Quick answer: Open the memo in the Voice Memos app on macOS 26 and view its transcript to copy the text. If you want speaker labels, a summary or a way to ask questions, drag the memo onto your Desktop and import that file into Lyonesse, which transcribes it on your Mac.
This page is about doing it on a Mac. If you are recording on an iPhone, see how to transcribe voice memos on iPhone.
Read Apple's transcript on the Mac
Voice Memos on macOS 26 can show a transcript for a recording. Select the memo in the list and open its transcript from the controls beside the waveform. You can select the text and copy it into Notes, Pages or an email.
It is plain text. There are no speaker labels, no summary, and you can only read what Apple generated for that one memo. For a short note to yourself, that may be all you need. Language support depends on your macOS version and Apple's own list, so check the transcript appears for your language before you rely on it for something long.
Get the audio file out of Voice Memos
Memos recorded on your iPhone appear in the Mac app when Voice Memos is switched on in iCloud on both devices. The audio lives inside the app, so to use it somewhere else you need a copy as a file.
- Select the memo in the Voice Memos list.
- Drag it onto your Desktop, or use the Share button to save it to a folder.
- You get an audio file. Older versions save
.m4a. Newer ones may save a different QuickTime audio extension. We have not tested every Voice Memos version, so if Lyonesse refuses a file, convert it to.m4afirst.
Import it into Lyonesse on the Mac
- Open Lyonesse and drag the audio file into the window, or use the import button and pick the file.
- Wait while it transcribes. This happens on the Mac, so it works with Wi-Fi off.
- Read the transcript with speakers labeled, then open the summary.
- Ask a question about the recording, for example "what did we agree on for Friday?", and jump to the line it came from.
Lyonesse takes common audio formats: m4a, mp3, wav, aiff, aac, flac, ogg and opus. The free version holds one recording, so try it on the memo you care about most. Import the memo, read the text, and keep it on your Mac.
Which one to use
| You want | Use |
|---|---|
| The words of a short note, copied | Voice Memos transcript |
| Who said what in a meeting | Lyonesse |
| A summary or answers to questions | Lyonesse |
| Subtitles or Word, PDF, Markdown export | Lyonesse |
What stays on the Mac
Transcription and summaries run on your Mac, and the audio file is not synced. Two things to know. Lyonesse syncs the text through iCloud by default, and you can turn that off in Settings. And for some languages, Apple's speech recognition can run on Apple's servers if you choose that for the language. It is an opt-in, per language, and not the default.
If you would rather talk and have it typed live, see our overview of Lyonesse on Mac and iPhone. For other file types, see how to transcribe audio offline, and the privacy policy for the details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do Voice Memos live on a Mac?
In the Voice Memos app. Recordings made on your iPhone show up there if Voice Memos is turned on in your iCloud settings on both devices. To get the audio file out, drag the memo from the list onto your Desktop.
Can I transcribe a Voice Memo on my Mac without internet?
Yes, once the memo is on the Mac. Apple's transcript is generated by the Voice Memos app, and Lyonesse transcribes imported audio on the Mac itself, so neither needs a connection for that step. iCloud sync is the part that does.
Does Lyonesse upload my Voice Memo?
No. Transcription and summaries run on your Mac. Some languages can use Apple's servers for speech recognition if you switch that on for the language, and it is off until you do. iCloud sync of the text is on by default and you can turn it off in Settings. The audio file does not sync.