The Otter.ai Alternatives: Free and Paid AI Note Takers Compared
The main Otter.ai alternatives we list are Fireflies.ai, Fathom, Fellow, Granola, Notta, tl;dv, Read AI and Avoma. tl;dv lists a free plan with unlimited recordings, Granola records without a meeting bot, and Fathom and Avoma focus on CRM updates for sales calls. Pick by free-plan limits, bot or no bot, and CRM needs.
Last checked: against our verified listings (each vendor's pricing page was read when its listing was verified; dates are on each tool page). Not affiliated with the companies listed. Based on public information — not tested by us. How we check.
Why people look beyond Otter.ai
One limit comes straight from our Otter.ai listing: free plan caps monthly transcription and limits conversations to 30 minutes; pricing page showed promotional discounts at check time. Teams that want a larger free plan, no bot in the meeting or deeper CRM sync compare other note takers. See also our best AI note taker guide.
Side by side
| Tool | Free option (vendor) | Bot-free recording | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Otter.ai | Basic free plan | Auto-joins calendar meetings | Free plan caps monthly transcription and limits conversations to 30 minutes; pricing page showed promotional discounts at check time. |
| Fireflies.ai | Free plan | Bot auto-joins meetings | Advertised paid prices are annual billing; monthly-billed rates are higher. |
| Fathom | Free forever plan | Bot or bot-free (beta) | Advanced summaries and AI action items need Premium or higher. CRM field sync, deal view and AI coaching scorecards are Business only. Team and Business plans need at least 2 users. Free plan limits are not spelled out on the pricing page. Sign-up with a Gmail/consumer email needs a scheduled Zoom/Meet/Teams meeting within 7 days. |
| Fellow | Free plan: 5 lifetime AI notes and recordings per user | Yes, desktop and mobile apps | Free plan is 5 AI notes and 5 AI recordings per user for the account's lifetime. Team plan caps AI notes at 10 per user per month. CRM integrations need Business; AI-powered CRM field updates need Enterprise (starts at 10 users, contact sales). Sign-up is through Google or Microsoft SSO only. |
| Granola | Basic $0 | Yes, no bot joins | Mostly a note-taking assistant; it drafts follow-ups but does not act autonomously in other systems. |
| Notta | Free: 120 minutes a month, 3 minutes per conversation | Bot, or bot-free via desktop app | Pro and Business prices shown are annual billing only. |
| tl;dv | Free forever: unlimited recordings and transcriptions | Not stated in our listing | Full AI summaries for Zoom need Pro; no native mobile app (auto-recording works on mobile through Zoom, Meet and Teams); follow-ups are drafted for you to review. |
| Read AI | Free: 5 meetings a month, up to 1 hour | Not stated in our listing | Free plan is capped at 5 meetings a month up to 1 hour each, with no playback or file uploads; the Enterprise plan requires 5 or more licenses. |
| Avoma | No free plan; 14-day free trial | Not stated in our listing | No permanent free plan for recording users (viewers are free); intelligence features are paid add-ons. |
Prices and limits are as each vendor listed them when we verified the page; they change, so confirm on the vendor's pricing page.
Pick by situation
- You want the biggest free plan: tl;dv lists unlimited recordings and transcriptions free. Fathom lists a free forever plan, though its pricing page does not spell out the limits.
- You do not want a bot in the meeting: Granola transcribes computer audio without joining as a bot. Fellow captures from its desktop and mobile apps.
- You sell and need CRM updates: Owners, salespeople and small teams who spend the day on video calls and want automatic notes, action items and CRM updates without typing. Avoma automatically updates CRM fields (e.g. MEDDIC, SPICED).
- You want notes across recurring team meetings: Fireflies.ai lists transcription in 100+ languages and task creation after meetings.
- You want a low-cost paid plan: Notta lists Pro at $8.17 a month billed annually; compare with Otter.ai Pro at $8.33 per user per month billed annually.
Recording and privacy: facts only
Whether a tool joins as a visible bot or records quietly from your device changes who knows the call is recorded. Rules on recording consent differ by country and state, so tell participants and read each vendor's privacy page before recording sensitive calls. This is general information, not legal advice.
The tools
| Tool | Best for | Free plan | Easy-Start | Pricing summary (vendor) | Our label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otter.ai | Teams that want every meeting recorded, transcribed and summarized automatically. | Yes | 10/10 | Basic free; Pro $16.99/user/mo billed monthly or $8.33/user/mo billed annually; Business $30/user/mo monthly or $19.99/user/mo annually; Enterprise via demo | Based on public information — not tested |
| Fireflies.ai | Teams that want automatic notes and follow-ups from recurring meetings. | Yes | 10/10 | Free plan; Pro $10/seat/mo billed annually ($18 monthly); Business $19/seat/mo billed annually ($29 monthly); Enterprise $39/seat/mo (annual only) | Based on public information — not tested |
| Fathom | Owners, salespeople and small teams who spend the day on video calls and want automatic notes, action items and CRM updates without typing. | Yes | 10/10 | Free forever plan. Premium $20/user/month ($16 billed annually). Team $19/user/month ($15 annually, 2-user minimum). Business $34/user/month ($25 annually, 2-user minimum). Enterprise: talk to sales. 90-day guarantee per the pricing page. | Based on public information — not tested |
| Fellow | Teams that want AI meeting notes with strong privacy and admin controls, including bot-free recording from the desktop or mobile app. | Yes | 10/10 | Free plan (5 lifetime AI notes/recordings per user). Team $11/user/month ($7 billed annually). Business $23/user/month ($15 annually). Enterprise $25/user/month billed annually, starts at 10 users, via sales. No credit card required to start. | Based on public information — not tested |
| Granola | People in back-to-back meetings who want notes and follow-ups without a meeting bot. | Yes | 10/10 | Free plan (Basic $0); Business $14 per user/mo; Enterprise $35 per user/mo | Based on public information — not tested |
| Notta | Individuals and small teams that want automatic transcripts and notes from calls. | Yes | 10/10 | Free plan (120 transcription minutes/month, up to 3 minutes per conversation); Pro $8.17/mo ($97.99/yr) and Business $16.67/user/mo ($199.99/yr) billed annually; Enterprise (51+ seats) contact sales | Based on public information — not tested |
| tl;dv | Sales and customer teams that want free meeting recordings plus automatic notes in their CRM. | Yes | 8/10 | Free forever plan (unlimited recordings and transcriptions, AI meeting summaries, no credit card); Pro €29/seat/month (€18/seat/month billed yearly); Business €39/seat/month (€29/seat/month billed yearly) | Based on public information — not tested |
| Read AI | Teams that want automatic meeting notes and follow-ups. | Yes | 10/10 | Free plan (5 meetings/month, up to 1 hour); Pro $15/user/mo billed annually ($19.75 monthly); Enterprise $22.50/user/mo annually ($29.75 monthly, 5+ licenses); Enterprise+ $29.75/user/mo annually ($39.75 monthly) | Based on public information — not tested |
| Avoma | Sales and customer success teams that want automatic call notes and CRM updates. | No | 6/10 | Startup $19/recorder seat/mo billed annually ($29 monthly); Organization $39/mo monthly (annual price shown inconsistently as $24 or $29); Enterprise $39/mo billed annually only; viewers free; 14-day free trial | Based on public information — not tested |
Frequently asked questions
Is Otter.ai free?
Yes, there is a free Basic plan, but it is limited. Our listing notes that it caps monthly transcription and limits each conversation to 30 minutes. Paid plans start with Pro at $16.99 per user per month billed monthly, or $8.33 per user per month billed annually. Confirm current limits on otter.ai/pricing.
Is Otter.ai private?
We cannot rate privacy for you. Otter publishes its own privacy and security information, so read it before you record client or sensitive calls. If you want to avoid a meeting bot joining the call, Granola and Fellow list bot-free capture, and Fathom and Notta list a bot-free option.
Which AI transcriber is considered the best?
There is no single best. It depends on whether you need a generous free plan (tl;dv lists unlimited recordings on its free plan), bot-free recording (Granola), or CRM updates for a sales team (Fathom, Avoma). We have not tested any of them, so compare against your own meetings.
Do I need permission to record a meeting with an AI note taker?
Recording and consent rules differ by country and state. The safe habit is to tell everyone on the call that it is being recorded and transcribed, and to follow your local rules. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources: otter.ai/pricing, fireflies.ai/pricing, fathom.ai/pricing, fellow.ai/pricing, granola.ai/pricing, notta.ai/pricing, tldv.io/pricing, read.ai/pricing, avoma.com/pricing. Get the weekly newsletter for new tools.
