Set up the Action Button for Flow on iPhone

Last updated: September 7, 2026

Available on: iOS — any iPhone with a physical Action Button (iPhone 15 Pro and later Pro models, iPhone 16 and 17 series, and iPhone Air).

Wire your iPhone's Action Button to Wispr Flow so a single press starts dictation from any text field. Setup takes about a minute.

How to set it up

  1. Open setup — tap Set up on the Action Button card in the home screen carousel, or open the Wispr Flow app and go to Settings → Action button shortcut (this entry appears only on devices with an Action Button).

  2. Tap Let's go! on the intro screen, then Try now after the demo video.

  3. Tap Continue to use the built-in Quick Dictation to Clipboard shortcut, which works anywhere — outside a text field, Flow saves the transcript to your clipboard.

  4. Tap Go to Settings to open iPhone Settings (or go manually to Settings → Action Button).

  5. Swipe to Shortcut and select Quick Dictation to Clipboard.

  6. Return to Flow and tap Try now on the "Let's test your new shortcut" screen to test a dictation into Notes. If you leave Flow mid-test, your place is restored when you return.

  7. Press your Action Button, speak a short phrase, then press and hold and release to stop. When your dictation appears, tap the button to continue.

  8. Tap Finish on the All Set screen (or Learn more for the Action Button help page). Press the button from any text field and dictation starts immediately.

Setup auto-advances when you return to Flow after mapping the button. Use the back button to step back, Close (X) on the intro screen to exit, or Skip in the header on the keyboard-switch and dictation-test steps to stop any active recording and jump to the All Set screen — the trial dictation is not required.

Note: If you see a "Swipe back to your app" screen, swipe right across the bottom edge to return to Flow — Apple requires Flow to briefly switch apps to activate the microphone. If the Flow keyboard isn't active when the test starts, a short video shows how to switch to it, and setup continues once Flow detects the keyboard is active.

Tip: Dictations started with the Action Button or a Siri shortcut show a "Hold to stop" hint in the Dynamic Island with a running timer in place of the Stop and Note buttons. The hint does not appear for dictations started from the Flow keyboard, for Dictate a Flow Note or Quick Dictation to Notes, or when the Flow keyboard is active.

Important: The continue button on the test screen appears only after dictation text is received, and not if you stopped the dictation with the keyboard's stop button instead of releasing the Action Button. If it doesn't appear, return to Settings → Action Button and confirm Quick Dictation to Clipboard is selected.

Three conditions block the test dictation, each shown as a modal in the Flow keyboard: hitting the weekly hard word cap, Full Access not granted for the Flow keyboard, or microphone permission denied. Resolve the condition shown, then try again. For a "Network error," tap Retry, or dismiss the modal, check your connection, and try again.

Available shortcuts

Assign any of these Flow shortcuts to the Action Button:

  • Turn On/Off Flow: Toggle dictation on and off.

  • Dictate a Flow Note: Toggle a dictation session that saves to a new Flow note.

  • Quick Dictation to Clipboard: Copy your dictation to the clipboard.

  • Quick Dictation to Notes: Save your dictation to your notes.

  • Open Flow Notes: Open Flow and start a new dictated note immediately.

  • Save Flow Note: Save a note hands-free via Siri or Shortcuts without opening Flow. Siri asks "What should the note say?" and saves the captured text; if saving fails, it returns "Could not save note. Please try again."

When the Flow keyboard is active, dictated text from a shortcut is inserted straight into the text field rather than returned to Shortcuts or the clipboard.

FAQs

Which iPhones support the Action Button?

Any iPhone with a physical Action Button — iPhone 15 Pro and later Pro models, the iPhone 16 and 17 series, and iPhone Air. The Settings row and home carousel card are hidden on devices without the hardware.

When does the Action Button feature card appear?

Once you've dictated enough words, the setup card may appear in the home screen carousel on iPhones with an Action Button. It appears at most 3 times, never inside the Flow keyboard, and stops appearing permanently once you dismiss it with X or tap Set up.

What is the Flow shortcut?

A built-in shortcut that connects your Action Button to Wispr Flow. Setup guides you to select it in your iPhone's Action Button settings — no extra installation needed.

What happens if I press the Action Button while a recording is already in progress?

For Quick Dictation to Notes, Dictate a Flow Note, and Quick Dictation to Clipboard, the press adopts the running recording and starts transcription instead of cancelling it. A second press stops transcription.

The second press saves the note only for Quick Dictation to Notes and Dictate a Flow Note, and only when the Flow keyboard is not active; with the keyboard active, recording stops without saving. For Quick Dictation to Clipboard, it captures the result to the clipboard. Turn On/Off Flow does not adopt a running recording — a second press stops recording without saving a note.

Can I change the Action Button assignment later?

Yes. Change it anytime in iPhone Settings → Action Button. To reconfigure it for Flow, open the Wispr Flow app, go to Settings → Action button shortcut, and restart setup. There is no web or deep link that opens Action Button setup — it must be started from inside the app.

What happens if I dismiss the Action Button card?

Tapping Set up hides the card and starts setup; tapping X hides it permanently. You can set up the Action Button later from Settings → Action button shortcut.

Still stuck?

Reach out to support if:

  • The continue button never appears during the test step, even after confirming the correct shortcut is selected.

  • The Action Button doesn't trigger Flow after setup completes.

  • You see an error during setup that isn't covered above.

Include your iPhone model, iOS version, and Wispr Flow app version. Most setup issues are resolved in one reply.