How to dictate messages in Slack with your voice (Windows and Mac)

Slack's microphone records a clip

In Slack, the microphone in the message box records an audio clip of up to five minutes, on every plan. After you share it, you can generate a transcript. But someone has to listen to a clip. A written message can be read in seconds, found later with search, and answered in the thread without headphones.

Slackbot, Slack's AI, has a microphone too, but it's for dictating a prompt to Slackbot, not your messages. Slack says that dictation is optimized for English.

Option 1: your computer's dictation

It works in the Slack app, in Slack in the browser and in any other app.

• On Windows: click in the message box and press Windows + H. To stop, click the microphone on the voice typing bar. It uses Microsoft's online speech recognition, so it needs the internet. How to use Windows voice typing.
• On a Mac: turn on dictation in Apple menu › System Settings › Keyboard › Dictation, then start it with the Microphone key or a shortcut you choose. To stop, press the Microphone key or your shortcut again. Depending on the language and your Mac, it may need the internet; that same setting tells you. How to use Mac dictation.

Good for: dictating in any app without installing anything. Missing: removing filler words. It types exactly what you say: if you said "um", it types it, and if you corrected yourself mid-sentence, both versions stay. The exception is Windows "fluid dictation", which cleans up filler words in English on Copilot+ PCs.

Option 2: Loro

Loro types what you said, minus the "um"s and the half-sentence you corrected.

1. Download Loro for free for Windows or Mac.
2. Click in the message box: in a channel, a DM or a thread.
3. Hold Ctrl + Win (fn on a Mac) and talk.
4. Let go. The message appears. Check it and send it yourself.

In the Slack app and in Slack in the browser, when you're online, Loro writes in a chat tone: short sentences, no greetings or sign-offs you didn't say, and no final period if it's a single short sentence.

For example, in a thread about an order, you say:

um, about the Andina Supply invoice, uh, I already talked to accounting, they'll fix it today, no, tomorrow morning, and I'll let the client know

And Loro types:

About the Andina Supply invoice, I already talked to accounting. They'll fix it tomorrow morning and I'll let the client know.

When you're online, it understands that "no, tomorrow morning" corrects what came before. And for a quick reply, "uh, on it" becomes "On it", with no period at the end.

Good for: dictating in Slack and any other app without filler words. Missing: it doesn't come installed (you have to download it), and the chat tone and self-corrections need the internet; offline, it still types and removes filler words. Replying by looking at your screen is Pro-only, and the free plan dictates 2,000 words a week.

Long updates, threads and huddles

Loro helps most with the long messages: the day's update, where a project stands, a detailed answer in a thread. You say it the way you'd tell your team, and Loro types it out in short sentences, minus the "um"s.

Reply without dictating it all. With Loro Pro, click in the thread's reply box, hold Ctrl + Alt (Control + Option on a Mac) and ask for what you want to write: "reply to this message" or "tell him yes, but on Thursday". Loro looks at your screen and writes the reply the way you would. It needs the internet, and the screenshot isn't stored.

Huddles. When your team talks in a Slack huddle, Loro asks "Take notes on this call?" and takes the notes from your computer, without a bot. When you hang up, you get the topics and each person's next steps. Tell the others you're taking notes. How Loro's meeting notes work.

The options, compared

Tips for dictating in Slack

• Click in the right box first: the channel's or the thread's.
• If you slip, press Esc before you let go, and nothing gets typed.
• Add your team's, clients' and projects' names to your dictionary.

Try Loro for free

Dictate in any app and get notes from your meetings, with no bot. For Windows and Mac, no card needed.

Download for free

Frequently asked questions

Does Slack have voice dictation?›

Not for messages. The microphone in the message box records an audio clip, and Slackbot's microphone is for dictating prompts to Slackbot. To write messages with your voice, use Windows + H, Mac dictation or Loro.

How do I record an audio clip in Slack?›

Click the microphone in the message box and talk. A clip can be up to five minutes long.

How do I use speech to text in Slack?›

Click in the message box and use Windows + H or Mac dictation. With Loro, hold Ctrl + Win (fn on a Mac), talk and let go: the message comes out without filler words.

Does Loro send the message for me?›

No. In Slack, Enter sends the message, and Loro never presses it: it pastes the text and you decide when to send it.

Does it work in Slack in the browser?›

Yes. Loro recognizes Slack in the browser and, when you're online, writes in a chat tone there too.

Can Loro take notes in Slack huddles?›

Yes, without a bot: Loro listens from your computer, so no extra participant joins the huddle. Still, tell your team you're taking notes.

Sources

• Slack, Record audio and video clips in Slack, checked October 15, 2026.
• Slack, How to work with Slackbot, checked October 15, 2026.
• Microsoft, voice typing in Windows, checked October 15, 2026.
• Apple, dictation on Mac, checked October 15, 2026.