Longer dictation sessions — now up to 20 minutes

Last updated: August 24, 2026

Available on: Mac

A single dictation session now runs up to 20 minutes on Mac. Draft long emails, capture meeting notes, or think through an essay out loud — there's nothing to configure.

How it works in Flow

Key behaviors

  • One-minute warning: At 19 minutes, Flow notifies you that less than a minute remains.

  • Automatic submission at 20 minutes: Flow ends the session, transcribes it, and pastes the text into your active field. Audio recorded before the cutoff is fully transcribed.

  • Recovering the last transcript: Choose "Paste last transcript" from the tray menu, or press Cmd+Ctrl+V to paste and Cmd+Ctrl+C to copy. Displayed shortcuts reflect your custom bindings; the tray item stays disabled until the session's first transcription.

  • No cooldown between sessions: Once the previous transcript finishes processing (usually a few seconds), press your dictation hotkey again. Triggering too early shows a notice that Flow is still processing; its Cancel button dismisses the notice.

  • Slow transcription: Flow shows a "taking longer than usual" notice that clears when your text pastes.

Best practices

  • Speak naturally — Flow handles pauses, filler words, and corrections.

  • Use voice commands like "new line" or "new paragraph" to structure text as you go.

  • Wait for the previous transcript to finish before starting a new session.

FAQs

Does this apply to all plans?

Yes — Free and Pro, on Mac.

What about iOS and Android?

Mac only. Android has no maximum recording duration. iOS session behavior is unchanged; its background-recording auto-stop (Settings → Disable Flow Session, default 5 minutes) is not a cap on an active dictation session.

Can I dictate for longer than 20 minutes?

Yes. Start a new session as soon as the previous one finishes processing — there's no cooldown.

Limitations and notes

  • This update applies to Mac only. Mobile session limits are unchanged.

  • Free plan on desktop: a 2,000-word weekly soft cap that does not throttle dictation, and a 5,000-word hard cap that blocks dictation until the limit resets.

  • Free plan on iOS: a separate weekly allowance with a 1,000-word soft cap and a 1,500-word hard cap.

  • Weekly word usage refreshes automatically each week.

  • If Flow quits or crashes mid-dictation, that session is not resumed or pasted on next launch.

  • If no audio is detected (for example, the hotkey was tapped too briefly, or a MacBook is in clamshell mode with no built-in mic available), Flow shows an explanatory notice instead of a transcript.