How to Set Up Letterly Dictation on Mac

We’re really proud of Letterly Dictation, and we’d love more people to try it. With Letterly Dictation, you can use your voice wherever you already write, without opening the Letterly app every time.

If you use a Mac and haven’t tried Letterly Dictation yet, or you’re not sure how to set it up and use it, this guide will walk you through the process step by step.

We’ve split this guide into three parts:

Let’s get started 👇

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I. Set up Dictation

First, let’s set up Letterly Dictation and give it the permissions it needs to work across your Mac.

1. Open Letterly on your Mac

Mac → Download from the Mac App Store

Open the Letterly Mac app and go to Settings.

2. Find Dictation

In Settings, open the Dictation section.

3. Allow the required permissions

When you set up Dictation, Letterly will guide you through two required permissions:

• Microphone access, so Letterly can hear what you dictate.
• Accessibility access, so Letterly can insert the finished text into the active text field.

Microphone access

1. Click Allow in Letterly.
2. When the No microphone access message appears, click Settings.
3. Enable Letterly under Microphone.
4. Return to Letterly to continue the setup.

Accessibility access

1. Click Allow in Letterly.
2. Enable Letterly under Accessibility.
3. If macOS asks you to, quit and reopen Letterly.

Follow each step in the carousel below. 👇

That’s it for the basics.

Now let’s make Dictation work the way you want. 👇

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II. Customize Dictation

You can come back and change these settings at any time.

In the Letterly app, open Settings → Dictation. Here, you can choose how you start Dictation, whether the floating bar stays visible, and which rewrite options you want quick access to.

You’ll see:

1. Set shortcut: Choose the key or key combination you want to use to start Dictation.
2. Always show the floating bar: Keep the floating bar visible on your screen so you can start Dictation with one click.
3. Dictation output: Choose your Main rewrite option, which Letterly applies automatically when you stop dictating. You can also select Pinned rewrite options to keep your favorite rewrite buttons on the floating bar for quick access.

1. Set a shortcut

By default, Letterly Dictation starts when you press F5.

To change the shortcut, open Dictation settings, find Set shortcut, and choose the key or key combination that works best for you.

2. Floating bar

The floating bar is a small Letterly control that stays visible on top of any window on your screen.

You can click it to start dictating without opening the Letterly app. It will remain available while you work in Mail, Notes, your browser, or any other app.

The floating bar includes the following controls:

1. Cancel current recording: click X to cancel and discard the current dictation.
2. Recording timer: shows how long you’ve been dictating.
3. Stop recording: click the red button to finish the dictation and process your text.
4. Pinned rewrite options: click an option or use its keyboard shortcut to apply it to your dictation. We’ll explain them in the next section.
5. Rewrite options menu: click the arrows to open the full menu of rewrite options.

3. Dictation output

Letterly can automatically clean up or rewrite your text after you finish dictating. By default, Letterly uses the System option. It keeps the text close to what you said while removing filler words, adding punctuation, and making it easier to read.

There are two types of rewrite options:

• Main rewrite option: Applied automatically after every dictation.
• Pinned rewrite options: Quick alternatives you can choose from the floating bar.

Main rewrite option

Your Main rewrite option controls how Letterly processes your text when you finish dictating using your main shortcut.

By default, Letterly uses the System option. It keeps the text close to what you said while removing filler words, adding punctuation, and making it easier to read.

You can choose any rewrite option as your main one. Pick the format you use most often, such as Structured, List, Short Summary, Journal Entry, and more.

Pinned rewrite options

Pinned rewrite options appear below the recording controls on the floating bar.

They let you quickly choose a different format after you finish dictating, such as Structured, List, Short Summary, Journal Entry, and more. You can also use the keyboard shortcut shown next to each option.

How to choose pinned rewrite options:

Go to Settings → Dictation → Pinned Rewrite Options, then click the pin icon next to each option you want to pin.

That’s it, Letterly Dictation is ready to use on your Mac. 🥳

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III. Use Dictation

You can use Letterly Dictation in any app.

Before you dictate

Click where you want the text to appear. Place your cursor inside an email, message, document, note, or any other text field.

After you dictate

When you stop recording, Letterly processes your speech and inserts the text at the cursor position.

Your latest dictation is also copied to the clipboard automatically. If the text wasn’t inserted, place your cursor in the right spot and press Command + V.

All your previous dictations are saved in History. Open Settings → Dictation → History to view or copy them.

You did it! 🎉

We hope you enjoy using Letterly Dictation and that it makes writing on your Mac feel faster, easier, and more natural.

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❓ FAQ

Can I apply more than one rewrite option?

Can I change the result and rewrite the original transcription differently?

How do I change the Dictation shortcut?

Why can’t I use certain keyboard shortcuts for Dictation on my Mac?

What should I do if I’m not happy with the Dictation quality?

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Got more questions? Email us at hi@letterly.app – we’re happy to help.