Transcribe Audio on a Mac, Free
Turn a recording on your Mac into text in Safari, Chrome, Edge or Firefox. Nothing to install: upload a file up to 10 minutes and get a transcript and a short summary, free with a ParrotNotes account.
Drop your audio or video file here or click to browse
Supports MP3, WAV, M4A, FLAC, OGG, WEBM, MP4 up to 10 minutes
How it works
From a recording on your Mac to text, in three steps and one browser tab.
- 1
Find the recording
Get the file out of Voice Memos, QuickTime Player or Zoom as an M4A or MP4. The steps for each are below.
- 2
Drop it in and sign in
Drag the file from Finder onto the converter, pick the language or leave it on Auto-detect, and sign in with Google, Apple or a one-time email code.
- 3
Read, copy or share
The transcript appears on the page with a short summary. Copy it into Pages, Notes or an email, or send it on with a share link.
More on this in our guides to transcribing a voice memo and the best dictation apps.
Get the file on your Mac
The converter takes MP3, M4A, WAV, MP4, MPEG, MPGA, WEBM, FLAC and OGG files. Here is how to get one from the apps a Mac records with.
Voice Memos
- Open Voice Memos on your Mac.
- Drag the memo from the list onto the desktop or into a Finder window.
- You now have an M4A file. Drop it into the converter.
QuickTime Player
- Open the recording in QuickTime Player.
- Choose File, then Export As, then Audio Only.
- Save the M4A file and drop it into the converter.
QuickTime's MOV files are not accepted, so export the audio first.
Zoom local recording
- Open the recording folder (in Zoom, Recordings, then Open; or Documents, then Zoom in Finder).
- Next to the MP4 video there is an M4A audio file.
- Drop either file into the converter; the M4A is smaller and uploads faster.
Works in Safari, Chrome, Edge and Firefox on macOS. Nothing to install. Each file up to 10 minutes and 100 MB.
What you get
A transcript you can use on your Mac straight away.
Accurate transcript
Punctuated text you can read straight through, in the language you picked or the one Auto-detect finds.
Summary
A short written summary of the recording sits next to the full transcript.
Share link
Send the transcript to anyone with one link; they do not need an account.
Copy as text
Paste the transcript into Pages, Notes, Word, an email or your notes app.
Mac recordings this works well for
- Voice Memos you recorded on the Mac or synced from your iPhone
- QuickTime audio or screen recordings, exported as audio
- Zoom local recordings of a call or a webinar
- Interviews and podcast clips saved as MP3 or WAV
- Audio from GarageBand or another editor, exported as MP3 or M4A
Browser tool or the Mac app?
Both are free to start. Pick the one that fits the job.
This page, in your browser
- A one-off file up to 10 minutes
- Any browser on macOS, nothing to install
- 3 files a month with a free account
- Transcript, summary and a share link
The ParrotNotes app for macOS
- Records on the Mac itself; recording works offline and transcription runs once you are connected
- Longer recordings: up to 30 minutes on Free, 3 hours on Pro
- A summary on every recording, plus action items and key points (on 5 AI-powered recordings a month on Free)
- The same notes on your iPhone and Android phone
Transcribing on another computer or a phone? The Audio to Text Converter is the same tool for any device.
Transcription on your Mac, and then the app
You just transcribed one file in the browser. The ParrotNotes app for macOS records on your Mac, transcribes when you are online and puts a summary on every recording, with the same notes on your iPhone or Android phone. The free plan gives you 100 minutes a month, up to 30 minutes per recording. Sign in with the same account and the transcripts you made here are already waiting.
Get the app