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Software · head to head

Otter.ai vs Fireflies.ai

Otter.ai logo

Otter.ai

Software

Transcription and meeting notes powered by AI

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Fireflies.ai logo

Fireflies.ai

Software

AI note-taking for teams

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Otter.ai two separate limits apply at once, a monthly minute allowance and a per conversation cap, so a long meeting can be cut short with allowance remaining; Fireflies.ai video recording limits by tier: Free tier has 2 hours, Pro tier 2 hours, Business tier 3 hours, Enterprise tier 4 hours
  • They diverge on capability: Otter.ai covers Real-time transcription, Fireflies.ai covers Meeting summaries.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Otter.ai and Fireflies.ai actually diverge.

Attributes where Otter.ai and Fireflies.ai differ
AttributeOtter.aiFireflies.ai
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, MacWeb, iOS, Android, Desktop, Chrome extension
Founded20162018

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Otter.ai

  • Real-time transcription
  • Searchable transcripts
  • Highlights and summaries
  • Sharing
  • Mobile apps
  • Salesforce
  • Encryption
  • Mac support

Only in Fireflies.ai

  • Meeting summaries
  • Action item extraction
  • Search functionality
  • Team sharing
  • Integration APIs
  • HubSpot
  • SOC2
  • Spanish language support

Both cover

  • Automatic transcription
  • Speaker identification
  • Zoom
  • Microsoft Teams
  • Google Meet
  • Slack
  • GDPR compliant
  • Cloud deployment
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support
  • English language support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Otter.ai

  • Transcribing meetings and generating summaries automaticallynot Fireflies.ai
  • Searching and sharing notes from recorded conversationsnot Fireflies.ai

Fireflies.ai

  • Meeting transcription and note-taking across teamsnot Otter.ai
  • AI-powered meeting summaries in 100+ languagesnot Otter.ai
  • Unlimited transcription and AI summaries on paid tiersnot Otter.ai

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Otter.ai

  • Two separate limits apply at once, a monthly minute allowance and a per conversation cap, so a long meeting can be cut short with allowance remaining
  • The free plan cuts off at 30 minutes per conversation and 300 minutes a month
  • The Pro plan still caps a single conversation at 90 minutes
  • Even unlimited plans cap a conversation at 4 hours
  • Imported file transcription has its own separate monthly limit, at 6,000 minutes on Business
  • Paying monthly rather than annually roughly doubles the rate, from $8.33 to $16.99 on Pro

Fireflies.ai

  • Video recording limits by tier: Free tier has 2 hours, Pro tier 2 hours, Business tier 3 hours, Enterprise tier 4 hours
  • Storage quotas on Free and Pro tiers: Free tier limited to 400 minutes per team, Pro tier limited to 8,000 minutes per seat
  • AI credits allocation varies by tier, with lower tiers receiving limited credits for advanced AI features

Pricing, plan by plan

Otter.ai

Free
  • BasicFree
    • 600 minutes transcription
    • 3 searches
    • Basic sharing
  • Pro$10/month
    • 6000 minutes transcription
    • Unlimited searches
    • Team collaboration

Fireflies.ai

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Fireflies.ai review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Otter.ai if

  • You need real-time transcription.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Mac.
  • You also want searchable transcripts.
Otter.ai review

Choose Fireflies.ai if

  • You need meeting summaries.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Desktop, Chrome extension.
  • You also want action item extraction.
Fireflies.ai review

Questions people ask

Is Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai better?
Neither clearly leads. Otter.ai starts at Free and Fireflies.ai at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai?
Otter.ai starts at Free and Fireflies.ai at Free.
Does Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai run on more platforms?
Otter.ai runs on Web, Ios, Android, Mac. Fireflies.ai runs on Web, iOS, Android, Desktop, Chrome extension.
Can I use Otter.ai for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Otter.ai best used for?
Otter.ai is most often used for transcribing meetings and generating summaries automatically, searching and sharing notes from recorded conversations. Of those, transcribing meetings and generating summaries automatically and searching and sharing notes from recorded conversations are not what Fireflies.ai is typically brought in for.
What can Otter.ai do that Fireflies.ai cannot?
Otter.ai covers Real-time transcription, Searchable transcripts, Highlights and summaries, Sharing. Fireflies.ai covers Meeting summaries, Action item extraction, Search functionality, Team sharing. Both handle Automatic transcription, Speaker identification, Zoom, Microsoft Teams.
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Related pages

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