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Best voice and speech recognition software of 2020 for desktops

Best voice and speech recognition software
(Image credit: Pixabay)


With everything from Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant now available for smart homes and smartphones, the ability for computers to accurately recognize and represent speech has now become an everyday reality.

Voice-to-text and text-to-speech applications have become common in the mobile app space, but for desktops there's surprisingly limited competition in the market.

This is a shame as this is one of the key areas where voice recognition can really develop, especially in a age where accessibility is key to an increasing number of people. And while voice recognition may be seen as a technology for those with additional needs, the truth is that when it works well it can be so much of a time saver, especially when it comes to typing up documents.

And because there's little need to wrestle with a QWERTY keyword, voice recognition software can be used to help prevent either the occurrence or development of a Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), such as Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, which can otherwise be debilitating to those who have to do large volumes of typing.

While voice recognition isn't yet perfect, the amount of time required to train the software to both recognize and work accurately with your voice is very much reduced these days.

So if you're looking for voice recognition software, take a look at the best that we've featured below.


Best voice and speech recognition - at a glance

  1. Dragon
  2. Dragon Anywhere
  3. G Suite
  4. Braina Pro
  5. Windows 10

(Image credit: Dragon)

1. Dragon

A beast of a package powered by deep learning

Very accurate speech recognition
Nifty extra features including transcription
Not cheap






(Image credit: Dragon)

2. Dragon Anywhere

Benefit from dictation capabilities wherever you may be

High quality speech recognition
Syncs with desktop Dragon software
Dictation limited to within the app
Requires internet connection to run







(Image credit: Google)

3. G Suite

Google assistant in the office

Costs nothing
Good accuracy for a free solution
Limited to Chrome browser
Dictation and document formatting only

Google had made strides to provide Google Assistant for Android apps, but this also applies to Google's own G Suite cloud office software suite.

The voice recognition feature is already built in, and although there's no extra charge for the feature it is actually quite accurate and therefore worth considering.

There are some limitations though, in that it's primarily for use with Google Docs for dictating text and using commands for formatting your document, rather than general voice control across the G Suite platform of services.

One requirement is that you must be using the Chrome browser, and when used to access Google Docs you can do to the Google Docs Tools menu, then select Voice Typing as an option.

It isn't as powerful as paid-for software, but it makes for a good start, and another particular noteworthy point is that it offers speech recognition in up to 150 languages (with varying degrees of accuracy).

So if you're already using G Suite, or you use online office software, this can be a handy feature to be aware of.

(Image credit: Brainasoft)

4. Braina Pro

A virtual assistant for your PC

Powerful digital assistant
Nifty Android app for remotely controlling PC
Subscription only (no one-off purchase)





(Image credit: Microsoft)

5. Windows 10 Speech Recognition

Microsoft’s desktop OS has fully integrated voice recognition

Fully integrated with Windows
No extra cost
Still doesn’t offer the best accuracy (however training helps)




