Starting your first dictation

Click or tap into a text field, start Flow, speak naturally and stop when you are finished. Flow transcribes and formats your speech, then inserts the text. Try a short sentence in a note or message first.

Mac and Windows

1. Open the app where you want to write and click a text field so the cursor is visible.
2. Press and hold your dictation shortcut. The defaults described here are Fn on Mac and Ctrl + Win on Windows; check Settings → General → Shortcuts for your actual binding.
3. Start speaking when you hear the start sound or see moving white bars. Flow listens while you hold the shortcut.
4. Release the shortcut and wait for your formatted text to appear.

On a Mac without an Fn key, setup assigns Ctrl + Option. Start sounds play only when Sound Effects are enabled under Settings → System → Sound. The moving bars let you confirm recording without sound.

Hands-free: use Fn + Space on Mac or Ctrl + Win + Space on Windows, unless you changed the binding. On a Mac using the no-Fn fallback, it is Ctrl + Option + Space. Press the same shortcut again to stop and insert text.

You can also click the Flow Bar to start. Keep the intended text field selected. To cancel an active dictation without inserting it, press Esc or use the cancel button. For custom keyboard or mouse bindings, see Supported & Unsupported Keyboard Hotkey Shortcuts.

iPhone

1. Open Flow, sign in and finish its onboarding tutorial. Enable the Flow keyboard and its Full Access permission if prompted.
2. Open a note, document or message and tap a text field. Use the Flow keyboard.
3. Tap the microphone button. Allow microphone access if iOS asks.
4. Speak naturally, then tap the check button.
5. Wait for the formatted text to appear in your text field.

If Flow shows Enable Full Access, use Finish Setup and follow the Settings instructions. Full Access and microphone permission are separate. See Set up the Flow keyboard on iPhone.

Tap cancel to stop without inserting text. Start/stop sounds are controlled by Settings → Audio → Interaction Sounds. For dictation through the Action Button or to the clipboard, see Flow shortcuts for iPhone.

Android

1. Finish onboarding and allow Microphone, Accessibility Service and Display over other apps. Follow any battery-optimization prompts needed to keep Flow ready.
2. Tap a text field in another app. The floating Flow Bubble appears at the screen edge.
3. Tap-to-Dictate: tap the bubble, speak, then tap the checkmark. Or Hold-to-Dictate: hold the bubble while speaking and release when done.
4. Wait for transcription and insertion. If insertion fails, tap Paste on the bubble to use the text on your clipboard.

The bubble normally follows the keyboard. It can be absent in restricted apps or fields, while snoozed, or when a required permission is missing. A grey bubble indicates that the device is offline. Open Flow to check any permission or service-recovery card; see Android setup or Flow Bubble troubleshooting.

Check the result

Read the inserted text before sending it. Speak at a steady pace; Flow can format lists and paragraphs and handle corrections spoken mid-sentence. See Smart Formatting & Backtrack for examples.

On desktop, Flow temporarily uses the clipboard for insertion and then restores its previous contents. If automatic insertion fails, follow the paste prompt; your dictated text is placed on the clipboard for manual pasting. See Fix text not pasting after dictation.

If dictation does not start or finish

• No response or microphone error: follow the permission message and confirm the selected microphone is connected. Close another app if it is holding the microphone. See Troubleshooting mic issues.
• Previous transcript still processing: wait for it to finish before starting again. Dismissing its notification does not cancel transcription; use the cancellation shortcut shown if needed.
• Network or transcription failure: check connectivity and use Retry or History when offered. An Android transcription failure can be saved in the app; an insertion failure instead offers Paste.
• Usage or session limit: follow the allowance shown in your account. See accuracy and known limitations for platform-specific session behavior.

Past dictations appear in Recent activity or History when your storage settings allow. Cancelling does not guarantee recoverable audio: very short desktop cancellations can be discarded, and organization no-storage policies may prevent saving.

If you still cannot dictate or insert text, contact support with your platform, Flow version, exact message and the steps you tried.