Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
Telegram can transcribe received voice messages into text, but according to telegram.org this is a Telegram Premium subscription feature (Voice-to-Text Conversion), not a free option for everyone. To transcribe a voice message without Premium, a whole file or a recording from another chat, use the Potok Telegram bot, 60 minutes free per month. Dictating your own replies as text is done by another app, Potok (potok.now).
A voice message arrived, but it is inconvenient to listen to right now: on the road, at a meeting, in the middle of other things? Telegram has built-in transcription of such a recording into text, but according to telegram.org this is a Premium subscription feature. A general overview of ways for different messengers is on the page how voice messages are turned into text in different messengers.
How to transcribe a voice message in Telegram, step by step
- Open the received voice message in Telegram and press the transcription button next to it if it is available. According to telegram.org, voice-to-text transcription is included in the Telegram Premium subscription.
- If you do not have Premium, or you need to turn into text a voice message from another chat, a whole file or a link to a video, forward the recording to the Potok Telegram bot @potok_now_bot in a private chat.
- A short recording up to 2 minutes comes as text right away, a longer one with timecodes; the bot gives 60 minutes of transcription per month for free.
- The bot recognizes only Russian speech, and there is no translation.
How to reply with text without typing
You can reply in Telegram with text instead of a voice message through the desktop version too: the messenger has versions for Windows and macOS and a web version, and the input field in them is an ordinary text field. Potok inserts the dictated text where the cursor is: hold the hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default), say a phrase, release, and the text lands in the message field of the desktop version of Telegram instead of recording a new voice message. The program places punctuation and capital letters itself, and you do not need to name them separately. A similar review of voice input right in this messenger is in the article about voice input in Telegram. On a phone this will not work: it has no apps for Android and iPhone.
Where Potok is useless for this task
Potok does not transcribe other people's voice messages: that is not its task. The app helps you dictate your own text and does not turn an already received recording into text. For that, Telegram has either a built-in feature (with a Premium subscription) or a bot. Potok is a cloud service, recognition runs on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. It has no voice commands and no mobile versions either: there are versions for Windows, macOS and Linux. The free limit of 2500 words per week may not be enough for someone who replies with text all day.
Frequently asked questions
The Potok app cannot: it helps you dictate your own text into the active field. A received recording is transcribed by the Telegram bot @potok_now_bot, and inside Telegram itself by the built-in transcription with a Premium subscription.
60 minutes per month for free. The bot recognizes only Russian speech and does not translate.
Yes, several platforms have built-in meeting transcription: Zoom for cloud recordings, Microsoft Teams during the meeting, Google Meet on Google Workspace plans. The alternative is to record the sound and process it with a separate transcription service after the call. The Potok app does not do this kind of transcription, it is for live dictation; a call recording can be sent as a file to Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
Voice input is real-time dictation: you speak and immediately get text in the active field. Transcription turns an already finished audio or video recording (for example, a meeting recording) into text after the fact. The Potok app handles the first task, live dictation; finished recordings in Russian are transcribed by its Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
With Potok you can dictate the minutes live, speaking them during or right after the meeting. Transcribing an already recorded audio file of a meeting (a finished Zoom or Telemost recording) is a separate transcription task: such a file can be sent to Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
Voice input is real-time dictation into the active text field. Transcription turns an already finished audio or video recording (a lecture, a call, a podcast) into text after the fact, often with diarization (splitting by speaker).
Recording to text
Send a recording to Potok's Telegram bot or upload a file of up to 2 GB in the bot's mini app. The first 60 minutes of every month are free.
Open @potok_now_bot in TelegramBuilt-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 |
| Task | Characters | Typing (200 chars/min) | Voice (900 chars/min) |
|---|---|---|---|
| chat reply | 300 | 2 min | 0.5 min |
| 1500 | 8 min | 1.7 min | |
| post or meeting minutes | 4000 | 20 min | 4.4 min |
| article | 10000 | 50 min | 11.1 min |
Primary sources: telegram.org · core.telegram.org
Transcribe a recording in Telegram
Voice messages, video notes, audio and video are transcribed by Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: forward it a voice message from any chat, or send a file or a YouTube, VK Video or RuTube link. A short recording comes back as text in the chat, a long one as a file; timestamps and speaker labels can be turned on. The buttons give a short summary, tasks and deadlines, an answer to a question about the recording and export to TXT, DOCX, PDF or SRT. Large files, up to 2 GB, are easier to upload in the bot's mini app, via the Upload button next to the input field. The bot recognizes Russian speech; 60 minutes per month are free.