See the difference at a glance.
Grammarly is a grammar and writing assistant that, over time, added voice dictation. At its core it's a corrector: you type or dictate text, and Grammarly transcribes what you say word-for-word, then runs its grammar checker over the result. It excels at catching typos, tightening sentences, and suggesting clearer phrasing on text you've already written.
Sayona takes a different approach. It's a voice writing tool — a voice to text chrome extension — built so you can skip typing entirely. You speak naturally, filler words and false starts included, and Sayona produces finished writing: it follows spoken instructions (“write a follow-up email”, “make this shorter”), adjusts tone to the platform you're in, and preserves your voice instead of over-correcting.
If your goal is grammar checking on text you've typed, Grammarly is the better fit. If your goal is to write by speaking — dictation for Gmail, Slack, or LinkedIn that comes out clean and ready to send — Sayona is built for exactly that. Many people use both: Sayona to draft by voice, Grammarly to polish. In one line: Grammarly fixes what you wrote; Sayona writes what you meant.
Google Voice Typing is the dictation feature built into Google Docs. It does raw speech-to-text: it types every word exactly as you say it, filler words and all, and it only works inside Google Docs. It's genuinely useful, completely free, and because it can run on-device it works offline.
Sayona is a voice writing tool rather than a raw dictation engine. Instead of transcribing literally, it understands what you meant: it removes filler words, smooths over backtracking and false starts, follows spoken instructions, and adjusts tone for the platform you're writing in. Crucially, it works anywhere there's a text field — making voice typing for Gmail, a dictation tool for Slack, or speech to text Chrome workflows for LinkedIn and Notion possible, not just Google Docs.
The trade-offs are clear. Google Voice Typing is free and works without internet, but the output is a literal transcript you'll usually need to edit. Sayona needs an internet connection — it processes in the cloud — but produces far cleaner, send-ready writing. If you want to write emails, Slack messages, or LinkedIn posts by voice and not touch the keyboard afterward, Sayona is the better tool. If you just need free, offline dictation inside Docs, Google Voice Typing is fine.
Otter.ai and Sayona both turn speech into text, but they solve completely different problems. Otter is a meeting transcription tool: it records conversations, identifies who said what, and generates searchable transcripts and summaries. It's designed to capture meetings, interviews, and lectures after the fact.
Sayona is a voice to text for writing tool. Rather than recording a conversation, it writes directly into whatever text field you're in — Gmail, Slack, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, a doc, or an AI chat box. You speak a thought or an instruction and Sayona produces clean, platform-appropriate writing on the spot, following instructions and adjusting tone.
Because the use cases are so different, the choice is easy. If you need to transcribe and summarize meetings with speaker labels, Otter is the right tool. If you're looking for an alternative to Otter for writing — something that helps you compose emails, messages, and documents by voice instead of capturing a conversation — Sayona is what you want. Some people use both: Otter to record the meeting, Sayona to write the follow-up email afterward. They complement each other rather than compete.
Of all the tools here, Wispr Flow is the closest to Sayona — both are built on the same idea: voice writing with AI cleanup that produces finished text, not a raw transcript. Both adjust tone per platform and let you select existing text and rewrite it by voice.
The differences come down to platform and access. Wispr Flow is a desktop app: it works system-wide across any application, processes locally, and is subscription-only — you install it and pay to use it. Sayona is a voice writing Chrome extension: it lives in the browser, processes in the cloud, and offers a free tier. There's no install friction — you add it from the Chrome Web Store in one click and start speaking, with 50 transcriptions a month free and no credit card.
So the decision comes down to where you write. If you need voice writing that works in every desktop app and don't mind a subscription, Wispr Flow is excellent. If most of your writing happens on the web — Gmail, Slack, LinkedIn, docs, AI chat prompts — and you want a free voice to text tool with zero setup, Sayona is the simpler Wispr Flow alternative: a voice writing chrome extension that's one click from the Chrome Web Store.
Free forever · 50 transcriptions a month · No card needed