Change Voice Control settings for accessibility on Mac
On your Mac, use Voice Control settings to turn Voice Control on, customise Voice Control settings and commands, and create a vocabulary of custom words and phrases. Learn how to use Voice Control.
To change these settings, choose Apple menu 
in the sidebar, then click Voice Control on the right. (You may need to scroll down.)
Open Voice Control settings for me
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Voice Control | Turn Voice Control on or off. See Turn Voice Control on or off. |
Language | Choose the language to use when you speak commands to your Mac. See Customise Voice Control. |
Microphone | Choose the microphone to use to speak commands to your Mac. If you choose Automatic from the pop-up menu, your Mac listens to the device you’re most likely to use for speaking commands. |
Show hints | Display suggested commands and hints on the screen. |
Play sound when command is recognised | Have your Mac play a sound to indicate that it recognised the command you spoke. |
Overlay | Continuously show item names, numbers or a numbered grid on the screen. See Label onscreen items. |
Fade overlay after inactivity | When item names, numbers or a numbered grid are shown, dim the overlay after the specified period of inactivity by the specified amount. |
Voice Control Tutorial | Open an interactive tutorial where you can learn and practise essential Voice Control commands. |
Improve assistive voice features | Turn this option on to help Apple improve assistive voice features by sharing audio input and transcripts of your Vocal Shortcuts and Voice Control interactions. Note: Vocal Shortcuts and Voice Control audio input and transcripts are submitted anonymously to Apple and only with your consent. |
Commands | Show the list of commands you can use to control your Mac and use apps. |
Vocabulary | Specify custom words or phrases to use when you speak to your Mac. See Use a custom vocabulary with Voice Control. This option is not available for all Voice Control languages. |
Advanced Actions menu | Show the menu you can use to import, export or delete custom commands and vocabulary. See Import custom commands. |
Commands
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Commands list | Standard commands and commands you created are shown. Use the search field to find a command or scroll through the categories of standard commands, such as Basic Navigation and Text Editing. See Turn standard commands on or off. |
Preview area | Click a command in the list to show information about how to use it. |
Add | Create your own commands or delete commands you created. See Create your own commands. |
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Vocabulary
Option | Description |
|---|---|
Vocabulary list | Words or phrases that you added. |
Add | Add words or phrases to your custom vocabulary, or remove them. |