Offline Transcription for Mac
Transcribe speech to text without an internet connection. Everything stays on your Mac — private, fast, and reliable.
Key Specs
0 Uploads
Audio never leaves your Mac
Up to 190x RT
Local processing speed
No Internet
Required after setup
Neural Engine
Apple Silicon hardware
Why Offline Matters
Three reasons to keep your transcription local
Privacy
Your audio and transcriptions never leave your Mac. No servers to breach, no third-party processors, no data collection. This is the only way to guarantee your recordings stay private.
Speed
No upload time, no server queue, no download wait. Chirp processes audio directly on your Mac's Neural Engine at up to 190x realtime — faster than cloud services for most recordings.
Reliability
Works on planes, in remote areas, in secure facilities — anywhere without WiFi. No dependency on external servers that could go down, change pricing, or discontinue service.
How Local Transcription Works
A custom English model running on Apple's Neural Engine
Apple Neural Engine
Every Apple Silicon Mac includes a dedicated Neural Engine — hardware specifically designed for machine learning tasks. Chirp uses this hardware to run its English-optimized speech model directly on your device, without needing a GPU or external processor.
On-Device Models
Chirp's custom models (~500 MB) are downloaded once and stored locally. By focusing exclusively on English, the models stay compact while matching cloud-level accuracy. No internet connection is needed after the initial setup.
Zero Network Requests
Chirp makes no network requests for transcription. Your audio goes from microphone to Neural Engine to text — all within your Mac. You can verify this with any network monitoring tool.
Performance
~5s
10-minute recording
~500 MB
Model size on disk
0 bytes
Sent to servers
Who Uses Offline Transcription
Privacy-sensitive professionals who need local processing
Journalists
Transcribe interviews and field recordings without exposing sources or sensitive material to cloud services.
Legal Professionals
Attorney-client privilege requires keeping recordings confidential. Chirp processes everything locally with no third-party access.
Healthcare
Patient consultations and medical notes stay on your device. No compliance risk from cloud uploads.
Executives
Strategic discussions and board meetings transcribed without corporate data touching external servers.
Offline Transcription FAQ
Common questions about local, private transcription
Yes. After the initial download and one-time license activation, Chirp works entirely offline. The transcription model runs locally on your Mac's Neural Engine. No audio or text is ever sent to a server.
Chirp's local transcription runs at up to 190x realtime speed on Apple Silicon, which is faster than most cloud services once you account for upload time. Chirp uses an English-optimized model that delivers accuracy comparable to leading cloud services. The main advantage is privacy — your audio never leaves your device.
Chirp uses a custom English-optimized model that runs on Apple's Neural Engine. Accuracy is comparable to leading cloud services for English. The model handles accents, technical terminology, and natural speech well. Chirp currently supports English only — this focus is what allows it to be fast and accurate at a small model size.
All transcriptions and audio recordings are stored locally on your Mac in the app's data directory. You can configure automatic data retention policies to delete audio files after a set period. Nothing is uploaded or synced to any server.
Yes. Once installed and activated, Chirp works anywhere — on flights, in secure facilities, remote locations, or anywhere without internet access. All processing happens on your Mac's hardware.
Still have questions? Get in touch
Private Transcription, No Compromises
Download Chirp free. All transcription stays on your Mac — always.