HoldToSpeak is push-to-talk dictation for Windows that runs entirely on your own machine. Hold Ctrl+Win anywhere, speak, let go, and your words appear at the cursor in whatever app you were already using.
Your voice never leaves your computer. There is no account, no cloud service, no telemetry and no analytics. After a one-time speech-model download the app works with the network cable unplugged, and it is built so you can verify that rather than take it on trust.
It works in the apps that usually break dictation - terminals, WSL, IDEs, browsers and chat apps - by choosing a text-injection route per target rather than relying on clipboard paste. Dictation drops to verbatim automatically in terminals and code editors, so commands are never rewritten. Password fields are detected live via UI Automation and refused rather than typed into. A plain-text personal dictionary lets you correct jargon permanently.
Speech recognition uses the Parakeet TDT 0.6B v2 model, which is downloaded on first run and is licensed separately under CC-BY-4.0. Note that release binaries are not code-signed yet, so Windows SmartScreen will show a warning on first run.
Yes. HoldToSpeak is free and open-source software released under the MIT license.
What is the latest version of HoldToSpeak?
The latest version is 0.1.3, released on Aug 19, 2026.
Is it safe to download HoldToSpeak?
The download button links to the official installer published on github.com, the same file Windows Package Manager installs. You can verify the downloaded file by comparing its SHA-256 checksum with 66f1edfe3977c10a44699b90bb91fca1ef2eb68e6fddca84812800e41a630d1a.
Which Windows versions does HoldToSpeak support?
HoldToSpeak requires Windows 10 version 2004 or later and is available for 64-bit (x64) systems.
How do I install HoldToSpeak silently?
Run the offline installer with "HoldToSpeak-0.1.3-x64-setup.exe" /VERYSILENT /SUPPRESSMSGBOXES /NORESTART /SP-, or install it with Windows Package Manager: winget install --id=rootMonsteR.HoldToSpeak -e --silent.
How do I uninstall HoldToSpeak?
Open Settings › Apps › Installed apps, find HoldToSpeak and select Uninstall. From the command line, run winget uninstall --id=rootMonsteR.HoldToSpeak -e.
Alternatives to HoldToSpeak
Other Audio programs for Windows from different developers.
