How to transcribe voice memos

Transcribe a voice memo on iPhone

What you need

• An iPhone 12 or newer.
• iOS 18 or later (Settings > General > Software Update).
• A supported language: Apple lists English (all variants), Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Korean and Chinese. It isn't offered in every country or region.

See the transcript while you record

1. Open Voice Memos and tap the red record button.
2. Swipe up on the waveform to expand the recording screen.
3. Tap the Transcription button. Words appear as they're spoken. Tap it again to go back to the waveform.

Read or copy the transcript afterwards

1. Tap the recording in your list.
2. Tap More (three dots).
3. Choose View Transcript to read it and copy part of it, or Copy Transcript to copy everything.
4. Paste into Notes, Mail, Messages or a document.

Bonus: the search box in Voice Memos searches inside transcripts, so you can find "that memo where I mentioned the budget" by typing "budget". Tapping a word in the transcript jumps the playback to that spot.

If you don't see a transcript

• Check your iPhone model and iOS version.
• Check that your iPhone's language is supported.
• Older memos are transcribed when you open them; give long ones a moment.
• Very quiet or noisy recordings may not produce any text.

Transcribe voice memos on a Mac

Voice Memos on a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 15 or later shows transcripts too. If you turn on iCloud for Voice Memos on your iPhone (Settings > your name > iCloud) and on your Mac, your memos appear on both.

1. Open Voice Memos on the Mac and select a recording.
2. Click the Transcription button.
3. Select text, Control-click, and choose Copy.

Intel Macs and older macOS versions don't transcribe in Voice Memos. You can still drag a memo from Voice Memos into a Finder window to get the M4A file, then use another tool. See also the best transcription software for Mac.

Where Apple's transcripts fall short

For a quick idea or a reminder, the built-in transcript is all you need. It's less helpful when:

• More than one person is talking. There are no speaker labels, so a recorded meeting or interview becomes one long paragraph.
• The recording is long. Editing and organizing an hour of text on a phone is slow.
• You work on Windows or Linux. Voice Memos isn't there.
• You need to edit and keep the text. Copying is the only real export, and edits don't live with the recording.

Step 1: Get your voice memos onto your computer

To a Mac

• iCloud: with iCloud on for Voice Memos, they sync to the Mac's Voice Memos app. Drag one out to the desktop to get the file.
• AirDrop: in Voice Memos on the iPhone, tap the recording, tap More and choose Share, then AirDrop and pick your Mac.

To a Windows or Linux PC

• iCloud Drive: Share > Save to Files > iCloud Drive, then download it from iCloud for Windows or icloud.com.
• Email or a messaging app: Share the memo to yourself and save the attachment.
• Cloud storage: Save to Files, then any storage app you use on both devices.

Each memo arrives as an M4A file, named after the memo.

Step 2: Import the memo into Hark

Hark is a free desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux that transcribes recordings on your computer and works out who is speaking.

1. Download Hark and sign in with a free account (an emailed code; no card).
2. Drag the M4A file (or several) onto Hark's window, or choose File > Import.
3. The first time, Hark downloads its speech models (about 730 MB). After that, it works offline.
4. Hark transcribes each memo and splits it by speaker.
5. Play a short clip of each voice and type a name. Hark recognizes those voices in future memos and meetings, as suggestions you confirm.
6. Edit lines, add your own notes, and export the transcript.

Hark transcribes English only. Memos in other languages are better served by Apple's own transcript. Hark has no mobile app, so this route is for when you're at your computer.

Built-in transcript or Hark?

Tips for memos that transcribe well

• Point the bottom of the iPhone at the speaker. That's where the main microphone is.
• Put the phone in the middle for a group conversation, on something soft so the table doesn't thump.
• Spell unusual names once in the recording ("that's Siobhan, S-I-O-B-H-A-N").
• Ask first. Recording laws vary by place, and some require everyone's consent.

More: converting M4A to text, voice recorders with transcription and how to transcribe an interview.