This page is about one product, Dragon Professional, Nuance’s desktop dictation software: what it is today, where its price is, and whether it runs on a Mac. For the wider picture, with built-in tools and other options, read our page on Dragon NaturallySpeaking alternatives.
Everything about Dragon below was read on Nuance’s own pages on 5 November 2026, unless it says otherwise. Check those pages again before you buy.
What Dragon Professional is today
Nuance, now part of Microsoft, sells Dragon Professional v16 as speech recognition you install on a Windows PC. Its page says it is made for Windows 11 and works back to Windows 10. Nuance’s range page also lists Dragon Legal v16 and Dragon Law Enforcement v16, plus cloud versions called Dragon Professional Anywhere and Dragon Legal Anywhere.
Nuance says it is accurate right from first use. That is the maker’s own claim and we have not tested it.
Dragon dictation cost: where the price is listed
No Nuance page we read shows a price. The Dragon Professional page has a “Contact us” button and nothing to put in a basket. Nuance’s old store links now go to the same contact page.
Shops do list a price. On 6 November 2026 UK shops listed Dragon Professional 16 at about £636 to £654, and the upgrade from version 15 at about £327. The listings did not say whether VAT was included. Prices change from day to day and they are not Nuance’s, so treat this as a rough guide, and be wary of listings far below that on marketplace sites.
Whether the licence is one-off or yearly is not stated on Nuance’s page. The retail listings describe a one-time purchase. For Dragon Medical One, Microsoft’s page names no price either.
A cloud version, Dragon Professional Anywhere, is reported by a Nuance partner to stop selling on 31 December 2026. We found no notice from Nuance or Microsoft saying so, and its range page still lists it. Ask before you buy it.
Dragon dictate Mac: no Mac version listed
If you searched for Dragon dictate Mac: Nuance’s current range page lists no Mac version, only Windows software and cloud and phone versions. So for a Mac today, Dragon Professional is not the route.
Apple’s own Dictation is built into the Mac. Our Mac dictation apps compared page sets out other options, and Talkativ’s Mac app is ready to download; see Talkativ for Mac.
Dragon Professional and Talkativ side by side
| Talkativ | Dragon Professional (5 November 2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Windows 10 and 11. Mac too | Windows 11 and 10, installed on your PC |
| Price | Free plan. Pro $7 a month or $56 a year. Max $11 a month or $88 a year | Not shown by Nuance. About £636 to £654 at UK shops (6 November 2026) |
| Setup | Download, sign in, press the shortcut. No voice training | Install it on your PC. Nuance describes it as accurate right from first use |
| Offline | No, needs internet | Not stated on Nuance’s pages. Check before relying on it |
| Specialist versions | One general version | Legal and Law Enforcement versions listed |
| Where you get it | Download and sign in | Contact Nuance, or buy from resellers |
Prices in US dollars. Talkativ upgrades and billing happen inside the app.
Who should stay on Dragon
Dragon is the better choice if:
- you work in law or law enforcement and want a version built for it. Nuance lists those editions
- you work in medicine. Medical dictation sits in a separate product, Dragon Medical One, which Microsoft now points towards Dragon Copilot
- you already own Dragon and it works for you. A change costs time, and Talkativ will not copy what you have set up
- you want speech recognition you can customise heavily. Nuance describes Dragon as highly customisable; Talkativ’s main way to tailor it is Vocabulary, a word list
- you must dictate with no internet. Talkativ cannot do this, and Dragon may, but we could not confirm it from Nuance’s pages
Who might prefer Talkativ
Talkativ may suit you if you write emails, documents and messages and want to start for free. You press Ctrl + Space on Windows, ⌥ Option + Space on a Mac in any app, talk, and press again. Your words land at the cursor with punctuation and capital letters. There is no voice training.
If a name comes out wrong, add it to Vocabulary, a word list on every plan, and Talkativ spells it your way. If you also want to rewrite text by voice, Max has Genius Mode: highlight text, press Ctrl + D on Windows, ⌥ Option + D on a Mac and say what you want.
You can also try it first. The Free plan gives 2,200 words a week with no card, and Max has a 7-day trial with no card, started in the app. See plans and prices.
What Talkativ does not do
- It does not work offline. It needs an internet connection.
- It does not control your computer, open apps or click for you. For that, look at Windows Voice Access.
- It has no specialist medical or legal versions.
- It is press once to start and press again to stop, not hold to talk. The shortcut is fixed.
- It does not transcribe audio files, and there is no phone app.
For Windows basics, see Talkativ on Windows. For the maker’s own details, see Nuance’s Dragon Professional page. Back to the Talkativ home page.