Hlas / Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions

Hlas is a 4 MB dictation app for Mac and Windows. For free it transcribes offline on your computer; Hlas Cloud at €35 a year transcribes without keys or a model download.

Is the free version really free?

Yes. The local engine runs on your computer and costs nothing. If you prefer a cloud engine, you can plug in your own API key and pay the provider directly, usually one to three dollars a month.

Does Hlas work offline?

Yes. With the local engine, Whisper runs on your Mac and needs no internet connection after the one-time model download of 547 MB.

How well does it understand English?

Hlas uses Whisper large-v3, one of the strongest open speech models for English. Add names and jargon to the vocabulary and Hlas writes them your way.

How much RAM does it use while dictating?

About 60 MB when idle. While the local model is loaded it uses about 1 GB, and it unloads after 3 minutes of silence. Hlas Cloud never loads a model at all.

Does it run on Intel Macs?

No. The Mac app needs Apple Silicon and macOS 15 or later. Windows 10 and 11 on x64 are supported in beta.

Can I dictate prompts into Claude Code, Cursor or ChatGPT?

Yes. Hlas types into any app where you can type, including terminals and code editors. Add library and function names to the vocabulary so they come out right.

How do invoices and cancellation work?

After payment, Stripe emails you a VAT invoice from Eden Makers s.r.o. Companies from the EU can enter their VAT ID at checkout. Change your card, download invoices or cancel in the customer portal; the subscription then runs until the end of the paid year.

How unlimited is unlimited?

Hlas Cloud has no minute counter or tiers. To keep the price at €35 a year, fair use is up to 3 hours of dictation a day, which resets at midnight UTC.

Where does my audio go?

With the local engine, nowhere. It stays on your machine. With Hlas Cloud it goes through our server to Groq only for transcription and our server does not store it. With your own key it goes straight to the provider you picked.

Do I need an account?

Not for local mode. Hlas Cloud needs no account either: after payment you get a licence key that goes into the app with one click.

How is Hlas Cloud activated?

After payment a page shows your licence key and an Open Hlas button. The key goes into Settings and Hlas switches to Hlas Cloud. Manage the subscription in the Stripe customer portal.

Does Hlas Cloud work on Windows?

Yes, from version 0.6.0. One licence works on up to 5 computers, Mac and Windows together.

Is the source code public?

Yes, the full source code is on GitHub. The source licence is still being finalised.

Updated 15 November 2026