Frequently asked questions
If your question isn't here, write to us. Humans answer.
How does the trial work?
You get 14 days of the full Pro feature set. Skald shows the trial-day counter right in the app and emails you a reminder three days before it ends. If you don't actively switch to Pro, your account drops to the free plan — no hidden auto-charge.
What does "fair use" mean on Pro?
Pro has a daily budget instead of a hard monthly cap. Realistic individual usage — even several hours of dictation per day — never hits the limit. If someone tries to burn through it (bots, shared accounts), a soft throttle kicks in and the app pauses until midnight. This keeps the plan affordable for real users.
Can I cancel at any time?
Yes. Go to heyskald.com/billing → Manage subscription and cancel in one click. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period; Skald keeps working until then. No lock-in, no retention hotline.
Where is my audio? Where are my transcripts?
Audio is only in memory during a recording — never written to disk on your machine or on our servers. Transcripts pass through cleanup and are not logged by default. Our own servers are in the EU. For speech recognition and cleanup we use specialised AI partners with model-training opt-out; they are all named in the privacy policy.
Which platforms does Skald support?
macOS 13+, Windows 11 (x64 and ARM64) and Linux. All three clients ship the same feature set — Dictate, Command, Brain-Dump, the personal dictionary, settings. macOS is the oldest channel and the default route; Windows is now stable; Linux is built natively on GTK4 and is available as a signed AppImage and via the AUR.
Do you have a browser extension?
No, and you don't need one. Skald already sees the active app, the window and — in the browser — the open address. That's enough to tell webmail from a Notion doc and shape the text accordingly. A real extension would mean reading page content, which we deliberately don't do.
Is there an iOS / iPad version?
No. Apple doesn't let third-party keyboards reach deep enough into the system for the kind of hold-to-speak loop Skald needs. We watch the situation — but right now it isn't possible.
Can I use Skald on more than one machine?
Yes. You can pair as many Macs, PCs and Linux machines as you like to one account. But only one device per account can dictate at the same time — that's what prevents account sharing and keeps the plan fair.
What happens if I'm offline?
Skald needs an internet connection. Recognition and cleanup happen on our servers; without a connection the app pauses and tells you. An offline mode isn't part of the current product.
Does Skald work in every app?
In nearly every text field on your machine — Mail, Slack, Notion, your IDE, the address bar, terminal, search bars, web forms. If the cursor blinks somewhere, Skald can write there. Apps that block accessibility access (rare) are the only exception.
How does billing work?
Monthly, in US dollars, by card or SEPA direct debit. Invoices are always available in heyskald.com/billing → Invoices.