Transcribe WhatsApp voice messages to text

Step by step

1. Open the chat

   Find the voice message you want to read. It has to be at least 10 seconds long to be transcribed.

2. Send the audio to the app

   On Android, press and hold the message, tap share, and choose Voicence. On iPhone, save the audio to Files and import it from inside the app.

3. Pick the language and transcribe

   Select the language the person is speaking, then tap transcribe. You need an internet connection.

4. Read, correct, and keep it

   Read the transcript and the summary. Fix any names it got wrong, and export a PDF if you need a record.

How to transcribe WhatsApp voice messages on Android

Android has the short path. In the chat, press and hold the voice message until it is selected. Tap the share option and pick Voicence from the list of apps. The audio opens in the app, ready for you to choose the language and transcribe.

The message stays in WhatsApp exactly as it was. You are sending a copy of the audio, not moving it.

On iPhone: save to Files, then import

There is no share shortcut from WhatsApp to Voicence on iPhone, so it takes two moves. First save the voice message to the Files app. Then open Voicence, choose to import an audio file, and select the message you just saved.

It helps to save the audio in a folder you will remember and give it a clear name. Once it is imported, the steps are the same as on Android.

When transcribing is worth it

A ten-second message is faster to play than to transcribe. Text earns its keep in a few specific situations.

• Long voice messages, where you want to skim for the one part that matters
• Places where you can't listen: a meeting, a classroom, public transit, a quiet house at night
• Agreements you want in writing, such as a price, an address, a date, or instructions from a client
• Messages in a language you read better than you understand by ear

What happens to your audio

Recordings and imported audio are stored on your phone. When you ask for a transcription, the audio is sent to the server to be processed and is deleted afterward.

Keep in mind that a voice message is someone else's voice. WhatsApp's encryption protects the message inside WhatsApp, and sharing the audio to any other app takes it out of that chat. If the content is sensitive, think about whether the sender would be comfortable with it.

You don't need an account to do any of this. Signing in is optional.

Long voice messages and summaries

For a long message, start with the summary. It gives you a short paragraph with the gist, then Key points, Action items, and Topics. Tap a topic to hear that part of the audio, which is quicker than scrubbing through the whole thing.

The summary is free and comes in the language of the audio. You can ask for the summary to be translated into another language. The transcript itself stays in the original language.

Automatic transcripts make mistakes, mostly with names, slang, and noisy audio. If the message records something you agreed to, tap the line to hear it and correct the text before you save or forward it.

Frequently asked questions