Mode Triggers
Automatically switch modes by app, website, word trigger, or shortcut.
Trigger Types
VoiceInk supports four ways to choose a Mode:
| Trigger type | What it matches |
|---|---|
| App trigger | A specific macOS app bundle, such as Mail, Slack, or Cursor. |
| Website trigger | A cleaned URL or domain, such as mail.google.com or docs.google.com. |
| Word trigger | A phrase you say at the beginning or end of a dictation. |
| Keyboard shortcut | A shortcut that starts recording directly with that Mode. |
App and website triggers are automatic. VoiceInk checks the active app when recording starts. If the active app is a supported browser, VoiceInk can also read the current URL and use the website-specific Mode.
Word triggers are spoken mode switches. After transcription, VoiceInk checks whether your dictated text starts or ends with a configured trigger phrase. If it matches, VoiceInk switches to that Mode, removes the trigger phrase, and processes the remaining text with the triggered Mode.
Mode shortcuts are direct manual triggers. They skip app and website matching and use the primary recording shortcut's Toggle, Push to Talk, Hybrid, or Double Tap behavior.
Matching Order
When you start recording normally, VoiceInk first uses the active app or the default Mode. If the active app is a browser and the current URL matches a website trigger, the website Mode can take over.
After the transcript is ready, a word trigger can switch the Mode for processing that dictation. The trigger phrase is removed, but the audio is not transcribed again using the triggered Mode's model or language. Word triggers do not switch Modes while processing imported files.
Suggested Groups
The trigger picker includes suggested groups for common workflows:
| Group | What it includes |
|---|---|
| AI | AI apps, coding apps, and AI websites. |
| Email apps and webmail sites. | |
| Messaging | Chat and messaging apps or websites. |
| Writing | Notes, documents, and writing apps or websites. |
You can add a group as a starting point and then remove individual apps or websites you do not want.
Add Triggers
- Open Modes.
- Edit a Mode.
- In Triggers, click the plus button.
- Choose a suggested group, search installed apps, enter a website, or enter a trigger word.
For websites, use the meaningful part of the address, such as mail.google.com, docs.google.com, or notion.so. VoiceInk cleans the URL before saving it and matches it within the current URL.
If multiple enabled website rules match, the first matching Mode wins; the app does not automatically choose the longest or most specific URL. Put a specific path before a broader domain when they overlap.
Website URL detection supports Safari, Arc, Dia, Chrome, Comet, Edge, Brave, Opera, Vivaldi, Orion, and Yandex. Firefox is not supported by this URL detection path. macOS may ask for Automation permission to read a browser URL.
For word triggers, use a short phrase you would naturally say, such as email mode, rewrite this, or assistant. Each word trigger can belong to only one Mode.
Duplicate Protection
VoiceInk prevents duplicate Mode names, duplicate app triggers, and duplicate website triggers when saving. The trigger picker also prevents adding a trigger word that already belongs to another Mode.
Default Mode
Use Set as default in a Mode's Advanced settings when you want it to apply anywhere no app or website trigger matches. Respond Modes cannot be set as the default.