tickets, CRM updates, notes, and docs, but it is not the pick if you need Windows, Android, web, browser extension, or compliance paperwork.
Choose if
You want one tool for system-wide dictation, meeting recording, and finished written outcomes like follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, and docs
You want a real free path: unlimited local dictation, file transcription, and meetings on Mac with Whisper/Parakeet, or BYOK instead of a forced subscription
You need multilingual dictation with 100+ languages, auto-detection, mixed-language speech, personal vocabulary, and per-app output rules
Look elsewhere if
You need Windows, Android, Linux, web access, or a browser extension
You need mature team infrastructure such as a shared workspace, API/webhooks, third-party note destinations, or assistant chat over transcripts today.
Aqua Voice
Mac, Windows, iOS · Limited free · $8/mo
Aqua Voice is a polished system-wide dictation app for Mac, Windows, and iOS, with 49 languages and strong formatting controls, but it is not a meeting recorder or file transcription tool and dictation is processed server-side.
Choose if
You want fast, system-wide voice dictation across Mac, Windows, or iOS for everyday writing.
You want dictated text cleaned up automatically with punctuation, paragraphs, filler-word removal, snippets, custom vocabulary, and tone rules.
You are comfortable paying $10/month or $96/year after the 1,000-word trial, which is only about 8 minutes of speech.
Look elsewhere if
You need meeting recording, summaries, action items, speaker identification, or calendar-based meeting workflows.
You need audio or video file transcription with timestamps, speaker labels, exports, batch processing, or watch folders.
VoiceInk
Mac, iOS · $25 one-time
VoiceInk is a strong pick for Mac-first, privacy-conscious dictation with local/offline transcription and a $25-$49 one-time license, but it is not a meeting assistant and has no Windows, web, Android, or team workflow story.
Choose if
You want native macOS dictation on Apple Silicon with local models that can run offline.
You prefer a one-time lifetime license: $25 for 1 Mac, $39 for 2 Macs, or $49 for 3 Macs.
You want power-user dictation controls like global hotkeys, personal dictionary, snippets, filler-word removal, per-app rules, and searchable transcription history.
Look elsewhere if
You need meeting recording, summaries, action items, speaker identification, calendar detection, or follow-up drafts.
You need Windows, Android, Linux, browser, or web support instead of a Mac/iPhone/iPad setup dominated by macOS use.
The evidence
What actually differs, claim by claim.
Each section opens with the takeaway. The table underneath is the receipt — every cell carries its source and the date we checked it.
Pricing
VoiceInk wins the simple paid-license comparison: $25 once for 1 macOS device, $39 for 2, or $49 for 3. Aqua Voice starts with only 1,000 free words, about 8 minutes of speech, then moves to $10/month or $96/year. Ottex is the surprise if free or usage-based pricing matters, because it has free local AI, free BYOK, $0.20/hour PAYG, $14/month Pro, and $24/seat/month Team.
See the evidence — 14 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Aqua Voice
VoiceInk
Free tier
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Forever free with local models and BYOK providers.
PartialSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 20261,000 free words, no card required
NoNo free plan
Subscription
$14/moSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
$8/moSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026FAQ says Pro is $8/month billed annually after the free words.
NoNo subscription plan
Pay-as-you-go / one-timeEscape the flat subscription
$0.2/hourSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted models at cost: dictation ~$0.2/h, meetings ~$0.5/h (~$3/mo average).
NoSubscription only
$25 one-timeSource: tryvoiceink.com/buy — checked Jun 2026Lifetime of updates
Bring your own keyPay the model provider, not the middleman
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026OpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, and compatible providers.
No public claim
YesSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Cloud and custom models may require adding the provider API key.
Education discount
NoSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Same pricing for everyone.
YesSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Students with a .edu email get 70% off annual plans.
PartialSource: tryvoiceink.com/faq — checked Jun 2026Student discount is available by contacting the vendor with student ID; no public percentage is listed.
Platforms
Aqua Voice has the broadest platform coverage of the compared pair with Mac, Windows, and iOS. VoiceInk is narrower but more Apple-native in the decision that matters here: Mac and iOS only, with no Windows, Android, Linux, browser, or web support. Ottex matches VoiceInk on Mac and iOS, so it does not beat Aqua Voice on coverage.
See the evidence — 5 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Aqua Voice
VoiceInk
Platforms
Mac, iOSSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
Mac, Windows, iOSSource: aquavoice.com/download — checked Jun 2026
Mac, iOSSource: tryvoiceink.com/faq — checked Jun 2026
Native app footprintLight on memory, instant to invoke
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Native Swift app, ~50MB RAM.
No public claim
YesSource: github.com/Beingpax — checked Jun 2026The GitHub README describes VoiceInk as a native macOS application.
Meetings & team memory
Ottex is the only tool in this trio that actually covers meetings. Aqua Voice has no meeting recording, summaries, action items, speaker identification, or calendar meeting workflows, and VoiceInk also lacks meeting recording, speaker identification, calendar detection, and follow-up drafts. If meeting capture is the job, Aqua Voice and VoiceInk are dictation tools, not meeting assistants.
See the evidence — 18 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Aqua Voice
VoiceInk
Meeting recordingThe call is captured at all
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026With speaker separation.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Bot-free captureNo "recording bot" joins your call
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026System-audio capture, no bot joins the call.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Speaker separation
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Calendar detection
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Calendar-based meeting detection.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Cross-meeting search
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Shared team memory
PartialSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Public share links, not a full team workspace.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
From meeting to finished work
Ottex wins meeting intelligence because it turns dictation and meetings into follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, notes, and docs. Aqua Voice focuses on cleaned-up dictated text with punctuation, paragraphs, filler-word removal, snippets, vocabulary, and tone rules. VoiceInk adds power-user dictation controls, file transcription, snippets, searchable transcription history, and per-app rules, but it still does not create meeting follow-ups or team workflow outputs.
See the evidence — 12 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Aqua Voice
VoiceInk
Decisions, owners, action itemsLeave the meeting with next steps clear
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Decisions with owners extracted.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Follow-up email draftedThe outcome is sent, not summarized
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Drafted from templates or your own.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
CRM update / ticket draft
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Structured for the target app.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Your rough notes steer the result
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Rough notes and instructions steer the result.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
NoSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Dictation & transcription AI
VoiceInk wins for Mac-first privacy because it supports local models that can run offline, BYOK, personal dictionary, snippets, filler-word removal, and per-app rules. Aqua Voice wins if you need Windows support or a stated 49-language dictation app, but its dictation is server-side and its free tier is only 1,000 words, about 8 minutes. Ottex is broader than both on paper with local options, BYOK, file transcription, 100 languages, mixed-language speech, personal vocabulary, and per-app output rules, but it is also Mac and iOS only.
See the evidence — 13 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Aqua Voice
VoiceInk
Engines
Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3.Source: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted routing, BYOK, or fully local.
Avalon proprietary speech modelSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Aqua says it runs on its own Avalon speech model.
Local models, Groq, ElevenLabs, Deepgram, Parakeet, Gemini, Mistral, Soniox, custom OpenAI-compatible modelsSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026VoiceInk lists local, cloud, and custom transcription model options.
Local / on-device optionAudio never leaves the machine
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Whisper and Parakeet v3 run fully on-device.
NoSource: aquavoice.com/vs — checked Jun 2026Aqua requires an internet connection and processes audio server-side.
YesSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Local models run directly on the Mac without an internet connection.
Model selection per task
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Choose the model per task and per provider.
No public claim
YesSource: tryvoiceink.com/docs — checked Jun 2026Users can choose and set a default transcription model.
Languages & mixed speechWork that crosses languages mid-sentence
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026100+ languages · Mid-sentence language switching.
YesSource: aquavoice.com/guide — checked Jun 202649+ languages · Language guide says Aqua supports multilingual speakers.
No public claim
Per-app output rules
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Per-app output rules: exact in AI chats, polished in email.
PartialSource: aquavoice.com/info — checked Jun 2026Aqua formats for the destination app, but no per-app rule editor is documented.
YesSource: tryvoiceink.com/features — checked Jun 2026Power Mode can automatically apply app or website-specific transcription and enhancement settings.
Cost
What a year actually costs at your volume.
Personal or team — switch tabs. Subscriptions are flat; usage-based pricing depends on how much you speak and meet.
OttexSubscription - Pro$168/yr$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
Aqua VoicePro Annual+ Granola for meetings — $168/yr$264/yr$96 + $168FAQ says Pro is $8/month billed annually after the free words. · Unlimited use
Aqua VoicePro Monthly+ Granola for meetings — $168/yr$288/yr$120 + $168A vendor comparison page lists Pro at $10/month. · Unlimited use
Estimates, not quotes. Striped bar segments are the cost of the second app you picked above to cover the gap — rankings use that combined total. PAYG uses hosted at-cost estimates ($0.2/h dictation, $0.5/h meetings); BYOK is estimated at about a third of that because you pay the model provider directly. Bring-your-own-key plans still pay the model provider per use. One-time licenses are amortized over 2 years. Subscriptions use published pricing, checked Jun 2026.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
Aqua Voice vs VoiceInk: which should I pick?
Pick Aqua Voice if you need dictation across Mac, Windows, and iOS, or if 49 languages matter more than local processing. Pick VoiceInk if you are Mac-first, privacy-conscious, and prefer a $25-$49 one-time license over Aqua Voice at $10/month or $96/year.
Is Aqua Voice free?
Aqua Voice has a free trial-style tier with 1,000 free words and no card required. That is only about 8 minutes of speech at 130 words per minute, so it is not a real long-term free dictation plan. For a genuinely free option, consider Ottex — unlimited with local models or your own key.
Is VoiceInk free?
No, VoiceInk is paid. The cheapest plan is Solo at $25 one-time for 1 macOS device, with $39 for 2 Macs and $49 for 3 Macs. For a genuinely free option, consider Ottex — unlimited with local models or your own key.
How much does Aqua Voice cost compared with VoiceInk?
Aqua Voice costs $10/month or $96/year after the 1,000-word trial. VoiceInk is cheaper for Mac users who want to pay once: $25 for 1 Mac, $39 for 2 Macs, or $49 for 3 Macs. Ottex sits differently with free local AI, free BYOK, $0.20/hour PAYG, $14/month Pro, and $24/seat/month Team.
Is Aqua Voice or VoiceInk more private?
VoiceInk is the stronger privacy pick because it supports local models that can run offline and also supports BYOK. Aqua Voice processes dictation server-side, so it is not the best fit if keeping audio local is the priority. Ottex also supports local models and BYOK, but between Aqua Voice and VoiceInk, VoiceInk is the clearer privacy choice.
Is it worth switching from Aqua Voice to VoiceInk?
Switch from Aqua Voice to VoiceInk if you mostly use a Mac, want local/offline transcription, need file transcription, or would rather pay $25-$49 once. Stay with Aqua Voice if Windows support or its stated 49-language coverage is the reason you chose it. VoiceInk has no Windows, Android, Linux, browser, or web support.
Does Aqua Voice or VoiceInk work on Windows or Android?
Aqua Voice works on Windows, Mac, and iOS, so it is the better pick if Windows matters. VoiceInk works on Mac and iOS only, and it has no Android support. Ottex is also Mac and iOS only, so it does not solve Windows or Android coverage.
