COMPARISONEvery claim sourced · verified Jun 2026

Hedy vs Spokenly: the honest comparison.

Hedy and Spokenly solve different jobs. Hedy is for bot-free meeting coaching and conversation memory, while Spokenly is for system-wide dictation. Ottex sits between them: Mac/iOS-first, with dictation, meetings, and finished written outputs.

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

Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, Web · Limited free · $12.99/mo · $299 one-time

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.

Spokenly

Mac, Windows, iOS · Limited free · $9.99/mo

Spokenly is a strong pick for Mac-first dictation with real offline and BYOK options, but it is not a meeting assistant and has no web, Linux, Android, or live meeting workflow.

Choose if

You want system-wide push-to-talk dictation on macOS, iOS, or Windows, with text inserted directly into the active app.
You want unlimited free local dictation in 100+ languages, or BYOK transcription where Spokenly charges nothing beyond your provider costs.
You need file transcription from the terminal, including batch audio/video jobs and TXT, SRT, VTT, Markdown, or JSON output.

Look elsewhere if

You need meeting recording, calendar detection, summaries, action items, follow-up emails, or shared meeting memory.
You need a browser, web app, Android, or Linux workflow instead of installed desktop/mobile apps.

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

Spokenly wins if you want low-cost dictation: Local Models are free with unlimited use, BYOK is free aside from provider costs, and Pro is $9.99/mo. Hedy is the meeting-priced option with a 5 hours/month free tier, $12.99/mo Pro, and a $299 lifetime plan. Ottex is broader but not cheapest on subscription at $14/mo, though its free local/BYOK paths and $0.2/hour PAYG make sense when you want dictation, file work, and

See the evidence — 13 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show table

	Ottex	Hedy	Spokenly
Free tier	YesForever free with local models and BYOK providers.	PartialUp to 5 hours per month; Real-time AI insights (first 30 min/session)	PartialUnlimited use; no usage limits
Subscription	$14/mo$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.	$12.99/moPro adds unlimited sessions, recording import, cross-session organization, Zapier, and API integrations.	$9.99/moThe pricing page shows annual billing at $99.99 per year and references Pro cloud features.
Pay-as-you-go / one-timeEscape the flat subscription	$0.2/hourHosted models at cost: dictation ~$0.2/h, meetings ~$0.5/h (~$3/mo average).	$299 one-timeAll future updates included	NoSubscription only
Bring your own keyPay the model provider, not the middleman	YesOpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, and compatible providers.	No public claim	YesUsers can connect their own API keys from OpenAI, Deepgram, Groq, ElevenLabs, Mistral, and other providers.
Education discount	NoSame pricing for everyone.	No public claim	YesVerified students get 50% off Pro after contacting support with an academic email.

Platforms

Hedy wins platform coverage: Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and Web. Spokenly covers Mac, Windows, and iOS, which is enough for many dictation workflows but leaves out Android and Web. Ottex is the narrowest on reach with Mac and iOS only, so it loses this dimension despite covering both dictation and meetings.

See the evidence — 5 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show table

	Ottex	Hedy	Spokenly
Platforms	Mac, iOS	Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, Web	Mac, Windows, iOS
Native app footprintLight on memory, instant to invoke	YesNative Swift app, ~50MB RAM.	YesVendor describes a native macOS application.	No public claim

Meetings & team memory

Hedy wins pure meeting capture because it supports meetings, imported audio/video, bot-free Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, and in-person capture across 5 platforms. Spokenly is not a meeting assistant and has no meeting recording workflow. Ottex also supports meetings and file transcription, but its Mac/iOS-only footprint makes Hedy the safer capture choice for mixed-device teams.

See the evidence — 17 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show table

	Ottex	Hedy	Spokenly
Meeting recordingThe call is captured at all	YesWith speaker separation.	YesHedy records live sessions and meeting conversations.	NoNot supported.
Bot-free captureNo "recording bot" joins your call	YesSystem-audio capture, no bot joins the call.	YesFeature page says no bot joins calls.	NoNot supported.
Speaker separation	Yes	No public claim	NoNot supported for live meetings.
Calendar detection	YesCalendar-based meeting detection.	YesGoogle Calendar is listed in the help center and news page.	NoNot supported.
Cross-meeting search	Yes	YesPro users can group sessions and ask questions across conversations weeks ago.	NoNot supported.
Shared team memory	PartialPublic share links, not a full team workspace.	YesSharing sessions and topics is listed in the help center.	NoNot supported.

From meeting to finished work

Ottex wins finished work: it turns meetings and dictation into follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, docs, and notes. Hedy is strong for live coaching, questions, blind-spot alerts, talking points, summaries, to-dos, and follow-up recaps, but it stops closer to meeting notes. Spokenly does not do meeting intelligence at all.

See the evidence — 11 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show table

	Ottex	Hedy	Spokenly
Decisions, owners, action itemsLeave the meeting with next steps clear	YesDecisions with owners extracted.	YesGoogle Play listing says Hedy can find decisions across past conversations.	NoNot supported.
Follow-up email draftedThe outcome is sent, not summarized	YesDrafted from templates or your own.	YesAuto-recap emails are listed for sharing insights.	NoNot supported.
CRM update / ticket draft	YesStructured for the target app.	No public claim	NoNot supported.
Your rough notes steer the result	YesRough notes and instructions steer the result.	YesHedy 3 added in-meeting note-taking that powers AI suggestions.	NoNot supported.

Dictation & transcription AI

Spokenly wins dictation against Hedy: it offers system-wide push-to-talk dictation, local models, BYOK, and 100+ languages, while Hedy explicitly is not a system-wide dictation tool and supports 30 languages. Ottex matches the 100+ language count, adds local and BYOK options, and supports per-app output rules, but Spokenly has broader desktop coverage with Mac, Windows, and iOS versus Ottex on Mac and iOS.

See the evidence — 12 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026Show table

	Ottex	Hedy	Spokenly
Engines	Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3.Hosted routing, BYOK, or fully local.	Two local and two cloud speech recognition providersUsers can choose between private on-device transcription and cloud-based speech recognition.	Whisper, Parakeet, Apple Speech Analyzer, GPT-4o Transcribe, Deepgram Nova 3, Soniox, Groq, ElevenLabs, Mistral, Fireworks, CerebrasPublished pages name local, BYOK, managed cloud, and third-party providers across pricing and privacy materials.
Local / on-device optionAudio never leaves the machine	YesWhisper and Parakeet v3 run fully on-device.	YesLocal speech recognition and local AI processing can run on-device and offline.	YesLocal Only Mode keeps transcription on-device and blocks network access.
Model selection per task	YesChoose the model per task and per provider.	YesSpeech recognition provider can be changed in Settings > Speech & AI.	YesDocs say users choose between fast and high-accuracy dictation models.
Languages & mixed speechWork that crosses languages mid-sentence	Yes100+ languages · Mid-sentence language switching.	Yes30+ languages · App Store listing says Hedy supports multilingual conversations while returning insights in the preferred language.	No public claim
Per-app output rules	YesPer-app output rules: exact in AI chats, polished in email.	No public claim	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.

You dictate about 3 h a week≈ 23,400 words at ~130 wpm

0 h5 h10 h

and sit in 4 h of meetings a weekhours you'd want captured and turned into follow-ups

0 h7.5 h15 h

Fill the gaps with:

Dictation appadded to meetings-only toolsMeetings appadded to dictation-only tools

OttexOttex Provider — PAYG$135/yrHosted models at cost: dictation ~$0.2/h, meetings ~$0.5/h (~$3/mo average).

OttexSubscription - Pro$168/yr$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.

SpokenlyPro$268/yr$100 + $168The pricing page shows annual billing at $99.99 per year and references Pro cloud features. · High-accuracy cloud models; AI text processing; works out of the box; priority support

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.

Hedy vs Spokenly: which should I pick?

Pick Hedy if your main job is live meeting coaching, bot-free capture, summaries, to-dos, and follow-up recaps across Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, and Web. Pick Spokenly if you want system-wide push-to-talk dictation on Mac, Windows, or iOS with local models, BYOK, and 100+ languages.

Is Hedy free?

Hedy has a free plan, but it is capped at 5 hours per month and real-time AI insights are limited to the first 30 minutes per session. That can work for testing Hedy, but it is not the same as an unlimited meeting workflow.

Is Spokenly free?

Yes, Spokenly can be free if you use Local Models with unlimited use, or if you use your own API keys and pay the provider directly. Its Pro plan is $9.99/mo for cloud models, AI text processing, and priority support.

How much does Hedy cost compared with Spokenly?

Hedy costs $12.99/mo for Pro, or $299 one-time for Lifetime, after its 5 hours/month free tier. Spokenly is cheaper as a subscription at $9.99/mo, and it also has unlimited free local dictation plus a free BYOK path.

Is Hedy or Spokenly safer for privacy?

Hedy has stronger meeting-privacy positioning: local speech recognition by default, optional local AI, optional cloud sync, plus GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC 2 Type I claims. Spokenly is strong for dictation privacy because it supports local models and BYOK, but it is not a meeting recorder.

Is it worth switching from Hedy to Spokenly?

Switch from Hedy to Spokenly if your real need is system-wide dictation that inserts text into the active app. Stay with Hedy if you rely on meeting coaching, summaries, to-dos, follow-up recaps, Android, Web, or bot-free meeting capture.

Does Hedy or Spokenly work on Windows or Android?

Hedy works on Windows and Android, plus Mac, iOS, and Web. Spokenly works on Windows, Mac, and iOS, but not Android or Web.

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