Google Docs voice typing in brief
In a Google Doc, Tools → Voice typing shows a microphone; click it and talk. Google's help says it works in the latest Chrome, Edge and Safari, in Google Docs and in the speaker notes and captions of Google Slides. It knows many languages, Hindi, Japanese, Russian and Spanish among them.
Two limits matter. First, the text goes only into Docs or Slides. Second, voice commands for punctuation and editing are "available only in English", and both the account and the document must be set to English; in other languages, Google warns that punctuation "might not be available". (Google Docs Editors Help, checked on 23 October 2026.)
What VoiceKeyboard does differently
- Any window on Windows. Press Ctrl+1 and the text goes where the cursor is: Word, Outlook, Gmail in any browser, Telegram, Slack, Notion, VS Code, a ChatGPT prompt. Google Docs too.
- Google is one of the engines, and it is free. VoiceKeyboard's Google engine listens through Google Chrome on your PC, so Chrome has to be installed, and sends the audio to Google's speech recognition, one language at a time.
- Offline engines. Whisper, Parakeet v3, Vosk, GigaAM v3 and T-one run on the computer; with them the audio stays on the PC and no connection is needed.
- Commands in five languages. On Pro, voice commands for punctuation, new line, Enter and Tab work in English, Spanish, Russian, Japanese and Hindi, with every engine. You can add your own phrases.
- Automatic language detection. Soniox (Pro) hears which language you are speaking and switches mid-sentence; Whisper detects it phrase by phrase.
- Recordings to text. FILES turns audio, video and YouTube links into a text file.
Side by side
| Google Docs voice typing | VoiceKeyboard | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the text goes | Google Docs, Slides speaker notes and captions | any Windows app |
| Install | nothing, in the browser | a Windows app |
| Price | part of Google Docs | Free: 2,000 words a day; Pro $14.99 a month or $9.99 billed yearly |
| Voice commands | English only | 5 languages (Pro) |
| Works without the internet | not stated | with offline models |
| Detects the language by itself | not stated | Soniox, Whisper, Parakeet v3 |
| Recordings and video links to text | no | yes |
| Mac, phone, Chromebook | wherever the browser runs | Windows only |
When Google Docs voice typing is enough
- You write in Google Docs anyway and dictate there only.
- You dictate in English and like editing by voice ("select paragraph", "delete").
- You are on a Mac or a Chromebook, where VoiceKeyboard does not run.
When VoiceKeyboard fits
- You want to dictate in any program, not only in a document.
- You speak Spanish, Russian, Japanese or Hindi and want punctuation and new lines by voice.
- You need dictation without the internet, or audio that stays on your PC.
Try it in your own app
Install VoiceKeyboard, choose Google on the ONLINE side, put the cursor in the app you use most and press Ctrl+1. If the text lands in the wrong place, where the text goes explains why. The commands are listed in voice commands; the engines are compared in online and local engines.
