OneTimeUnlimited local audio & video transcription. Your audio never leaves your machine.
WhisperDesk does what Otter.ai charges $16.99/month for — but 100% locally, powered by whisper.cpp (OpenAI's Whisper model running natively on your CPU). Drop in any audio or video file, get back an accurate, timestamped transcript. No upload, no account, no per-minute limits.
WhisperDesk in 60 seconds
Everything in the box
Whisper-powered transcription on your own CPU — unlimited minutes, TXT/SRT/VTT export.
Drag & drop anything
mp3, wav, m4a, mp4, mov, mkv, flac, ogg, webm — video audio is extracted automatically.
100% private
Transcription runs entirely on your machine. Nothing is ever uploaded.
Unlimited minutes
No cap, no monthly quota. Transcribe 10 hours a day if you want.
Model picker
Tiny / base / small / medium, English-only or multilingual — downloaded once from Hugging Face.
Language auto-detect
Or force English. Multilingual models cover dozens of languages.
Live progress
Real-time percentage while Whisper works, with timestamped transcript view and one-click copy.
Export TXT, SRT, VTT
Ready for subtitles, notes, or your editor.
Local history
Every transcription saved locally — reload it any time.
WhisperDesk vs Otter.ai
Otter.ai charges $16.99/mo. Here's what actually differs.
| WhisperDesk | Otter.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $39 one-time | $16.99/month, forever |
| Cost after 1 year | $39 | ~$204 |
| Transcription limit | Unlimited | 1,200 min/mo (Pro) |
| Max file length | Unlimited | 90 min per conversation |
| Privacy | Audio never leaves your PC | Uploaded to their cloud |
| Works offline | Yes | No |
| Video files | Yes (audio auto-extracted) | Limited |
| SRT/VTT subtitle export | Yes | Paid tiers |
Pays for itself in under 3 months of Otter.ai Pro.
One price. No asterisks.
Desktop app — pay once, it's yours on your machine forever.
Download WhisperDesk
install, then sign in with Whop. Your purchase unlocks it; there is no licence key to enter.
WhisperDesk
Windows and macOS. Buy once, download any time — this page always links the current build.
Up and running in three steps
Buy once on Whop
One-time $39 for the packaged Windows installer — no terminal, no build step.
Pick a model
On first run WhisperDesk fetches whisper.cpp (~8 MB) and your chosen model (78–148+ MB) with a visible progress bar. One time only.
Drop a file, get a transcript
Timestamped text in minutes, exportable as TXT, SRT or VTT — all offline.
Fair questions
Is it really free on GitHub?
Yes — MIT-licensed at github.com/bensblueprints/whisper-transcriber-mvp, and it always will be. The $39 buys the signed installer, 1-click setup and updates.
How accurate is it?
It runs OpenAI's Whisper models — the same family behind most modern transcription tools. Bigger models (small/medium) are more accurate and slower; you pick the trade-off.
Does it do live meeting transcription?
No — and Otter is genuinely better for that. WhisperDesk transcribes files (recordings, interviews, videos, podcasts). If you need a live meeting assistant with speaker chat, keep Otter.
How fast is it?
Depends on your CPU and model size. The tiny/base models typically run faster than real time on a modern machine; medium trades speed for accuracy.
Does it need the internet?
Only twice, ever: the one-time whisper.cpp binary download and your chosen model from Hugging Face. After that it's fully offline.
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More about WhisperDesk
Every page we publish about this app — comparisons, personas, platforms and the problems it solves.
For you
Platforms
Solves
Stop renting. Own WhisperDesk.
Whisper-powered transcription on your own CPU — unlimited minutes, TXT/SRT/VTT export.
Get WhisperDesk — $39 once