Comparison

Whisper Notes vs Whisper Local

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Whisper Notes

This app converts audio recordings and voice memos into accurate text with speaker identification, all processed offline on your device. It supports multiple languages and offers various export formats for easy sharing and editing.

Highlights
  • Offline audio transcription
  • Speaker identification and labeling
  • Support for 101 languages
  • Multiple export formats (TXT, Markdown, SRT)
  • Import from various sources
  • One-time purchase, no subscription
Features
Read full description

Whisper Notes turns meetings, lectures, interviews and voice memos into accurate text with speaker labels, 100% offline on your iPhone and iPad. One-time purchase, no subscription. Trusted by 70,000+ journalists, researchers and professionals. ■ Record and import - Record from the Lock Screen, widgets, Control Center, the Action button, Apple Watch, or "Hey Siri". - Import from WhatsApp, Voice Memos, Photos or Files, several at once. ■ Transcribe - 101 languages through Whisper, detected automatically, even when speakers mix languages. - Choose your on-device model: Parakeet, Whisper (OpenAI's open-source model) or SenseVoice, plus Apple Speech on supported devices with iOS 26. - Speaker labels (speaker diarization) show who said what. Rename each speaker. ■ Edit and export - Double-tap any paragraph to fix a word. - Export TXT, Markdown or SRT subtitles with timestamps and speaker labels. Works for videos too. - Auto-save every new transcript to Files or iCloud Drive. ■ Private by design Your audio never leaves your device. Turn on airplane mode and Whisper Notes works exactly the same, which matters when the recording is an interview, a client meeting, or anything you wouldn't put on someone else's server. ■ One-time purchase No subscription, no in-app purchases, no ads. Not satisfied? Settings → Request Refund. ■ Quick answers Does Whisper Notes work completely offline? Yes. It transcribes on your iPhone or iPad, so it works in airplane mode. The built-in Parakeet model covers 25 European languages offline from the first launch; for other languages, download Whisper or SenseVoice once in the app. Can it transcribe WhatsApp voice messages? Yes. Share a voice message to Whisper Notes and it is transcribed offline. Does it identify speakers? Yes. Tap ⋯ on a note → Detect Speakers, and each passage is labeled by speaker. Which model is best for Chinese, Japanese or Korean? SenseVoice, built for Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Cantonese. Is there a time limit? Each recording can be up to 24 hours long. Which iPhones are supported? Whisper Notes needs iPhone 12 or newer. Your notes live only on your device, so deleting the app deletes them. Export what matters. Questions? support@whispernotes.app · whispernotes.app

About

Whisper Local

This app converts audio and video files into text directly on your device, ensuring privacy. It supports recording or importing files, automatic language detection, and easy sharing of transcripts.

Highlights
  • On-device transcription
  • Import audio/video files
  • Record with microphone
  • Automatic language detection
  • Format and share transcripts
  • Plain text export
Features
Read full description

Whisper Local turns audio into text directly on your device for better privacy and control. Import an audio or video file, or record with the microphone, then get a clean transcript without sending your content to a remote server. Choose a language manually or let the app detect it automatically, then format, copy, or share the result as plain text.

Screenshots

Whisper Notes4 screens
Whisper Local4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Whisper Local at Free against Whisper Notes's $7.99. Whisper Local also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 10 days). Whisper Notes's advantage is ratings volume (707 vs 2) and chart position (#6 vs unranked). On ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Whisper Local is free to download; Whisper Notes costs $7.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Whisper Local holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Whisper Notes has 707 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Whisper Notes ships an update every 10 days, Whisper Local every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Whisper Notes versus Whisper Local: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWhisper NotesWhisper Local
Price$7.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (707 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings707 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
Best chart rank#6 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size659 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSmashMelon LLCFrancois Guilleme

Bugs and requests

Whisper Notes

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Recordings disappearing after transcription
  • Transcription process getting stuck at 1%
  • Crashes on certain iOS/iPadOS versions
  • Inability to import audio files consistently

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for speaker diarization
  • Implement real-time transcription mode
  • Allow customization of hotkey/shortcut
  • Improve integration with Apple Shortcuts
  • Provide option to choose transcription model size

Whisper Local

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Whisper Notes

No in-app purchases

None

Whisper Local

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Whisper Notes free?
Whisper Notes costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Whisper Local free?
Whisper Local is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Whisper Notes or Whisper Local?
Whisper Local is rated higher. Whisper Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 707 ratings, while Whisper Local averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Whisper Notes or Whisper Local have ads?
Neither Whisper Notes nor Whisper Local shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Whisper Notes or Whisper Local?
Whisper Notes ships an update every 10 days, and Whisper Local every 5 days. Most recently, Whisper Notes was updated on November 12, 2026 and Whisper Local on November 5, 2026.

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