Plover
Partial: Free steno engine for many machines and keyboards; it does not prepare transcripts for courts.
License: Open source
- Windows
- macOS
- Linux
Status: Active
No free alternative to CATalyst Pro yet
Plover turns steno strokes into text, but no free tool covers the full court reporting job from realtime output to formatted, certified transcripts.
About this gap
- CATalyst Pro, CATalyst Pro, one license
$4,299 USDone-time
≈$6,129.08 CAD one-time (converted from USD)
- Build effort
Years, or a funded team
An editor’s estimate for a free tool that ranks Strong.
- Demand
Nobody has asked for one yet.
What a free alternative needs
The capabilities that keep people paying for CATalyst Pro.
Job dictionaries with conflict resolution
Per-job dictionaries merged into a reporter's main dictionary without breaking existing strokes.
Realtime output to attorneys and judges
Scoping and proofreading hand-off
State transcript formats and certification pages
Steno machine protocols and RTF/CRE exchange
Reads the major machines and exchanges files with other CAT systems and scopists.
Why it is hard
Court formatting and certification rules vary by state, steno machine protocols need hardware to test, and CAT file formats are proprietary.
Closest free options
Each covers part of the job. None replaces CATalyst Pro yet.
Listed alternatives for some uses
These are mapped to CATalyst Pro at the Situational tier: they fit some uses only.
Plover
Best for writing steno on a computer without CAT software
License: Open source- Windows
- macOS
- Linux
Status: ActiveFree GPL steno engine for Windows, Linux and Mac that types into any application. It is an input method, not transcript preparation software.
Building one?
List your tool on Gratistack when it works. Once an editor maps it to CATalyst Pro, it shows on this page and in search, and the people waiting here can hear about it.
- Listing is free. An editor reviews the free queue every week.
- Want a decision sooner? The optional $49 fast-track gets one within 48 hours. It buys speed, not approval, and a rejection is refunded.
- Once it is listed as an alternative, you can sponsor the alternatives page for $149 per 30 days. Sponsors are labeled and never change the ranking.
About this page
Last checked : an editor confirmed that no free alternative ranks Strong.
Price: CATalyst Pro, one license, checked Oct 8, 2026. Price source. USD to CAD at 1.4257 as of Oct 7, 2026.
Know a free alternative? Tell us.
CATalyst Pro is a product of Stenograph, named here for comparison only.