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Acousmos vs Parlo

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors.

The short answer

Cheaper
Parlo — $8/mo vs $8.25/mo for Acousmos
Free plan
Neither — Acousmos has paid plans only, Parlo has paid plans only
Higher Trust score
Acousmos — 80 vs 73 for Parlo
Best fit
Acousmos: Mac users who want a searchable history of everything they've dictated · Parlo: Mac users on recent Apple Silicon hardware who want dictation and meeting notes in one app
Status
Both up at our last check — Acousmos Oct 15, 2026, Parlo Oct 14, 2026

From our own records as of each tool's last check. Anything we have not confirmed is left out rather than guessed. How we verify

AcousmosMac dictation app that saves every transcription to a private, searchable local archive instead of throwing it away.ParloMac app in alpha that bundles voice dictation, on-device meeting transcription, and spoken commands to control the OS.

Side by side

FactAcousmosParlo
CategorySpeech-to-Text & TranscriptionSpeech-to-Text & Transcription
Pricing modelPaidPaid
Starts at$8.25/mo$8/mo
Trust score80 / 10073 / 100
PlatformsmacOSmacOS
CompanyArrway LtdParlo
Launched2023—
Last verifiedOct 15, 2026Oct 14, 2026

What our research says

Acousmos

Acousmos does what most dictation apps do, but the searchable local archive of past dictations is a real differentiator if you ever need to find something you said last week rather than retype it. The privacy-mode tier is the more interesting option for anyone wary of cloud transcription, though it asks you to bring your own API keys or run models locally.

Pros

  • Searchable local archive of past dictations, not just one-off transcription
  • Custom dictionary support for names and technical terms
  • Separate privacy-mode tier for user-supplied keys or local models
  • Cross-language dictation with translation built in

Cons

  • Mac-only, with no Windows or Linux version
  • Two-tier pricing (Plus vs. Pro) adds a decision most competitors don't require

Parlo

Parlo's pitch is voice control whose audio never leaves your Mac, and combining dictation, meeting notes, and OS commands into one app is a genuinely different bundle than single-purpose dictation tools. It is still pre-1.0 software, with voice commands labelled alpha, and its hardware floor (Apple Silicon, macOS 15+) shuts out a lot of otherwise-willing users.

Pros

  • Combines dictation, meeting transcription, and OS voice commands in one app
  • Speech recognition stays on-device; notes come from the included Parlo Cloud, an offline on-device model or your own API key
  • Meeting notes can be routed straight to iCloud, Google Drive, or a network folder

Cons

  • Pre-1.0 software (version 0.1.x) with voice commands still in alpha
  • Restricted to macOS 15+ on Apple Silicon, so most non-Mac and older-Mac users are excluded
  • The default notes option sends transcript text to Parlo's relay, so fully offline use means switching to the on-device model

Which one fits

Choose Acousmos if you need

  • Mac users who want a searchable history of everything they've dictated
  • people who need cross-language dictation with translation
  • privacy-conscious users willing to supply their own API keys for local processing

Choose Parlo if you need

  • Mac users on recent Apple Silicon hardware who want dictation and meeting notes in one app
  • privacy-conscious users who want processing to stay on-device by default
  • early adopters comfortable with alpha-stage bugs

Acousmos vs Parlo: the questions people ask

Is Acousmos cheaper than Parlo?

On published entry prices, Parlo starts lower — $8/mo against $8.25/mo for Acousmos. Entry price is the lowest paid plan as we last verified it; what each plan includes differs.

More comparisons

All Parlo alternatives →Browse all Speech-to-Text & Transcription →