This guide is about Windows 10 and 11 computers, not phones. Whether you call it voice typing, dictation or voice to text, on Windows 10 and 11 it starts with one shortcut. Everything about Microsoft’s tools below comes from Microsoft’s own support pages, read on 6 November 2026.
How to use voice typing in Windows 10 and 11
- Click into a text box, such as an email, a document or a chat message, so the cursor is blinking there.
- Press the Windows key + H. On Windows 11 a small voice typing menu opens; on Windows 10, Microsoft calls it the dictation toolbar.
- Speak. Your words are typed at the cursor.
- Say punctuation when you want it, such as “comma”, “period” or “question mark”. On Windows 11 you can switch on automatic punctuation instead (see below).
- To stop, say “stop dictation” or select the microphone button again.
You need an internet connection and a working microphone. The shortcut is the same on both versions, but the languages are not: Microsoft lists more than 40 languages for voice typing on Windows 11, and seven for dictation on Windows 10, such as English, French, German and Spanish.
Which “Windows speech recognition” do you mean?
The name covers three tools, and they are easy to mix up.
| Tool | Windows version | Needs internet? | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voice typing (Windows key + H) | Windows 10 and 11 | Yes | Typing what you say into a text box |
| Voice Access | Windows 11, version 22H2 and later | Only during set-up, to download language files | Controlling the PC and writing text by voice |
| Windows Speech Recognition (the older tool) | Windows 10 and earlier Windows 11 versions | Not stated on Microsoft’s page | Voice commands and dictation, after a set-up wizard |
Source: Microsoft’s support pages, read on 6 November 2026. Microsoft says Voice Access replaced Windows Speech Recognition on Windows 11 version 22H2 and later in September 2024. Voice Access works in fewer languages: Microsoft lists versions of English, Spanish, German, French, Chinese, Japanese and Italian.
For a quick message or paragraph, use voice typing. To control the whole PC by voice, or to keep working without the internet once it is set up, look at Voice Access: our page on Windows Voice Access against Talkativ shows how to start it. Writing in Word? It has its own Dictate button, covered in our guide to dictating in Microsoft Word.
Voice typing settings and commands
On Windows 11, select the gear icon on the voice typing menu. Microsoft lists these settings there, among others:
- Automatic punctuation – voice typing adds punctuation based on what you say.
- Voice typing launcher – lets you start voice typing quickly when you are in a text box.
- Default microphone – chooses which microphone voice typing listens to.
Some of the spoken commands Microsoft lists for US English on Windows 11:
| You say | What happens |
|---|---|
| “Period”, “comma”, “question mark” | The punctuation mark is typed |
| “Delete that” or “scratch that” | What you just said is deleted |
| “Press Enter” | Enter is pressed, so you start a new line |
| “Stop dictation” or “stop listening” | Voice typing stops |
Microsoft’s page has a separate list for each language.
Windows speech recognition commands and set-up (the older tool)
The older Windows Speech Recognition has its own list of commands, which Microsoft links from its page under “Windows Speech Recognition commands”. To set it up on Windows 10, go to Settings, Time & Language, Speech, then select “Get started” under Microphone. On earlier Windows 11 versions, Microsoft says to press the Windows key + Ctrl + S to open the set-up wizard. On Windows 11 version 22H2 and later, use Voice Access instead.
If it still doesn’t work
- Cursor first. Click into the text box again. Voice typing needs the cursor in a text box.
- Check you are online. Voice typing does not work without a connection.
- Let apps use the microphone. On Windows 11, go to Settings, Privacy & security, Microphone, and switch on Microphone access, “Let apps access your microphone” and “Let desktop apps access your microphone”. On Windows 10 it is Settings, Privacy, Microphone, with the matching “Allow…” switches.
- Check Windows is using the right microphone. Go to Settings, System, Sound. On Windows 11, choose your microphone under Input (“Choose a device for speaking or recording”), then select “Start test” and talk. On Windows 10, choose it under “Choose your input device”.
- Raise the input volume if the test is very quiet. On Windows 11 it is the “Input volume” slider in the microphone’s settings.
- On Windows 11, choose the microphone in the voice typing menu too: the gear icon, then Default microphone.
If Windows does not find the microphone at all, Microsoft suggests uninstalling the audio device in Device Manager and restarting, so Windows reinstalls it. Our voice to text not working guide has more fixes, in the order to try them.
When a dictation app is worth it, and when it isn’t
For short messages, the built-in tool is often enough. It is built into Windows 10 and 11, so there is nothing to install, and the Windows key + H takes seconds to learn.
A dictation app like Talkativ is worth a look if you dictate a lot, or want more tidying. Talkativ works in any app on Windows 10 and 11. You press Ctrl + Space on Windows, ⌥ Option + Space on a Mac once to start and once to stop. It adds punctuation and capital letters by default, leaves out “um” and “uh”, has a Vocabulary list for names and unusual words, and covers 100 languages, highly accurate in 56. The Free plan gives you 2,200 words a week with no card. Advanced transcription formatting, which writes spoken lists as numbered lists and amounts as symbols, is on every plan but stays off until you switch it on.
What Talkativ does not do:
- It needs the internet. There is no offline mode.
- It does not transcribe audio or video files.
- It has no phone app.
- It is press once to start and again to stop, not hold to talk.
- The shortcuts are fixed. You cannot change them.
Talkativ is for Windows and Mac. If the built-in tool does what you need, keep using it. Our Windows voice typing alternative page sets the two side by side, the free dictation software for Windows guide lists every free option with its limit, and Talkativ for Windows has the details of the app.