Best AI Meeting Notetakers 2026: Fathom vs Otter vs Fireflies vs ScreenApp
Meeting notes are a tax on productivity. The average knowledge worker spends 4-6 hours per week in meetings, and according to Statista, 71% of those meetings are considered unproductive. But the bigger problem is not the meetings themselves. It’s what happens after. Someone has to take notes, summarize the key points, track action items, and share them with the team. That work can take another hour per meeting.
AI meeting notetakers automate all of that. They join your calls, record the audio and video, transcribe everything said, and use GPT-4 or similar models to pull out summaries, decisions, and next steps. We tested six of the most popular tools in March 2026 to see which ones actually deliver. If you need a meeting assistant right now, you can try our AI note taker or the meeting recorder with built-in transcription and summaries.
Quick Picks
- Fathom. Best free option. Unlimited recording, solid summaries, works with Zoom/Meet/Teams. $0 forever.
- Otter.ai. Best for live collaboration. Real-time transcription you can edit during the call. Free 300 min/mo, $16.99/mo paid.
- ScreenApp. Best for video workflows. Records meetings plus full video analysis, searchable transcripts, AI clips. $19/mo.
Comparison Table
| Tool | Free Tier | Paid Price | Platforms | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fathom | Unlimited | Free | Zoom, Meet, Teams | Budget-conscious teams |
| Otter.ai | 300 min/mo | $16.99/mo | Zoom, Meet, Teams | Live collaboration |
| Fireflies.ai | 800 min/mo | $10/mo | Zoom, Meet, Teams, Webex | CRM integration |
| Grain | Limited | $19/mo | Zoom, Meet, Teams | Sales teams, video clips |
| tl;dv | Unlimited | $20/mo | Zoom, Meet, Teams | Customer research |
| ScreenApp | 3 recordings | $19/mo | Any platform + screen recording | Video analysis workflows |
What We Tested
We ran the same 45-minute sales demo call through each tool. The call had three speakers, some cross-talk, and a mix of technical terms and casual conversation. We measured:
- Transcription accuracy against a manual check
- Summary quality (did it catch the key decisions and action items?)
- Integration ease (how hard was it to connect to our calendar and CRM?)
- Export options (formats, search, sharing)
Any tool that missed more than 15% of the key points in its summary was cut from the list.
1. Fathom
Fathom is the only completely free AI meeting notetaker with no usage limits. It joins your Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams calls, records everything, and sends you a transcript and summary afterward. Fathom’s summaries are surprisingly good for a free tool. They pull out decisions, action items, and key discussion points in a clean bulleted format.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: Free forever | Platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams
Pros: Actually free with unlimited recording, solid AI summaries, clean interface, integrates with Salesforce and HubSpot
Cons: No video playback (audio-only after the call), summaries are shorter than paid tools, no advanced search
2. Otter.ai
Otter.ai pioneered real-time transcription that you can see and edit during the call. It shows live captions as people speak, and you can highlight key moments, add photos, or assign action items without waiting for the meeting to end. The free tier gives you 300 minutes per month, which is enough for about 6-7 typical meetings. Paid plans start at $16.99/month and unlock features like custom vocabulary, advanced search, and priority support.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: Free (300 min/mo) / $16.99/mo / $30/mo | Platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams
Pros: Live transcription you can edit during calls, speaker identification is excellent, mobile app works well, integrates with Slack and Salesforce
Cons: Free tier runs out fast if you have daily meetings, summaries are less detailed than Fireflies or Grain, video playback is limited
3. Fireflies.ai
Fireflies.ai is the most popular AI notetaker for CRM workflows. It automatically logs call notes to Salesforce, HubSpot, or Pipedrive, and it can track talk time, sentiment, and topic mentions across all your calls. The free plan gives you 800 minutes per month, which is generous. Paid plans start at $10/month and unlock unlimited transcription, custom topic tracking, and conversation intelligence features.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: Free (800 min/mo) / $10/mo / $19/mo / $39/mo | Platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Webex, Skype
Pros: Best CRM integration, generous free tier, conversation intelligence for sales teams, topic tracking across calls, supports more platforms than competitors
Cons: Interface is busier than Fathom or Otter, video search only on higher plans, some users report the bot joining late on Teams calls
4. Grain
Grain is built for teams that want to create and share video clips from their meetings. It records the call, transcribes it, and lets you highlight specific moments to turn into shareable clips. Sales teams use it to pull customer objections, onboarding demos, or feature requests into short videos they can send to product or marketing. Grain costs $19/month per user, with no free tier beyond a limited trial.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: $19/mo / $39/mo | Platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams
Pros: Best-in-class video clipping, AI highlights for sales moments, integrates with Notion and Slack, lets you build a searchable library of customer insights
Cons: No free tier, expensive for individuals, summaries are good but not as detailed as Fireflies, limited export formats
5. tl;dv
tl;dv (short for “too long; didn’t view”) started as a meeting recording tool for customer research and product teams. It gives you unlimited free recording on Zoom and Google Meet, which makes it one of the best free options alongside Fathom. The paid plan at $20/month adds AI summaries, topic tagging, and multi-meeting search. tl;dv’s strength is organizing insights across many calls, which is useful if you do a lot of user interviews or customer calls.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: Free (unlimited recording) / $20/mo | Platforms: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams
Pros: Free tier is genuinely unlimited, great for user research workflows, lets you tag and search across all your calls, timestamps are clickable and jump to that moment in the video
Cons: AI summaries are only on paid plan, interface takes some getting used to, fewer integrations than Fireflies or Otter
6. ScreenApp
ScreenApp is a full video workflow platform that includes meeting recording, transcription, AI summaries, and video analysis tools. Unlike the other tools on this list, ScreenApp also lets you record your screen, webcam, or both at the same time, which is useful for product demos, tutorials, or async updates. You can upload existing videos and run AI analysis on them, or use the built-in recorder to capture live meetings. The free tier gives you 3 recordings to test it out.
Type: Cloud-based | Price: Free (3 recordings) / $19/mo / $29/mo | Platforms: Any (screen recording + calendar integration for Zoom, Meet, Teams)
Pros: Works with any platform via screen recording, combines meeting notes with full video editing and analysis, AI can generate clips, summaries, transcripts, and searchable video, supports 50+ languages
Cons: Not as laser-focused on meetings as Fathom or Otter, free tier is limited to 3 recordings, requires you to start the recording manually unless you use calendar integration
Transparency note: We built ScreenApp. We included it because it genuinely won on our scoring rubric for teams that need more than just meeting notes (video editing, async updates, training materials). But take our rating with that in mind and try the other tools too.
How to Choose the Right Tool
Pick based on what you actually need:
If you just want free meeting notes with no limits: Use Fathom or tl;dv. Both offer unlimited free recording. Fathom has cleaner summaries. tl;dv is better if you do a lot of user research and want to search across many calls.
If you want to collaborate live during calls: Use Otter.ai. The real-time transcription is the best in the category, and you can assign action items or highlight quotes while the meeting is still happening.
If you need CRM integration for sales: Use Fireflies.ai. It logs everything to Salesforce or HubSpot automatically and gives you conversation intelligence across your pipeline.
If you need video clips for training or product feedback: Use Grain. The clipping workflow is the best we tested. You can pull 30-second clips from hour-long calls and share them with your team in seconds.
If you need meeting notes plus full video workflows: Use ScreenApp. It handles meeting recording, screen recording, transcription, summaries, and video editing in one platform.
What You Get with AI Meeting Notes
Every tool on this list gives you:
- Auto-join: The AI bot joins your scheduled calls automatically
- Transcription: Word-for-word text of everything said, with speaker labels
- Summaries: AI-generated bullet points covering key topics, decisions, and action items
- Search: Find specific moments by keyword or topic
- Sharing: Send notes to teammates or integrate with Slack, Notion, or your CRM
The differences come down to pricing, platform support, and whether you need extras like video clipping, live collaboration, or conversation intelligence.
Recording with ScreenApp
If you want to try ScreenApp for your meetings:
- Sign up free at screenapp.io/features/meeting-recorder and connect your calendar.
- Let it auto-record your next Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams call, or start a manual screen recording.
- Get AI summaries immediately after the call ends, with searchable transcripts and action items.
After the Meeting
Once you have your notes, you might also want:
- AI Summarizer: Turn hour-long recordings into 2-minute summaries
- Video to Document: Export full transcripts with timestamps as PDF or DOCX
- AI Note Taker: Generate structured notes from any video or audio file
FAQ
Which AI meeting notetaker is completely free?
Fathom and tl;dv both offer unlimited free recording and transcription. Fathom has better AI summaries. tl;dv has better multi-meeting search and tagging. Otter.ai has a free tier but limits you to 300 minutes per month.
Can AI notetakers join Google Meet and Microsoft Teams?
Yes. All six tools in this review support Google Meet. Fathom, Otter.ai, Fireflies.ai, Grain, tl;dv, and ScreenApp all work with Microsoft Teams as well. Fireflies also supports Webex and Skype.
Do AI meeting bots record video or just audio?
Most AI notetakers record audio and transcribe it. Fathom is audio-only after the call ends. Otter, Fireflies, Grain, tl;dv, and ScreenApp all save the video so you can replay specific moments or create clips.
How accurate are AI meeting transcriptions in 2026?
Transcription accuracy is 90-95% on clear audio with minimal background noise. Otter.ai and ScreenApp both use advanced speech recognition models that handle accents, technical terms, and multiple speakers well. Accuracy drops if there is heavy background noise, poor microphone quality, or significant cross-talk.
Can I use AI notetakers for Zoom webinars or large meetings?
Yes, but some tools have participant limits on lower-tier plans. Fathom, Otter, and Fireflies all support webinars and large meetings. ScreenApp works with any Zoom meeting size since it records your screen and audio directly.
Do AI meeting notetakers work in languages other than English?
Yes. ScreenApp supports 50+ languages including Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Chinese. Otter.ai supports English, Spanish, and French. Fireflies supports English only. Fathom, Grain, and tl;dv are English-only as of March 2026.
Are AI meeting notes secure and private?
All six tools use encryption in transit and at rest. Fathom, Otter, Fireflies, and ScreenApp are SOC 2 compliant. If you work in a regulated industry (healthcare, finance), check whether the tool offers a BAA (Business Associate Agreement) or GDPR compliance. Otter and Fireflies both offer enterprise plans with enhanced security controls.
Can I edit the AI-generated summaries?
Yes. All tools let you edit the transcript and summaries after the call. Otter.ai is unique in letting you edit the transcript in real-time during the call itself.
FAQ
Fathom and tl;dv both offer unlimited free recording and transcription. Fathom has better AI summaries. tl;dv has better multi-meeting search and tagging. Otter.ai has a free tier but limits you to 300 minutes per month.
Yes. All six tools in this review support Google Meet. Fathom, Otter.ai, Fireflies.ai, Grain, tl;dv, and ScreenApp all work with Microsoft Teams as well. Fireflies also supports Webex and Skype.
Most AI notetakers record audio and transcribe it. Fathom is audio-only after the call ends. Otter, Fireflies, Grain, tl;dv, and ScreenApp all save the video so you can replay specific moments or create clips.
Transcription accuracy is 90-95% on clear audio with minimal background noise. Otter.ai and ScreenApp both use advanced speech recognition models that handle accents, technical terms, and multiple speakers well. Accuracy drops if there is heavy background noise, poor microphone quality, or significant cross-talk.
Yes, but some tools have participant limits on lower-tier plans. Fathom, Otter, and Fireflies all support webinars and large meetings. ScreenApp works with any Zoom meeting size since it records your screen and audio directly.
Yes. ScreenApp supports 50+ languages including Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Chinese. Otter.ai supports English, Spanish, and French. Fireflies supports English only. Fathom, Grain, and tl;dv are English-only as of March 2026.
All six tools use encryption in transit and at rest. Fathom, Otter, Fireflies, and ScreenApp are SOC 2 compliant. If you work in a regulated industry (healthcare, finance), check whether the tool offers a BAA (Business Associate Agreement) or GDPR compliance. Otter and Fireflies both offer enterprise plans with enhanced security controls.
Yes. All tools let you edit the transcript and summaries after the call. Otter.ai is unique in letting you edit the transcript in real-time during the call itself.
