Download, Install & Set Up SpeakUp

How to download, install, and configure SpeakUp on your Mac in under 5 minutes.

Written By Daniel

Last updated 4 months ago

Where do I download SpeakUp?

Visit getspeakup.app and click the Download button. SpeakUp is a macOS app delivered as a DMG file. There is no App Store download at this time.

How do I install SpeakUp?

  1. Open the downloaded DMG file.

  2. 2. Drag the SpeakUp icon into your Applications folder.

  3. 3. Open SpeakUp from Applications or Spotlight.

  4. 4. On first launch, macOS may show a security dialog. Click Open to continue.

SpeakUp runs as a menu bar app. You will see a small microphone icon in your Mac menu bar (top-right of the screen). There is no dock icon by design.

What permissions does SpeakUp need?

SpeakUp needs two permissions to work:

  1. Microphone Access: SpeakUp asks for microphone permission on first launch. Click Allow when prompted. Without this, SpeakUp cannot hear your voice.

  2. Accessibility Permission: SpeakUp needs Accessibility access to type text into other apps. Go to System Settings, then Privacy and Security, then Accessibility, and toggle SpeakUp on. You may need to click the lock icon first.

Both permissions stay granted permanently. You only need to set them once.

What happens during the first launch?

When you first open SpeakUp, a short onboarding guide walks you through:

  1. Granting microphone and accessibility permissions.

  2. 2. Downloading the speech recognition model (about 500 MB, one-time download).

  3. 3. Choosing your dictation language (English, German, or both).

  4. 4. Picking your preferred hotkey.

After onboarding, SpeakUp is ready to use. Hold your hotkey, speak, release, and your words appear in the focused app.

How do I choose my hotkey?

During onboarding, you pick a keyboard shortcut for push-to-talk dictation. You can change this later in SpeakUp Settings (click the menu bar icon, then Settings).

What is the speech recognition model download?

SpeakUp uses an AI model that runs entirely on your Mac. The model is about 500 MB and downloads once during setup. After that, everything works offline with no internet required.