Otter.ai Review: Is It The Best Meeting Recorder?

Meetings are a time sink. We all know it. Too often, you leave a call with pages of scribbled notes, half-forgotten action items, and no clear record. That's where tools like Otter.ai come in. They promise to record and transcribe everything.

Does it actually work, or is it another shiny distraction? I put Otter.ai through its paces. Here's my direct, no-BS take.

The Good and The Bad

Pros	Cons
Good transcription accuracy for clear audio	Accuracy drops with noise, accents, jargon
Identifies different speakers reliably	Free tier is very limited
Live transcription keeps you engaged	Paid tiers get expensive for teams
Searchable transcripts save time	Doesn't replace a human note-taker for critical details
Generates quick meeting summaries	Requires an internet connection
Easy integration with calendars (Zoom, Google Meet)	Privacy concerns for sensitive discussions

What Exactly Does Otter.ai Do?

Simple. Otter.ai records your meetings, calls, or even just your voice. Then, it turns that audio into text. It does this live, so you can see the transcript appear as people speak.

Beyond basic transcription, Otter tries to be smart. It attempts to identify different speakers. It can create summaries. You can highlight parts of the transcript, add comments, and export the whole thing. The idea is to have a searchable record of everything said. No more "What did Sarah say about the Q3 budget?" questions. Just search.

Is Otter.ai Worth the Price?

This is where it gets tricky. Otter.ai isn't free forever.

• Free Tier: You get 30 minutes of transcription per conversation, up to 3 conversations. You can import up to 3 audio/video files. It's enough for an occasional short meeting. But for daily use? Forget it.
• Pro Tier: This is for individuals. You get more minutes (usually 90 minutes per conversation, 8 hours total per month). You can import more files. You get custom vocabulary, which helps accuracy with jargon. It's around $10-17/month, depending on billing. If you have a few important meetings a week, this can pay for itself in saved time.
• Business Tier: For teams. It adds admin controls, shared vocabulary, more minutes, and team features. This is where the cost jumps significantly, starting around $20-30 per user per month. Multiply that by a 10-person team, and you're looking at a serious chunk of change.

My take: The free tier is a trial. The Pro tier is decent value for a busy individual. The Business tier requires a hard look at your team's actual usage and budget. Does it truly save enough time across the board to justify hundreds or thousands a year? Often, not for every team.

How Accurate is Otter.ai's Transcription?

This is the make-or-break feature. Otter.ai is good. It's not perfect.

In ideal conditions – clear audio, one or two speakers, no background noise, standard English – it's impressively accurate, often 90-95%.

But real-world meetings are rarely ideal:

• Accents: Strong accents can confuse it.
• Background Noise: A barking dog, a coffee shop, keyboard clicks – all degrade accuracy.
• Jargon & Acronyms: Unless you add them to a custom vocabulary (Pro tier and up), Otter will butcher industry-specific terms.
• Multiple Speakers: When people talk over each other, it becomes a mess. It tries to separate speakers, but it struggles with overlap.

The reality: You will still need to review the transcript. Don't rely on it for verbatim legal records or precise quotes without checking. It's a solid first draft, a helpful memory aid, not a flawless stenographer.

How Does Otter.ai Compare to Built-in Meeting Transcripts?

Many meeting platforms now offer their own transcription. Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams – they all have some form of it.

• Cost: The biggest difference. Native transcripts are often included with your meeting platform subscription. Otter.ai is an additional cost.
• Features: Otter.ai generally offers more features. Better speaker identification. More robust search. Custom vocabulary. Better summary tools. It's designed specifically for transcription and note-taking.
• Accuracy: Often, Otter.ai is slightly better than basic built-in options, especially with speaker separation. But the gap isn't always huge, particularly for standard, clear conversations.

When to choose what:

• Built-in: If you just need a basic text record and don't want another subscription. Your meeting platform already includes it. Good enough for many.
• Otter.ai: If you need more advanced features: reliable speaker identification, deep search, custom vocabulary for specific projects, or a centralized place for all meeting notes regardless of platform. You're paying for the extra layer of intelligence and convenience.

What's the Learning Curve Like?

Almost zero. Otter.ai is straightforward.

• Connect your calendar.
• It automatically joins scheduled meetings (if you allow it).
• The interface for editing and searching transcripts is clean.

If you can use a basic web app, you can use Otter.ai. No complex setup or training needed.

Who Should (and Shouldn't) Use This?

Who SHOULD Use Otter.ai:

• Individuals with many meetings: Project managers, consultants, sales professionals. Anyone who needs to recall details from multiple calls.
• Remote teams: To ensure everyone has access to meeting content, even if they missed it or zoned out.
• Researchers/Interviewers: For transcribing interviews and focus groups.
• Those who hate taking notes: Or who find it distracts them from participating.
• People who need searchable records: Finding that one decision from three months ago is easy.

Who SHOULDN'T Use Otter.ai:

• Teams on a tight budget: The cost for multiple users can be hard to justify against built-in options.
• Those handling highly sensitive information: While Otter has security measures, sending confidential audio to a third-party cloud service always carries some risk.
• People expecting 100% accuracy: You still need to review. If critical details must be perfect, you need a human.
• Individuals with only occasional meetings: The free tier or built-in options are likely sufficient.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Otter.ai free?

Yes, Otter.ai offers a free tier with significant limitations on transcription minutes and features. For regular use, you'll need a paid subscription.

Does Otter.ai work offline?

No. Otter.ai requires an internet connection to process and transcribe audio in real-time or from uploaded files.

Can Otter.ai identify different speakers?

Yes, it does a surprisingly good job of identifying and labeling different speakers, though it can struggle with overlap or very similar voices. You can also manually correct speaker labels.

Is Otter.ai secure?

Otter.ai uses standard cloud security protocols for data encryption and storage. However, like any cloud service, if you're discussing extremely sensitive or confidential information, always consider the privacy implications of using a third-party transcription service.

Can I edit Otter.ai transcripts?

Absolutely. You can play back the audio and edit the text directly within the Otter.ai interface to correct errors, add notes, or clarify statements.

The Bottom Line

Otter.ai is a good tool. It's not a miracle worker, but it delivers on its core promise: turning spoken words into searchable text. It can genuinely save you time if you're drowning in meetings and need a better way to capture information.

Just be realistic about its accuracy – don't expect perfection. And be smart about the cost. For individuals, the Pro tier is a solid investment. For teams, do the math. Does the time saved truly outweigh the monthly expense? For many, the answer will be yes. For others, a cheaper, less featured alternative might be better.

It won't make bad meetings good, but it will make managing the output of your meetings a lot less painful.