AI Productivity · 2026-05-12

What Is the Best Free AI Meeting Assistant?

Compare Otter, Fathom, and Fireflies to find the best free AI note-taker for your meetings.

Introduction

If you are still taking manual notes during Zoom or Teams calls, you are wasting time. AI meeting assistants can join your calls, record the audio, transcribe the conversation, and generate a summary with action items automatically.

Here is a comparison of the top free AI meeting assistants to help you choose.

Step 1: Otter.ai (Best for General Transcription)

Otter is one of the most famous tools. Its free tier offers excellent transcription and a very clean interface for reviewing notes.

• Pros: Great mobile app, easy to search transcripts, good basic summaries.
• Cons: Free tier has strict limits on transcription minutes per month.

Step 2: Fathom (Best for Zoom Users and Zero Limits)

Fathom is highly recommended for Zoom users. Remarkably, its free tier offers unlimited recording and transcription.

• Pros: Unlimited usage on the free tier, highlights feature allows you to mark important moments live, integrates well with HubSpot and Salesforce.
• Cons: Only works with Zoom, Teams, and Meet (no offline audio uploads on free).

Step 3: Fireflies.ai (Best for Search and Integrations)

Fireflies is built for teams. It has a powerful search function that lets you find specific metrics or tasks discussed in past meetings.

• Pros: Excellent search capabilities, good integration with Slack and Notion.
• Cons: The free tier only gives you a limited number of AI summaries.

FAQ

Is it legal to record meetings with AI?

In most places, you must notify participants that they are being recorded. Most AI tools automatically announce their presence when they join the call or send a notification in the chat.

Related Tutorials

• /tutorial/how-to-summarize-meeting-notes-with-ai
• /tutorial/how-to-use-ai-to-plan-your-week