Is HEY or Yap better?

Neither clearly leads. HEY starts at $99/year and Yap at $6.9/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, HEY or Yap?

HEY starts at $99/year and Yap at $6.9/month.

Does HEY or Yap run on more platforms?

HEY runs on macOS, Windows, Web, iOS, Android. Yap runs on macOS, Windows, iOS, Android.

What is HEY best used for?

HEY is most often used for someone who wants to replace gmail or icloud mail entirely with an email service built around approving senders before they reach the inbox, a user overwhelmed by newsletters and receipts who wants them automatically separated from person to person conversation, a family that wants shared but individually addressed email under one annual plan, a small company wanting hey for work on its own domain with the screener model for the whole team. Of those, someone who wants to replace gmail or icloud mail entirely with an email service built around approving senders before they reach the inbox and a user overwhelmed by newsletters and receipts who wants them automatically separated from person to person conversation are not what Yap is typically brought in for.

What can HEY do that Yap cannot?

HEY covers The Screener, Imbox, Feed and Paper Trail, Reply Later stack, Focus and Reply mode. Yap covers Dictation at the cursor, On-device recognition, Automatic language detection, Text cleanup.

Productivity · head to head

HEY vs Yap

HEY

Productivity

Flat annual subscription email service from 37signals, with its own hey.com domain and a distinctive Screener

From: $99/year
Free plan: No

Visit HEY Full review

Yap

Productivity

Fast dictation. Private by design.

From: $6.9/month
Free plan: No

Visit Yap Full review

The short version

HEY starts at $99/yr, Yap at $6.9/mo.
Only HEY lists the Screener; only Yap lists dictation at the cursor.
Where HEY falls short: there is no free tier and no monthly billing option, so trying it beyond the trial means committing to a full year upfront.
Where Yap falls short: intel Macs are not supported; the Mac app needs Apple Silicon (M1 or later), and the iPhone app needs an iPhone 12 Pro, 13 Pro, 14 or newer.
Prices and features on this page were last checked on 12 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which HEY and Yap actually diverge.

Attributes where HEY and Yap differ
Attribute	HEY	Yap
Starting price	$99/year	$6.9/month
Pricing model	Per user per month	Subscription
Platforms	macOS, Windows, Web, iOS, Android	macOS, Windows, iOS, Android

Identical on both: free tier (No), category (Productivity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in HEY

The Screener
Imbox, Feed and Paper Trail
Reply Later stack
Focus and Reply mode
Screen sharing style clips
No tracking pixels

Only in Yap

Dictation at the cursor
On-device recognition
Automatic language detection
Text cleanup
Hands-free recording
Local history
Voice input for coding tools
Phone keyboards

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

HEY

Someone who wants to replace Gmail or iCloud Mail entirely with an email service built around approving senders before they reach the inboxnot Yap
A user overwhelmed by newsletters and receipts who wants them automatically separated from person to person conversationnot Yap
A family that wants shared but individually addressed email under one annual plannot Yap
A small company wanting HEY for Work on its own domain with the Screener model for the whole teamnot Yap

Yap

Dictating emails, messages and documents in any app on Mac or Windowsnot HEY
Speaking long prompts into ChatGPT, Claude or a coding agentnot HEY
Voice input for developers who cannot send code or screen contents to a cloud servicenot HEY
Reducing keyboard use for people with RSI or wrist painnot HEY
Drafting by voice where audio must not leave the device, such as legal or therapy notesnot HEY

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

HEY

There is no free tier and no monthly billing option, so trying it beyond the trial means committing to a full year upfront
Adopting HEY means changing your actual email address, not just installing a new client, which is a bigger migration than switching apps on an existing address
The Screener and categorisation model is a real departure from a standard inbox, and some users take time to adjust or find it gets in the way for high volume mail
Short vanity addresses carry steep additional annual fees, up to 999 US dollars a year for a two character address
It does not connect to or manage existing Gmail, Outlook or iCloud accounts, so it cannot be used as a general client the way Mimestream or Apple Mail can

Yap

Intel Macs are not supported; the Mac app needs Apple Silicon (M1 or later), and the iPhone app needs an iPhone 12 Pro, 13 Pro, 14 or newer
Recognition is local but the app is not fully offline: it needs internet for first launch, activation and periodic access checks, and offline access lasts at most 24 hours
The Windows installer downloaded from the website is not code-signed, so Windows shows a SmartScreen warning; the Microsoft Store version is signed
25 languages are supported, and the vendor notes accuracy varies by language, voice and recording conditions
The free period is only 3 days, after which continuing requires a card for the 10-day trial; there is no free tier

Pricing, plan by plan

HEY

$99/year

HEY for You$99/yr
- One hey.com email address
- Screener, Imbox, Feed and Paper Trail
- Billed annually only, no monthly option
HEY for Families$179/yr
- Covers up to five family members
- Same features as HEY for You per member
HEY for Work$12/mo
- Per user, for organisations on a company domain
- Admin controls for a team

Yap

$6.9/month

Monthly$6.9/mo
- Unlimited on-device dictation
- 25 languages, detected as you speak
- Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android
Yearly$69/yr
- Same app and features as monthly
- Saves $13.80 a year against monthly billing
- 10-day trial with a card

Which should you pick?

Choose HEY if

You need the screener.
You work on macOS, Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
You also want imbox, feed and paper trail.

HEY review

Choose Yap if

You need dictation at the cursor.
You work on macOS, Windows, iOS, Android.
You also want on-device recognition.

Yap review

Questions people ask

Is HEY or Yap better?: Neither clearly leads. HEY starts at $99/year and Yap at $6.9/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, HEY or Yap?: HEY starts at $99/year and Yap at $6.9/month.
Does HEY or Yap run on more platforms?: HEY runs on macOS, Windows, Web, iOS, Android. Yap runs on macOS, Windows, iOS, Android.
What is HEY best used for?: HEY is most often used for someone who wants to replace gmail or icloud mail entirely with an email service built around approving senders before they reach the inbox, a user overwhelmed by newsletters and receipts who wants them automatically separated from person to person conversation, a family that wants shared but individually addressed email under one annual plan, a small company wanting hey for work on its own domain with the screener model for the whole team. Of those, someone who wants to replace gmail or icloud mail entirely with an email service built around approving senders before they reach the inbox and a user overwhelmed by newsletters and receipts who wants them automatically separated from person to person conversation are not what Yap is typically brought in for.
What can HEY do that Yap cannot?: HEY covers The Screener, Imbox, Feed and Paper Trail, Reply Later stack, Focus and Reply mode. Yap covers Dictation at the cursor, On-device recognition, Automatic language detection, Text cleanup.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

HEY: Can I use HEY with my existing Gmail address?

No. HEY provides its own hey.com email address; it is not a client layered over an existing Gmail or other account.

Yap: How much does Yap cost?

A free account works for 3 days with no card. After that a 10-day trial with a card leads to $6.90 a month or $69 a year. Cancel before the trial ends and you are not charged.

Source

HEY: Is there a free plan?

No. HEY offers a trial but bills annually only, with no free tier and no month to month option for individuals.

Yap: Does Yap upload my voice?

No. Speech recognition runs on the device and audio is not uploaded to a transcription service. Completed text is kept in a local history you can copy or delete. An internet connection is needed to download the speech model on first use.

Source

HEY: What is the Screener?

A feature that holds mail from any new sender until the user explicitly approves them, before it appears in the inbox at all.

Yap: Which computers does Yap run on?

Apple Silicon Macs (M1 and later) and Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit. Intel Macs are not supported. There are also apps for iPhone (iOS 17 or later) and Android 10 or later, covered by the same subscription.

Source

Yap: Which languages does Yap support?

25 languages. Each recording detects its own language from the audio, so there is no need to select languages in advance.

Source

Yap: Does Yap work offline?

Transcription runs locally, but internet access is required for first launch, activation and periodic access checks. Offline access lasts up to 24 hours.

Source

HEY vs Yap

HEY

Yap

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in HEY

Only in Yap

What people use each for

HEY

Yap

Where each one falls short

HEY

Yap

Pricing, plan by plan

HEY

Yap

Which should you pick?

Choose HEY if

Choose Yap if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on HEY

More on Yap

Keep looking

Other head to heads