Fix text not pasting after dictation

Mac

Follow these steps in order. The earlier steps resolve the most common cases.

1. Open the Scratchpad. Press Option+S to access your last transcript, then click Copy and paste where you need it.

2. Use "Paste last transcript" as a backup. Press Ctrl+Cmd+V, or click the Wispr Flow icon in your menu bar and select Paste last transcript. If text appears, auto-paste timing was the issue.

3. Grant Accessibility permission:

   1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility.

   2. Find Wispr Flow and toggle it on. If it's already on, toggle it off and back on.

4. Test in Notes. Dictate a short phrase. If text appears in Notes but not your target app, that app is blocking paste — see the note below.

5. Restart the target app. Quit it with Cmd+Q, reopen it, click inside a text field, and dictate again.

6. Restart Flow. Press Cmd+Q to fully quit, then reopen and dictate a short phrase. If text pastes, the issue is resolved.

Windows

Follow these steps in order. The earlier steps resolve the most common cases.

1. Open the Scratchpad. Press Win+Alt+S to access your last transcript, then click Copy and paste where you need it.

2. Use "Paste last transcript" as a backup. Press Alt+Shift+Z, or click the Wispr Flow icon in your system tray and select Paste last transcript. If text appears, auto-paste timing was the issue.

3. Check app-specific paste shortcuts. Some terminals and IDEs use Ctrl+Shift+V instead. For these apps, use "Paste last transcript" or paste manually.

4. Change your dictation shortcut if it conflicts. Open Flow Settings → General, find the Shortcuts section, click Change, and choose a shortcut that doesn't conflict with other apps.

5. Update Flow. Open Flow and check for updates — several paste bugs were fixed in recent versions.

6. Test in Notepad. Dictate a short phrase. If text appears there but not in your target app, that app may block clipboard access.

7. Restart Flow. Right-click the Flow icon in the system tray and select Quit, then reopen and dictate a short phrase. If text pastes, the issue is resolved.

iOS

On iOS, Flow works as a keyboard. Text appears directly in the text field without using the clipboard.

1. Select the Flow Keyboard. Tap the globe icon and choose Wispr Flow. The Flow Keyboard must be active when you dictate.

2. Grant Full Access. Open Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Wispr Flow and enable Allow Full Access. Dictate again — if text appears, permissions were the issue.

3. Grant Microphone access. If prompted, allow Flow access to your microphone. Both Full Access and Microphone permissions are required.

4. Keep the Flow Keyboard visible until your text appears. If the keyboard is dismissed while Flow is still processing, the transcript may be lost.

5. Test in Notes. Some apps (banking, corporate, password managers) block third-party keyboards. If Flow doesn't work in an app, dictate into Notes first, then copy and paste into your target app.

6. Restart the app and Flow. Force quit both, then reopen and dictate a short phrase. If text appears, the issue is resolved.

Android

On Android, Flow uses the Flow Bubble to deliver transcribed text. Flow inserts text directly in most chat and social apps — including WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, Instagram, Teams, Signal, Slack, Discord, Snapchat, Google Messages, and Gmail — as well as the Google search box on google.com and the Chrome New Tab Page search field. If insertion cannot be verified, Flow shows a copy button on the Flow Bubble so you can recover your dictation.

1. Tap the copy button on the Flow Bubble. If insertion failed, tap copy to grab your text, then paste manually wherever you need it. You can also tap the Wispr icon on the bubble to dismiss it — your clipboard text is preserved so you can paste it yourself.

2. Update Flow to the latest version. Recent updates significantly improve direct text insertion in chat and social apps, and improve the Flow Bubble in more locations including notification reply boxes and browser address bars.

3. Test in a notes app. Some apps hide the Flow Bubble for security reasons (banking and financial apps). If the Flow Bubble doesn't appear, dictate into a notes app, then copy and paste.

4. Re-grant overlay or accessibility permissions if prompted from the home screen. Tap the prompt, grant the permission, and Flow will return you to the app automatically.

5. Restart Flow. Force quit Flow and reopen it. Dictate a short phrase. If text appears, the issue is resolved.

Remote desktops (Citrix, RDP, VMware Horizon)

Flow runs on your local computer and pastes using your local clipboard. This creates challenges with Citrix Workspace, Microsoft Remote Desktop (RDP), VMware Horizon, and other VDI solutions.

1. Dictate with Flow on your local machine, outside the remote session.

2. Wait for Flow to transcribe and copy text to your local clipboard.

3. Paste manually inside the remote session (Ctrl+V or Cmd+V).

Dictating into the Chrome search box disrupted the search UI or sent text to clipboard instead of inserting it (Android)

When dictating into the Google search box on google.com or the Chrome New Tab Page search field, text could interfere with the search suggestions UI or fall back to clipboard instead of inserting directly. Flow now inserts dictated text correctly into these Chrome search fields (including Chrome stable, Beta, Dev, Canary, and Chromium). Update Flow to the latest version to get this fix.

Dictated text falls back to clipboard in WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, Instagram, and other chat apps instead of inserting directly (Android)

Flow would frequently fall back to clipboard paste in popular chat and social apps — even when direct text insertion would have worked — requiring a manual paste. Flow now inserts text directly in these apps much more reliably. Update Flow to the latest version to get this fix.

Void dictation notification played a sound or showed different hint text (Mac, Windows)

When Flow dictated without a focused text field, the notification that appeared previously played a sound and displayed "Select a textbox before dictating!". The notification no longer plays a sound and now reads "Select a textbox first, then dictate". Update Flow to the latest version to get this change.

Copy button stays on "Copy" after using the keyboard shortcut in a void dictation notification (Mac, Windows)

When Flow dictated without a focused text field and showed a "Copy" notification, pressing the copy-last-text keyboard shortcut would copy the text silently but leave the button stuck on "Copy". The button now correctly flips to "Copied!" and the notification dismisses automatically shortly after. Update Flow to the latest version to get this fix.

Old clipboard contents pasted instead of dictated text after a failed paste (Mac, Windows)

When a dictation couldn't paste directly into the active text field and was rerouted to the clipboard, you might have seen your previous clipboard contents appear instead of your dictated text. Flow now reliably writes your transcription to the clipboard in this situation, so pressing Cmd+V (Mac) or Ctrl+V (Windows) after a failed dictation will give you your dictated text. Update Flow to the latest version to get this fix.

Flow Bubble doesn't appear in notification reply boxes or browser address bars (Android)

The Flow Bubble was hidden when dictating in notification inline-reply boxes (such as WhatsApp) and in browser address bars. The Flow Bubble now appears correctly in these locations. Update Flow to version 1.9.0 or later to get this fix.

Re-granting permissions doesn't return you to the app (Android)

When granting overlay or accessibility permissions from a home screen prompt, Flow would not automatically return you to the app after permissions were granted. Flow now returns you to your app as soon as the permission is granted. Update Flow to version 1.9.0 or later to get this fix.

Error bubble stays on screen after a failed paste (Android)

The error bubble would stay on screen indefinitely after a failed paste or transcription. The error bubble now dismisses automatically after a short period of inactivity. You can also tap the Wispr icon on the bubble to dismiss it immediately (for failed-paste errors, this preserves clipboard text) or start a new dictation directly from a failed-transcription error. Update Flow to the latest version to get this fix.

Bugs fixed in recent updates

The following issues were fixed in recent versions. Update Flow to resolve them:

• Pasted output is always the letter "v" (Mac, Windows): Caused by a dictation shortcut conflicting with the paste shortcut (Ctrl+V). Open Flow Settings → General, find the Shortcuts section, click Change, choose a shortcut that doesn't conflict (e.g., Ctrl+Space), and restart Flow.

• Old clipboard contents pasted instead of dictated text (Windows): Fixed a timing issue that could cause your previous clipboard contents to appear instead of your dictated text. This is now fixed, so your dictated text appears reliably.

• Dictated text silently fails to appear in some Android apps (fixed in 1.8.8): This is now fixed, so dictated text appears reliably even after the text field has been idle.

• Long dictations on Android fall back to clipboard paste: Longer passages are now inserted normally without triggering a false failure.

• Dictation bubble clipped or shrunk on certain OEM devices (Android): Fixed bubble sizing on OxygenOS/OnePlus devices.

• Dictated text inserted twice (Android): Dictated text is now inserted exactly once.

• A stray period appears when saying only "press enter" (Mac, Windows): No extra text is pasted when "press enter" is the entire dictation.

• Text silently fails after a dropped keyboard connection (Android): Flow now detects this and automatically retries inserting your text.

• Transcript lost when ending dictation from the Dynamic Island (iOS): Transcripts are now correctly saved to Flow Notes when you end a session this way.

• Text doesn't insert in Gmail on Samsung or similar apps (Android, fixed in 1.5.0): Fixed text insertion in Gmail on Samsung and similar apps.

• Copy button briefly flashes after successful dictation (Android): The copy button now only appears when text insertion actually fails.

• Text fails to insert after switching between text fields or apps (Android, fixed in 1.6.2): This is now fixed, so text inserts correctly after switching between text fields or apps.

• Text silently fails in apps where standard insertion doesn't work (Android): This is now fixed: if text can't be inserted directly, Flow copies it to the clipboard so you can paste it.

• Text fails or duplicates when server processing takes a moment (Android): Both issues are now resolved.

• Text fails or inserts in the wrong place on Android 16: This is now fixed on Android 16, so text inserts correctly and in the right place.

• Dictation interrupted when a Flow update installs (Mac, Windows): Flow now waits until your dictation session is finished before applying updates.

• Improved focus restoration (Windows, fixed in 1.5.1): Dictated text now inserts correctly when focus is briefly transferred during dictation.

• Text inserted multiple times in Google Docs, Gmail, or other slower apps (Android, fixed in 1.5.2): Text is now committed exactly once per dictation.

• Clipboard doesn't restore to previous contents after dictating (Mac): Your previous clipboard contents are now reliably restored.

• Text silently fails in WhatsApp, Telegram, or similar apps after switching chats (Android): This is now fixed, so text inserts reliably after switching chats.

• Text doesn't insert or inserts slowly in WhatsApp, Telegram, or other slower apps (Android, fixed in 1.3.3): This is now fixed, so text inserts directly in these slower apps instead of falling back to clipboard paste.

• Text doesn't appear after rapid back-to-back dictations (Android): Fixed a timing conflict between consecutive dictations.

• Tapping Paste or Retry on the Flow Bubble starts a new recording instead (Android): Buttons in the error state now perform the intended action.

• Dictation falls back to clipboard paste instead of inserting directly (Android, Mac): This is now fixed, so dictation inserts directly instead of falling back to clipboard paste.

• Dictated text is lowercased during onboarding (Windows): Capitalization is now preserved during onboarding.

• Text inserts into the wrong field when dictating multiple times in a row: Back-to-back dictations now target the correct field in apps with multiple text fields.

• Dictation status indicator disappears behind other windows (Windows): The status indicator now stays on top.

• Text doesn't appear in YouTube or similar apps (Android): This is now fixed: if an app closes its text field mid-dictation, your text is copied to the clipboard so you can paste it.

• Hotkeys stopped working after dictating (Windows): Fixed in recent versions.

• Flow crashed while pasting (Windows): Fixed in recent versions.

• Flow Bubble doesn't appear when tapping a text field (Android): Fixed in recent versions.

Why does Flow paste into the wrong app?

Flow pastes text into whichever app is focused when transcription finishes. Click inside your target text field before dictating, and avoid switching windows until text appears.

Can I recover text if paste fails?

Yes. On Mac and Windows, Flow auto-copies your transcript to the clipboard — press Cmd+V or Ctrl+V. You can also open the Scratchpad with Option+S (Mac) or Win+Alt+S (Windows), or paste the last transcript with Ctrl+Cmd+V (Mac) or Alt+Shift+Z (Windows). On Android, tap the copy button on the Flow Bubble. On iOS, transcripts from the Action Button are saved to Flow Notes. Your full transcript history lives in the Hub.

What is the Scratchpad?

The Scratchpad is a small window that shows your transcribed text in an editable text area. It includes a Copy button, supports up to 5 tabs, keeps version history, and includes Sparkles and Formatting side panels.

Why does Flow work in Notes but not my other app?

Some apps block clipboard access or third-party keyboard input — including Citrix, virtual desktops, banking apps, corporate apps, and password managers. As a workaround, dictate into Notes and manually paste into the target app.