Does SuperWhisper work without an internet connection?

It depends on which model is selected and whether the AI cleanup features are on. With a local Whisper variant chosen and the AI cleanup features off, transcription works offline. With a cloud model selected (the OpenAI or Anthropic options offered through bring-your-own-key) or the AI cleanup features on, the app requires connectivity to function.

How do I configure SuperWhisper to be fully offline?

Pick a local Whisper variant in the model picker (anything from the standard Whisper family that has been downloaded to your Mac) and disable the AI cleanup or post-processing options in settings. From that configuration the transcription path stays on the Mac.

What stops working without internet?

Any cloud model option, including the OpenAI Whisper API and the Anthropic-routed models, requires connectivity by definition. The AI cleanup prompts that reformat the transcript as an email, summary or structured note also need an LLM provider and consequently need internet.

Is there a Mac dictation app that is always offline by design?

Parakeety has no cloud model option and no AI cleanup features. The architecture is fixed: Parakeet TDT v3 on the Apple Neural Engine, in memory, no network call at transcription time. There is nothing to misconfigure into a cloud path.

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Does SuperWhisper work offline?

Short answer: it depends on which of SuperWhisper’s many model options is configured, and whether the AI cleanup features are on. With a local Whisper variant selected and AI cleanup disabled, transcription works offline. With a cloud model picked or AI cleanup enabled, the app requires connectivity. The honest version is that SuperWhisper is offline-capable but not offline-by-default.

Why the answer depends

SuperWhisper is built around a model menu. Inside a single app you can pick a local Whisper variant of various sizes, or hand transcription off to a cloud LLM provider through bring-your-own-key. Layered on top is the AI cleanup feature: the raw transcript can be reformatted by a cloud LLM into an email, a summary, a structured note.

Two valid SuperWhisper configurations can have very different offline behaviour. One user’s setup might be fully local; the next user’s setup might depend on a cloud provider for everything. That flexibility is the product’s appeal for many users; it is also the reason the "does it work offline" question does not have a single answer.

The local-only configuration

Pick a local Whisper variant in the model picker. Once that model is downloaded to the Mac, it stays local. Disable the AI cleanup or post-processing features in settings so the transcript is not handed to an external LLM. From that configuration, dictating into SuperWhisper works on a flight, on a hotspot-less train, on a clinic network that blocks outbound traffic.

The trade with this setup is that you give up the features that make SuperWhisper distinctive: the model menu collapses to one good local option and the AI cleanup is off. The remaining feature surface is closer to a single-purpose local dictation app.

What requires internet

Cloud model options. Any OpenAI- or Anthropic-hosted model used via bring-your-own-key.
AI cleanup / post-processing. Prompts that reformat the transcript into an email, summary, or template-driven output.
First-time model downloads. Even the local Whisper variants need to be downloaded once before they will run offline.
Account and license checks. Subscription management requires connectivity at activation and on periodic revalidation.

The simpler-offline alternative

Parakeety has one model (Parakeet TDT v3) running in one place (the Apple Neural Engine) with no AI cleanup features and no cloud model options. The offline question has one answer: yes, after the one-time speech-model download. There is no model picker to misconfigure and no AI cleanup toggle that might be on by default.

The product comparison is Parakeety vs SuperWhisper.

FAQ

Does SuperWhisper work without an internet connection?: It depends on which model is selected and whether the AI cleanup features are on. With a local Whisper variant chosen and the AI cleanup features off, transcription works offline. With a cloud model selected (the OpenAI or Anthropic options offered through bring-your-own-key) or the AI cleanup features on, the app requires connectivity to function.
How do I configure SuperWhisper to be fully offline?: Pick a local Whisper variant in the model picker (anything from the standard Whisper family that has been downloaded to your Mac) and disable the AI cleanup or post-processing options in settings. From that configuration the transcription path stays on the Mac.
What stops working without internet?: Any cloud model option, including the OpenAI Whisper API and the Anthropic-routed models, requires connectivity by definition. The AI cleanup prompts that reformat the transcript as an email, summary or structured note also need an LLM provider and consequently need internet.
Is there a Mac dictation app that is always offline by design?: Parakeety has no cloud model option and no AI cleanup features. The architecture is fixed: Parakeet TDT v3 on the Apple Neural Engine, in memory, no network call at transcription time. There is nothing to misconfigure into a cloud path.

Try Parakeety

Parakeety is a Mac menu-bar app. Hold the section key, talk, release; your words paste at the cursor in whichever app you were typing into. Audio never leaves the machine, and the app works without an internet connection after the one-time speech-model download. There is a free 7-day trial with no card required. After that it is $30 once.

Try Parakeety free →