# Flit vs EmberType

Canonical page: https://flit.fyi/alternatives/embertype

Flit types as you speak and has no cloud path at all. Checked against EmberType's own site in September 2026. Flit is ours.

**Short answer:** Flit and EmberType are close cousins: both transcribe on your Mac, both run on Apple silicon with macOS 14 or later, both are bought once, and both clean up fillers and punctuation on the device. The difference is what each does beyond that. EmberType lets you plug in cloud engines like Groq, Deepgram or Gemini with your own API key. Flit has no cloud path at all, shows text while you are still speaking, repairs spoken code names against your open project, and resolves more than 60 commands by fixed rule. If you want the choice of a cloud provider, EmberType offers it. If you want dictation that cannot leave your Mac and does more of the job, Flit.

| | Flit | EmberType |
|---|---|---|
| Where transcription happens | Your Mac, no cloud path | Your Mac, or cloud engines with your API key |
| Price | $15 once, one Mac | One-time purchase |
| Account required | No | Not for the trial |
| Mac support | macOS 14+, Apple silicon | macOS 14+, Apple silicon |
| Text appears as you speak | Yes | Not stated |
| Filler and punctuation cleanup | On your Mac | On your Mac |
| Languages | 1,600+, all local | 99, via Whisper |
| Knows your codebase | Indexes it locally | Not stated |
| Per-app tone rules | Yes | Not stated |
| Exact times and commands | Fixed rules | Not documented |

## Why people pick Flit

- No cloud path at all. Nothing to configure, and nothing a stray setting can switch on.
- Text appears while you are still speaking, not only when you let go.
- It reads your open project and repairs misheard file and folder names against the real ones.
- Times, spoken punctuation, snippets and dictionary words come from fixed rules that cannot drift.
- Per-app tone rules and translation into another language while you dictate.

## Where EmberType differs

- Optional cloud engines: Groq, ElevenLabs, Deepgram, Mistral, Gemini and Soniox.
- A choice of local models, including NVIDIA Parakeet and Whisper.

## What decides it

### Two local apps, bought once

This is not the usual cloud-against-local comparison. Both apps process your speech on Apple silicon and both are one payment, so neither charges you monthly for your own voice. The question is how much dictation each one does once the audio is transcribed.

### Optional cloud against no cloud

EmberType lets you bring an API key for a cloud engine, which is useful if one provider handles your vocabulary better. It also means your privacy depends on a setting. Flit ships without any cloud engine, so the claim that nothing leaves your Mac holds no matter what is switched on, and you can check it in a minute with wifi off.

## The verdict

you want the option to use a cloud engine with your own API key

you want live text, a codebase index and exact commands, with no cloud path at all

## Questions

**Is EmberType local?**

By default, yes. It runs Whisper and Parakeet models on your Mac, and offers cloud engines as an option with your own API key. Flit is local only, with no cloud option.

**Which is cheaper?**

Both are bought once and yours to keep, so neither becomes a monthly bill. Flit is $15 for one Mac, with 12 months of updates.

**Do both need an Apple silicon Mac?**

Yes. Both require macOS 14 or later on Apple silicon.

Every comparison: [Flit alternatives](https://flit.fyi/alternatives). Ranked: [the best dictation apps for Mac](https://flit.fyi/best-dictation-app-for-mac). Flit: [flit.fyi](https://flit.fyi/).