# macOS permissions NoteOwl asks for, and why > The macOS permissions NoteOwl asks for, from Microphone and Input Monitoring to Screen Recording and Calendar, what each is for, and how to turn it on. Source: https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/reference/permissions · Last updated 2026-09-27 · Checked against NoteOwl 1.0.0 NoteOwl asks macOS for four permissions when you set it up: **Microphone**, **Accessibility**, **Input Monitoring** and **Screen Recording**, with **Calendar** and **Contacts** as optional extras you choose to connect. Everything each one gives NoteOwl stays on your Mac. ## Which permissions does NoteOwl need? Microphone, Accessibility and Input Monitoring for dictation, and Screen Recording to hear the other people in a meeting. NoteOwl asks for these four during setup. Calendar and Contacts are optional, for NoteOwl Pro features, and asked for only when you choose. | Permission | What NoteOwl uses it for | What happens without it | Plan | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------ | | **Microphone** | Hearing you: dictation, voice notes, your side of a meeting, and questions you say to **Chat** or with **⌥ Z** | Dictation stops, and the panel says **Microphone access is off. Enable NoteOwl in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Microphone, then try again.** | Free and Pro | | **Accessibility** | Typing your dictation at the cursor in any app, and swapping in the polished version when you choose **Polish** | NoteOwl copies the text instead, and the panel says **Copied — press ⌘V** | Free and Pro | | **Input Monitoring** | Noticing the **fn** key in any app, so a tap starts dictation | **fn** does nothing. Dictation still starts from the menu bar | Free and Pro | | **Screen Recording** (in System Settings: **Screen & System Audio Recording**) | Recording your Mac's audio during a meeting, which is how the other people on a call are heard | A meeting doesn't start, and NoteOwl says **Meeting capture needs Screen Recording & Microphone access.** | Pro | | **Calendar** (in System Settings: **Calendars**) | Reading your upcoming events for the **Calendar** screen, meeting prep and **Review**. NoteOwl never changes them | The **Calendar** screen shows examples and **Connect your calendar** | Pro | | **Contacts** | Filling in a phone number, company and job title on **People** profiles, by matching names to your contacts | People profiles don't get details from your contacts | Pro | ## Turn on a permission The quickest way is from NoteOwl, which opens the right place in System Settings for you. 1. Open NoteOwl and click **Settings** in the sidebar, then click the **General** tab. 2. Under **Privacy & Access**, find the permission. Its status reads **Granted**, **Not requested**, **Not granted** or **Restricted by policy**. 3. Click the button beside it. **Grant** asks macOS to show its prompt. **Open Settings** opens the right pane of System Settings, and **Review** does the same for a permission that's already on. 4. In the prompt or in System Settings, allow NoteOwl, or turn on **NoteOwl** in the list. macOS may ask for your password. 5. For **Input Monitoring** and **Screen & System Audio Recording**, quit NoteOwl and open it again. If macOS offers **Quit & Reopen**, choose that. Without NoteOwl, open **System Settings**, click **Privacy & Security**, then the permission's pane: **Microphone**, **Accessibility**, **Input Monitoring**, **Screen & System Audio Recording**, **Calendars** or **Contacts**. **Restricted by policy** means the Mac is managed, for example by your employer, and the button reads **Managed**. Only the people who manage the Mac can change it. ## When does NoteOwl ask for each permission? Only when you do something that needs it, never on its own when NoteOwl opens. Setup lists **Microphone**, **Accessibility**, **Input Monitoring** and **Screen Recording**, each with an **Allow** button, and you can continue without any of them. * **Calendar** is asked for when you click **Connect** under **Connect your calendar** on the **Calendar** screen, or **Grant** beside **Calendar** in **Settings → General**. * **Contacts** is asked for only when you click **Grant** beside **Contacts** in **Settings → General**. * **Microphone** is also asked for the first time you dictate, if you skipped it during setup. ## What if a permission is on but something still doesn't work? Turn the permission off and on again for NoteOwl in **System Settings → Privacy & Security**, then quit and reopen NoteOwl. For specific problems, see [the fn key doesn't start dictation](https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/troubleshooting/fn-key-not-working), or email support@noteowl.ai with your macOS version and what NoteOwl shows. ## Common questions ### Can NoteOwl turn a macOS permission on or off by itself? No. Only macOS can grant or remove a permission. NoteOwl shows where each one stands in Settings → General, under Privacy & Access, and its button takes you to the right place in System Settings. ### Does NoteOwl record my screen? No. macOS shares a Mac's audio with apps through its Screen & System Audio Recording permission, which is why NoteOwl asks for it. NoteOwl takes only the audio, and only while it's recording a meeting. ### Which permissions does NoteOwl Free need? For dictation, NoteOwl Free needs Microphone, Accessibility to type at the cursor, and Input Monitoring for the fn key. Screen Recording, Calendar and Contacts are only used by NoteOwl Pro features. ## Related - [The fn key doesn't start dictation](https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/troubleshooting/fn-key-not-working): If fn does nothing but NoteOwl's ⌥ shortcuts still work, turn on Input Monitoring for NoteOwl in System Settings, then quit and reopen NoteOwl. - [Dictate into any app with the fn key](https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/dictation/dictate-into-any-app): Tap fn to start dictating in any Mac app and tap it again to stop. NoteOwl types your words at the cursor and keeps exactly what you said. - [Record a meeting on your Mac](https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/meetings/record-a-meeting): Record any call on your Mac with NoteOwl and no bot. Press ⌥Space or Start Meeting; the transcript, summary and action items are written when you stop. - [What NoteOwl sends over the network](https://www.noteowl.ai/docs/data/network-use): NoteOwl goes online for a one-time model download, update checks and, for NoteOwl Pro, sign-in and a weekly licence check. Your recordings never leave your Mac. Learn more: [Permissions, in the NoteOwl Privacy Policy](https://www.noteowl.ai/privacy)