Granola and Otter.ai both turn conversations into notes and summaries, but they capture meetings differently. This guide is for anyone who wants AI meeting notes without extra hassle. We compared them using official pages, with prices checked on 2026-11-01.
1
Meeting notes without a bot joining the callGranola
Free to start; paid plans Granola is an AI notepad for capturing and transcribing meetings and other conversations without a meeting bot. It uses your computer or phone audio, then produces searchable notes, summaries, decisions, action items and chat over your notes. It connects to your calendar for scheduled meetings and supports sharing. Because no bot joins, other people on the call don't see an extra participant.
Pick it if you want quiet, bot-free notes from your own device, with decisions and action items pulled out for you.
2
Live transcripts of meetings, interviews and lecturesOtter.ai
Free plan with limits; paid plans Otter.ai records and transcribes meetings, interviews, lectures and other conversations in real time. It creates searchable transcripts, summaries, action items and AI-chat answers. You can record through web, desktop and mobile apps, or through integrations with Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams. Billed annually, Pro works out to $8.49 per user per month.
Pick it if you want a live transcript as people talk, or you record lectures and interviews as well as meetings.
Choose Granola if you dislike bots in your calls and mostly want clean notes, decisions and action items afterwards. Choose Otter if a real-time transcript matters, or you record lectures and interviews too. Both have free plans, so try each with a few real meetings.
