"Connection lost" / network connection issues blocking Wispr Flow

Last updated: June 6, 2026

Available on: Mac, Windows, iOS, Android

If Flow shows "Connection lost," dictation stops mid-sentence, or Flow won't connect at all — this guide walks you through restoring connectivity when VPNs, proxies, or security tools are blocking Flow. Most issues resolve in under 5 minutes.

Quick checks

Try these first — they resolve most connection issues in under 30 seconds:

  • Is your internet working? Open a webpage in your browser. If it doesn't load, fix your internet connection first.

  • Is a VPN active? Disconnect your VPN, then dictate a test phrase. If text appears, your VPN is the issue — jump to Step 3 below to whitelist Flow.

  • Are you on an Enterprise account seeing "Your network isn't allowed"? Your organization restricts Flow to approved networks. Switch to an approved network or contact your admin — the standard steps below will not resolve this.

  • Do other apps work online? If websites load but Flow won't connect, a firewall, proxy, or security tool is blocking Flow specifically — continue with the steps below. If other apps are also offline, the issue is your network, not Flow.

How to fix this

Mac & Windows

Work through these steps in order. Stop as soon as dictation works.

Step 1: Quit Flow and disable proxies

  1. Right-click the Flow icon in the menu bar (Mac) or system tray (Windows) and select Quit.

  2. Open System Settings → Network (Mac) or Settings → Network & internet → Proxy (Windows).

  3. Disable any active proxies temporarily.

  4. Reopen Flow and dictate a test phrase. If text appears, a proxy was the cause — continue to Step 3 to whitelist Flow permanently. If not, continue to Step 2.

Step 2: Pause security and firewall tools

  1. Pause any antivirus, firewall, or security software temporarily.

  2. Reopen Flow and sign in.

  3. Dictate a short test phrase. If text appears, your security software is blocking Flow — continue to Step 3 to make this permanent. If not, continue to Step 4.

Step 3: Add Flow to your allowed apps

  1. Open your security or firewall software settings.

  2. Add the Wispr Flow application itself to the allowed/trusted apps list.

  3. Whitelist these Wispr-owned domains if your software supports domain rules:

    1. wisprflow.ai

    2. api.wisprflow.ai

    3. inference.wisprflow.com (used by some desktop connections)

  4. If you're on a managed or corporate network, contact your IT administrator. For persistent issues on strict deny-by-default firewalls, contact Wispr support for the current list of endpoints to allow.

  5. Re-enable your security tools.

  6. Dictate another test phrase. If text appears with your security tools active, you're done.

Note: Flow sends small background pings to transcription servers to identify the lowest-latency server. Allow outbound connections to all domains above.

Step 4: Try a different DNS server

If Flow still can't connect, your DNS server may be blocking Flow's domains.

  1. Open your system network settings.

  2. Change your DNS server to 8.8.8.8 (Google's public DNS). See instructions for your platform.

  3. Restart Flow and dictate a test phrase. If dictation works, your previous DNS was blocking Flow. If not, contact support — see the section at the end of this article.

Warning: Flow isn't compatible with most VPNs. Expect slow performance or connection failures while a VPN is active.

Chrome extension

If the Chrome extension shows "No Internet Connection," try these steps in order:

  1. Reload the extension. Click the Wispr Flow extension icon in your Chrome toolbar, close the popup, wait a few seconds, then click the icon again.

  2. Check Chrome proxy settings. Go to Settings → System → Open your computer's proxy settings. If a proxy is configured by your organization, contact your admin.

  3. Disable any VPN or security software temporarily, then reload the extension. If the extension connects, you're done.

iOS

If a VPN or network filter is blocking Flow on iOS:

  1. Open Settings → VPN and turn off any active VPN.

  2. Pause any security or filtering app temporarily.

  3. Check your Wi-Fi proxy. Go to Settings → Wi-Fi, tap the info icon next to your network, scroll to HTTP Proxy, and set it to Off.

  4. Dictate a test phrase. If text appears, you're done.

Note: When a network error occurs on the iOS keyboard, an orange triangle button appears next to the mic. Tap it to see the error message — "We didn't catch anything. Please try speaking again." — and tap Dismiss to clear it. The mic stays available so you can start a new dictation right away.

Android

If a VPN or firewall is blocking Flow on Android:

  1. Open Settings → Network and internet → VPN and disconnect any active VPN.

  2. Pause any firewall or security app temporarily.

  3. Check network proxy. Go to Settings → Network and internet → Internet, tap your current network, then Advanced to check if a proxy is set.

  4. Dictate a test phrase. If text appears, you're done.

Note: On Android, the Flow Bubble always appears active regardless of network status. If transcription fails, you'll see an error with a Retry button. If text insertion fails, the text is copied to your clipboard and a Paste button appears.

Tip: If Flow keeps becoming unavailable after a device restart, exclude Wispr Flow from battery optimization. On Samsung, look for "Sleeping apps" (or "Battery usage limits") inside Battery settings. On Xiaomi, look for "Autostart management." On Huawei, look for "App launch management." On Oppo, look for "Auto-launch management" or "Startup manager." Google Pixel devices do not need OEM-specific steps.

Common issues

Mac/Windows: Dictation silently stopped capturing audio mid-session or after waking from sleep

This was caused by a bug where system sleep or heavy background activity triggered a false-positive service restart, interrupting the audio pipeline during active dictation. Fixed in the latest version.

  1. Update Wispr Flow to the latest version.

  2. Restart Flow after updating.

Windows: Flow disconnected or restarted unexpectedly during prolonged system slowdowns

This was caused by a bug where a background component on Windows shut itself down too aggressively during prolonged system slowdowns (around 15 seconds or longer), which could appear as a "connection lost" event. Fixed in the latest version.

  1. Update Wispr Flow to the latest version.

  2. Restart Flow after updating.

Subscription status appeared unset or missing for the entire session

This was caused by a bug where Flow fetched your subscription status before its network layer was fully ready and never retried. Fixed in a recent update.

  1. Update Wispr Flow to the latest version.

  2. Restart Flow after updating.

Android: Flow Bubble disappeared, was greyed out, or didn't return after switching apps

Several Android bugs could cause the Flow Bubble to disappear, appear greyed out with a working connection, or fail to resume after Android shut down the app in the background. Some accessibility crashes also triggered Android's system-level restart restrictions, permanently hiding the bubble. Fixed in Android version 1.6.7 and later.

  1. Update Wispr Flow from the Play Store to the latest version.

Android: History or audio incorrect after a connection retry

Two related bugs affected history after connection retries: Push-to-Talk sessions that retried due to connection loss were incorrectly logged as hands-free sessions (fixed in Android 1.7.0), and audio references could be lost when multiple dictations occurred simultaneously during retries (fixed in Android 1.3.3).

  1. Update Wispr Flow from the Play Store to the latest version.

iOS: Warning icon briefly flashed on the mic button after an error

After a dictation error, network error, or cancelled dictation, the mic button on the iOS keyboard briefly showed a warning-triangle icon for about one second before returning to normal. This could make it seem like the keyboard was unavailable. Fixed in the latest version — the mic button now stays visible immediately after any error so you can start a new dictation right away.

  1. Update Wispr Flow from the App Store to the latest version.

FAQs

What happens if I lose internet while dictating?

Flow saves your audio recording even if the connection drops mid-transcription. On desktop, you'll see a "No internet connection" notification and can recover the transcript from History. On iOS, an orange triangle button appears next to the mic — tap it to see the error and dismiss it, then speak again. On Android, the bubble stays active — if transcription fails, you'll see a Retry button; if text insertion fails, the text is copied to your clipboard and a Paste button appears.

Is there a maximum recording length?

Desktop dictation has a hard recording cap. You'll see a warning at 19 minutes, and recording stops automatically at 20 minutes. If you experience a mid-session "connection lost" right at this point, you've hit the recording cap rather than a network issue.

How does fallback work if the primary connection fails?

If the primary connection drops or errors, Flow automatically attempts an alternative transcription method so your dictation can still go through. You don't need to do anything for this to happen.

What if transcription fails after the automatic retry?

Tap Retry to try again without re-recording. On desktop, audio is saved to History for up to 14 days. On Android, audio is saved locally and you can retry from the bubble or from transcription history; Android applies storage-based history limits (100,000 / 50,000 / 25,000 entries depending on available free space). While Retry or Paste is in progress, the button text changes to "Retrying..." or "Pasting...". Tapping the Wispr icon dismisses a paste error (clipboard text is preserved) or starts a new dictation when a transcribe error is shown.

Note: If you've enabled Zero Data Retention (NeverStore) in your privacy settings, audio is never saved locally and retry is not available.

Why is Flow generating network activity in the background?

Flow periodically sends small background pings to available transcription servers to find the lowest-latency server for your location. This keeps your dictation latency as low as possible. If a firewall flags this traffic, allow the domains listed in Step 3.

Which VPNs and security tools cause issues?

The following tools can interfere with Wispr Flow:

  • VPN services: NordVPN, ExpressVPN, Surfshark, Cisco AnyConnect, GlobalProtect, OpenVPN, WireGuard

  • Corporate proxies and firewalls: Zscaler, Netskope, Palo Alto, Fortinet, Cisco Umbrella

  • Antivirus with web filtering: Norton, McAfee, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, ESET

  • DNS filtering: Pi-hole, AdGuard, NextDNS, CleanBrowsing

  • macOS firewalls: Little Snitch, LuLu, Vallum

Tip: If you must use a VPN, enable split tunneling and exclude the Wispr Flow domains listed in Step 3. This is especially important because Flow automatically connects to the lowest-latency server — VPN routing can interfere with that selection.

How long is my audio saved on desktop?

Audio saved to History is retained for up to 14 days. After that, the audio is removed but your transcript text remains. If you've enabled Zero Data Retention (NeverStore), audio is never saved locally.

Can I sign out while offline?

Yes. Flow clears your local session and signs you out successfully even if it cannot reach the server.

I'm an Enterprise user. Why was I signed out and shown a "Your network isn't allowed" screen?

Your organization has restricted Wispr Flow to approved networks only. When Flow detects you're connecting from an unapproved network, it signs you out and shows this screen.

On desktop, the screen displays your enterprise name when known and offers Retry or Sign out. Clicking Retry restarts the sign-in flow — you'll need to sign in again. On iOS, tapping Retry clears the blocked-state screen and returns you to the normal sign-in flow. The screen also clears automatically once a successful request reaches the backend after you switch to an approved network.

If you're unsure which networks are approved, contact your IT administrator.

Still need help?

If you've tried all the steps above and Flow still won't connect, contact support with:

  • Your platform (Mac, Windows, iOS, Android) and Flow version

  • The VPN, proxy, or security software you're using

  • A screenshot of any error messages

  • The steps from this guide you've already tried

Most connection issues are resolved in one reply.