Compare

InkSpoke vs Handy.

A free, MIT-licensed, fully-offline push-to-talk dictation app (Tauri/Rust) built to be forked — zero cost and zero telemetry, but a lean base rather than a full Voice OS.

Open sourceMIThandy.computer ↗← All comparisons

Platforms

Platform
InkSpoke
Handy
Windows
✓
✓x64 + ARM; winget install.
macOS
✓
✓Universal; Homebrew cask.
Linux
✓
✓AppImage/deb/rpm; Wayland has known rough edges.
Mobile
~iOS & Android on Pro
—

Feature by feature

Capability
InkSpoke
Handy
Works offline / on-device
✓Offline-firstLocal Whisper; nothing leaves the device unless you opt into cloud.
✓Fully offline by defaultOnly network calls are model downloads and update checks.
Speech engine
✓Whisper (local) + optional cloud ASR
✓Whisper + Parakeet + Moonshine (local)Silero VAD; custom GGML models supported.
AI text refinement
✓IntegratedLocal LLM (LlamaSharp) or optional cloud, in one <600ms pipeline.
~ExperimentalOpt-in post-processing on a separate hotkey; adds latency.
Tone presets
✓Built-in tone/format presets.
—Hand-write your own post-processing prompt instead.
Custom vocabulary
✓Managed custom vocabulary.
~Words injected via Whisper initial_prompt — not a managed dictionary.
Per-app workspaces
✓First-class, user-configurable per-app workspaces.
—
Wake word / hands-free
✓Hands-free wake word or hotkey.
—Keyboard-shortcut push-to-talk only.
Types into any app
✓Any app + atomic clipboard restore
✓Auto-paste into the focused field (Wayland quirks).
Bring your own key (BYOK)
✓Bring your own OpenAI / Anthropic / local key.
✓Your own OpenAI/Anthropic/Groq/local endpoint.
Open source
~Open modelsRuns open-source ASR/LLM models; the app itself is proprietary.
✓MIT, ~25.9k GitHub starsExplicitly designed to be forked.
Privacy model
✓On-device by default
✓Local-first, no telemetryCloud only if you enable post-processing.

Pricing

InkSpoke

Free forever, Pro at $8/mo ($72/yr), or a one-time Perpetual license.

Free$0

30-min one-time cloud trial, then on-device Small; 4 workspaces + 1 custom.

Pro$8/mo or $72/yr

All models, on-device models, BYOK, unlimited workspaces, mobile.

Perpetual$149 one-time

Everything in Pro, paid once; 1 yr free updates (extend to 2–3 yrs at checkout).

Handy

Entirely free and open source — no paid tier, no account, ever.

Free (only tier)$0

All features. Optional cloud cleanup uses your own API key.

The honest verdict

Choose InkSpoke if…

  • ✓You want wake word, workspaces, and tone presets working out of the box.
  • ✓You want one integrated <600ms pipeline where LLM refinement isn’t a laggy afterthought.
  • ✓You want a managed custom-vocabulary feature and a commercially-supported product.

Choose Handy if…

  • ›You want a $0-forever, no-account tool and are fine with community support.
  • ›You want to fork or contribute — Handy is built to be forkable.
  • ›You just want fast local push-to-talk and will DIY your own cleanup prompt.

Where Handy is strong

  • Genuinely $0 forever — MIT, no subscription, no account, no usage caps.
  • Large, active open-source community (~25.9k stars) with a public roadmap.
  • Lean native footprint via Tauri + Rust (vs Electron alternatives).
  • Multiple interchangeable local ASR engines out of the box.

Where Handy falls short

  • No wake word — keyboard-shortcut activation only.
  • No workspaces and no tone presets.
  • Custom vocabulary is a raw Whisper prompt hack, not a managed dictionary.
  • LLM refinement is experimental, on a separate hotkey, and adds latency.
  • No official commercial support or SLA — single maintainer plus community.
Sources · verified July 2026

Compiled from publicly available information as of July 2026. Competitor names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Details change often — check each vendor’s site for the latest.

You spoke. Now ink it.

Free with platform-hosted voice + text models. Pro at $8/mo unlocks BYOK, on-device models, and unlimited workspaces.