Your first live translation

Follow the five steps below to get your first transcript, translation, and summary in a few minutes.

1. Choose your languages

Choose the language everyone is speaking and the language you want to read. See Choose the spoken and translation languages.

2. Start recording

Mac: go to Live in the sidebar and click Start recording. The first time, the app may need a few seconds to prepare the speech model.

iPhone and iPad: on the Home screen, tap the large microphone button (Tap to record).

When text starts to appear, you're recording. On Mac, the status is RECORDING. On iPhone and iPad, it's LISTENING.

3. Read the text and translation

By default, the app shows Bilingual: the translation in large text and the original in smaller text below it. You can switch to the original only or the translation only with the display mode selector. For details, see Record on Mac and Record on iPhone and iPad.

4. Stop and save

Click Stop & save. The recording is saved to your Library, and the app opens it for you right away.

5. Create a summary

On the recording's detail screen, switch to the Summary tab and click Create summary. See Meeting summaries.

Tips for better results

• Use headphones with a microphone, or place your device close to the speakers.
• For Vietnamese, Apple's on-device recognizer may be less accurate than for other languages. If you need better accuracy, see Inaccurate recognition.
• The Free plan records up to 30 minutes per day. See Free and Pro plans.