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Fireflies.ai vs Otter.ai

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors. Fireflies.ai starts at $10, Otter.ai at $8.33. Both have a free tier. Both ship a public API.

Fireflies.aiMeeting recorder that files notes into your CRMOtter.aiMeeting transcription with per-plan minute and length caps

Side by side

FactFireflies.aiOtter.ai
CategoryMeeting AssistantsMeeting Assistants
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemium
Starts at$10 month$8.33 month
Public APIYesYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, Chrome Ext, API, Slack AppWeb, iOS, Android, Chrome Ext, API
CompanyFireflies.ai Corp.Otter.ai
Launched20162016
Last verifiedSep 6, 2026Sep 6, 2026

What our research says

Fireflies.ai

Unlimited transcription on the free tier is the hook and it is genuinely unlimited — the meter sits on storage and AI credits, which is where any team of real size ends up on a paid seat.

Pros

  • Transcription minutes are unlimited on every tier, including Free
  • API access is not paywalled — it starts on the free plan
  • Pro at $10/seat undercuts most rival meeting assistants
  • Storage becomes unlimited from the $19 Business tier

Cons

  • Monthly billing is about 1.8x the annual rate on Pro and 1.5x on Business
  • AI credits, not transcription, are the real ration — 20 a month on both Free and Pro
  • Free storage is 400 minutes for the entire team, not per person
  • Enterprise is annual-only at $39/seat

Otter.ai

Still the default for English-language meeting notes, and the free tier is unusually usable. What determines the right plan is not features but the per-conversation ceiling: 30 minutes on Basic and 90 on Pro means a standard hour-long review truncates on the free tier and a workshop truncates on Pro. Pick the tier by your longest recurring meeting.

Pros

  • 300 free minutes a month makes evaluation real rather than token
  • Annual Pro at $8.33 is roughly half the month-to-month rate
  • An MCP server is exposed from the free tier, so assistants can query transcripts without the paid API
  • Business removes the minute cap entirely rather than raising it

Cons

  • The API and webhooks require Enterprise, which is quote-only
  • Per-conversation ceilings (30 min free, 90 min Pro) cut recordings mid-meeting
  • Basic allows three file imports in total, not per month
  • Month-to-month pricing is roughly double annual at both self-serve tiers

Which one fits

Choose Fireflies.ai if you need

  • Sales and success teams who want call notes landing in the CRM by themselves
  • Distributed teams searching across months of past meetings
  • Developers pulling meeting data out through an API on any plan

Choose Otter.ai if you need

  • Teams that live in Zoom, Meet or Teams and want notes without a note-taker
  • Accessibility use, where live captions matter as much as the transcript
  • Recruiters and researchers who need searchable interview records across a workspace

More comparisons

All Fireflies.ai alternatives →All Otter.ai alternatives →Browse all Meeting Assistants →