1. Install the native speech extension
Open Extensions in VS Code, find the official VS Code Speech extension from Microsoft, and install it. Language components download when you first select or use a supported speech language.
Use the native extension first because it understands VS Code’s own editor and chat surfaces without relying on macOS Accessibility insertion.
- Install VS Code Speech from the Visual Studio Marketplace.
- Allow microphone access when macOS asks.
- Set accessibility.voice.speechLanguage if the automatic choice is wrong.
2. Choose editor dictation or voice chat
Press Option-Command-V to start dictation in the editor and Escape to stop. Holding the shortcut enables walkie-talkie behavior until you release the keys.
Press Command-I to open voice chat. VS Code can submit the prompt after a pause; set accessibility.voice.speechTimeout to 0 if you want to prevent automatic submission.
3. Understand the native privacy boundary
Microsoft states that VS Code voice support does not require an online connection and that recordings are computed locally rather than sent to an online service.
That statement covers the speech-recognition stage. If you use voice chat with an AI provider, the resulting text and code context still follow the selected chat provider’s data terms.
4. Add IraVoice for cross-app dictation and code names
Use IraVoice when you want one held-key habit across VS Code, terminals, coding agents, email, and chat: hold Right Command on a Mac or Right Ctrl on Windows (Ctrl+Space on Linux), speak, and release. The text is pasted at the cursor, and your clipboard is put back afterwards.
In VS Code and its integrated terminal, IraVoice finds the Git project you are working in and spells its code names: “use effect” becomes useEffect and “pipeline dot swift” becomes Pipeline.swift. It reads only names, never source text, skips secrets and dependency folders, and sends nothing off the computer.