Transcription Is Slower Than Expected

Intel Macs

Intel-based Macs lack dedicated machine learning hardware, which makes on-device transcription significantly slower. For better performance, consider switching to one of the Cloud Transcription providers in the app—this offloads the processing to a faster server.

M-series Macs

If you’re using an M1, M2, M3, or M4 (etc) Mac and transcription feels slower than expected, it could be that MacWhisper previously crashed and has shifted to a compatibility mode. This is especially common on M1 Macs.


To disable this compatibility mode:

  • Go to Settings → Advanced → WhisperKit
  • Ensure “Disable all GPU usage” is turned off.

Pro/Max/Ultra M-series Chips

Users who have Pro/Max/Ultra chips and are looking for the maximum speed can use this same screen to enable VAD, set Concurrent Workers to 64, and set the Text Decoder to GPU.

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