Illustration by OneAppleFall. Not official logos or product screenshots.
Researched October 24, 2026
AI note-takers have become a standard part of client calls and team meetings: a bot joins your Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams call, transcribes it, and sends a summary with action items afterwards. Otter, Fireflies and Fathom are three of the best-known options, and all three offer a free plan. The differences show up in the limits: how many minutes you get, how many meetings get the good AI summaries, whether you can upload recordings, and what a whole team pays.
Quick answer: Fathom has the most generous free plan for live calls (unlimited recording and transcription, with limited advanced AI summaries), but it doesn’t transcribe uploaded files. [3][5][7] Otter gives 300 free minutes a month and is the only one of the three with a low-cost individual plan from about $8.33 a month billed annually. [1] Fireflies is often the cheapest per seat for teams on annual billing (about $10 per seat on Pro, as reported by pricing guides), with the widest language list. [2][4] For a 5-person team on annual billing, expect roughly $40 to $125 a month depending on the tool and plan.
This is a researched comparison based on each company’s published pricing and help pages, checked October 24, 2026, plus third-party pricing guides where noted. We have not tested these tools and we don’t score them. Prices change often; check before you buy.
Free plans compared
| Otter Basic | Fireflies Free | Fathom Free | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meeting transcription | 300 minutes a month per user [1] | Unlimited transcription, with limited storage (reported as 400 minutes per team) [4] | Unlimited recordings and transcription [3][5] |
| Longest meeting | 30 minutes per conversation [1] | Not limited by meeting length (storage is the cap) [4] | Not stated as a limit [3] |
| AI summaries | Summaries; 20 AI chat questions a month [1] | Summaries; a one-time pool of 20 AI credits [4] | Advanced summaries for 5 calls a month, then a basic template [5] |
| Upload a recording | 3 files in total (lifetime) [1] | Supported; bulk uploads are rate-limited [2] | No: live calls only [7] |
| Video recording | Not on Basic [1] | Not on Free, according to pricing guides [4] | Included [3] |
Paid plans and per-user prices
| Per user, per month | Otter | Fireflies (reported) | Fathom |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual plan | Pro: $8.33 billed annually, or $16.99 monthly [1] | Pro: about $10 billed annually, or $18 monthly [4] | Premium: $16 billed annually, or $20 monthly [3] |
| Team plan | Business: $19.99 billed annually, or $30 monthly [1] | Business: about $19 billed annually, or $29 monthly [4] | Team: $15 billed annually, or $19 monthly (2-user minimum) [3] |
| Top self-serve plan | Enterprise: custom [1] | Enterprise: about $39, annual only [4] | Business: $25 billed annually, or $34 monthly (2-user minimum) [3] |
Otter’s page also showed promotional prices below these list prices when we checked; we have used the standard figures. [1] Fireflies’ official pricing page did not display its price table to our research tools, so its prices here come from a pricing guide by Claap, a competing note-taker, updated October 9, 2026. [4]
What a 5-person team pays (annual billing)
| Plan choice | Monthly cost for 5 users |
|---|---|
| Otter Pro (individual plans for each person) | about $42 [1] |
| Fireflies Pro | about $50 [4] |
| Fathom Team | about $75 [3] |
| Fireflies Business | about $95 [4] |
| Otter Business | about $100 [1] |
| Fathom Business | about $125 [3] |
Team plans usually add shared workspaces, admin controls and integrations, so compare features as well as price.
Key differences
| Otter | Fireflies | Fathom | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meeting platforms | Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet [1] | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams [4] | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Slack huddles [5] |
| Languages | English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese [1] | English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Italian, plus 100+ in beta [2] | 38 languages, according to Laxis; older guides say 25+ [5] |
| CRM integrations | Salesforce, HubSpot and Zapier on Pro and above [1] | CRM and app integrations on paid plans [2] | CRM sync (HubSpot, Salesforce); field-level sync on Business [3] |
| Uploading old recordings | Limited on Basic and Pro (10 a month on Pro) [1] | Yes [2] | No [7] |
| Compliance options | HIPAA add-on on Enterprise [1] | HIPAA and FERPA agreements on Enterprise with private storage [2] | Not covered here |
Which one fits your team?
| If you… | Consider | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Want a free note-taker for many live calls | Fathom | Unlimited free recording and transcription of live calls. [3][5] |
| Need to transcribe recordings you already have | Otter or Fireflies | Fathom only works on live calls. [7] |
| Work alone and want a cheap paid plan | Otter Pro | From about $8.33 a month billed annually. [1] |
| Run a small team on a budget | Fireflies Pro or Fathom Team | About $10 and $15 per user a month on annual billing. [3][4] |
| Need many languages | Fireflies | Five main languages plus 100+ in beta. [2] |
| Work in healthcare | Check the Enterprise plans | HIPAA options are Enterprise-level for Otter and Fireflies. [1][2] |
If you only need to transcribe a recording occasionally and don’t want a bot in your meetings, a free in-browser tool such as OneAppleFall’s AI Video Transcriber keeps the file on your own device (disclosure: it is made by OneAppleFall). See our guide to transcribing a video to text for free.
Before you add a bot to client calls: consent
Note-takers record calls. US federal law sets a one-party consent minimum, but about a dozen states, including California, Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Washington, require everyone on a call to agree to recording. [6] With clients in several states, the cautious approach is to assume the stricter rule applies. [6]
Practical steps:
- Mention the note-taker in your meeting invitation.
- Say at the start of the call that it is being recorded and transcribed.
- Let attendees ask for the bot to be removed.
- Check where recordings are stored and who can see them.
- Review summaries before sending them: AI can attribute a comment to the wrong person or invent a commitment nobody made.
For more on recording-consent rules, see our guide to AI receptionists for small businesses.
Questions
Which AI note-taker has the best free plan?
For live calls, Fathom: unlimited recording and transcription, with advanced summaries on 5 calls a month. Otter’s free plan gives 300 minutes a month with a 30-minute limit per meeting. [1][3][5]
Is Otter or Fireflies cheaper?
For individuals on annual billing, Otter Pro is about $8.33 a month and Fireflies Pro about $10. For teams, Fireflies Business (about $19) and Otter Business ($19.99) are close. [1][4]
Can Fathom transcribe a recording I already have?
No. Fathom works on live Zoom, Google Meet and Teams calls, not uploaded files. [7]
Do AI note-takers work with Microsoft Teams?
Yes. Otter, Fireflies and Fathom all support Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams. [1][4][5]
Is it legal to record meetings with an AI note-taker?
It depends on where participants are. Some states require everyone’s consent, so announce the recording and get agreement. This is not legal advice. [6]
Sources
- Otter: Pricing
- Fireflies: Pricing and FAQ
- Fathom: Pricing
- Claap: Fireflies pricing 2026, Free, Pro, Business, Enterprise
- Laxis: Fathom review
- Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press: Introduction to the Reporter’s Recording Guide
- Kiolo: Fathom transcription, how it works, what’s free and its limits
