In short
Apple Notes on a Mac can record audio into a note and transcribe it, and with Apple Intelligence it can summarise the transcript. The Phone app on a Mac can record phone calls into Notes, with an audio notice to both sides.
For an in-person meeting, a lecture or a phone call, that may be everything you need, and it is already on your Mac.
What Notes does not describe is recording the sound other apps play. On a Zoom, Teams or Meet call with headphones on, the microphone hears only you. A meeting notetaker adds the other side of the call, keeps the two apart, and organises notes per meeting.
This guide describes Apple's features from Apple's own user guides as of September 2026. Apple's guides now cover several macOS versions; check the one for yours.
What Apple Notes does
From Apple's Notes user guide for Mac (Record and transcribe audio in Notes):
- Record and transcribe. "Record audio and have the spoken words transcribed in a note." The recording sits in the note alongside your text, checklists and documents.
- Requirements. A Mac with an M1 chip or later.
- Languages. English (several regions), Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified and Traditional Chinese.
- Summaries. Apple Intelligence can generate a summary of the transcript, where available.
- Source. The guide describes recording from the microphone. It does not mention capturing system audio or calls in other apps.
What the Phone app on a Mac does
From Apple's Phone app user guide for Mac (Record a call):
- Call Recording is started from the More button during a call.
- "Both call participants hear an audio notice that the call is being recorded."
- "Call recordings are automatically saved to a Call Recordings folder in the Notes app."
- With Apple Intelligence you can get a summary of a recorded call.
- Apple says to check availability for your language and region, and "make sure the other call participant is willing to be recorded."
This covers calls made in the Phone app. The guide does not describe recording Zoom, Teams or Meet calls.
Where Apple's tools are enough
- In-person meetings. Everyone is on the microphone. Notes records them all.
- Lectures and talks in the room.
- Phone calls through the Phone app, with the notice done for you.
- A video call on speakers, roughly. The microphone hears the other side from the speakers, so it ends up in the recording, mixed with you and with the room.
For many people that covers most of what they record, at no extra cost.
What a meeting notetaker adds
- The other side of a video call on headphones. A notetaker that records the Mac's audio output hears Zoom, Teams, Meet or anything else directly, not through the room. Recording your Mac's system audio explains how that capture works on current macOS.
- You and them, kept apart. Recording the microphone and the Mac's audio as separate tracks lets a transcript attribute each line to your side or theirs.
- Notes per meeting. Meetings in a list with dates, search across what was said, and kinds of notes such as action items or a follow-up email.
- Noticing a call starting, so you do not have to remember to press record.
How Notey compares
Notey is a meeting notetaker for Macs with Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later. It transcribes on the Mac with Apple's on-device speech recognition. On-device transcription explained covers what that means.
| Apple Notes and Phone app | Notey | |
|---|---|---|
| Records the microphone | Yes | Yes |
| Records the other side of a video call | Not described | Yes, as a separate track |
| Phone calls through the Phone app | Yes, with a notice to both sides | Not something we document; use the Phone app's recording |
| Transcription | Yes, in the note | On the Mac, with Apple's speech recognition |
| AI summary | Apple Intelligence, where available | Summary, action items, minutes, follow-up email and more; transcript text sent to Notey's service |
| Cost | Included with macOS | Recording and transcription free; AI notes paid |
Notey's AI notes are the main difference in what leaves the Mac. Apple Intelligence summaries are Apple's. Notey sends transcript text, never audio, to its own service and on to OpenAI as a processor, when you ask for a note. It is not used for training and not kept by Notey. With no account, nothing leaves the Mac.
One thing Apple's Phone app does that Notey does not: tell the other person. Notey's red dot and timer are visible to you, not to the call. You tell people you are recording.
Which fits
Apple Notes and the Phone app are likely enough if most of what you record is in the room or on phone calls, you already use Notes, and you do not need the other side of video calls recorded cleanly.
A notetaker such as Notey is likely the better fit if most of your meetings are video calls on headphones, you want your side and theirs kept apart, or you want meeting-specific notes such as action items and follow-up emails.
For more options, see the best AI notetakers for Mac and free meeting transcription on a Mac.
Frequently asked questions
Can Apple Notes record a Zoom or Teams call on a Mac?
Apple's Notes guide describes recording audio into a note from the microphone. It does not describe capturing the sound other apps play, so on headphones the other side of a Zoom or Teams call would not be recorded.
Can a Mac record phone calls?
Apple's Phone app guide for Mac describes Call Recording during a phone call. Both participants hear an audio notice, and the recording is saved to a Call Recordings folder in Notes, where Apple Intelligence can summarise it.
Does Apple Notes transcription work on any Mac?
Apple's guide lists Macs with M1 or later. Transcription covers a set of languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean and Chinese.
Is Apple Notes enough for meeting notes?
For an in-person meeting, a lecture or a phone call, often yes. For video calls on headphones, it hears only your side, which is where a meeting notetaker that also records the Mac's audio adds something.