Ottex
Mac, iOS
Choose if
You want dictated emails to follow your saved writing instructions.
Look elsewhere if
You need voice dictation on a Windows computer.
ComparisonEvery claim sourced · verified Oct 2026
Dragon NaturallySpeaking vs Spokenly: the honest comparison.
Three tools. Different strengths. Find your fit.
Ottex
Dragon NaturallySpeaking
SpokenlyAll comparisons
FAQ
At a glance
Which one fits your work?
Each tool takes a different approach. Here’s a quick side-by-side to help you choose based on your workflow, platforms, and goals.
Dragon NaturallySpeaking
Windows
Choose if
You want offline Windows dictation with custom vocabulary.
Look elsewhere if
You need desktop dictation on a Mac.
Spokenly
Mac, Windows, iOS, Linux
Choose if
You want unlimited offline dictation without a subscription.
Look elsewhere if
You need a shared workspace for team meeting notes.
The evidence
Pricing
Dragon NaturallySpeaking has unpublished pricing. Spokenly Pro costs $99.99/year; Ottex Pro costs $168/year, and both offer free app access with local models or BYOK, with separate API provider charges.
See the evidence — 14 claims across 3 toolsverified Oct 2026Show tableHide table
| Feature | Ottex | Dragon NaturallySpeaking | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Forever free with local models and BYOK providers. | NoNo free plan | PartialSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Oct 2026No usage limits |
| Subscription | $14/moSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included. | NoNo subscription plan | $6.99/moSource: spokenly.app/team — checked Oct 2026Each seat includes full Pro with a permanent 30% discount and centralized billing. |
| One-time payment | Not applicableSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Application is free | NoNo one-time payment plan | Not applicableSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Oct 2026Application is free |
| Bring your own keyPay the model provider, not the middleman | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026OpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, and compatible providers. | No public claim | YesSource: spokenly.app/privacy — checked Oct 2026BYOK audio and text travel directly from the device to the selected provider. |
| Education discount | NoSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Same pricing for everyone. | YesSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Qualified K–12 and higher-education organizations receive OLP discounts with unpublished prices, billing periods and percentages; the separate K–12 site program covers up to 250 computers. | YesSource: spokenly.app/students — checked Oct 2026Verified students receive 50% off Pro at $4.99/month or $49.99/year after signing in with an academic email and emailing a student ID to support. |
The evidence
Platforms
Dragon NaturallySpeaking requires Windows; Spokenly supports Windows, Mac, iOS and Linux. Ottex supports Mac and iOS, making Spokenly the choice here for Linux.
See the evidence — 5 claims across 3 toolsverified Oct 2026Show tableHide table
| Feature | Ottex | Dragon NaturallySpeaking | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Mac, iOSSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026 | WindowsSource: dragon.nuance.com/shared — checked Oct 2026 | Mac, Windows, iOS, LinuxSource: spokenly.app/download — checked Oct 2026Some platforms in beta/waitlist |
| Native app footprintLight on memory, instant to invoke | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Native Swift app, ~50MB RAM. | No public claim | YesSource: spokenly.app/android — checked Oct 2026The macOS and iOS applications are built with Swift. |
The evidence
Meetings & team memory
Dragon NaturallySpeaking cannot record meetings; Spokenly and Ottex record without a bot on Mac. Ottex also offers an experimental, opt-in macOS camera recording watermark.
See the evidence — 19 claims across 3 toolsverified Oct 2026Show tableHide table
| Feature | Ottex | Dragon NaturallySpeaking | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meeting recordingThe call is captured at all | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026With speaker separation. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | PartialSource: spokenly.app/dictation-for-mac — checked Oct 2026Meeting recording ships on Mac and requires macOS 14.4 or later. |
| Bot-free captureNo "recording bot" joins your call | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026System-audio capture, no bot joins the call. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | YesSource: spokenly.app/blog — checked Oct 2026Mac meeting recording captures audio without a bot joining the call. |
| Camera recording watermarkShow recording in your camera video | PartialExperimental macOS virtual camera adds an Ottex icon to video; install/enable the extension, select it and turn video on. Guide covers Meet in Chrome and Zoom desktop; effects may obscure it. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| Participant noticesRecording notices in chat or calendar | No public claim | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| Speaker separation | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026 | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | PartialSource: spokenly.app/blog — checked Oct 2026Saved meeting recordings can be transcribed with voice-based speaker labels that may require manual correction. |
| Calendar detection | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Calendar-based meeting detection. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | PartialSource: spokenly.app/releases — checked Oct 2026Mac meeting detection is documented in release notes, including Safari support. |
| Cross-meeting search | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026 | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| Shared team memory | PartialSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Public share links, not a full team workspace. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
The evidence
From meeting to finished work
Dragon NaturallySpeaking has no meeting summaries; Spokenly needs configured AI Instructions to create them. Ottex supports summaries and drafts follow-up emails, CRM updates and tickets from meetings.
See the evidence — 13 claims across 3 toolsverified Oct 2026Show tableHide table
| Feature | Ottex | Dragon NaturallySpeaking | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meeting template libraryTurn a transcript into a structured document | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Choose a ready-made document template to extract relevant information from a meeting transcript into a structured document, such as a product review or client-call report. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Document templates that extract and structure information from meeting transcripts are not supported. | No public claim |
| Transcript chat prompt libraryReady-made prompts for AI chat about meetings | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Use ready-made reusable prompts in AI chat to ask questions, analyze discussions and extract information from meeting transcripts. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Reusable AI chat prompts for analyzing meeting transcripts are not supported. | No public claim |
| Decisions, owners, action itemsLeave the meeting with next steps clear | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Decisions with owners extracted. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| Follow-up email draftedThe outcome is sent, not summarized | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Drafted from templates or your own. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| CRM update / ticket draft | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Structured for the target app. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | No public claim |
| Your rough notes steer the result | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Rough notes and instructions steer the result. | NoSource: dragon.nuance.com/en-us — checked Oct 2026Not supported. | NoSource: spokenly.app/comparison — checked Oct 2026Not supported. |
The evidence
Dictation & transcription AI
Dragon NaturallySpeaking trains vocabulary and inserts voice snippets; Spokenly applies saved instructions to dictation but lacks snippets. Ottex applies saved instructions, inserts snippets and formats dictation into paragraphs and lists.
See the evidence — 25 claims across 3 toolsverified Oct 2026Show tableHide table
| Feature | Ottex | Dragon NaturallySpeaking | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engines | Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3.Source: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Hosted routing, BYOK, or fully local. | Nuance Dragon speech engineSource: dragon.nuance.com/shared — checked Oct 2026The desktop recognition engine uses Nuance Deep Learning technology. | Whisper, NVIDIA Parakeet, Apple Speech Analyzer, OpenAI GPT-4o Transcribe, Deepgram Nova, SonioxSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Local and cloud transcription engines are selectable per mode. |
| Local / on-device optionAudio never leaves the machine | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Whisper and Parakeet v3 run fully on-device. | YesSource: nuance.com/asset — checked Oct 2026Local recognition supports disconnected operation, subject to administrative configuration in managed deployments. | YesSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Downloaded local models transcribe offline, and Local Only Mode blocks outbound network access. |
| Model selection per task | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Choose the model per task and per provider. | No public claim | YesSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Users choose transcription models and AI providers per mode. |
| Languages & mixed speechWork that crosses languages mid-sentence | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026100+ languages · Mid-sentence language switching. | No public claim | PartialSource: spokenly.app/blog — checked Oct 2026100+ languages · Gemini 3.5 Transcribe supports switching languages mid-sentence. |
| Automatic formatting | YesSource: ottex.ai/docs — checked Oct 2026Dictation automatically fixes punctuation, groups ideas into paragraphs and formats enumerations as lists. Formatting toggles and profile rules customize output. | PartialSource: nuance.com/products — checked Oct 2026Configurable rules format numbers, dates and addresses and optionally insert commas and periods; automatic paragraph and list structuring was not verified. | PartialSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Models add punctuation, and optional Smart Paragraphs on Mac adds paragraph breaks; automatic list formatting remains unverified. |
| Custom dictionary | YesSource: ottex.ai/docs — checked Oct 2026Add or delete names and specialist terms with preferred spellings; entries provide recognition context during transcription. | YesSource: nuance.com/products — checked Oct 2026The Vocabulary Editor adds and trains words and phrases with custom written forms, pronunciations and formatting properties. | PartialSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Supported models accept custom keyterms; ElevenLabs live transcription applies only the first 50 terms. |
| Voice snippetsSay a saved phrase to insert a link or text | YesSource: ottex.ai/docs — checked Oct 2026Save a voice trigger and expansion text; saying the trigger while dictating inserts the saved URL or text in place. | YesSource: nuance.com/products — checked Oct 2026Speaking a saved Auto-Text command inserts user-defined text or graphics, with global, application-specific or window-specific availability. | NoSource: spokenly.app/comparison — checked Oct 2026Not supported. |
| Custom voice instructionsFree-form rules applied after dictation | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Saved profile instructions automatically process dictation before insertion; rules can include writing examples, personal phrasing and email signatures. | No public claim | YesSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Saved mode AI Instructions process each dictation before its configured auto-insert action using the selected AI provider. |
| Tone presetsChoose a predefined writing style | YesSelect built-in Messaging or Email profiles for casual or professional dictation; assigning apps or websites enables automatic profile activation. | No public claim | No public claim |
| Text transforms / AI ShortcutsApply an AI action to existing text | YesSource: ottex.ai/docs — checked Oct 2026Select or copy existing text, open Omnibar and run an AI Shortcut to rewrite, translate, summarize or apply a custom prompt; the result is copied/pasted. | No public claim | No public claim |
| Per-app output rules | YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Oct 2026Per-app output rules: exact in AI chats, polished in email. | No public claim | PartialSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Oct 2026Mac modes automatically activate for configured applications or websites. |
Questions people actually ask.
Dragon NaturallySpeaking vs Spokenly: which should I choose?
Choose Spokenly for free offline dictation or Mac, iOS and Linux support; choose Dragon NaturallySpeaking for trained vocabulary and voice commands on Windows. Ottex suits Mac/iOS users who want saved writing rules, voice snippets and automatic paragraph and list formatting.
Is Dragon NaturallySpeaking or Spokenly free?
Dragon NaturallySpeaking has no listed free plan. Spokenly and Ottex offer free app access with local models or your own API key; provider charges are separate, and Spokenly lists unlimited local usage and no BYOK word caps.
How much do Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Spokenly cost?
Dragon NaturallySpeaking does not publish a price; Spokenly Pro costs $9.99/month or $99.99/year, and Ottex Pro costs $14/month or $168/year. Spokenly and Ottex also offer free app access with local models or BYOK, with provider charges separate.
Is Dragon NaturallySpeaking or Spokenly safer for privacy?
For network isolation, choose Spokenly Local Only Mode, which blocks outbound access; Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Ottex also recognize speech locally, subject to managed deployment settings for Dragon. BYOK on Spokenly or Ottex uses an external API provider.
Is it worth switching from Dragon NaturallySpeaking to Spokenly?
Switch to Spokenly for free local dictation, model choice and saved instructions applied after dictation; stay with Dragon NaturallySpeaking if you depend on trained vocabulary or voice snippets. Ottex offers saved dictation rules and voice snippets on Mac/iOS, but cannot replace a Windows setup.
Do Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Spokenly work on Windows or Android?
Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Spokenly support Windows; Ottex supports Mac and iOS. Android support is not listed for any of the three.
Does Dragon NaturallySpeaking or Spokenly support more languages?
Spokenly and Ottex each list 100 languages; the language count for Dragon NaturallySpeaking is unverified. Ottex supports switching languages mid-sentence, while Spokenly supports it with Gemini 3.5 Transcribe; that workflow is unverified for Dragon NaturallySpeaking.