Otter.ai review
- Made by
- Otter.ai, Inc.
- Founded
- 2016 (as AISense), by Sam Liang and Yun Fu
- Headquarters
- Mountain View, California
- Free plan
- Yes: 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation
- Paid plans from
- $8.33/user/month billed yearly, or $16.99 monthly (Pro)
- Platforms
- Web, Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android; joins Zoom, Teams and Google Meet
- Languages
- English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified)
- Security
- SOC 2 Type II; HIPAA as an Enterprise add-on
Otter.ai is an AI transcription and meeting-notes app. It records meetings, lectures and interviews, writes a live transcript with speaker names, and then produces a summary with action items that you can search or question with AI chat. It can join Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet calls as a bot called Otter Notetaker, record in person through its phone apps, or capture your computer's audio through its Mac and Windows desktop app.
Otter ranks fourth in our best AI for meetings ranking, behind Fathom, Granola and Fireflies. This review covers what it does well, where the plan limits bite, how it handles consent and your data, and the class action it has faced since 2025.
Otter is worth it if you record lectures, interviews or in-room meetings and want a live transcript you can follow as people talk. Pro is one of the cheapest paid note takers at $8.33 a month billed yearly. It is weaker value if you mainly want polished summaries of online calls: the free plan caps each conversation at 30 minutes and 300 minutes a month, while Fathom records unlimited calls for free. If recording consent matters to your organisation, read the privacy section first.
Score breakdown
Best for
- Students and teachers recording lectures (20% education discount)
- Journalists and researchers transcribing interviews in person
- Teams that mix in-room meetings with Zoom, Teams and Meet calls
- People on a tight budget who want live transcription
Skip it if
- Anyone who wants unlimited free meeting notes (Fathom's free plan has no minute cap)
- People who dislike a visible bot joining client calls
- Teams whose meetings are in languages Otter does not support
- Small healthcare practices that need HIPAA without an enterprise contract
What we like
- Live transcription with speaker names on phone, web and desktop
- Cheap Pro plan at $8.33 a month billed yearly
- Joins Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, and also records in person
- AI chat plus an MCP server, so ChatGPT or Claude can query your meetings
- Rated 4.8 on both the iPhone App Store and Google Play
Watch out for
- Free plan limits: 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation, only the 25 most recent conversations
- Pro caps meetings at 90 minutes and AI chat at 50 queries a month
- Trains its own AI on de-identified recordings, with no opt-out described in its privacy policy
- Faces a consolidated US class action over recording people without consent
- Only six transcription languages
Key features, explained
Live transcription and speaker labels
Otter writes the transcript as people speak, so you can read along, highlight lines or add comments during a lecture or meeting. It labels speakers by name once you tag their voices, and custom vocabulary (5 terms on Basic, 100 names and 100 other terms on Pro) helps with names and jargon. Transcription works in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Chinese (Simplified), one language per conversation.
Otter Notetaker for online meetings
Connect your Google or Microsoft calendar and Otter Notetaker can join Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls on its own, record them and share a summary afterwards. It appears as a participant and posts a chat message after joining. Basic allows one meeting at a time, Pro two and Business three. You can switch auto-join off and add the bot only to chosen meetings.
Desktop app without a bot
The Mac app gained system-audio recording in late 2025, and a Windows version followed in April 2026. It captures what your computer plays, so it works with any calling app without a bot joining. Otter's CEO told TechCrunch that most enterprise customers still prefer the visible bot because everyone can see it. Without a bot, telling people you are recording is entirely your job.
Summaries, templates and AI chat
After each meeting Otter writes an overview, outline and action items from a template (standard on Basic, advanced on paid plans). AI chat answers questions about one meeting or all of them, and Otter rebuilt it in April 2026 to be private by default. Chat is rationed: 20 queries a month on Basic (3 per conversation), 50 on Pro and 200 on Business and Enterprise.
Phone recording and file imports
The iPhone and Android apps turn your phone into a recorder for lectures, interviews and in-person meetings, with widgets and Siri shortcuts to start quickly. You can also import audio or video files, but imports are tight: 3 in total on Basic, 10 a month on Pro, and unlimited on Business within 6,000 imported minutes per user a month.
Integrations, MCP and API
Pro and above sync notes to Salesforce and HubSpot (1 user on Pro, 5 on Business) and connect to Zapier. Every plan includes Otter's MCP server, which lets ChatGPT, Claude and other assistants read your meeting history. Since April 2026 Otter's AI chat can also pull data from Gmail, Google Drive, Notion, Jira and Salesforce. The Otter API and webhooks are Enterprise only.
Where Otter.ai ranks
Our scores come from our category rankings, where each tool is scored 0–10 on weighted criteria against its rivals.
| Ranking | Listed as | Position | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best AI for Meetings | Otter.ai | #4 of 8 | 8.1 |
| Best AI for Transcription | Otter | #9 of 10 | 7.7 |
| Best AI Productivity Tools | Otter.ai | #11 of 12 | 7.7 |
| Best AI Apps for Android | Otter.ai | #11 of 11 | 7.4 |
What users say about Otter.ai
Reviews split by use. App store users are very positive: Otter holds 4.8 on the iPhone App Store from about 81,000 ratings and 4.8 on Google Play from about 44,000, mostly from people recording lectures, interviews and in-person meetings. Business software reviewers are cooler. On Capterra it scores 4.4 from 103 reviews, with praise for set-and-forget meeting capture and easy playback, but complaints that transcripts slip with accents, cross-talk and noise, and that action items miss the real next steps. On Trustpilot it averages 3.9 from 682 reviews. The most common complaints there are charges after a free trial ended without a reminder and trouble cancelling, while many other reviewers praise quick, friendly support. Several reviewers also find the free limits and AI chat caps restrictive.
Users praise
- Live transcripts you can follow and annotate during a talk
- Set-and-forget meeting capture once the calendar is connected
- Reliable phone recording for lectures and interviews
- Low price for students and individuals
Users complain about
- Accuracy drops with accents, background noise and people talking over each other
- Action items and summaries can feel generic
- Unexpected charges after trials and awkward cancellation
- Tight limits on free minutes, file imports and AI chat
- The bot joining meetings when auto-join is left on
| Review site | Rating | Reviews | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple App Store (US) | 4.8/5 | 81,291 | 2026-09 |
| Google Play (US) | 4.8/5 | 44,344 | 2026-09 |
| Capterra | 4.4/5 | 103 | 2026-09 |
| Trustpilot | 3.9/5 | 682 | 2026-09 |
Ratings are third-party aggregates and change over time. They are context, not part of our score.
Otter.ai has four plans. Basic is free, with 300 transcription minutes a month and a 30-minute cap per conversation. Pro costs $8.33 per user a month billed yearly or $16.99 month to month, with 1,200 minutes and meetings up to 90 minutes. Business costs $19.99 per user a month billed yearly or $30 monthly, with unlimited meetings up to 4 hours each. Enterprise is priced by sales and is the only plan with SSO, the API and the HIPAA add-on.
Most students and individuals only need Pro, especially with the 20% education discount. Teams that record long or back-to-back meetings should choose Business. Prices are in US dollars as shown on Otter's pricing page on 25 September 2026.
| Plan | Price |
|---|---|
| Basic | $0 |
| Pro | $8.33/user/month billed yearly, or $16.99/user/month monthly |
| Business | $19.99/user/month billed yearly, or $30/user/month monthly |
| Enterprise | Custom |
Full Otter.ai pricing breakdown, hidden costs and money-saving tips
Recording consent, privacy and the class action
How other people find out. When Otter Notetaker joins a Zoom, Teams or Meet call, it appears as a participant and posts a message in the meeting chat. Otter's help centre describes a setting that emails attendees before the Notetaker joins meetings it auto-joins. Enterprise admins also get recording-disclaimer emails and a Teams permission page where every attendee must agree to be recorded. The desktop and phone apps record with no bot, so nobody is told unless you tell them.
What Otter does with your data. Otter's privacy policy (updated 16 June 2026) says it trains its own AI on de-identified audio recordings and transcripts. The policy does not describe a way to opt out of that, and it asks users to get permission from other people before sharing their information. Otter has a SOC 2 Type II report and announced HIPAA compliance in July 2025, but HIPAA is available only as an Enterprise add-on with a signed BAA.
The lawsuit. In August 2025 Justin Brewer, a California resident who had never signed up for Otter, sued in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. He said another participant's Otter bot recorded his sales call without his knowledge. The case was combined with others as In re Otter.AI Privacy Litigation. The plaintiffs claim Otter recorded non-users without consent and used the recordings to train its models. On 13 August 2026 Judge Eumi K. Lee dismissed the computer-fraud claims but let the federal Wiretap Act, California Invasion of Privacy Act, Illinois biometric privacy (BIPA), unfair competition and unjust enrichment claims go forward. These are allegations, not findings, and the case continues.
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- July 2025: Otter announced HIPAA compliance, sold as an Enterprise add-on.
- August 2025: the Brewer class action over recording consent was filed.
- Late 2025: the Mac desktop app started recording system audio, so you can capture calls without a bot.
- April 2026: Otter relaunched itself as a 'conversational knowledge engine'. AI chat can now pull data from Gmail, Google Drive, Notion, Jira and Salesforce, the MCP server was expanded, AI chat became private by default, and a Windows desktop app arrived. Otter says it has more than 35 million users.
- August 2026: a federal judge let the core privacy claims in the class action proceed.
How Otter compares with Fathom, Granola and Fireflies
| Otter.ai | Fathom | Granola | Fireflies.ai | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How it records | Bot, desktop app or phone | Bot, or bot-free beta on Mac | Device audio, no bot | Bot, Chrome extension or desktop app |
| Free plan | 300 min a month, 30-min cap | Unlimited recordings | Last 30 days of notes | 400 min of storage |
| Paid from | $8.33/month billed yearly | $16/month billed yearly | $14/user/month | $10/seat/month billed yearly |
| Best at | Live and in-person transcription | Free notes and CRM sync | Polished notes, no bot | Integrations and analytics |
Prices as of 25 September 2026. Read our reviews of Fathom, Granola and Fireflies.
- Turn off auto-join (Account Settings > Meetings) and add Otter Notetaker only to meetings you choose. It stops the bot recording calls you never meant to capture.
- Switch on pre-recording emails for meetings the Notetaker joins, and say at the start of each call that Otter is transcribing. Many US states and most of Europe require everyone's consent.
- Add names, product terms and acronyms to custom vocabulary before important meetings. Basic allows only 5 terms, so this alone can justify Pro for interviews.
- Pick the conversation language before you press record. Otter transcribes one language per conversation, so a mixed meeting needs its main language chosen up front.
- On Basic, remember the 30-minute limit per conversation. For a full lecture, use Pro (90 minutes) or Business (4 hours).
Otter.ai alternatives
Jargon explained
- Meeting bot
- A virtual participant, such as Otter Notetaker, that joins a Zoom, Teams or Meet call to record and transcribe it.
- Live transcription
- Text that appears on screen while people are speaking, rather than after the meeting ends.
- De-identified data
- Data with names and other details that point to a person removed, so it is harder to link back to anyone.
- All-party consent
- A rule in some US states and many countries that everyone in a conversation must agree before it is recorded.
- MCP
- Model Context Protocol, a standard that lets AI assistants such as Claude or ChatGPT read data from other apps, like your meeting notes.
Frequently asked questions
Is Otter.ai free?
Yes. Basic is free and includes 300 transcription minutes a month, up to 30 minutes per conversation, 20 AI chat queries a month and 3 file imports in total. Only your 25 most recent conversations stay available. See our Otter.ai pricing page.
Does Otter.ai join meetings automatically?
It can. Once you connect your calendar, Otter Notetaker can join Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls on its own. You can turn auto-join off, or use the desktop app, which records your computer's audio without a bot.
Is Otter.ai safe to use?
Otter has a SOC 2 Type II report and offers HIPAA on Enterprise. Its privacy policy says it trains its own AI on de-identified recordings and transcripts, and it faces a class action over recording people without consent. Check your company's policy and always tell participants.
What is the Otter.ai lawsuit about?
Plaintiffs in In re Otter.AI Privacy Litigation allege that Otter's bot recorded people who never agreed and that Otter used the data to train its AI. In August 2026 a federal judge let the main wiretap and privacy claims proceed. Nothing has been decided on the merits.
What languages does Otter.ai support?
English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Chinese (Simplified). You choose one language per conversation.
Is Otter better than Fathom?
For in-person recording and live transcripts, yes: Otter has phone apps and Fathom's mobile app is still listed as coming soon. For online calls, Fathom's free plan is more generous, with unlimited recordings. See our Fathom review.
Sources
Every fact on this page comes from public information. Vendor figures are labelled as vendor claims.
- Otter.ai pricing (Otter.ai)
- Otter.ai privacy policy (Otter.ai)
- Otter.ai evolves from AI notetaker to conversational knowledge engine (Otter.ai)
- Otter.ai achieves HIPAA compliance (Otter.ai)
- Otter.ai achieves SOC 2 Type II attestation report (Otter.ai)
- Transcribe conversations in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese or Chinese (Otter.ai Help Center)
- Recording permissions with Otter (Otter.ai Help Center)
- Manage your Otter Notetaker settings (Otter.ai Help Center)
- Otter's new feature lets users search across their enterprise tools (TechCrunch)
- Class-action suit claims Otter AI secretly records private work conversations (NPR)
- In re Otter.AI Privacy Litigation (N.D. Cal. 2026) (FindLaw)
- Court holds that Otter.ai is a third-party eavesdropper (The National Law Review)
- Otter.ai (Wikipedia)
- Otter Transcribe Voice Notes (Apple App Store)
- OtterAI Transcribe Voice Notes (Google Play)
- Otter reviews (Capterra)
- Otter.ai reviews (Trustpilot)
- Fathom pricing (Fathom)
- Fireflies pricing (Fireflies.ai)
- Granola pricing (Granola)
- Read AI pricing (Read AI)
- Notion pricing (Notion)
- Meetily pricing (Meetily)
- Superhuman acquires Fathom, AI notetaker (Business Wire)