Transcribe audio and video on Mac, offline
Short answer. Paperlane for Mac transcribes an audio or video file with Apple's on-device speech recognition and saves plain text, SRT or VTT subtitles. It uses SpeechAnalyzer on macOS 26 and the on-device recogniser on macOS 15. Nothing is uploaded, and a folder of recordings can be transcribed in one job.
Three ways to do it
In the app
Open Transcribe, drop recordings, pick the language and the output format, and run.
From Finder
There is no dedicated Quick Action for this tool; drop the files on the Paperlane icon in the Dock or on the menu bar shelf and pick the tool.
With Shortcuts
Use the Run Paperlane Tool action with Transcribe to turn new voice memos into text files.
Steps
- Open Transcribe and drop in the recording.
- Choose the spoken language, or leave it on automatic.
- Pick plain text, SRT or VTT.
- Run the job and proofread the result.
At a glance
- Engine
- SpeechAnalyzer (macOS 26) or on-device speech recognition (macOS 15)
- Outputs
- TXT, SRT, VTT, or all three
- Subtitle lines
- Line length is adjustable
- Speaker labels
- Not included
Honest limitations
- No speaker labels: the transcript does not say who is talking.
- Accuracy depends on audio quality and language, and results always need proofreading.
Need just one file?
There is no browser version of this task, which is why it is a Mac feature.
Questions
Does transcription need an internet connection?
The recognisers run on your Mac. macOS may download a language once the first time you use it.
Is there a free web tool for this?
Not currently. Automatic subtitle generation is not available on the website, which is why this is a Mac feature.
Which languages are supported?
The languages your macOS version offers for on-device recognition. The app lists them in the language menu.