If Dictation on Mac doesn’t work as expected
If your Mac is having trouble recognizing your dictated text or spoken commands, something may not be set up correctly. Here are some solutions to try:
Be sure Dictation is turned on in Keyboard settings. See Turn on Dictation.
Choose the correct language and dialect.
Be sure you’re using the correct Dictation keyboard shortcut. See Set the Dictation keyboard shortcut.
If your Mac doesn’t have an internal microphone, make sure an external microphone is connected to your Mac and selected in Sound or Keyboard settings.
If you’re using an external microphone, make sure its input volume is sufficient. If your Mac isn’t responding to your voice, select the microphone in Sound settings and increase its input volume (choose Apple menu
in the sidebar—you may need to scroll down—then click Input).Be sure the microphone is not obstructed by objects, such as clothing or your body, while you’re speaking. Check the user guide that came with your Mac to locate the built-in microphone. See Get the Essentials guide for your Mac.
Position yourself as you would normally use your Mac, then speak clearly at a volume that’s not too quiet or too loud.
Avoid background noise. If you use Dictation in a noisy environment or a room with excessive echo, it may help to use a headset microphone.
On a Mac with Apple silicon, Dictation requests are processed on your device for supported languages—no internet connection is required. When you dictate in a search box, dictated text may be sent to the search provider in order to process the search. Additionally, you can dictate text of any length without a timeout. You can turn off Dictation manually, or it stops automatically when no speech is detected for 30 seconds.
When you dictate on an Intel-based Mac or in a language that doesn’t support on-device dictation, your dictated utterances are sent to Apple to process your requests. Be sure your system has a valid internet connection—choose Apple menu 
in the sidebar. (You may need to scroll down.)