Otter.ai vs Fireflies.ai vs Notion AI (2026)
Pricing confirmed: Otter Pro = $8.33/user/month annual (not $16.99 — that's monthly). Fireflies Pro = $10/seat/month annual (not $18). New: Otter quietly cut Pro's included minutes from 6,000 to 1,200/month. Corrected: Fireflies' AI credits are a one-time team-pooled grant, not a recurring $5/user/month add-on as often described.
Find yourself first
Teams wanting automated meeting notes
All three cover transcription + summaries; the pricing model and bot behavior differ sharply.
Sales teams
Needing CRM auto-logging from calls. Fireflies' Business plan leads here.
Notion users
Wondering if they can replace Otter with Notion AI. It's the only bot-free option here.
Anyone checking real annual pricing
Not the monthly rate — the gap is 40-50% on both Otter and Fireflies.
Remote teams
Needing multi-platform support. Fireflies' 100+ languages leads here clearly.
Privacy-conscious teams
Who don't want a visible bot joining their meetings. Notion AI records system audio instead.
What's new since the last check
The 10-second answer
Otter.ai
Free (300 min/month). Pro $8.33/user/mo annual — now capped at 1,200 min/mo (down from 6,000). OtterPilot AI joins meetings, live captions, speaker ID. 2026: Sales Agent and Recruiting Agent on Enterprise.
Free → $8.33/mo (1,200 min cap)Fireflies.ai
Free (800 min storage). Pro $10/seat/mo annual — unlimited transcription, 8,000 min storage. 100+ languages. AI credits (AskFred, AI Skills) are a one-time team-pooled grant, not a monthly per-user add-on.
Free → $10/mo (unlimited transcription)Notion AI
AI Meeting Notes add-on $8/user/mo annual. Key differentiator: records system audio — no visible bot joins your meeting. Transcripts and action items live directly in your Notion workspace.
Add-on $8/mo annual + Notion planMatch your situation
| Your situation | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You want live captions and real-time transcription during a meeting | Otter.ai | Only one here with true real-time transcription + live meeting chat. |
| You need meeting notes auto-logged to HubSpot or Salesforce | Fireflies.ai Business | Native CRM integrations on Business plan ($19/seat/mo annual). |
| You use Notion and don't want a bot visible in your meeting | Notion AI | Records system audio locally — no bot joins your call. |
| You need more than 1,200 minutes/month of transcription | Fireflies Pro | Unlimited transcription (8,000 min storage) vs Otter Pro's newly-capped 1,200 min. |
| You want conversation intelligence and talk-time analytics | Fireflies.ai Business | Talk-to-listen ratio, sentiment analysis, meeting analytics on Business plan. |
| You need transcription in many languages | Fireflies.ai | 100+ languages vs Otter's narrow English-centric support. |
| You want Fireflies' AskFred AI chatbot for searching past meetings | Fireflies.ai — check credit balance | Included one-time team credits (20 on Pro) — budget top-ups for heavy use. |
What will your team actually cost?
All three charge per user/seat. Drag to set team size and select plan tier. Annual billing saves significantly. Notion AI total = Notion workspace plan + AI add-on.
Otter Pro annual = $8.33/mo (1,200 min/mo cap) · Business = $19.99/mo (unlimited live meetings, 6,000 min/mo imported files). Fireflies Pro annual = $10/mo (unlimited transcription, 8,000 min storage) · Business = $19/mo. Notion AI = Notion plan (Plus $10 or Business $15) + AI add-on $8/user/mo annual. Prices verified July 2026.
The numbers that matter
quietly reduced without a price change
$16.99 is the monthly billing rate
$18 is monthly. Unlimited transcription
team-pooled grant, not $5/user/month recurring
vs Otter's narrow English-centric support
records system audio — nothing joins the call
Three tools, three philosophies
Otter.ai — Real-Time Transcription, Now With a Tighter Cap
Free → $8.33/mo annual (1,200 min cap)Best live transcription, speaker ID, OtterPilot AI agent. Real-time captions during meetings — but Pro's included minutes shrank in 2026.
- Best real-time transcription — live captions during active meetings
- OtterPilot joins as a bot, provides live meeting Q&A and chat
- Speaker identification — distinguishes different voices
- Pro $8.33/mo annual = cheapest paid entry of the three
- 2026: Sales Agent and Recruiting Agent on Enterprise plan
- Pro's transcription allowance was quietly cut from 6,000 to 1,200 min/month — same price
- CRM integrations (HubSpot, Salesforce) on Business/Enterprise only — not Pro
- Language support is narrow — English-centric vs Fireflies' 100+
- Business plan's "unlimited" covers live meetings only — imported files still capped at 6,000 min
Fireflies.ai — CRM Integration and Genuinely Unlimited Transcription
Free → $10/seat/mo annualBest CRM integration, conversation intelligence, 100+ languages. AI credits mechanism is more team-friendly than often described.
- Best CRM integration — auto-logs calls to HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho (Business+)
- Genuinely unlimited transcription on Pro and above — no monthly minute cap like Otter now has
- 100+ languages supported for transcription
- Conversation intelligence: talk ratio, sentiment, topic tracking (Business+)
- AI credits are pooled at the team level, not per-user — more efficient for larger teams
- AskFred chatbot and AI Skills draw from a limited one-time credit pool — heavy use requires topping up
- Free plan storage: 800 minutes total — fills up with regular meeting volume
- CRM integrations and video recording require Business plan ($19/seat/mo annual)
- Pro storage capped at 8,000 minutes — old recordings age out after several months of heavy use
Notion AI Meeting Notes — No-Bot Transcription Inside Your Workspace
$8/user/mo add-on annual + Notion planNo bot joins your meeting. Records system audio. Summaries and action items live in your Notion workspace.
- No bot joins your meeting — records system audio silently (unique approach)
- Works with Zoom, Google Meet, Teams without bot notification
- Meeting notes live directly in Notion — no tool switching
- Action items, summaries, follow-up emails generated automatically
- AI add-on $8/user/mo annual — available on any Notion plan
- Requires a Notion workspace subscription in addition to the AI add-on
- No CRM auto-logging — can't push to HubSpot/Salesforce automatically
- No real-time live captions during meetings
- Limited to 16 languages (vs Fireflies' 100+)
Strengths at a glance
| Criteria | Otter.ai | Fireflies.ai | Notion AI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pro annual (corrected) | $8.33/mo — but now 1,200 min/mo cap | $10/mo — unlimited transcription | $8/user + Notion plan required |
| Real-time captions | Best — live transcription | Post-meeting only | Post-meeting summary only |
| CRM integration | Business/Enterprise only | Business plan+ — HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho | No native CRM logging |
| Languages | Narrow — English-centric | Best — 100+ | 16 languages |
| Bot visibility | OtterPilot bot visible | Fireflies bot visible | No bot — system audio only |
| AI credits clarity | No credit system — flat plans | One-time team pool, not per-user monthly | No credit system — flat add-on |
🟢 STRONG · 🟠 ACCEPTABLE WITH CAVEATS · 🔴 WEAK / WATCH OUT
Feature by feature
| Feature | Otter.ai | Fireflies.ai | Notion AI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | ⚡ 300 min/month, 30 min/conversation cap | ✓ 800 min storage + unlimited bot transcription | ⚡ AI add-on on Free Notion plan ($8/mo or $10/mo) |
| Pro annual price (confirmed) | ✓ $8.33/user/mo annual — cheapest here, but capped at 1,200 min/mo | $10/seat/mo annual — genuinely unlimited transcription | AI add-on $8/user/mo annual + Notion plan required |
| Real-time live captions | ✓ Best — live transcription during active meeting | ✗ Post-meeting transcription only | ✗ Post-meeting summary only |
| CRM integration | ⚡ Business/Enterprise plan only | ✓ Business plan ($19/mo annual) — HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho | ✗ No native CRM auto-logging |
| Bot visibility | ⚡ OtterPilot bot visible in meeting | ⚡ Fireflies bot visible in meeting | ✓ No bot — records system audio silently |
| AI chatbot / search | ✓ AI meeting assistant included | ⚡ AskFred draws from one-time team credit pool | ✓ Notion AI search across all meetings |
| Languages | Narrow — English primary + few others | ✓ 100+ languages — best here | 16 languages supported |
| Notes live in workspace | ⚡ Otter app — separate from other tools | ⚡ Fireflies app — integrates via sync | ✓ Native Notion — summaries in your workspace |
Every plan, verified
The most common mistake in comparing these tools is using the monthly billing rate as the "standard" price. Otter Pro is $8.33/user/month on annual billing — $16.99/month is only charged when billing monthly. Same for Fireflies: $10/seat/month annual vs $18/month monthly.
| Plan | Otter.ai | Fireflies.ai | Notion AI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 300 min/month · 30 min/conversation cap | 800 min storage · unlimited bot transcription · 20 one-time AI credits | AI add-on available on Free Notion plan · $8/user/mo annual or $10 monthly |
| Pro entry (annual) | ✓ $8.33/user/mo annual ($99.96/yr) — but only 1,200 min/mo (down from 6,000) | $10/seat/mo annual ($120/yr) · unlimited transcription · 8,000 min storage | Notion Plus $10 + AI add-on $8 = $18/user/mo annual total |
| Pro monthly billing | $16.99/user/mo (monthly) — pay annual to save 51% | $18/seat/mo (monthly) — pay annual to save 44% | Notion Plus $10 + AI $10 = $20/user/mo monthly |
| Business tier (annual) | $19.99/user/mo annual ($30 monthly) · unlimited live meetings, 6,000 min/mo imported files · CRM | $19/seat/mo annual ($29 monthly) · unlimited storage + video · CRM + analytics | Notion Business $15 + AI add-on $8 = $23/user/mo annual |
| AI credits/add-on structure | N/A — no credit system | One-time team pool: Free/Pro 20, Business 30, Enterprise 50. Top-ups from ~$5/50 credits, team-shared. | Flat $8/user/mo — no credit system |
| Watch out for | Pro's minute allowance shrank to 1,200/mo without a price cut. CRM integrations only on Business/Enterprise. | AskFred/AI Skills draw from a limited one-time pool, not unlimited — budget top-ups for heavy use. Free storage fills fast. | Total cost = Notion plan + AI add-on. Only cost-effective if your team already uses Notion. |
Choose by fit
Choose Otter.ai if…
- You want live captions and real-time transcription during meetings
- 1,200 minutes/month comfortably covers your meeting volume
- OtterPilot meeting bot + live Q&A is valuable to your team
- You want Sales Agent or Recruiting Agent (Enterprise)
- You need CRM integration — budget for Business plan ($19.99/mo annual)
Choose Fireflies.ai if…
- Auto-logging calls to HubSpot/Salesforce is the priority
- You have globally distributed teams needing 100+ language support
- You need genuinely unlimited transcription, not a monthly minute cap
- Conversation intelligence (talk ratio, sentiment) is valuable
- You want unlimited bot transcription on the free plan for evaluation
Choose Notion AI Meeting Notes if…
- Your team already uses Notion — adding AI add-on is only $8/user/mo annual
- You don't want a visible bot joining your meetings
- Meeting notes integrated into your existing workspace matters
- You don't need CRM auto-logging or real-time captions
- Sensitive conversations where bot presence is undesirable
Match the tool to your job
Cheapest paid (annual)
Otter Pro $8.33/mo$16.99/mo = monthly billing. But now capped at 1,200 min/mo.
Unlimited transcription
Fireflies Pro $10/moNo monthly minute cap, unlike Otter Pro's new 1,200 min limit.
CRM auto-logging
Fireflies Business $19/moHubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho on Business plan annual.
No bot in meeting
Notion AISystem audio recording — no visible bot joins.
Real-time live captions
Otter.aiOnly tool with live transcription during the meeting.
100+ language support
Fireflies.aiBest multilingual transcription for global teams.
Notes in Notion workspace
Notion AISummaries and action items live natively in Notion.
Conversation intelligence
Fireflies BusinessTalk ratio, sentiment, topic tracking on Business plan.
Generous free evaluation
Fireflies FreeUnlimited bot transcription on free plan (800 min storage).
What vendors won't lead with
✂️ Otter.ai — Pro's minutes were quietly cut in half (then in half again)
Otter Pro used to include 6,000 transcription minutes/month. It's now capped at 1,200/month — the same $16.99/$8.33 price point, dramatically less included usage. Heavy users who assumed "Pro means basically unlimited" will hit this wall fast; budget for Business if your team runs frequent long meetings.
📁 Otter.ai — "unlimited" on Business has a footnote
Business plan removes the cap on live in-app meeting transcription, but imported/uploaded audio and video files remain capped at 6,000 minutes/user/month. If your workflow involves transcribing pre-recorded files regularly, this limit still applies even on the top non-Enterprise tier.
💳 Fireflies.ai — AI credits are one-time and team-pooled, not a per-user monthly fee
Contrary to how this is sometimes described, Fireflies' own documentation confirms AI credits (for AskFred and AI Skills) are granted once per plan tier and shared across your whole team — not a recurring $5/user/month charge. This is actually more efficient for larger teams, but it also means credits don't scale automatically as you add teammates — budget for top-up bundles if usage is heavy.
💾 Fireflies.ai — free plan storage fills up fast
800 minutes total storage (not monthly) is exhausted within 4-6 weeks for teams with 5-10 meetings per week. Storage, not transcription, is the free plan's real constraint.
🌐 Otter.ai — narrower language support than assumed
Otter's transcription is strongest in English, with more limited support for other languages compared to Fireflies' clearly-documented 100+ languages. Global or multilingual teams should verify Otter covers their specific languages before committing.
📓 Notion AI — total cost = Notion plan + AI add-on
Notion AI Meeting Notes requires both a Notion workspace plan AND the AI add-on. Notion Plus is $10/user/month annual + AI add-on $8/user/month annual = $18/user/month total. If your team doesn't already use Notion, this is more expensive than Otter Pro.
Quick answers
Otter.ai has a free plan (300 min/month), Pro at $8.33/user/month annual (or $16.99/month on monthly billing), Business at $19.99/user/month annual (or $30/month monthly), and Enterprise at custom pricing. Important update: Pro's included transcription minutes were quietly cut from 6,000 to 1,200/month in 2026 without a price change — budget accordingly if you're a heavy user.
It depends on usage. Each plan includes a one-time pool of AI credits shared across your whole team (Free/Pro: 20, Business: 30, Enterprise: 50) — not a recurring monthly per-user fee as sometimes described. Basic transcription, notes, and recap emails are NOT charged in credits. Only AskFred queries, AI Skills templates, and certain advanced summaries draw from the credit pool. Heavy users can purchase additional credit bundles starting around $5 for 50 credits, shared across the team.
Notion AI Meeting Notes records your computer's system audio directly — it does NOT send a bot into your meeting. This means no bot notification in Zoom, Meet, or Teams. It transcribes and generates summaries, action items, and follow-ups directly in your Notion workspace. It requires the Notion AI add-on ($8/user/month annual) on any Notion plan.
For teams already on Notion, yes for basic use cases: transcription, summaries, action items, and workspace-integrated notes. Not for: real-time live captions (Otter only), CRM auto-logging (Fireflies Business), conversation intelligence analytics, or 100+ language support (Fireflies). The total cost also needs to account for the Notion plan + AI add-on combo.
On annual billing: Otter Pro = 10 × $8.33 = $83.30/month, but capped at 1,200 minutes/user/month. Fireflies Pro = 10 × $10 = $100/month with genuinely unlimited transcription. Notion Plus + AI = 10 × $18 = $180/month (includes full Notion workspace). If your team needs only meeting notes and fits within Otter's minute cap, Otter Pro is cheapest. If you need unlimited transcription or already pay for Notion, the calculus shifts.
Yes — the included transcription minutes on Pro were cut from 6,000/month to 1,200/month, confirmed by multiple independent sources tracking Otter's pricing page through 2026. The price stayed the same ($16.99 monthly / $8.33 annual), meaning the effective value per dollar decreased. Heavy users who relied on the higher allowance should reassess whether Pro or Business now fits their actual usage.
Ready to choose your AI meeting notes tool?
All three offer free plans. Test before committing to annual billing.