Pick Hedy if you need a bot-free live meeting coach across Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and web. Pick Ottex if you want dictation, meeting capture, and finished outputs in one Mac/iOS tool.
Ottex
Mac, iOS · Free tier · $14/mo · PAYG
Ottex is unusually broad for a young Mac/iOS-first tool: it turns dictation and meetings into emails, tickets, CRM updates, notes, and docs, but it is not the pick if you need Windows, Android, web, browser extension, or compliance paperwork.
Choose if
You want one tool for system-wide dictation, meeting recording, and finished written outcomes like follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, and docs
You want a real free path: unlimited local dictation, file transcription, and meetings on Mac with Whisper/Parakeet, or BYOK instead of a forced subscription
You need multilingual dictation with 100+ languages, auto-detection, mixed-language speech, personal vocabulary, and per-app output rules
Look elsewhere if
You need Windows, Android, Linux, web access, or a browser extension
You need mature team infrastructure such as a shared workspace, API/webhooks, third-party note destinations, or assistant chat over transcripts today.
Hedy is strongest as a bot-free live meeting coach and searchable conversation memory, with local/offline options and broad platform support, but it is not a system-wide dictation tool and lacks proven speaker labels, hotkeys, snippets, or
Choose if
You want real-time coaching during meetings, with questions, blind-spot alerts, talking points, summaries, to-dos, and follow-up recaps after the session.
You need bot-free capture for Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, in-person conversations, or imported audio/video, with apps across iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and web
You value privacy controls: local speech recognition by default, optional local AI, optional cloud sync, GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2 Type I claims.
Look elsewhere if
You need system-wide dictation that inserts polished text into any app; Hedy explicitly does not support system-wide insertion or context-aware dictation.
You need meeting transcripts with publicly claimed speaker identification, timestamp exports, or speaker labels; those claims are not present here.
The evidence
What actually differs, claim by claim.
Each section opens with the takeaway. The table underneath is the receipt — every cell carries its source and the date we checked it.
Pricing
Ottex has the better real free path: free local AI or your own key, plus PAYG at $0.2/hour, Pro at $14/mo, and Team at $24/seat/mo. Hedy is cheaper monthly at $12.99/mo and has a $299 lifetime option, while its free plan is capped at 5 hours/month with real-time AI insights only for the first 30 minutes/session.
See the evidence — 8 claims across 2 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Hedy
Free tier
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Forever free with local models and BYOK providers.
PartialSource: hedy.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026Up to 5 hours per month; Real-time AI insights (first 30 min/session)
Subscription
$14/moSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
$12.99/moSource: hedy.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026Pro adds unlimited sessions, recording import, cross-session organization, Zapier, and API integrations.
Pay-as-you-go / one-timeEscape the flat subscription
$0.2/hourSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted models at cost: dictation ~$0.2/h, meetings ~$0.5/h (~$3/mo average).
$299 one-timeSource: hedy.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026All future updates included
Bring your own keyPay the model provider, not the middleman
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026OpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, and compatible providers.
No public claim
Education discount
NoSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Same pricing for everyone.
No public claim
Platforms
Hedy wins platform coverage with Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and web. Ottex is limited to Mac and iOS, so it is the wrong pick if Windows, Android, Linux, web access, or a browser extension is required.
See the evidence — 4 claims across 2 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Hedy
Platforms
Mac, iOSSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, WebSource: hedy.ai/downloads — checked Jun 2026
Native app footprintLight on memory, instant to invoke
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Native Swift app, ~50MB RAM.
YesSource: hedy.ai/post — checked Jun 2026Vendor describes a native macOS application.
Meetings & team memory
Hedy wins pure meeting capture because it is bot-free across Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, in-person conversations, imported audio/video, and 5 platforms. Ottex also records meetings and has free local or BYOK paths, but Hedy is broader; the caveat is that Hedy does not publicly claim speaker labels or timestamp exports here.
See the evidence — 11 claims across 2 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Hedy
Meeting recordingThe call is captured at all
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026With speaker separation.
YesSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Hedy records live sessions and meeting conversations.
Bot-free captureNo "recording bot" joins your call
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026System-audio capture, no bot joins the call.
YesSource: hedy.ai/features — checked Jun 2026Feature page says no bot joins calls.
Speaker separation
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
No public claim
Calendar detection
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Calendar-based meeting detection.
YesSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Google Calendar is listed in the help center and news page.
Cross-meeting search
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
YesSource: hedy.ai/features — checked Jun 2026Pro users can group sessions and ask questions across conversations weeks ago.
Shared team memory
PartialSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Public share links, not a full team workspace.
YesSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Sharing sessions and topics is listed in the help center.
From meeting to finished work
Hedy wins live meeting help with real-time questions, blind-spot alerts, talking points, summaries, to-dos, and follow-up recaps. Ottex wins when the output needs to become finished work, because it turns dictation and meetings into follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, docs, and notes.
See the evidence — 7 claims across 2 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Hedy
Decisions, owners, action itemsLeave the meeting with next steps clear
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Decisions with owners extracted.
YesSource: play.google.com/store — checked Jun 2026Google Play listing says Hedy can find decisions across past conversations.
Follow-up email draftedThe outcome is sent, not summarized
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Drafted from templates or your own.
YesSource: hedy.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026Auto-recap emails are listed for sharing insights.
CRM update / ticket draft
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Structured for the target app.
No public claim
Your rough notes steer the result
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Rough notes and instructions steer the result.
YesSource: hedy.ai/post — checked Jun 2026Hedy 3 added in-meeting note-taking that powers AI suggestions.
Dictation & transcription AI
Ottex wins dictation clearly: it supports system-wide dictation, local models, BYOK, 100+ languages, auto-detection, mixed-language speech, personal vocabulary, and per-app output rules. Hedy has local options and 30 languages, but it is not a system-wide dictation tool and does not insert polished text into any app.
See the evidence — 9 claims across 2 toolsverified Jun 2026Show tableHide table
Ottex
Hedy
Engines
Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3.Source: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted routing, BYOK, or fully local.
Two local and two cloud speech recognition providersSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Users can choose between private on-device transcription and cloud-based speech recognition.
Local / on-device optionAudio never leaves the machine
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Whisper and Parakeet v3 run fully on-device.
YesSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Local speech recognition and local AI processing can run on-device and offline.
Model selection per task
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Choose the model per task and per provider.
YesSource: hedy.ai/help — checked Jun 2026Speech recognition provider can be changed in Settings > Speech & AI.
Languages & mixed speechWork that crosses languages mid-sentence
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026100+ languages · Mid-sentence language switching.
YesSource: apps.apple.com/us — checked Jun 202630+ languages · App Store listing says Hedy supports multilingual conversations while returning insights in the preferred language.
Per-app output rules
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Per-app output rules: exact in AI chats, polished in email.
No public claim
Cost
What a year actually costs at your volume.
Personal or team — switch tabs. Subscriptions are flat; usage-based pricing depends on how much you speak and meet.
OttexSubscription - Pro$168/yr$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
Estimates, not quotes. Striped bar segments are the cost of the second app you picked above to cover the gap — rankings use that combined total. PAYG uses hosted at-cost estimates ($0.2/h dictation, $0.5/h meetings); BYOK is estimated at about a third of that because you pay the model provider directly. Bring-your-own-key plans still pay the model provider per use. One-time licenses are amortized over 2 years. Subscriptions use published pricing, checked Jun 2026.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
Ottex vs Hedy: which should I pick?
Pick Hedy if meetings are the job: live coaching, bot-free capture, and Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and web support. Pick Ottex if you want one Mac/iOS tool for system-wide dictation, meeting recording, and finished outputs like emails, tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, and docs.
Is Ottex free?
Yes. Ottex has free local AI and a free bring-your-own-key path for dictation, file transcription, and meetings on Mac, plus paid options at $0.2/hour PAYG, $14/mo Pro, and $24/seat/mo Team.
Is Hedy free?
Hedy has a free plan, but it is capped at 5 hours/month and real-time AI insights are limited to the first 30 minutes/session. That is useful for trying Hedy, not for running a heavy meeting workflow.
How much does Ottex and Hedy cost?
Ottex can be free with local AI or your own key, $0.2/hour on PAYG, $14/mo for Pro, or $24/seat/mo for Team. Hedy costs $12.99/mo for Pro or $299 one-time for Lifetime, so Hedy is cheaper on monthly Pro and has the one-time path.
Is Ottex or Hedy more private?
Hedy is the stronger privacy pick on the claims listed here: local speech recognition by default, optional local AI, optional cloud sync, GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2 Type I claims. Ottex also has local AI and BYOK, but the input does not list the same compliance claims.
Does Ottex or Hedy work on Windows or Android?
Hedy works on Windows and Android, along with Mac, iOS, and web. Ottex is Mac and iOS only, so choose Hedy if Windows or Android support matters.
Does Ottex or Hedy work offline?
Both have local options in the input. Ottex offers local AI and BYOK, while Hedy has local speech recognition by default and optional local AI.
