Why isn’t Flow recording my voice?

Desktop (Mac & Windows)

1. Check microphone permissions. On Mac, open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. On Windows, open Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. Confirm microphone access is on and Wispr Flow is allowed. Restart Flow if you made changes.

2. Verify the correct input device. Open input settings (Mac: System Settings → Sound → Input / Windows: Settings → System → Sound → Input). Select your microphone and speak — the input level meter should bounce. Confirm the input volume slider isn't at zero, since another app can silently set it there. If the meter doesn't move, try a different mic or port.

3. Restart Flow. Quit Flow from the menu bar (Mac) or system tray (Windows), then reopen it from Applications, Spotlight, or the Start menu.

4. Reset & Restart (last resort). Open Flow Settings → System → Reset & Restart, then dictate to test.

iOS

1. Grant microphone permission when prompted. During onboarding, iOS shows a microphone permission prompt. Tap Allow. If you tapped Don't Allow, the next time you try to record you'll see a "Microphone access denied" modal with a Go to Settings button.

2. Check microphone permissions manually. Open the Settings app → Wispr Flow and confirm Microphone is toggled on.

3. Restart Flow. Open the app switcher (swipe up from the bottom of the screen, or double-tap the Home button), swipe Wispr Flow away, then reopen it.

Android

1. Check microphone permissions. Open the Settings app → Apps → Wispr Flow → Permissions and confirm Microphone is set to "Allow" or "Allow only while using the app."

2. Re-grant permission if it has been revoked. When mic permission is revoked, Flow keeps running in a limited state — the bubble and overlay stay visible, but recording is disabled. Tap the Flow Bubble to start a dictation; the standard Android permission dialog appears. Choose Allow. If you previously chose "Don't ask again" and the dialog no longer appears, open the Settings app → Apps → Wispr Flow → Permissions and toggle Microphone on manually. A full app restart may be needed to resume recording.

3. Restore accessibility access if the Flow Bubble shows a Repair prompt. The bubble can show one of three variants:

   • Warning triangle — accessibility permission has been revoked. Tap the bubble to open Flow's in-app accessibility repair screen, which guides you to the system Settings page to re-enable access.

   • Retry icon — the accessibility service is unresponsive. Tap the bubble to attempt an in-app service restart.

   • Pulsing loader — Flow is reconnecting the service. This state resolves automatically and is not tappable.

4. Restart Flow. Open your recent apps view, swipe Wispr Flow away, then reopen it.

iOS: Keyboard showed "Audio was silent" warning after a dictation with no speech

When a dictation captured no speech, the iOS keyboard previously showed an "Audio was silent" message with a warning triangle. Fixed in the latest version — the keyboard now simply resets back to the microphone icon, the same as after a successful dictation.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

iOS: Keyboard showed the mic button instead of the recording waveform after switching back to the app

When opening the Wispr Flow keyboard for the first time after a fresh app launch, tapping the mic button and then swiping back to the app could leave the keyboard stuck on the mic button instead of the recording waveform — even though dictation was running in the background. Tapping the mic again would do nothing. Fixed in the latest version — the keyboard now reliably shows the recording state when you return to the app.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Android: Revoking microphone permission caused crashes or full shutdown

Two related bugs affected how Flow handled revoked microphone permission on Android. Both are fixed in the latest version — Flow now stays running in a limited state (bubble and overlay remain visible, recording disabled), and tapping the bubble triggers the standard Android system permission dialog so you can re-enable Microphone permission.

• Crash loop on newer Android versions: Revoking microphone permission could cause Flow to crash on every launch, requiring a re-grant or reinstall to recover.

• Full service shutdown during startup: If permission was revoked at just the right moment during app startup, the entire Flow service — including the bubble and accessibility overlay — could shut down, requiring a full relaunch.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Tap the Flow Bubble; the standard Android permission dialog will appear — tap Allow. If it doesn't appear (previously denied with "Don't ask again"), go to Settings → Apps → Wispr Flow → Permissions and enable Microphone.

Android: Flow Bubble was slow to show the "Repair" prompt after an accessibility interruption

When Android interrupted or shut down Flow's accessibility service, the Flow Bubble could be slow to show the Repair prompt. Fixed in the latest version — Flow now detects accessibility interruptions promptly and shows the Repair prompt right away.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

iOS: First dictation after granting microphone permission showed "We can't hear you"

During iOS onboarding, the first dictation attempt immediately after granting microphone permission incorrectly showed a "We can't hear you" error and asked you to re-grant mic access. Fixed in the latest version — new users can now dictate successfully straight after the permission flow.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

iOS: Wispr Flow didn't appear under Microphone in iOS Settings

Flow didn't make an explicit microphone permission request before recording, so it never appeared in the iOS Settings list. Fixed in the latest version — Flow now requests permission before starting a recording, which makes it appear in iOS Settings immediately.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Start a Flow recording — you'll see the permission prompt. Tap Allow to grant access.

iOS: Revoking microphone permission caused dictation to fail silently

Flow didn't detect revoked permissions after initial setup, so tapping "Start Flow" or the mic button would silently attempt dictation without recording or showing an error. Fixed in the latest version — you now immediately see a "We can't hear you" prompt, so you know to re-enable mic access in Settings.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Open the Settings app → Wispr Flow and toggle Microphone back on.

iOS: Dictation failed silently during onboarding with no explanation

Failed dictation attempts during the "try it yourself" onboarding steps — from no audio, network problems, the mic being in use, or permission issues — gave no feedback. Fixed in the latest version, which now shows a descriptive message at the top of the screen for each failure type.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

Mac/Windows: Microphone test bars appeared fully filled even when not speaking

The microphone level bars on the "Test your microphone" page (and in the mic selection dialog in Settings → General, the Help button, and the Sidebar) showed as fully filled regardless of whether you were speaking. Fixed in the latest version — the bars now accurately reflect your actual audio input.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Mac/Windows: Onboarding mic test showed a generic error and required a long wait

The "Test your microphone" onboarding page showed a generic "Try restarting Flow" toast for all mic failures, with no specific guidance. The latest version now shows a dedicated in-pane error modal with tailored instructions and action buttons for each failure type:

• Microphone access required: An Open Settings button appears so you can grant permission immediately. Returning to Flow after granting access triggers an automatic retry.

• No microphone detected: A Refresh devices button scans for newly connected mics, and Open Sound Settings takes you directly to your system sound input settings.

• Microphone in use by another app: Flow suggests closing any apps that may be holding your mic — such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Discord, FaceTime, or other apps that use your microphone — and offers Open Sound Settings as the primary action, with Restart Flow as a secondary option.

• Selected microphone unavailable: A Choose a different microphone button lets you pick another input device.

• Unknown error: A Restart Flow button appears.

To get the fix:

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Mac/Windows: Dictation showed "Listening" but failed with a generic error after a long wait

Flow didn't detect microphone access failures up front, so it would show a "Listening" bubble for a while, then display a generic "Transcript failed to load" error. The latest version detects pre-recording failures immediately and shows a specific notification:

• No microphone detected: Shown when no mic is connected. Flow opens your system sound input settings.

• Selected microphone is unavailable: Shown when a mic you previously pinned in Flow is no longer connected. Flow opens the mic chooser so you can pick a different one.

• Microphone unavailable: Shown when another app is using the mic or the audio driver is unresponsive. Includes a Troubleshoot link.

• Microphone error: A general fallback for other mic access problems, with a Troubleshoot link.

To get the fix:

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Other Mac/Windows mic bugs fixed in recent updates

Several additional desktop microphone bugs have been resolved in recent versions. If you've experienced any of these, updating to the latest version of Flow is the fix:

• Mic took a long time to activate after canceling and retrying dictation. Each successive retry took progressively longer to start, and the mic indicator light could remain on after canceling.

• Dictation stopped working in certain desktop builds. The microphone failed to activate even when permissions were granted.

• Windows: Microphone access blocked or blank mic picker after a recent upgrade. Some users saw a blank mic picker or a false "microphone privacy disabled" error even though access was granted. Fixed in a later version — updating resolves it.

To get the fix:

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Flow was working before but suddenly stopped — what happened?

This usually happens after a system update resets microphone permissions, or when a new audio device (like Bluetooth headphones) changes your default input. Run through the quick checks above to narrow it down.

Can I choose which microphone Flow uses?

On Mac and Windows, Flow uses the system default input device — change it in your system sound settings. On iOS, Flow uses the built-in iPhone microphone and there is no in-app mic picker. On Android, Flow automatically uses the device microphone or connected headset.

What happens when I plug in a new microphone mid-session?

On desktop, Flow shows a "New microphone detected — Would you like to use this mic for Flow?" notification with Switch and Don't Switch buttons.

Flow picks up audio but the text is wrong — is that a mic issue?

No. If text appears but is inaccurate, the microphone is working. The issue is usually background noise or mic placement — move to a quieter area or speak closer to the mic.

What do the silence and disconnect notifications mean on desktop?

If your microphone stops delivering audio mid-dictation, Flow shows an "Is your microphone muted?" notification with two buttons: Select microphone and Troubleshoot. If silence continues, it escalates to "Microphone is not working" with both a Select microphone button and a Contact us button. If your mic disconnects entirely, you'll see "Microphone disconnected" with an Insert button to paste any text captured before the disconnect.

On iOS, the keyboard just reset to the mic icon after I dictated — did it hear me?

If no speech was captured, the iOS keyboard resets to the mic icon without any warning — the same as after a successful dictation. If nothing was typed, tap the mic again and speak clearly. If it keeps happening, check that microphone permission is enabled in Settings → Wispr Flow.