Hearing Buddy 3.20.2

A hearing buddy is the patient, understanding person who helps you hear. When they can't be there, Hearing Buddy is your backup.

Built by someone who is hard of hearing, every feature comes from lived experience.

2026 Apple Design Award Finalist (Inclusivity)

UNLIMITED FREE LIVE CAPTIONS

Most captioning apps charge by the minute, turning accessibility into a metered service. Hearing Buddy gives you unlimited live captions for free. Speech becomes clear text on your iPhone or iPad, even in noisy rooms or fast conversations.

Captions run on your device, 24/7, at no cost. They work without internet, and your conversations stay on your phone.

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

Need more accuracy? Turn on Enhanced Accuracy and captions are made in the cloud: sharper text in loud rooms, names spelled right. It stays off until you turn it on. Try 30 minutes free. Buddy+ includes 20 hours a month, or 240 a year with Annual.

SHARE CAPTIONS FOR FREE

One iPhone captions the room. Everyone nearby reads along.

Share your live captions and people around you can follow from their own iPhone or iPad. Put a phone where the sound is and read from wherever you are. Your hearing buddy can set their phone next to the speaker while you follow from the back of the room.

In meetings, classes, and group conversations, more people can turn on their mic, and every voice flows into one shared transcript.

Everyone chooses the language they want to read. Hearing Buddy translates captions as people speak, so the same conversation can be read in several languages at once, free for everyone.

Sharing works directly between devices. No internet, no account, no server. Captions stay in the room.

NAME AND QUESTION ALERTS

When someone says your name, your Apple Watch taps your wrist. The same tap tells you when someone asks a question. No more anxious waiting at the pharmacy or the coffee counter. The moment your name is spoken, you'll feel it.

Alerts on your iPhone and Lock Screen show what needs your attention, so you don't have to keep watching your phone.

TRANSLATE WHAT YOU HEAR

When you're listening on your own, Buddy+ lets you choose the language being spoken and the language you want to read. Hearing Buddy translates captions as people speak. Alerts, summaries, and session titles can appear in your reading language too.

CONVERSATION SUMMARIES

Review key points without rereading every caption. Your buddy gives you a short recap of meetings, appointments, classes, and group conversations.

MAKE BUDDY YOURS

Name your buddy and choose their personality, colors, character, and tone.

FREE FEATURES

• Unlimited live captions
• Share Captions with people nearby
• Live translation for everyone in shared captions
• Background listening
• Saved transcripts
• Copy and share transcripts
• Adjustable text size

BUDDY+ FEATURES

• Live translation when you caption on your own
• Enhanced Accuracy hours every month
• Boost Audio for any headphones
• Name and question alerts on Apple Watch, iPhone, and Lock Screen
• Conversation summaries
• Live Activity and Widget support
• Buddy+ on your Mac too, with the same subscription
• Premium buddy personalities and app icons

No one should have to miss what matters or apologize for how they hear.

LANGUAGE SUPPORT

Live captions support 18 language and regional options across English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, and Cantonese.

Requires iOS 26.0 or later. Apple Watch features require watchOS 10.0 or later.

Buddy+ Annual: $89.99 per year
Buddy+ Monthly: $14.99 per month

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Hearing Buddy is a supportive tool, not a replacement for medical devices or professional medical advice.