Use Flow with multiple languages
Last updated: October 7, 2026
Available on: Mac, Windows, iOS, Android
Flow dictates in 100+ languages. Select the languages you speak to switch between them across dictations, or choose a regional variant for your preferred spelling.
Choose languages and variants
Flow detects one language per dictation, not per word. Selecting languages narrows what Flow can choose from; selecting just one tells Flow to use that language. Auto-detect on Mac, Windows, and iOS lets Flow choose from all supported languages.
On Mac and Windows, dictation uses your full saved selection; the Flow Bar has no language picker, so change your selection in Settings. Variants affect spelling or script when Flow recognizes the corresponding language.
Choice | Output |
English - British | UK spelling, such as “colour” and “centre”. |
English - Canadian (Mac and Windows only) | Canadian spelling in English text. |
German - Swiss (Deutsch) | Uses “ss” instead of ß (“Straße” → “Strasse”); standard German keeps ß. |
Chinese - Simplified / Chinese - Traditional | Detected Chinese uses Simplified characters unless Chinese - Traditional is selected. |
Cantonese (粵語) | A separate option you can select alongside either Chinese variant. |
Hinglish | Writes Hindi in Latin letters and formats English normally. |
French | Adds narrow no-break spaces before ; : ? ! » and after «, except in developer or coding apps. |
Select Hinglish explicitly for mixed Hindi-English dictation: Flow does not detect it automatically, and selecting Hindi plus English does not request Latin-script Hindi.
Choosing another option within any of these groups replaces your previous choice:
English / English - British / English - Canadian (Canadian is desktop-only).
Hindi / Hinglish.
Chinese - Traditional / Chinese - Simplified.
German / German - Swiss.
Urdu, Hebrew, and Ukrainian
Flow cannot recognize Urdu, Hebrew, or Ukrainian from speech alone. If exactly one selected language cannot be recognized automatically — for example, English and Urdu — Flow transcribes that language whenever it does not recognize the speech as another selected language.
Two pairs are exceptions, where Flow double-checks the language before transcribing, so genuine Hindi or Russian dictation may take slightly longer:
Hindi with Urdu: when Flow hears Hindi, it verifies first, so Urdu speech comes out in Urdu. Hinglish counts as Hindi for this check.
Russian with Ukrainian: when Flow hears Russian, it verifies first, so Ukrainian speech comes out in Ukrainian and genuine Russian speech still comes out in Russian.
Important: Apart from Hindi with Urdu and Russian with Ukrainian, select only one of Urdu, Hebrew, or Ukrainian at a time. With two selected together, Flow cannot tell which you are speaking and may transcribe the wrong one.
How to set your languages
On Mac, Windows, and iOS, saved changes apply to your next dictation without restarting, not to one already underway.
Mac and Windows
Select at least one language or Auto-detect; otherwise saving shows “Please select at least one language or turn on auto-detect”.
Open Settings → General in Wispr Flow.
Click Change beside Languages to open Dictation languages.
Choose Auto-detect, or turn it off to search and select individual languages.
Click Save and close to apply your choices.
Searching “hindi”, “hinglish”, or “romanized” finds Hinglish. Use the X beside a language in Selected to remove it.
Turning Auto-detect back off before closing restores the selection you had when you turned it on. If that selection was empty, it stays empty and you must choose a language before saving.
iOS
Each tap saves immediately; there is no save step.
Open Settings in Wispr Flow.
Tap Set language under general.
Select your languages or Auto-detect; use search to filter by displayed name.
Close the language sheet.
Choosing Auto-detect replaces your selections; choosing a language removes Auto-detect. Removing every language restores Auto-detect. Flow keeps the order in which you choose languages. There is no Canadian entry on iOS or Android.
Android
Android has no Auto-detect entry; at least one language is required to save.
Warning: Leaving Languages without tapping Save discards your edits; returning reloads your saved selection.
Open Settings in Wispr Flow.
Tap Languages.
Tap Add more to open Select language(s).
Select your languages; Search languages filters by displayed name.
Tap Done to return to Languages; this does not save.
Tap Save to apply your choices to later dictations and return to Settings.
Tap a selected language on Languages to remove it. Save is dimmed with no languages selected, and pressing back while adding languages returns to Languages without saving.
Selections belong to the signed-in account; a different account on the same device starts from default languages.
If Flow uses the wrong language
With Chinese and English selected, English words can appear in Chinese characters or vice versa.
Select only the intended language using the steps above, instead of Auto-detect on desktop or iOS.
Start a new dictation in that language.
If the output language is correct, continue dictating; otherwise see Flow is transcribing in the wrong language.
On Mac and Windows, if you dictate in a language that does not match your selection, Flow shows a “Speaking a different language?” notice. Choose “Open language settings” to adjust your selection. The notice does not name a detected language, can appear as soon as the app starts up, and shows at most once a day; choosing “Don't show again” stops it permanently.
Still need help?
Contact support if:
A new dictation still uses the wrong language after you select only the intended language.
Saved language choices disappear after restarting the app.
In the desktop app, open ? (Help) → Talk to support. Include your platform, device, selected languages, steps tried, and an example of what you said versus what Flow transcribed.