In short
There is no single best AI notetaker for Mac; there are three ways a notetaker can hear your meeting, and the right one depends on which trade-offs your meetings can accept. A bot joins the call from the vendor's servers.
A meeting platform's own assistant runs inside Zoom, Teams or Meet. An app on your Mac records what your Mac hears, and then either sends the audio to the cloud or transcribes it on the machine.
This roundup groups the main options that way. Each product is described from its own website or documentation as of September 2026, with links, so you can check what has changed. It includes Notey, which we make; it is one entry, and the "who it suits" lines say where others are the better choice. Prices are left out because they change; each vendor links to its own.
The short answer
| How it hears the meeting | Examples | Good at | The trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| A bot joins the call | Otter, Fireflies, Fathom, tl;dv | Attending without you; team libraries; integrations | A visible participant that can be refused or blocked; meetings stored with the vendor |
| The meeting app's own assistant | Zoom AI Companion, Copilot in Teams, Gemini in Meet | Nothing to install; everyone sees it | Depends on plan, admin and host; one platform each |
| A Mac app, cloud transcription | Granola, Jamie, desktop modes of Otter, Fireflies, Fathom and tl;dv | No bot; any meeting app | Audio goes to a transcription service |
| A Mac app, on-device transcription | Quill, Notey, MacWhisper | No bot; audio stays on the computer | Fewer integrations; Mac hardware requirements |
Bot-free meeting notes explains the difference between a participant and a device-based recorder in more depth.
Notetakers that join the call as a bot
These started as bots and most now also have a desktop app that records without one.
Otter.ai
Otter's meeting agent can join Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls automatically, and its Mac and Windows desktop app records without a bot. Recordings are stored in Otter's cloud on Amazon S3. It has web, iPhone and Android apps, a long list of integrations and team features. (Otter)
Suits: teams that want shared transcripts across devices and tools. Otter.ai alternative compares it with Notey.
Fireflies.ai
Fireflies' bot joins your calls; its desktop app and Chrome extension record without one, though its help centre says the system-audio mode saves no separate audio or video and lacks some bot features. Data is stored in its US cloud by default. It lists over a hundred integrations and states SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA certification. (Fireflies)
Suits: teams that want notes flowing into CRMs, ATSs and Slack. Fireflies alternative.
Fathom
Fathom's notetaker joins Zoom, Meet and Teams and records video, audio and a transcript; on Mac it also records without a bot, which its pricing page describes as in beta. Data is stored in the US. It has CRM sync and sales-oriented team features. (Fathom)
Suits: sales teams that want video and CRM sync. Fathom alternative.
tl;dv
tl;dv's bot joins Meet, Zoom and Teams; its desktop app for Mac (M-series and Intel) and Windows records from system audio without a bot. Its data centres are in Europe. (tl;dv)
Suits: teams that want a shared library and EU hosting, including on Intel Macs. tl;dv alternative.
The meeting platform's own assistant
Zoom AI Companion
Zoom's meeting summary is for licensed users on paid Zoom Workplace plans. Only the host and co-hosts can start it; participants see an indicator while it runs, and the host decides who receives the summary. (Zoom)
Suits: people who host on a qualifying Zoom plan. Zoom AI Companion alternatives.
Copilot and intelligent recap in Teams
Copilot in meetings needs an add-on Copilot licence, and by default a saved transcript; intelligent recap needs Teams Premium or Copilot and transcription on. Notes stay in Microsoft 365. (Microsoft)
Suits: organisations on Microsoft 365 with the licences. Alternatives to Copilot meeting notes.
Gemini in Google Meet
"Take notes for me" needs an eligible Workspace edition or Google AI plan; the organiser or hosts start it, everyone is told, and notes go to the organiser's Drive. (Google)
Suits: people who organise meetings in Meet on an eligible edition. Alternatives to Gemini's "Take notes for me".
Mac apps that transcribe in the cloud
These record your microphone and your Mac's audio without a bot, then send audio to a transcription service.
Granola
Granola records your microphone and system audio, streams it to a transcription provider, and does not save audio. Transcripts and notes are kept in its cloud. You type rough notes during the call and Granola fills them out. It runs on macOS, Windows, iPhone and Android. (Granola)
Suits: people who like writing notes during a meeting and want them expanded, on any platform. Notey vs Granola.
Jamie
Jamie runs on your device without a bot, on Mac, Windows and iPhone. Its documentation says audio is uploaded to a server in Frankfurt to be transcribed and then deleted, and transcripts are stored in Frankfurt. (Jamie)
Suits: people who want a bot-free cloud notetaker with processing in Germany. A jamie alternative compares the two bot-free approaches.
Mac apps that transcribe on the device
Quill
Quill records locally with no bot, transcribes on your computer, and keeps audio on the machine that recorded it. It runs on Apple silicon Macs from macOS 12 and on Windows, supports 29 languages, and lets you choose your AI provider or a local model. It has many integrations and end-to-end encrypted sync. (Quill)
Suits: people who want on-device transcription with a choice of AI model, integrations, or Windows. Quill Meetings alternative.
MacWhisper
MacWhisper transcribes audio files with local models. Its Pro version records meetings in Zoom, Teams, Webex and other apps without a bot; its documentation calls meeting recording a beta feature and lists Screen Recording and Microphone permission for it. (MacWhisper)
Suits: people who mainly transcribe files and want local models, with meeting recording as an extra. MacWhisper for meetings vs a meeting notetaker goes into the differences.
Notey
Notey records your microphone and the sound your Mac plays as two separate tracks, transcribes both on the Mac with Apple's speech recognition, and keeps the audio on your disk. It notices calls in Zoom, Teams, Slack, FaceTime and in Chrome, Safari, Arc and Edge, and asks before saving anything. It never asks for Screen Recording. Recording, transcription and search are free with no account; AI notes (summaries, minutes, follow-up emails, questions about a meeting) send only transcript text, when you ask, and are labelled as AI-generated.
It runs only on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 26 or later, supports ten languages for live transcription, and has no integrations or shared workspace.
Suits: people who cannot have meeting audio stored by a third party, want recording to work with no account, and are on a recent Apple silicon Mac.
Built into the Mac
Apple Notes records and transcribes audio from the microphone, and the Phone app on a Mac records phone calls into Notes with a notice to both sides. For in-person meetings and phone calls that may be enough. Apple Notes audio recording vs a meeting notetaker covers what it does and does not capture.
More tools, compared one by one
Each of these has its own comparison with Notey, written from the vendor's documentation:
- Assistants with a desktop app or a bot: Krisp's meeting notes, Read AI, Supernormal, MeetGeek and Bluedot.
- Browser-only transcription: Tactiq, which works from the meeting's captions.
- Sales platforms: Avoma, and Gong compared with a personal notetaker, which do a different job.
- Notes inside a workspace: Notion AI Meeting Notes.
- Transcription and dictation tools: Rev's human and machine transcription and Superwhisper's Meeting Mode.
How to choose
Start with the constraint you cannot move:
- Bots are blocked, or your clients object to them: a Mac app, cloud or on-device.
- Meeting audio must not be stored by a third party: an on-device app — Quill, Notey — or MacWhisper for files.
- Your team needs a shared library and integrations: a cloud notetaker such as Otter, Fireflies, Fathom or tl;dv.
- You host on one platform with the right plan: its built-in assistant.
- You are on Windows or an Intel Mac: Notey is out; check each vendor's requirements.
- Cost: free meeting transcription on a Mac covers the free options.
Then run your own test: record the same real meeting with two candidates and compare the transcripts. Where does your meeting audio go? lists the questions worth putting to any vendor before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI notetaker for Mac?
It depends on what you need around the notes. For a team that wants shared notes and CRM integrations, a cloud notetaker such as Otter, Fireflies or Fathom. For meetings you host on one platform, its built-in assistant. For keeping audio off third-party servers, an app that transcribes on the Mac, such as Quill or Notey.
Which AI notetakers for Mac work without a bot?
As of September 2026, Granola, Quill, Jamie and Notey work only without a bot, and Otter, Fireflies, Fathom and tl;dv offer a desktop mode without a bot alongside their bots.
Which Mac notetakers transcribe on the device?
Among those described here, Quill and Notey say they transcribe on your computer. MacWhisper transcribes with local models. Most others transcribe in the cloud.
Do I need Screen Recording permission for a meeting notetaker on Mac?
Depends on the app. Apps that capture audio through the screen-capture APIs ask for it; MacWhisper's documentation, for example, lists Screen Recording and Microphone permission for meeting recording. Notey captures system audio with a Core Audio process tap and never asks for Screen Recording.