Comparison

Murmur Keyboard vs Volocal

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

Head to head
About

Murmur Keyboard

This app converts your voice to text using advanced AI, all processed locally on your device for maximum privacy. It functions as a standalone application or a keyboard extension, allowing seamless dictation across any app without internet connectivity.

Highlights
  • 100% on-device transcription
  • Offline functionality
  • Custom keyboard for any app
  • Smart warm/cold engine
  • Dark mode support
  • Transcription history
Features
Read full description

Murmur turns your voice into text — entirely on your iPhone. No internet, no accounts, no data leaving your device. Powered by WhisperKit, Murmur runs a real speech recognition model locally, so your words stay yours. Use it as a standalone app or switch to the Murmur keyboard in any app — Messages, Notes, Mail, wherever you type. Tap the mic, speak naturally, and your transcription appears instantly. Most voice-to-text apps send your audio to the cloud. Murmur doesn't. It runs WhisperKit directly on your iPhone — no server, no account, no data collection. The new keyboard extension lets you dictate in any app, and v2.2 makes the whole flow feel faster and more polished in both light and dark mode. • 100% on-device transcription • Works offline, no cloud processing • Custom keyboard for dictation in any app • Smart warm/cold engine — fast when ready, clear when loading • Dark mode designed to feel intentional, not just inverted • Copy, share, or search your transcription history Your voice. Your words. Your device.

About

Volocal

This AI assistant runs entirely on your device, offering private, real-time voice conversations without needing an internet connection. It supports interrupting the AI mid-sentence and requires no subscriptions or API keys.

Highlights
  • Fully on-device AI processing
  • Real-time voice conversations
  • Interruptible AI responses
  • No internet connection required
  • No subscriptions or API keys
  • Open source
Features
Read full description

Talk to an AI assistant that runs entirely on your iPhone. No cloud servers, no API keys, no subscriptions -- just real-time voice conversations powered by on-device intelligence. FULLY PRIVATE, FULLY LOCAL Every word you say stays on your device. Volocal runs three specialized AI models directly on your iPhone's hardware -- nothing is ever sent to the internet. After downloading the models on first launch, you never need a network connection again. REAL-TIME VOICE CONVERSATIONS Speak naturally and hear responses streamed back in real-time. Volocal uses a three-stage pipeline -- Speech-to-Text, Language Model, and Text-to-Speech -- all running simultaneously on different chips inside your phone for smooth, low-latency conversations. INTERRUPT ANYTIME Change your mind mid-sentence? Just start talking. Volocal supports barge-in with hardware echo cancellation, so the microphone stays active even while the assistant is speaking. No need to wait for it to finish. NO SUBSCRIPTIONS, NO API KEYS Volocal is completely free and open source. There are no in-app purchases, no subscriptions, and no hidden costs. Download the models once (~2.3 GB, Wi-Fi recommended) and you're set. HOW IT WORKS Volocal splits the workload across your iPhone's specialized processors: - Speech recognition (Parakeet EOU) runs on the Neural Engine - Language model (Qwen3.5-2B) runs on the GPU via Metal - Text-to-speech (PocketTTS) runs on the Neural Engine This separation means all three models can run at the same time without competing for resources, keeping conversations fluid and responsive. LIGHTWEIGHT Total runtime memory usage is approximately 1.2 GB, well within the limits of modern iPhones. REQUIREMENTS - iOS 17 or later - Physical device only (Neural Engine is not available in the Simulator) - ~2.3 GB of storage for model downloads on first launch Volocal is MIT licensed and open source. Built by Fikri Karim.

Screenshots

Murmur Keyboard3 screens
Volocal2 screens

Verdict

The call

Murmur Keyboard and Volocal are too close to call on the numbers: across 8 compared parameters — price, rating, ratings volume and ads among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.0 for Murmur Keyboard against 3.0 for Volocal. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 3 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Murmur Keyboard versus Volocal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMurmur KeyboardVolocal
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings)3.0 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings23 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB13 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperJohn WangFikri Karim

In-app purchases

None

Murmur Keyboard

No in-app purchases

None

Volocal

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Murmur Keyboard free?
Murmur Keyboard is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Volocal free?
Volocal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Murmur Keyboard or Volocal?
Murmur Keyboard and Volocal are both rated 3.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2 and 3 ratings respectively.
Do Murmur Keyboard or Volocal have ads?
Neither Murmur Keyboard nor Volocal shows ads.

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