Guides: recording, transcribing and taking notes in meetings
Last updated
Practical guides to meetings: what the big platforms can record and transcribe on their own, how to do it on a Mac without a bot in the call, when recording is allowed, and what the well-known AI note takers cost once you read past the free plan. Every number is dated and sourced. For templates to write the minutes afterwards, see the meeting minutes templates.
The guides are written for people who take notes in client calls, interviews and internal meetings and want to know the rules before they press record.
Choosing an AI note taker
The well-known AI note takers side by side: how each records your meeting, what the free plan covers and what it costs.
Record and transcribe meetings
What Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams can record and transcribe themselves, who's allowed to, and how to do it on a Mac without a bot.
- Record a Google MeetMeet's built-in recording needs a paid Workspace plan and notifies everyone; here's how it works and how to record locally on a Mac instead.
- Google Meet transcriptionMeet's Transcripts and Gemini notes need a paid Workspace edition and live in the organiser's Drive; here's how they work and how to transcribe locally instead.
- Record a Zoom meetingZoom's local and cloud recording, who can start them, what participants see, and how to record a Zoom call on a Mac without a bot.
- Zoom transcriptionZoom's cloud audio transcript, live captions and AI Companion summaries, which plans have them, and how to transcribe a Zoom call on a Mac.
- Record a Teams meetingTeams' own recording (who can start it, where it lands, when it expires), and how to record on a Mac when the button is greyed out.
- Teams transcriptionLive transcripts, transcripts with recordings and the Copilot recap in Teams: who can start them, where they're stored, and a local alternative on a Mac.
- AI note taker for TeamsWhat Teams does itself, why note-taking bots wait in the lobby, and taking AI notes on a Mac without one.
Transcribe audio and video files
Getting a transcript from a recording you already have, on your Mac, without uploading it anywhere.
- Transcribe audio to text on MacWhat macOS can transcribe on its own, what an upload service asks of you, and how to turn an MP3 or WAV into a transcript without it leaving the Mac.
- Transcribe video to text on MacTurn an MP4, MOV or screen recording into a transcript on a Mac, and know when you want subtitles instead.
- Transcribe a voice memo on MacUse Apple's own transcription first, get iPhone memos onto the Mac with iCloud, and know what to do when the Transcription button isn't there.
- Podcast transcriptTranscribe an episode on your Mac, then turn the text into show notes, chapters, quotes and a transcript page listeners and search engines can read.
- Interview transcriptionHow to transcribe a research or journalism interview on a Mac, which verbatim style to use, and how to keep the recording private.
Alternatives to AI note takers
Why people move away from the well-known meeting bots, and what the alternatives cost.
- Otter AI alternativesWhy people look for an alternative to Otter, what it costs, and bot-free options with their prices.
- Fireflies alternativesWhy people look for an alternative to Fireflies, what it costs, and bot-free options with their prices.
- Fathom AI alternativesWhy people look for an alternative to Fathom, what it costs, and bot-free options with their prices.
- Read AI alternativesWhy people look for an alternative to Read AI, what it costs, and bot-free options with their prices.
- Granola AI alternativesWhy people look for an alternative to Granola, what it costs, and bot-free options with their prices.
What AI note takers cost
Every plan and every free-plan limit, taken from the vendors’ own pricing pages and dated.
- Otter AI pricingOtter’s plans and prices, where the free plan stops, and what it does with your meetings.
- Fireflies pricingFireflies’s plans and prices, where the free plan stops, and what it does with your meetings.
- Fathom AI pricingFathom’s plans and prices, where the free plan stops, and what it does with your meetings.
- Read AI pricingRead AI’s plans and prices, where the free plan stops, and what it does with your meetings.
- Granola AI pricingGranola’s plans and prices, where the free plan stops, and what it does with your meetings.
Recording and consent
When you may record a meeting, who you have to tell, and what to do with the recording afterwards.
Meeting bots
Removing note-taking bots from calls you host or join.
- Remove meeting botsStop Read AI, Otter and Fireflies from joining Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, and block bots when you host.
- Remove Read AI from Google MeetTake Read AI out of a Meet call, stop it rejoining from someone’s calendar, and keep bots out of calls you host.
- Stop Fireflies joining meetingsTurn off Fireflies’ auto-record, invite it only when you want it, and remove it from a call that has already started.
- Stop Otter joining meetingsSwitch Otter’s auto-join to manual, remove it from a live call with “stop otter”, and disconnect or delete it for good.
In Dutch: notulen voorbeeld and mag je een vergadering opnemen.
Questions
Where do the prices and platform rules come from?
From the vendors’ own pricing, help and privacy pages, listed under Sources at the end of each guide and checked on the “Last updated” date shown at the top. Vendors change plans often, so follow the links before you decide.
Why don’t the guides rank the tools?
Because QuietNote is one of them. The guides describe what each tool does, what it costs and where your meeting data goes, and leave the ranking to you.
Do the recording guides apply to Windows?
The platform sections (what Google Meet, Zoom and Teams can record themselves) apply everywhere. The local recording steps are written for a Mac, because that is where QuietNote runs. A Windows version is in progress.
Is the consent guide legal advice?
No. It explains the common rules (one-party and all-party consent, GDPR’s requirements for businesses) with sources, so you know what to ask. For your own situation, ask a lawyer.