August 16, 2026

Turn on dictation and use the shortcut your Mac shows

The on switch is in Keyboard settings. The shortcut is printed next to it.

• Mac
• Easy · 2 min
• Mac on current macOS
• Fix: turn on dictation on a Mac
• Cheat sheet

How to do it

1. 01

   Open System Settings > Keyboard.

2. 02

   Turn Dictation on.

3. 03

   Read the shortcut printed beside the switch and press it in a text field.

4. 04

   Speak. Say comma, period, or new line when you want that punctuation.

Press the shortcut again to stop. Dictation is not the same as Voice Control, which is the full hands-free mode under Accessibility.