If you searched for Dragon on Mac, the short answer is: it does not exist. Nuance discontinued Dragon Professional Individual for Mac in 2018, and the last version does not run on modern macOS or Apple Silicon. Dragon Anywhere, the mobile app, was discontinued in July 2026. What remains is Dragon Professional v16 for Windows at $699, plus enterprise medical and legal editions. ahsk is one of the modern AI dictation apps that took Dragon's place: cloud speech recognition that needs no voice training, on Mac, Windows and iPhone.
What Dragon still does best
On Windows, Dragon Professional remains the deepest voice-control product ever made: full command-and-control of the desktop, custom voice commands, macros, and specialised medical and legal vocabularies with enterprise deployment behind them. If you need hands-free control of the entire computer for accessibility, or your organisation mandates Dragon Medical, that is a real and current answer — on Windows, at $699 plus maintenance.
What changed since Dragon's era
Dragon's recognition needed training to your voice and a quiet room, and its accuracy came from years of your corrections. Modern Whisper-class models start accurate on the first sentence, including on accented English, without a voice profile. ahsk adds the writing layer on top: fillers removed, punctuation and paragraphs added, your names and jargon from a dictionary, translation as you speak — and it costs €9.99 a month instead of $699 up front.
For former Dragon for Mac users
There is no path back: the 2018 build will not run on today's macOS. The good news is that what you actually used Dragon for — dictating documents and email accurately — is better served now. ahsk types into every Mac app at the cursor, needs no training, keeps your custom vocabulary, and the same account works on a Windows PC and iPhone. What it does not replace is Dragon's full voice-command control of the computer; for that on a Mac, look at Apple's built-in Voice Control alongside ahsk for the writing.
Who should pick which
Stay with Dragon if you are on Windows and need whole-computer voice control or a mandated medical/legal edition. Choose ahsk if what you need is fast, accurate dictation of documents, email and messages on Mac, Windows or iPhone, without a $699 licence or voice training.
How this comparison was made
Prices, platforms and features for the other product are taken from its own website and pricing page in September 2026, and ahsk facts from the current builds (Mac 6.7, Windows 1.13, iOS 2.x). If something has changed or we got a detail wrong, email support@ahsk.app and we will fix it. We would rather be accurate than flattering.
Comparison
| Feature | ahsk | Dragon Professional v16 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mac support | Yes (macOS 13+) | Discontinued 2018 | |
| Windows support | Yes (Win 10 1809+/11) | Yes | |
| Mobile | iPhone app, same account | Dragon Anywhere discontinued 2026 | |
| Price | Free 10,000 words, Pro €9.99/mo | $699 one-time | |
| Voice training required | No | Profile improves with training | |
| Accented English | Whisper large-v3, chosen for it | Accent selection at setup | |
| Full computer voice control | No (dictation, ask, translate) | Yes, deepest available | |
| Translate as you speak | Yes | No |
Dictation without the $699 licence
Free for 10,000 words, no card, no voice training. Hold fn on Mac or Ctrl+Win on Windows and read one paragraph.
Download for MacRelated guides
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I still buy Dragon for Mac?
No. Nuance discontinued it in 2018 and the final version (Dragon Professional Individual 6) does not run on current macOS or Apple Silicon Macs. Any copy sold today is old stock that will not work.
Is ahsk as accurate as Dragon?
For dictating prose, modern Whisper-class recognition is at or beyond a trained Dragon profile for most speakers, and far beyond it untrained or with an accent. For specialised medical vocabulary under enterprise requirements, Dragon Medical One remains the incumbent for a reason.
Is ahsk free?
Yes. Every account starts with 10,000 free words and no card. Pro is €9.99 a month for unlimited dictation, translation and AI rewriting, and one subscription covers Mac, Windows and iPhone.
Does ahsk work offline?
No. Transcription runs on Whisper large-v3 in the cloud, which is why accuracy on accented and non-native English is as good as it is. Your custom dictionary and learned words stay on your device. If you need fully offline dictation, ahsk is the wrong tool and we say so.
