Short answer: Glaido is a push-to-talk dictation app for macOS, Windows 11 and Linux, with a free plan of 2,000 words a week. Voice Keyboard Pro is a Mac and iPhone app with an offline mode on Apple silicon Macs, an iPhone keyboard and meeting notes, but it's a paid subscription and has no Windows or Linux version. Pick by platform first.
Glaido is a dictation app you drive with a hotkey: hold it, speak, release, and cleaned-up text is pasted into whatever app you're in. It's pitched at people who spend the day prompting AI tools. People look for a Glaido alternative for reasons of platform, price or privacy: they want an iPhone keyboard, transcription that stays on the Mac, or a different pricing model.
We make Voice Keyboard Pro, so we have a stake here. To keep this fair, every fact about Glaido below comes from Glaido's own site and docs, checked in October 2026, and we say "their site doesn't say" where it doesn't. Our own facts come from our site and app. We also say where Glaido is the better pick.
What Glaido does well
Glaido's home page says it works across "Claude, Codex, Cursor, Slack, and every app", and its FAQ says it works in every text field, from Gmail to VS Code. That's the same shape as ours: one hotkey, any app.
- More platforms. The FAQ lists macOS, Windows 11 and 64-bit Linux. We have no Windows or Linux version.
- A free plan. The Basic plan is listed as "Free forever" with 2,000 words a week, and the subscription docs say a free account gets a weekly word allowance. We have no free plan.
- Two ways to record. Push-to-talk is the default ("hold to record, release to transcribe"), and there's also a Hands-Free mode. We don't offer hands-free on the Mac.
- Voice commands. Start a dictation with "Glaido" or "Hey Glaido" and the rest of the sentence runs as a command instead of being pasted. The name has to be one of your first two words.
- Languages. The FAQ says 100+ languages and dialects.
- Security paperwork. Glaido says it is ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified and GDPR compliant, and offers an Enterprise plan with SSO and SAML.
Why people look for a Glaido alternative
1. They want an iPhone or iPad keyboard
Glaido's FAQ lists three operating systems: macOS, Windows 11 and Linux. As far as its site says, there's no phone app. If you dictate messages on your iPhone as well as on your Mac, you'll want something that covers both. Voice Keyboard Pro has an iPhone and iPad keyboard on the same plan.
2. They want transcription on the Mac itself
Glaido's dictation docs say audio is streamed to Glaido's servers for transcription, and its installation page lists an internet connection as a requirement "for transcription processing". Glaido also says your dictation history stays on your device and isn't saved to its database. If you need to dictate with no network, or prefer that audio never leaves the machine, that's a real difference. Voice Keyboard Pro's Offline Mode on Apple silicon Macs runs transcription entirely on the Mac.
3. They want a refund window, or a lower price for one person
Glaido's pricing page shows Pro at $17 per user per month, billed annually, and switching its toggle to monthly billing shows $20 a month. Its FAQ says that, except where the law requires otherwise, paid subscription fees are non-refundable, though some requests are considered case by case. Glaido's free plan is a fair way to try it before paying. If you're one person paying for yourself, our plans cost less on our website and come with a 14-day refund, covered below.
4. They want features outside dictation
Glaido is about turning speech into text and commands. If you also want a record of calls, such as a live transcript with a summary, decisions and action items, our app does that on Mac and iPhone. Glaido's site doesn't list meeting notes, and we won't guess at its roadmap.
What to look for in an alternative
- Which devices you dictate on: only a Mac, or a Mac and an iPhone, or a Windows machine too.
- Whether audio may leave the machine, and whether you ever dictate with no network.
- How it starts: a held key, a toggle, or a hands-free mode.
- What happens in a terminal or code editor: whether commands stay as typed and prompts read as sentences.
- Whether you want a free plan, a trial, and how refunds work.
- How many languages you speak in a day.
Voice Keyboard Pro as the alternative
Voice Keyboard Pro is a Mac menu bar app and an iPhone and iPad keyboard. On the Mac you hold a key you choose (Left Control by default; Left Shift, Left Command, Right Option or Fn also work), speak, and let go. The text is typed at your cursor in whatever app has focus: Slack, Mail, Notion, VS Code, Cursor, Xcode, Terminal, Safari and so on.
For people who prompt AI tools, the details matter. In Terminal and code editors it keeps commands literal, with no capital letter and no closing period, and it formats prose, such as an instruction to an AI assistant, as normal sentences. It puts text in by pasting at the cursor and then restores your clipboard. Nothing is sent until you press Return yourself. Our posts on Mac dictation with Claude Code, voice typing in Cursor and dictating prompts for Claude go into the workflow. The Terminal page shows the setup.
It also has Smart Rewrite (punctuation worked out from pauses, tone matched to the app, switchable off), personal vocabulary that learns terms it sees on your screen, voice snippets, AI commands on selected text, searchable history, meeting notes, and 19 languages detected automatically.
The limits are real. It's push-to-talk only on the Mac, so there's no hands-free or toggle mode. There's no Windows, Android or Linux version. It has no free plan: on our website it's $4.99 a month (the monthly plan starts with a 3-day free trial), $34.99 a year, or $1.99 a week, with the same features on each, cancel anytime and a 14-day refund. One plan covers Mac and iPhone. In-app prices on the App Store are different. Offline Mode is only for Apple silicon, and Intel Macs use the cloud.
If what you want is Apple's built-in route, that costs nothing: our guide to the best dictation app for Mac compares the options with sources, including where others beat us.
Head to head
| What | Glaido | Voice Keyboard Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | macOS, Windows 11, Linux | Mac, iPhone, iPad |
| Starting dictation | Hold a hotkey (Fn by default on Mac), or a no-hold mode | Hold a key you choose (Left Control by default) |
| Mode without holding a key, on Mac | Yes, per its docs | No |
| Where text goes | Pasted into the active text field | Pasted at your cursor, clipboard restored |
| Offline | Needs internet, per its install page | Offline Mode on Apple silicon Macs |
| Languages | 100+ | 19, detected automatically |
| Meeting notes | Not listed on its site | Live transcript and summary, Mac and iPhone |
| Entry point | Basic plan at no charge, 2,000 words a week | Paid; 3-day trial on the monthly plan |
| Price | Pro $17 per user a month billed annually, or $20 billed monthly (glaido.com, October 2026) | $4.99 a month, $34.99 a year or $1.99 a week on our website |
Minimum macOS for Glaido is 13 (Ventura) per its installation page. Ours is macOS 14 or later.
When Glaido is the better pick
Stick with Glaido if any of these describe you:
- You work on Windows 11 or Linux, even some of the time. We don't run there.
- You want to start with a free plan and see if you use it. We don't have one.
- You want a hands-free mode on the Mac, or to start a dictation with "Hey Glaido".
- You dictate in a language outside our 19, since Glaido lists 100+.
- Your team needs seats on one bill, SSO or an Enterprise plan with API access.
Choose Voice Keyboard Pro if:
- You use a Mac and an iPhone and want one account for both.
- You want transcription to run on the Mac itself, with Offline Mode on an Apple silicon Mac.
- You dictate into terminals and editors and want commands kept literal.
- You want meeting notes with summaries and action items in the same app.
- You prefer a short trial and a 14-day refund over a free plan.
Frequently asked questions
Is Glaido free?
It has a free Basic plan. Glaido's pricing page lists 2,000 words a week, and its docs say that once you've used them the next dictation fails until the week resets or you upgrade. Pro removes the limit. That's from glaido.com as of October 2026.
How much does Glaido cost?
The Pro plan is listed at $17 per user per month billed annually, or $20 a month billed monthly. Enterprise pricing is custom. For comparison, ours is $4.99 a month, $34.99 a year or $1.99 a week on our website.
Does Glaido work offline?
Glaido's installation page lists an internet connection as a requirement for transcription processing, and its docs say audio is streamed to its servers. Voice Keyboard Pro has an Offline Mode on Apple silicon Macs.
Does Glaido work on iPhone?
Its FAQ lists macOS, Windows 11 and Linux, and its site doesn't mention a phone app. Voice Keyboard Pro has an iPhone and iPad keyboard.
Is Voice Keyboard Pro good for dictating into Claude or Cursor?
That's one of its main uses. It types at your cursor in any app, including Terminal, VS Code and Cursor. Claude Code also has its own voice input, which we cover in our Claude Code dictation post. For terminal work, see voice typing in Terminal.
The bottom line
Glaido and Voice Keyboard Pro are close in how they work: hold a key, speak, get text in any app. The choice comes down to your devices and your preferences. Choose Glaido for Windows or Linux, a free plan, hands-free dictation or more languages. Choose us for a Mac and iPhone pair, Offline Mode on Apple silicon, and terminal-friendly output.
Hold your key, speak, let go, and press Return yourself. The same account also covers the iPhone keyboard.
3-day free trial on the monthly plan · Apple Silicon & Intel
