Voice Typing in Windows 11: Dictate Text With Win + H

Typing a long email or a first draft can be slower than saying it. Voice typing in Windows 11 turns speech into text in almost any app where you can type: Word, a browser, chat apps, Notepad or a search box. It is built in, free, and starts with one shortcut. This guide covers how to start it, the commands and punctuation it understands, how to dictate in other languages, what happens to your voice data, and what to check when it does not work.

The steps apply to Windows 11 version 24H2, 25H2 and 26H2.

What you need

Microsoft lists three requirements:

• An internet connection. Voice typing uses online speech recognition powered by Azure Speech services, so it does not work offline.
• A working microphone. A laptop’s built-in microphone is fine in a quiet room; a headset gives better results in a noisy one.
• The cursor in a text box. Voice typing types wherever the text cursor is.

Start and stop voice typing

1. Click in the box where you want the text to go.
2. Press Windows key + H. On a tablet or touch screen, tap the microphone key on the touch keyboard.
3. A small voice typing menu appears. Wait for Listening… before you speak.
4. Speak normally, in full phrases. Text appears after a short pause.
5. To stop, say “Stop listening” or select the microphone button on the menu.

If you prefer the keyboard, Microsoft notes that Windows key + Alt + H moves through the voice typing menu.

Commands and punctuation

Voice typing does more than transcribe. In English (United States), Microsoft documents commands such as:

Say	What happens
“Delete that” or “Scratch that”	Deletes the last word or phrase you said
“Select that”	Selects the last word or phrase
“Undo that”	Undoes the last action
“Press Enter”, “Press Backspace”, “Press Tab”	Presses that key
“New line” or “New paragraph”	Starts a new line or paragraph
“Stop listening” or “Pause voice typing”	Stops voice typing

For punctuation, say the name of the mark: “comma”, “period” (or “full stop”), “question mark”, “exclamation mark”, “open quotes” and “close quotes”. Symbols such as “dollar sign”, “percent sign”, “hyphen” and “at sign” also work. Commands differ by language, so check Microsoft’s page for the list in your language.

A practical habit: dictate a paragraph in one go, then switch to the keyboard to fix the few words it got wrong. Correcting every word by voice is slower than typing.

Voice typing settings

Select the gear icon on the voice typing menu to change how it behaves. Microsoft lists these options:

• Voice typing launcher: shows a small microphone button when you click in a text box, so you can start voice typing without the shortcut.
• Automatic punctuation: lets Windows add commas and full stops based on how you speak.
• Filter profanity: masks swear words.
• Default microphone: chooses which microphone voice typing uses. Handy when a webcam microphone keeps being picked instead of your headset.
• Wait time before acting: how long voice typing waits before it treats something as a command.

On Copilot+ PCs there is also Fluid dictation, which Microsoft says corrects grammar, punctuation and filler words using on-device models. It is only available in English locales and is turned off automatically in password and PIN fields.

Dictate in another language

Voice typing supports a long list of languages, including several varieties of English, French, German, Spanish (Mexico and Spain), Portuguese (Brazil and Portugal), Italian, Dutch, Polish, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Hindi and others; Microsoft’s page has the full list. To use one:

1. Open Settings > Time & language > Language & region and add the language under Preferred languages.
2. Switch input language with the language switcher on the taskbar or Windows key + Space.
3. Press Windows key + H and speak in that language.

Voice typing follows your current input language, so if it suddenly writes nonsense, check you have not switched layout by accident. Our guide to changing the keyboard language in Windows 11 explains how to stop layouts switching unexpectedly.

Tips for better accuracy

Voice typing works best when it can hear you clearly and knows where a sentence ends:

• Speak in whole phrases at a steady pace rather than word by word. The recogniser uses context from the words around each word.
• Get closer to the microphone or use a headset. Laptop microphones pick up fan noise and keyboard clicks.
• Turn on automatic punctuation if saying “comma” and “period” breaks your train of thought, then tidy up afterwards.
• Pause before commands such as “delete that”, so they are not typed as text. If commands are often typed out, lengthen the wait time in the settings.
• Spell out unusual names by typing them; dictation is weakest on names, product codes and jargon.

Privacy: what happens to your voice

Because voice typing uses online speech recognition, your speech is sent to Microsoft’s speech service to be turned into text. Microsoft’s privacy page for speech explains the Online speech recognition setting under Settings > Privacy & security > Speech and how contributing voice clips to improve the service is a separate, optional choice. If you dictate sensitive information, keep that in mind, and review your wider choices in our Windows 11 privacy settings guide.

When voice typing does not work

Work through these in order:

1. Is the cursor in a text box? Nothing happens if the focus is on the desktop or a button.
2. Are you online? No internet, no voice typing. See Windows 11 no internet if the connection is the problem.
3. Is the microphone working and allowed? Check Settings > System > Sound > Input and speak to see the level move. Then check Settings > Privacy & security > Microphone that microphone access is on. Our guide to a Windows 11 microphone that is not working covers drivers and privacy switches in depth.
4. Is the right microphone selected? Choose it under Default microphone in the voice typing settings.
5. Is your language supported? If your input language is not on Microsoft’s list, switch to one that is.
6. Is the shortcut taken? Some keyboard utilities remap shortcuts. Try the microphone key on the touch keyboard instead.

Voice typing vs Voice access

Windows 11 has two speech features that are easy to confuse. Voice typing (Windows key + H) is for entering text where the cursor is. Voice access is an accessibility feature for controlling the whole PC by voice: opening apps, clicking buttons and dictating. If you want hands-free control rather than just dictation, look for Voice access under Settings > Accessibility > Speech. For text-only help, voice typing is quicker to start.

For more ways to work faster, see the Windows 11 keyboard shortcuts list, clipboard history, and the Windows 11 productivity guide.