Why isn’t Flow recording my voice?

Desktop (Mac & Windows)

Work through these steps in order.

1. Check microphone permissions.

   1. Mac: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. Confirm Wispr Flow is toggled on.

   2. Windows: Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. Confirm Microphone access is on and Wispr Flow is allowed.

   3. Restart Flow if you made changes.

2. Verify the correct input device. Open input settings (Mac: System Settings → Sound → Input / Windows: Settings → System → Sound → Input). Select your microphone and speak — the input level meter should bounce. Confirm the input volume slider isn't at zero, since another app can silently set it there. If the meter doesn't move, try a different mic or port.

3. Restart Flow. Quit Flow from the menu bar (Mac) or system tray (Windows), then reopen it from Applications, Spotlight, or the Start menu.

4. Reset & restart (last resort). Open Flow Settings → System → Reset & Restart, then dictate to test.

Mac only: silence indicators during dictation

If your microphone stops delivering audio mid-dictation on Mac, Flow tells you:

• After 5 seconds of silence: The waveform in the status bubble goes flat.

• After 15 seconds of silence: A "Microphone is not working" notification appears with a Select microphone button. Use it to switch input devices.

• If audio recovers on its own: The waveform resumes, but the notification stays visible until you stop and restart dictation.

• If your mic disconnects entirely: A "Microphone disconnected" notification appears with an Insert button — click it to paste any text captured before the disconnect.

iOS

Work through these steps in order.

1. Grant microphone permission when prompted. The first time you start a Flow recording, iOS shows a microphone permission prompt. Tap Allow. If you tapped Cancel, tap Open Settings in the alert that follows to enable it from there.

2. Check microphone permissions manually. Open the Settings app → Wispr Flow and confirm Microphone is toggled on.

3. Restart Flow. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen (or double-tap the Home button) to open the app switcher, swipe Wispr Flow away, then reopen it.

iOS onboarding: what the toast messages mean

During the "try it yourself" dictation steps in onboarding, Flow shows a message at the top of the screen if something goes wrong. Here's what each one means and how to resolve it:

• "Oops, we didn't hear you.. Get closer to your mic and try again!": Flow didn't pick up any audio. Move the phone closer to your mouth and tap the mic to try again.

• "Poor connection! Tap the mic to try again": The transcription failed due to a network issue. Check your internet connection, then tap the mic to retry.

• "Your mic is being used by another app. Close other apps and try again!": Another app has taken over your microphone. Close other open apps and tap the mic to try again.

• "Enable microphone access to use Flow": Flow doesn't have permission to use your microphone. Open the Settings app → Wispr Flow and toggle Microphone on.

• "Oops, something went wrong.. Tap the mic to try again!": An unexpected error occurred. Tap the mic button to try again; if it keeps happening, restart Flow.

Android

Work through these steps in order.

1. Check microphone permissions. Open the Settings app → Apps → Wispr Flow → Permissions and confirm Microphone is set to "Allow" or "Allow only while using the app."

2. Restart Flow. Open your recent apps view, swipe Wispr Flow away, then reopen it.

iOS: Wispr Flow didn't appear under Microphone in iOS Settings

This was caused by Flow not making an explicit microphone permission request before recording. Fixed in the latest version — Flow now requests permission before starting a recording, which makes it appear in iOS Settings immediately.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Start a Flow recording — you'll see the permission prompt. Tap Allow to grant access.

Mac/Windows: Dictation stopped working in certain desktop builds

This was caused by a bug that made the microphone fail to activate even when permissions were granted. Fixed in the latest version of Flow.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Mac/Windows: Dictation showed "Listening" but failed with a generic error after a long wait

This was caused by Flow not detecting microphone access failures up front, so it would show a "Listening" bubble, wait up to 24 seconds, then display a generic "Transcript failed to load" error. Fixed in the latest version. Flow now immediately dismisses the session and shows a specific notification:

• No microphone detected: Shown when no mic is connected. Flow opens your system microphone settings.

• Selected microphone is unavailable: Shown when a mic you previously pinned in Flow is no longer connected. Flow opens the mic chooser so you can pick a different one.

• Microphone unavailable: Shown when another app is using the mic or the audio driver is unresponsive. Includes a Troubleshoot link. Only appears if the problem repeats within 2 minutes, since most cases recover on the first retry.

• Microphone error: A general fallback for other mic access problems, also shown on repeated failure with a Troubleshoot link.

To get the fix:

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Mac/Windows: Microphone took a long time to activate after canceling and retrying dictation

This was caused by a desktop bug where rapidly canceling and retrying dictation delayed mic activation. Each successive retry took progressively longer to start, and the mic indicator light could remain on after canceling. Fixed in the latest version of Flow.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

Windows: Microphone access blocked or blank mic picker after upgrading to v1.4.894

This was caused by Flow's permission check falling out of sync with the actual OS state, resulting in a blank mic picker or a false "microphone privacy disabled" error. Fixed in versions after v1.4.894 — Flow now tests mic access directly.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Restart Flow after updating.

iOS: Revoking microphone permission caused dictation to fail silently with no error

This was caused by Flow not detecting revoked permissions after initial setup, so tapping "Start Flow" or the mic button would silently attempt dictation without recording or showing an error. Fixed in the latest version — you now immediately see a "We can't hear you" prompt, so you know to re-enable mic access in Settings.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

3. Open the Settings app → Wispr Flow and toggle Microphone back on.

iOS: Dictation failed silently during onboarding with no explanation

This was caused by failed dictation attempts during the "try it yourself" onboarding steps — from no audio, network problems, the mic being in use, or permission issues — providing no user feedback. Fixed in the latest version, which now shows a descriptive message at the top of the screen for each failure type. See "iOS onboarding: what the toast messages mean" above for what each message means.

1. Open Wispr Flow and check for updates.

2. Install any available update.

Flow was working before but suddenly stopped — what happened?

This usually happens after a system update resets microphone permissions, or when a new audio device (like Bluetooth headphones) changes your default input. Run through the quick checks above to narrow it down.

Can I choose which microphone Flow uses?

On Mac and Windows, Flow uses the system default input device — change it in your system sound settings. On iOS and Android, Flow automatically uses the device microphone or connected headset.

Flow picks up audio but the text is wrong — is that a mic issue?

No. If text appears but is inaccurate, the microphone is working. The issue is usually background noise or mic placement — move to a quieter area or speak closer to the mic.

My microphone changed mid-recording on Android — what does that mean?

On Android 16, Flow detects when your audio input switches during a recording — for example, if a hearing aid mic disconnects and your phone's built-in mic takes over. Flow notifies you when this happens. If the transcription looks off, try recording again with a single, stable mic source.