How to transcribe audio files in Microsoft Word

If you have conducted an interview or received a file with a spoken text from your boss, typing is often a tedious task. However, Word offers to do this work for you with the help of Microsoft servers. This works with several languages.

Open the word processor and click on the small arrow under “Dictate” in the “Start” ribbon. Then select “Transcribe” from the menu. Click on the “Upload audio” button and select the audio file with the dictation in the Explorer view in the next step.

Word accepts files in the formats WAV, MP4, M4A and MP3 and uploads them to your Onedrive memory. The voice recording is then converted into written text. Microsoft ensures that neither the recording nor the transcription is stored on its servers. You can then download a Word file containing the text.

Please note: The transcription of audio recordings is only included in the paid version of Word in Microsoft 365, but not in the free online version of the word processor. However, a few weeks ago it also appeared in the desktop version of Word, whereas previously it was only available online. You can currently upload an unlimited number of long audio recordings and have them transcribed. However, Word currently displays a notice that this could change in the future.

The “Dictate” command is available in both the paid version and the free version of Word, which allows you to transcribe spoken text immediately. It is therefore possible to play back an audio recording on a smartphone or other computer, transfer it to Word using a microphone and then convert the spoken word into text.

Tip: This video from Microsoft demonstrates the function.