How to talk to ChatGPT and Claude instead of typing
By Gustav Tøstie, founder of voicedropPublished 6 min read
Written by the founder of VoiceDrop. We compare fairly, but we’re obviously fans of our own app.
Short answer
To talk to ChatGPT or Claude instead of typing, use the app’s built-in voice mode for a spoken conversation, or dictate into the message box so you can read and edit the text before sending. For long, detailed prompts, dictation works best: say your goal, audience, constraints and an example, then review and send. Our pick for dictating into any app is VoiceDrop.
Why people pick VoiceDrop
- Fast, clean dictation: release the key and your words are transcribed and inserted straight away. Filler words like “um” are removed automatically in Windows and Mac dictation.
- One shortcut, every app: dictate into the Claude, ChatGPT and Codex desktop apps, the browser, email, Word, Teams and Slack.
- Review before you send: the text lands in the message box, so you can fix a name or a number before the assistant acts on it.
- Your voice notes in the chat too: a read-only connector lets Claude, ChatGPT and Codex read your transcripts and Smart Notes.
Why do spoken prompts often work better than typed ones?
Most weak prompts are short because typing is effort. You write “make this email better” when what you actually know is who the email is for, what went wrong last time, what tone you want and what must not change. When you talk, that context comes out naturally, because explaining is what speech is for.
Speed helps too. In a study of smartphone text entry, speaking was up to about three times as fast as typing on the phone keyboard, in both English and Mandarin (Ruan et al., IMWUT 2018 (arXiv 2016)). That result is about phones, not desktop keyboards, but the practical point holds anywhere: when giving context costs you seconds instead of minutes, you give more of it, and the model has more to work with.
Spoken prompts are also messier. You repeat yourself, change your mind halfway and leave filler words in. Language models handle that well, but a little structure makes the answer noticeably better.
What should a good spoken prompt include?
You do not need a template, but it helps to cover five things, roughly in this order. Say them the way you would brief a capable colleague.
- Goal. What you want at the end: a draft, a decision, a list of options, a review.
- Audience. Who will read or use the result, and what they already know.
- Constraints. Length, tone, format, deadline, things that must stay the same, things to avoid.
- Examples or material. Paste or describe what you already have: the old version, a sample you like, the numbers.
- What to ask back. Tell the assistant to ask clarifying questions first if something is unclear, or to list its assumptions.
What does a spoken prompt sound like in practice?
Here are three examples, written the way people actually talk. None of them are polished, and they do not need to be.
I need to reply to a customer who’s upset that their order arrived two weeks late. Goal is to apologise properly and keep them as a customer. They’re a small bakery, they’ve ordered from us for about three years. Keep it short, under 150 words, warm but not grovelling. We can offer free shipping on the next order, but don’t promise a refund. Give me two versions, one more formal than the other.
I’m planning a migration of our customer database to a new system over the next six weeks. I’m the only developer, and the sales team uses the old system every day, so downtime has to be close to zero. Help me break this into phases with a rough timeline. Before you write the plan, ask me whatever you need to know about the data volume and the systems involved.
I’ll paste a one-page proposal below. It’s for our management group, who are busy and sceptical about new tools. Don’t rewrite it. Tell me the three weakest points, what a sceptical reader would object to, and one sentence I should cut. Be direct.
Notice that each example states a goal, a reader and at least one constraint, and the second one asks for questions first. That structure is what makes the answer useful, not the wording.
Should I use voice mode or dictation?
ChatGPT and Claude both offer two different ways to use your voice, and they suit different jobs.
| Voice mode | Dictation | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens | A spoken back-and-forth conversation; the assistant answers out loud | Your speech becomes text in the message box; the answer comes back as text |
| Can you edit before sending? | No, you speak and it responds | Yes, you review and edit the transcript first |
| Best for | Thinking out loud, quick questions, practising a conversation | Detailed prompts, anything you want to check before it is sent |
| ChatGPT | ChatGPT Voice, started from the Voice icon | Microphone icon, in our experience the transcript lands in the text box, where you can usually edit it before sending |
| Claude | Voice mode, hands-free or push-to-talk, in beta | Dictation converts speech to text for your prompt |
Voice mode is great when you want to talk something through. For a prompt with real context, dictation is usually the better tool, because you can catch a misheard name or a wrong number before the assistant acts on it. Anthropic describes the split the same way: dictation turns speech into text for your prompt, while voice mode is a two-way spoken conversation.
How do I dictate prompts on Windows or Mac with VoiceDrop?
The built-in microphone buttons work inside each app. We built VoiceDrop so the same shortcut works everywhere you type, and the text is inserted straight away when you release it: the Claude, ChatGPT and Codex desktop apps, the browser, email, Word, Teams and Slack. On Windows and Mac dictation, filler words like “uh” and “um” are removed by default. Punctuation is added.
- Install the desktop app Download VoiceDrop for Windows (10 or 11, 64-bit) or Mac (macOS 13 or later) and sign in. The Free plan needs no card.
- Pick your shortcut Choose a shortcut you can hold comfortably. You can change it later in settings.
- Place the cursor Click into the message box in ChatGPT, Claude or any other app.
- Hold and speak Hold the shortcut and say your prompt: goal, audience, constraints, examples, and what to ask back. The overlay shows Listening.
- Release and review Release the shortcut. The overlay shows Transcribing, then Inserted, and the text appears at the cursor. Read it, fix anything, then press Enter.
Some apps and elevated (admin) windows block text insertion. When that happens, the dictation stays in VoiceDrop and you can reinsert it with a shortcut or paste it. Quick dictations are saved locally on your computer and only reach the cloud if you turn on sync. For more on each platform, see dictation on Windows and dictation on Mac.
What tips make voice prompting work better?
- Review before you send. Speech recognition is good but not perfect, especially with names, product terms and noisy rooms. A five-second read catches most problems.
- Say numbers clearly. “Fifteen” and “fifty” are easy to confuse. For prices and dates, say them slowly, or add “that’s one five” when it matters.
- Think first, then hold the key. A two-second pause to decide your goal makes the whole prompt tidier.
- Do not worry about being messy. Restarting a sentence is fine. The assistant cares about the content, not the phrasing.
- Paste material separately. Dictate the instructions, then paste the document or data below. Do not read long text aloud.
- Use your own language. VoiceDrop handles 57 languages with automatic detection, including speech that mixes languages, such as Norwegian with English terms.
What does it cost to dictate with VoiceDrop?
Dictation is billed per second of audio, so a 30-second prompt uses half a minute. The Free plan includes 30 minutes a month, which is plenty to try voice prompting for a few weeks. Pro is $7.99 a month with 1,200 minutes, and Max is $13.99 a month with 2,400 minutes. Every feature is in every plan, and one account covers Windows, Mac, iPhone and the web. See pricing for annual prices.
Once you start talking to your AI, you will want your recordings in the conversation too. The VoiceDrop connector lets Claude and ChatGPT read your transcripts and Smart Notes directly.
Talk directly to the founder
VoiceDrop is founder-led, so support is personal: when you write, I read it and answer myself. Ask for a feature: write to me at hi@tryvoicedrop.com. Many of this month’s improvements were driven by real-world testing and feedback.
Gustav Tøstie, founder
Shipped in October 2026
- Eight desktop releases (0.4.13 to 0.4.20), plus iPhone updates
- Faster paste into the app you are typing in
- Filler words like “um” removed automatically in Windows and Mac dictation
- Start and stop recording from Control Center on a locked iPhone, with a notification when the transcript is ready
- Free plan raised to 30 minutes a month
- This website in seven languages