Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
Cursor has no dictation of its own, but its text field accepts ordinary input, so you can dictate through a separate program such as Potok (potok.now): hold the hotkey, say a phrase, release it, and the text appears in the open file with a Potok response time of about 0.4 seconds. Note that in Cursor Ctrl+Space opens autocomplete by default, and Potok's default hotkey is the same.
Cursor is a code editor with AI suggestions for Windows and macOS. It has no dictation of its own, but its text field accepts ordinary input, as in any other app, so the question is not whether Cursor can listen, but how to get dictated text into it.
Voice input in Cursor without a third-party app
Cursor has no speech recognition function of its own: the program is built for typing and code suggestions, not for dictation. That leaves the built-in tools of the operating system. On Windows this is Win+H: it recognizes speech in the Microsoft cloud and needs the internet, and Russian is available in it only in Windows 11; Windows 10 has no Russian dictation. On macOS the built-in dictation supports Russian. Both options insert the result into the field where the cursor is, including Cursor's ordinary text fields, because they accept pasted text the same way as typed text. The program's official website is cursor.com.
| What is available | |
|---|---|
| Built-in dictation | yes: Appeared in Cursor 2.0: controlling the Agent by voice through built-in speech recognition. In version 3.1 dictation became more accurate (batch recognition of the whole voice recording): hold Ctrl+M to start dictating; while recording, a waveform, a timer and cancel/confirm buttons are shown. |
| Text insertion | yes |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS |
| Potok | hold the key, speak, release: the text lands in the field under the cursor |
How to dictate text in Cursor with Potok
Besides the built-in OS tools, you can insert text into Cursor through a separate voice input program, for example Potok. The steps are the same for any text field of the program:
- Place the cursor in the Cursor text field you need: the editor accepts ordinary input, so for the program there is no difference.
- Hold the hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default) and say a phrase while the key is held.
- Release the key: the recognized text is inserted where the cursor was, with a Potok response time of about 0.4 seconds, and commas and periods are placed automatically.
One detail matters specifically for Cursor: the Ctrl+Space combination is already taken in the editor by default, as it calls autocomplete and code suggestions. Potok's default hotkey is the same, so pressing it in the editor may bring up the suggestion popup instead of recording your voice. The case where you need to dictate not a piece of code but the request to a neural network itself is covered separately in the article on voice input for prompts.
When voice input in Cursor will not help
Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without an internet connection, so dictation in Cursor stops together with the network. It has no voice commands for editing text that is already inserted: you fix a wording in code or a comment by hand, as with ordinary typing. Potok also has no mobile apps: dictation is available only from the computer where Cursor itself is open. How voice input works in other editors is in the overview of voice input for apps.
Frequently asked questions
No: dictation uses the system access to the microphone of the computer where the third-party program runs, not Cursor's own input, and without that access dictation will not work in any app.
With Potok, yes: commas and periods are placed automatically during recognition, so you do not need to dictate them. For the built-in tools of the OS it depends on the specific tool and the system version.
By a model estimate, the average dictation speed with Potok is about 900 characters per minute versus about 200 characters per minute with ordinary typing, so speech is noticeably faster than the keyboard.
Dictation pays off most for long texts written in one go, such as email drafts, notes, messenger replies and lecture notes, and also when your hands are busy or tired (for example, with RSI). For short precise edits (one-word commands, code) typing is often faster.
Potok states about 900 characters per minute by voice versus about 200 when typing, roughly 4 times faster. This is the product's own estimate, not an independent measurement.
Any microphone the system sees as a recording device will do. In Potok you choose it in the app settings or in the tray icon menu; system access to the microphone is required.
Try it on your own texts
Download Potok for Windows, macOS or Linux: full access for the first 14 days, no card needed. After that, 2500 words per week for free or Pro for 690 ₽ per month. Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet.
Download PotokExisting recordings are transcribed by Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: send a file or a YouTube, VK Video or RuTube link and the text arrives in the chat. The Potok subscription removes the limit in the bot too.
Built-in dictation and Potok
| Tool | Where it works | Russian language | Where speech is recognized |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows voice typing (Win+H) | Windows 10 and 11 | Windows 11 only | Microsoft cloud, does not work offline |
| macOS Dictation | macOS | yes | on the device or on Apple servers |
| Potok | Windows, macOS, Linux | primary language | cloud, servers in Russia, does not work offline |
Primary sources: cursor.com · cursor.com · cursor.com