How to record audio and get transcripts in Notes on iOS 18

iOS 18 brings a significant upgrade to the Notes app, allowing users to record voice memos with real-time transcription. This feature can be useful in various situations, such as lectures, interviews, or personal reflections, and the transcribed text can be easily exported for sharing.

Additionally, the Voice Memos app in iOS 18 also includes transcription capabilities, providing an alternative to using Notes for voice recordings.

Recording voice notes

To record voice notes in Notes, tap the paperclip icon in the toolbar, then select “Record Audio.” You can start, pause, and resume recording using the interface, and playback and transcribe the audio while recording. The app also offers playback controls and AI-generated summaries for longer recordings.

You can switch between sound wave view and transcription view, and even add a name and timestamp to your recordings for easier identification. Once satisfied, tap “Done” to save the recording in the note.

Accessing voice notes

Voice recordings are displayed as embeds in notes, with options to play, view transcription, and append more audio. The menu also allows users to add the transcript to the note, copy it to the clipboard, search through the transcript, save the audio to Files app, share it, or delete it permanently.

These transcription features can be applied to existing audio recordings as well by attaching the file within a note.

To view a transcription, simply tap on the audio file provided below:


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Tap on the audio file to see a transcription.