VoiceGecko

Voice Gecko: Open source local dictation for the desktop

Voice Gecko is a free, open source voice dictation app for the desktop that turns speech into text on the user's own computer. A keyboard shortcut or the on-screen GeckoBar starts recording, and the result is pasted where the user is working or placed on the clipboard. Speech models run locally, and audio and transcripts are never uploaded.

Key Features

• Local speech-to-text: Parakeet, Moonshine and Whisper models run on the device. Models download once on first launch, and dictation then works offline.
• GeckoBar: A persistent, interactive bar starts and stops dictation and shows what is happening while speech is processed.
• Paste or clipboard: Finished dictation is pasted straight into the active app or left on the clipboard, across Slack, Jira, Discord, GitHub, VS Code, Telegram and other desktop apps.
• Searchable history: Every dictation is saved in a searchable history kept in local SQLite, with nothing synced to Voice Gecko servers.
• Custom dictionary: Names, product terms and industry jargon, from SQL to brand names, can be added so they are transcribed correctly. The dictionary stays on the device.
• Custom shortcuts: Keyboard shortcuts for starting and stopping dictation can be set to fit code, document or design workflows.
• No account to dictate: An account is optional and only used for Support checkout and feedback.
• Open source: The code is public on GitHub under the MIT license, with a Tauri desktop app and a Next.js website in one repository, and contributions are welcome.
• Platforms: A Windows installer is available today. Web, Android, Linux and macOS versions are listed on the download page for users to vote on.

Use Cases

• AI-assisted coding: Speaking full specs, edge cases and architecture notes for an AI coding tool, without leaving the editor.
• Prompting chat assistants: Giving a large language model full context by voice instead of typing long prompts.
• Slow typists: Getting ideas down at speaking speed without stopping to fix typos and spelling.
• Privacy-sensitive work: Dictating text that should not be sent to a cloud transcription service.

Pricing

Voice Gecko is free, with unlimited dictations, no weekly limits and no locked features. An optional Support plan costs $5.99 per month and provides exactly the same product, as a way to fund development. No credit card is needed for the free version, and Support can be cancelled at any time.

Getting Started

• Website: voicegecko.dev
• Download: voicegecko.dev/download
• GitHub: github.com/Lukem121/voicegecko

Voice Gecko fits desktop users, developers in particular, who want free dictation that stays on their own machine and source code they can inspect.