macOS dictation is one of those features many people have and don't use. It is in System Settings, Keyboard, Dictation, works in any text field (Pages, Word, email, the browser) and in Spanish it adds the commas and full stops on its own. For notes and short emails it is more than enough.
How to turn on dictation on Mac, step by step
- Open the Apple menu and go to System Settings.
- In the sidebar, click Keyboard.
- Scroll down to Dictation and click Turn On.
- The Mac will ask whether you want to share audio recordings to improve Siri and Dictation. You can choose Not Now: dictation works just the same.
- In the same section, choose the language (Spanish (Spain), to dictate in Spanish) and the shortcut you want to use to start dictating.
If it is the first time, the Mac may download the speech models for the language before you can use it.
The Mac dictation key
There are three ways to start dictating with the cursor in a text field:
- The Microphone key in the row of function keys, if your keyboard has one. You press it and release it: if you hold it down, what opens is Siri.
- The Dictation shortcut you chose in the settings. A comfortable option is pressing the fn (or globe) key twice, which is set up in Keyboard, in the option for what that key does. You can also create your own shortcut.
- The Edit, Start Dictation menu of the app you are in.
While you dictate, a microphone icon appears next to the cursor. To stop, press the key or the shortcut again. On a Mac with Apple silicon you can keep typing while you dictate without it cutting out.
Punctuation commands in Spanish
In Spanish, Mac dictation adds punctuation automatically: Spanish (Spain) is on the list of languages with auto-punctuation that Apple publishes. If you prefer to say it yourself, turn it off with the Auto-punctuation option in the same section. And even with it on, you can dictate marks with these commands:
| You say | It types |
|---|---|
| «punto», «coma», «dos puntos», «punto y coma» (full stop, comma, colon, semicolon) | . , : ; |
| «signo de interrogación», «signo de exclamación» (question mark, exclamation mark) | ? ! |
| «puntos suspensivos» (ellipsis) | … |
| «paréntesis de apertura», «paréntesis de cierre» (open and close parenthesis) | ( ) |
| «comillas», «comillas de cierre» (quote, close quote) | opening and closing quotation marks |
| «nueva línea», «nuevo párrafo» (new line, new paragraph) | line or paragraph break |
| «mayúsculas activadas», «mayúsculas desactivadas», «todo en mayúsculas» (caps on, caps off, all caps) | switches to capitals |
| «tabulador» (tab) | tab |
A detail you notice in Spanish: Apple's official list doesn't include commands for the opening marks ¿ and ¡ (Spanish opens questions and exclamations with an inverted mark). Auto-punctuation usually adds them when it detects a question, but if you dictate them yourself, check the result.
Is it processed on your Mac or on Apple's servers?
It depends on the Mac and the language, and it is worth checking if you dictate about confidential information. Apple says that on Macs with Apple silicon, in supported languages, dictation is processed on the device itself, and it includes Spanish (Spain) on that list. On Macs with an Intel processor, or in unsupported languages, the audio is sent to Apple.
The way to find out on your computer is to look at the text that appears under the Dictation option in the Keyboard settings. According to Apple's privacy policy, if it doesn't say there that it is processed on the device, what you dictate is sent to its servers, although it is not stored unless you turn on the option to improve Siri and Dictation.
Why Mac dictation isn't working
It is almost always the same causes. Check them in this order:
- Dictation is not turned on, or the language and region are not the ones you speak. Check it in Keyboard, Dictation.
- You are using a different key. If you hold down the Microphone key, Siri opens instead of dictation.
- The microphone is not the right one or its input volume is low. Check it in System Settings, Sound, Input.
- Voice Control is turned on. While it is running, normal macOS dictation is not available.
- It stops by itself after a few seconds. There is no time limit, but dictation stops when it has heard no voice for 30 seconds. If you take long pauses to think, it closes.
- There is noise or the microphone is covered. Apple recommends speaking clearly, avoiding background noise or using a headset with a microphone. The laptop microphone, with the lid open and the keyboard clattering, is the most common cause of errors. We explain it in which microphone to choose for dictation.
- There is no connection, if your Mac or your language doesn't process on the device.
Dictating in Word on a Mac
In Word for Mac you have two routes. System dictation works inside Word as in any other app. And Word has its own button: Home, Dictate, which also opens with Option + F1. That second dictation needs a Microsoft 365 subscription and an internet connection, because the audio is sent to Microsoft to turn it into text (Microsoft says it stores neither the audio nor the transcript). How to use it, in how to dictate in Word.
Where it falls short in a long text
Mac dictation is a transcription: it writes what you say, as you say it. For a four-line email there is no problem. In a report or a brief of several pages, three limits appear:
- Filler words and hesitations stay in. If you say «eh» or rephrase halfway through a sentence, it appears in the text.
- Uncommon names and the jargon of your work come out wrong again and again: surnames, companies, acronyms, technical terms.
- Long pauses cut it off. Thinking for thirty seconds before the next paragraph means starting again.
ablalo has a native app for Mac, with Apple silicon or Intel. It transcribes your Spanish speech on your own computer, punctuates in Spanish, removes filler words, learns the names and acronyms you correct and works in any app with a shortcut. If you work with legal texts, it also recognises more than 30,000 terms out of the box and inserts the literal text of an article from the BOE (Spain's Official State Gazette) when you name it.
In short
To turn on dictation on Mac: System Settings, Keyboard, Dictation, Turn On, and choose the language and the shortcut. In Spanish it punctuates on its own, understands commands such as «nuevo párrafo» (new paragraph) and, on a Mac with Apple silicon, it can work without sending the audio anywhere. If it stops working, check the shortcut, the microphone, Voice Control and pauses of more than thirty seconds.
Sources: Apple, Dictate messages and documents on Mac, commands for dictating text and if dictation isn't working; macOS feature availability; Siri and Dictation privacy. Microsoft, Dictate your documents in Word. Checked on 9 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How do you turn on dictation on a Mac?
In the Apple menu, System Settings, Keyboard, Dictation, and click Turn On. In the same section you choose the language, the shortcut to start dictating and whether you want auto-punctuation.
What is the dictation key on a Mac?
The Microphone key in the row of function keys, which you press and release (if you hold it down, Siri opens). You can also set dictation to start when you press the fn or globe key twice, or create your own shortcut.
Does Mac dictation work without the internet?
On Macs with Apple silicon and in supported languages, Spanish (Spain) among them, Apple says it is processed on the device itself. On Intel Macs the audio is sent to Apple. You can check it in the text that appears under Dictation, in the Keyboard settings.
Why does Mac dictation stop?
It has no time limit, but it stops by itself when it has heard no voice for 30 seconds. It also cuts out if you hold down the Microphone key (Siri opens) or if you have Voice Control turned on.
Does Mac dictation add punctuation in Spanish?
Yes. Spanish (Spain) is among the languages with auto-punctuation: it adds commas, full stops and question marks by detecting pauses and intonation. You can turn it off and dictate the marks with commands such as «coma» (comma) or «punto» (full stop).