TL;DR: Infina wins this one for AI-heavy Mac workflows, and the math is simple. It's the only one of the two that works completely hands-free: it types your prompt, sends it, and switches apps by voice from across the room. Both transcribe on-device, but Infina's lifetime license is $99 versus Superwhisper's $249.99, so it pays for itself 2.5 times over on day one. Superwhisper is the pick if you need a free tier or an app on Windows or iOS.
Infina is our product, so we are biased. The comparison below is still accurate, and Superwhisper is a genuinely good app with a longer track record than ours.
There are people it fits better, and we say exactly who below. A refunded customer helps neither company.
Superwhisper vs Infina at a glance
| Superwhisper | Infina | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Pro $8.49/mo or $84.99/yr; $249.99 lifetime | $99 one-time lifetime (price at time of writing); optional $10/mo cloud add-on |
| Free option | Yes, free tier with small local models | No free trial; 7-day money-back guarantee instead |
| Refund window | 30 days | 7 days, no questions asked |
| Platforms | Mac, Windows, iOS | Mac only (Apple Silicon for on-device models) |
| Where transcription runs | On-device on Apple Silicon; cloud models optional | On your Mac by default (works offline); cloud is an optional add-on |
| Output style | AI-formatted modes (email, notes, tone adaptation) with your choice of models | Raw and instant by default (built for AI prompts); full LLM polish via the $10/mo cloud add-on when you want it |
| Languages | 100+ | English (base); more languages with the cloud add-on |
| Trigger | Hotkey-triggered recording | Push-to-talk or fully hands-free: just say "type" plus your words |
| Beyond typing | Types text into the active app; also transcribes files and meetings | Types, sends, opens and switches apps/tabs, voice control of the Mac itself |
Sources for the Superwhisper column: superwhisper.com, checked July 4, 2026. Prices change; check their site for current terms.
What each tool actually is
Superwhisper is one of the most respected dictation utilities on the Mac, and it earned that. You press a hotkey, speak, and it types transcribed, AI-formatted text into any app, with transcription running on your Mac on Apple Silicon.
Its signature move is choice: multiple local models, plus cloud models like GPT-5, Claude, Llama 4, Grok, and Gemini for formatting, with modes that adapt tone for email, notes, or legal writing. It also records and transcribes meetings and files.
Infina is narrower and deeper: a voice layer for the Mac, built for people who prompt AI tools (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, ChatGPT) all day. It does push-to-talk dictation (hold Option, speak, release), transcribed on-device by NVIDIA's Parakeet model on the Apple Neural Engine.
But the reason it exists is hands-free voice prompting. Just say "type" plus your prompt, say "send", and Infina types it, presses Enter, and can switch you to another app or terminal for the next one.
Superwhisper stops at putting text on screen. Infina finishes the job (send it, switch apps, keep going) without your hands.
Pricing: $99 once vs $249.99 once
Both apps reject the subscription treadmill, which puts them ahead of most of this market. The difference is the number.
- Superwhisper lifetime: $249.99. Or $8.49/month or $84.99/year if you'd rather rent. There's a real free tier with small local models, and a 30-day refund.
- Infina lifetime: $99 at the time of writing, with every 1.x update included and a 7-day no-questions refund. There's no free tier or trial: you buy, then download.
Infina's only recurring charge is the optional $10/month cloud add-on (sharper cloud transcription, LLM-polished output, more languages), and the app works fully on-device without it.
If lifetime-vs-lifetime is the comparison, Infina is 2.5 times cheaper. If "try it free first" matters most to you, Superwhisper takes that row; see the concessions below. Full details are on our pricing page.
On-device dictation: both do it, for different jobs
Privacy isn't the wedge here, and we won't pretend it is. Both apps can transcribe entirely on your Mac and work offline on Apple Silicon.
That's rare and both deserve credit for it. (If you're comparing against cloud-only tools instead, read Wispr Flow vs Infina, or see how Wispr Flow stacks up against Superwhisper.)
The difference is what happens after transcription:
- Superwhisper runs your words through an AI formatting layer with the model of your choice, aimed at emails, notes, and documents.
- Infina's base product stays raw on purpose: fast, rule-based cleanup, no LLM round-trip. Claude and GPT models don't need your prompt punctuated; they need it now.
When you do want polished prose, Infina's $10/mo cloud add-on is built exactly to win that use case: sharper cloud transcription and full LLM polish, switched on only when you want it. Cancel anytime and you still own the app for $99, with nothing extra to keep paying for.
Hands-free: where the two tools split
This is the actual decision point. Superwhisper, like every mainstream dictation tool, is hotkey-triggered.
Your hand comes back to the keyboard for every dictation, and pressing Enter and switching windows afterward is still your job.
Infina's hands-free mode closes the whole loop:
- Double-tap Command to turn hands-free on. The listening runs on-device, so nothing is recorded or sent while it waits.
- Say "type" plus your prompt.
- Say "send", and Infina types it into the active app and presses Enter.
- Say "open Terminal" (or any app) and keep going, from across the room.
If you run multiple AI coding agents at once, this changes the shape of your day. You review one agent's output while dictating instructions to another, keyboard untouched.
Typing is the bottleneck in that kind of work. Speaking thousands of words of prompts a day keeps every agent busy and gets more shipped in less time.
One caveat: hands-free is Infina's newest surface and we still label it experimental; push-to-talk is the mature path. But nothing in Superwhisper, at any price, does this at all.
Infina also handles OS-level commands by voice: open apps, switch apps and tabs, and send prompts as real Mac actions. Superwhisper is a dictation tool; it doesn't try to be this, and that focus is part of why it's so solid at what it does.
Where Superwhisper still has an edge
Being honest, as promised:
- You want to try before paying anything. Superwhisper's free tier is real and useful; Infina has no free version, only a refund window.
- You need Windows or iOS. Superwhisper covers Mac, Windows, and iPhone. Infina is Mac-only, full stop.
- You dictate in languages other than English. Superwhisper supports 100+ languages, including in the free tier. Base Infina is English-only.
- You love choosing your models. Superwhisper's model menu is unmatched; Infina picks its models for you.
- You transcribe meetings and audio files. Superwhisper does both; Infina is a live voice layer, not a file transcriber.
- You want the longer track record and the bigger refund window. Superwhisper has been refined for years and offers 30 days versus our 7.
If most of those describe you, Superwhisper is the right buy, and $249.99 once still beats a lifetime of subscriptions. And if neither app feels right, we rounded up the best Superwhisper alternatives too.
When Infina is the right choice
- You prompt AI tools all day and want to dictate, send, and switch apps without touching the keyboard: the full loop, not just the typing part.
- You want voice control of the Mac itself (open and switch apps, manage tabs, fire off prompts), not only text insertion.
- You want lifetime pricing at $99, not $249.99, with a 7-day no-questions refund if it's not for you.
- Raw, instant output is a feature for you, because your "reader" is Claude or GPT, not a human.
- You're on an Apple Silicon Mac and fine with English in the base product.
FAQ
Is Superwhisper or Infina cheaper? For lifetime licenses, Infina: $99 one-time (at the time of writing) versus Superwhisper's $249.99. Superwhisper also offers $8.49/month and $84.99/year plans plus a free tier, so it's cheaper to start. Infina is cheaper to own.
Does Infina have a free version like Superwhisper? No. Superwhisper has a genuine free tier with small local models. Infina is purchase-first with a 7-day no-questions-asked money-back guarantee instead.
Do both apps work offline? Yes. On Apple Silicon Macs, both can transcribe fully on-device with no internet. Infina is on-device by default; Superwhisper also offers optional cloud models.
Can Superwhisper send prompts or switch apps by voice? No. Superwhisper types transcribed text into the active app; pressing Enter and changing windows is still done by hand. Infina can type, send, and switch apps entirely by voice in hands-free mode.
Which is better for prompting Claude Code or Cursor? Both insert text into a terminal or editor fine. Infina is built specifically for that workflow (raw fast output, voice "send," and app switching), so you can drive Claude Code by voice without touching the keyboard. And with the $10/mo cloud add-on, Infina covers polished email and docs too, while staying the only hands-free option of the two.
What are the refund policies? Superwhisper offers a 30-day refund. Infina offers a 7-day no-questions-asked refund.
The bottom line
Superwhisper and Infina agree on the two big things (on-device transcription and ownership over subscriptions) and split on everything else.
Superwhisper is a strong dictation utility: free tier, more platforms, more languages, more models, meetings and files, longer track record.
Infina is the better voice-first workflow, and for AI work it's not close. It's the one that completes the dictate, send, switch-apps loop hands-free, adds OS-level voice control, and costs $99 instead of $249.99.
If you need a free tier or an app beyond the Mac, get Superwhisper. If you work on a Mac and talk to AI tools all day, get Infina, and if we're wrong, the refund takes one email. For the wider field, see our roundup of the best dictation apps for Mac.