Live transcription
During the meeting, Otter writes what is said as it happens and shows who is speaking. You can reread a sentence you missed without interrupting anyone.
AI tools · Meetings
Otter.ai pricing, use cases, and first steps
Otter is an assistant that listens to your meetings and writes down what is said, word for word, while you talk. At the end, it writes a summary with the action items, and you can ask it questions about the meeting. It understands six languages, including French, but its menus are in English only.
Otter.ai has a free plan. The recommended plan to start with: Basic, $0. Prices checked on October 3, 2026 on the vendor’s official page.
Otter.aiThe note-taker that writes up your meetings live- Vendor
- Otter.ai (United States)
- Free plan
- Yes
- Recommended plan
- Basic, $0
- Page checked on
- October 3, 2026
What Otter.ai does
Who it’s for: people who go from one video call to the next on Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams and want a written record of everything that was said.
The bot that joins your meetings
“Otter Notetaker” joins your Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams meetings as a participant. It posts a link to the live transcript in the chat, then a summary before the end.
The summary and action items
After the meeting, Otter writes a summary, an outline of the discussion, and the list of action items.
Also
- Ask your meetings a question
- Record without a bot from your computer
- Transcribe an audio or video file
- Team channels
- A vocabulary tailored to you
Otter.ai pricing
Otter publishes its prices in dollars. On the French App Store, in-app purchases are shown in euros (Otter Pro: €99.99 per year). 20% discount on Pro for students and teachers.
| Plan | Price | Who it’s for |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Recommended to start | $0 | Exploring, short meetings |
| Pro | $8.33 per user per month, billed yearly ($16.99 billed monthly) | Regular use, small teams |
| Business | $19.99 per user per month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly) | Teams that live in meetings |
| Enterprise | Custom pricing | Large organizations |
What the free plan includes
300 minutes of transcription per month, with 30 minutes at most per conversation. Summaries, action items, 20 questions to “AI Chat” per month, and 3 imported files in total. Only your 25 most recent conversations stay visible: older ones are archived.
Nova’s advice
Start with the free plan to check the quality in French on your real meetings. If your meetings run longer than 30 minutes, the free plan is not enough: take Pro, yearly if you are sure. If most of your meetings are in French, compare before you pay with a tool that recognizes the language on its own.
A first try, in 5 minutes
Your data. Your recordings and transcripts are stored in the United States, and Otter uses them to train its own AI after removing what identifies you.
What it does less well
- Only six languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese. Otter does not detect the language. A meeting that switches from one language to another will be poorly transcribed.
- The interface is in English only, including the settings.
Transcribe a short discussion and read the summaryOtter.ai- Check that the language in “Account Settings” is the one you will speak.
- On the Otter home page, click “Start recording” and allow the microphone.
- Talk for two minutes with a colleague about a real topic: a quote to send, a date to set. The text is written as you watch.
- Stop the recording. Otter prepares the summary and the list of action items.
- Click the chat icon in the right-hand panel (“AI Chat”) and paste the prompt below.
- Proofread: correct proper names and figures before sending anything.
The prompt to copy
Write a short follow-up email in English for the participants: the decisions made, then the action items with an owner and a date for each.
Alternatives to Otter.ai
Fireflies
More than 100 languages, including French, with a bot that also keeps the audio and video.
Granola
Notes with no bot in the call, and without keeping the audio recording.
Fathom
Unlimited recordings and transcripts on the free plan.
tl;dv
A meeting recorder with video clips you can share.
ZoomMate (Zoom AI)
If your meetings already take place in Zoom: the summary is built in.
Read next
Frequently asked questions about Otter.ai
How much does Otter.ai cost?
Basic: $0; Pro: $8.33 per user per month, billed yearly ($16.99 billed monthly); Business: $19.99 per user per month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly); Enterprise: custom pricing. Prices checked on October 3, 2026 on the vendor’s official page.
Can you use Otter.ai for free?
Yes. 300 minutes of transcription per month, with 30 minutes at most per conversation. Summaries, action items, 20 questions to “AI Chat” per month, and 3 imported files in total. Only your 25 most recent conversations stay visible: older ones are archived.
What happens to my data with Otter.ai?
Your recordings and transcripts are stored in the United States, and Otter uses them to train its own AI after removing what identifies you.
What are the alternatives to Otter.ai?
Fireflies: More than 100 languages, including French, with a bot that also keeps the audio and video. Granola: Notes with no bot in the call, and without keeping the audio recording. Fathom: Unlimited recordings and transcripts on the free plan. tl;dv: A meeting recorder with video clips you can share. ZoomMate (Zoom AI): If your meetings already take place in Zoom: the summary is built in.
Official pages consulted
Page checked on October 3, 2026. Brands are named to identify the tools. No affiliation.