2026 Review

Otter.ai

Veteran AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes, and summarizes calls in real time.

Meetings ProductivityFreemiumAPIPopular70% positive

Facts checked Aug 6, 2026

About Otter.ai

Otter.ai is the longest-running AI meeting notetaker: it joins Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams calls, transcribes them live with speaker identification, and produces summaries, action items, and a searchable archive you can chat with. A free plan covers 300 transcription minutes a month; Pro starts at $16.99/month ($8.33/month billed annually).

At a glance

Founded: 2016
Headquarters: Mountain View, US
Users: 35M+ users (company claim)
Languages: 3
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android, Browser extension

Integrates with

ZoomGoogle MeetMicrosoft TeamsSalesforceHubSpotSlack

Main competitors

Fathom Fireflies.aitl;dvGranola

Best for

Meeting notesSales callsInterviews and researchLecturesTeam knowledge base

Pros

Real-time transcription remains its edge - see and highlight the transcript as the meeting happens
Free plan includes real meeting automation, not just uploads (300 min/month)
Annual Pro at $8.33/mo is among the cheapest paid notetakers
Mature product: mobile apps, Chrome extension, and years of enterprise hardening

Cons

Free and Pro caps are tight: 30- and 90-minute conversation limits, 300/1,200 monthly minutes
Aggressive auto-join and email defaults - the bot showing up uninvited is a common complaint
Trustpilot (3.1) is weak, dominated by billing and cancellation disputes
Transcription-first design; rivals like Fathom give unlimited recording free

Our verdict

Best for: Individuals and teams who live in meetings and want live transcripts plus a searchable long-term archive at a low annual price.

Skip if: You mainly want free unlimited meeting summaries - Fathom's free tier is more generous, and Fireflies.ai is stronger for cross-platform automation.

Our review

Otter invented this category, and it shows in the details: live transcription you can actually read during the call, speaker identification that improves as it learns your team, and an archive that turns years of meetings into a queryable knowledge base. The annual Pro price of $8.33/month is quietly one of the best deals in productivity software, and the free plan still automates real meetings rather than serving as a demo.

The incumbency cuts both ways. Newer rivals rethought the model - Fathom gives away unlimited recording, Granola skips the bot entirely - while Otter still meters minutes and caps conversation length even on paid plans. Its growth tactics also generate friction: the bot auto-joins meetings and emails attendees by default, which reads as spammy in organizations that didn't opt in, and the 3.1 Trustpilot score is heavy with billing and cancellation complaints. English-French-Spanish-only transcription lags far behind Fireflies.ai's multilingual support.

Verdict: still the reference pick for real-time transcription and long-term meeting memory, and excellent value on annual billing. If your need is free unlimited summaries or wide language support, Fathom and Fireflies.ai respectively are the better fits.

What reviewers elsewhere say

70% positive — Praised for live transcription accuracy and ease of use; criticized for tight minute caps, the bot auto-joining meetings uninvited, and billing/cancellation friction on Trustpilot.

G2 4.3 out of 5Trustpilot 3.1 out of 5 (546 reviews)Capterra 4.4 out of 5

Sentiment estimated from reviews on G2, Trustpilot, Capterra, Reddit, as of Aug 2026. Third-party scores are point-in-time snapshots. We don't host user reviews.

Key features

OtterPilot auto-joins Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams calls and transcribes live with speaker ID
AI summaries, action items, and follow-up emails after every meeting
Otter AI Chat: ask questions across your entire meeting archive
Live captions and real-time collaborative highlights during calls
Salesforce and HubSpot sync for sales teams (Business and up)
Enterprise adds SSO, HIPAA compliance add-on, and API access

How to use Otter.ai

Sign up free at otter.ai and connect your Google or Microsoft calendar.
Let OtterPilot auto-join your next Zoom, Meet, or Teams call - or record directly in the mobile app.
Watch the live transcript during the meeting; highlight key moments and assign action items.
Review the AI summary afterward and share it to Slack or email.
Use Otter AI Chat to ask questions across your whole meeting history; upgrade to Pro when you outgrow 300 minutes/month.

Pricing

Deal: 51% off Pro with annual billing

Basic$0

300 transcription minutes/month, 30 min per conversation, 3 lifetime file imports.

Pro$16.99/mo

$8.33/mo billed annually. 1,200 monthly minutes, 90 min per conversation, 10 file imports/month, advanced search and export.

Business$30/mo

$19.99/mo billed annually, per user. Unlimited meeting transcription, 4-hour conversations, 3 concurrent meetings, admin controls.

EnterpriseCustom

SSO/SCIM, HIPAA compliance add-on, OtterPilot for Sales, API access.

Pricing verified August 2026 · prices as listed by the vendor; check the official site for current offers.

Try Otter.ai

Frequently asked questions

What is Otter.ai?

Otter.ai is an AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes meetings in real time across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, then generates summaries and action items. Founded in 2016, it is the most established product in the AI notetaker category, with over 35 million users.

How much does Otter.ai cost?

The free Basic plan includes 300 transcription minutes a month (30 minutes per conversation). Pro costs $16.99/month or $8.33/month billed annually; Business is $30/month or $19.99/month annually per user with unlimited transcription. Enterprise pricing is custom.

Is Otter.ai free?

Yes - the Basic plan is free forever with 300 monthly transcription minutes, 30-minute conversation caps, and 3 lifetime file imports. It's enough for light use, but heavy meeting-goers hit the caps quickly.

Does Otter.ai have an API?

Officially, API access is available only on the Enterprise plan, alongside custom integrations, SSO, and compliance features. There is no self-serve public API on lower tiers.

Otter.ai vs Fathom - which should I choose?

Choose Fathom if you want unlimited free meeting recording and polished summaries. Choose Otter if you value the live in-meeting transcript, mobile recording, and AI chat over a deep searchable archive - especially at the $8.33/month annual price.

What languages does Otter.ai support?

Otter transcribes in English, French, and Spanish. Teams needing broader language coverage should look at Fireflies.ai or Notta, which support far more languages.