Free Tier AI Meeting Tools Comparison 2026
A side-by-side analysis of Fathom AI, Otter.ai, Fireflies.ai, tl;dv, Grain, Krisp, and Supernormal: free features, hard limits, supported platforms, and who each tool serves best.
Source article visual extracted for this comparison update.
Quick takeaways
Highest free usage headroom
tl;dv and Fathom provide the least restrictive free usage for recurring weekly meetings.
Most common free-tier bottleneck
Minute caps, AI credit caps, or storage ceilings are the usual limits that push upgrades.
Best bot-free choice
Krisp is the strongest bot-free option when privacy and audio quality are key requirements.
Detailed free-tier comparison table
| Tool | Free tier headline | Hard limit to watch | Supported platforms | Bot model | Best-fit user |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fathom AI | Unlimited recordings, transcription, and storage | Advanced AI summaries and action items are limited to 5 meetings per month | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams | Bot joins meetings | Independent consultants and light-to-medium weekly meeting volume |
| Otter.ai | Real-time transcription, AI chat, and team collaboration | 300 minutes per month, 30-minute cap per conversation, 3 lifetime imports | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams | Bot joins meetings | Students and occasional short meetings |
| Fireflies.ai | Unlimited transcription with broad conferencing coverage | 400 minutes storage per team and 20 AI credits per month | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Webex, RingCentral, and more | Bot joins meetings | Teams using multiple conferencing platforms |
| tl;dv | Free-forever unlimited recording and transcription | Advanced multi-meeting intelligence and sales analytics are paid | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams | Bot joins meetings | Remote teams needing high-volume free usage |
| Grain | AI notes, speaker labels, and strong clip sharing workflows | Up to 20 recorded meetings per month on free plan | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams | Bot joins meetings | Customer-facing teams sharing call highlights |
| Krisp | Bot-free recording plus noise cancellation and unlimited transcription | 60 minutes/day noise cancellation, 2 AI summaries/day, 7-day history, English-only transcripts | Any app using device audio, including Zoom, Meet, Teams, Slack, and calls | Bot-free local audio processing | Privacy-focused users in noisy environments |
| Supernormal | Polished AI notes with automatic sharing and 60+ languages | Up to 20 meetings per month and 1,000 minutes storage per member | Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams | Hybrid: bot-free Chrome extension on Meet, bot on Zoom/Teams | Small teams wanting highly formatted meeting outputs |
Feature matrix: limits and capabilities
| Capability | Fathom | Otter | Fireflies | tl;dv | Grain | Krisp | Supernormal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unlimited transcription on free plan | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Hard monthly meeting or minute cap | No | Yes | Storage cap | No | Yes | Daily limits | Yes |
| AI summaries included on free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bot-free option available | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Partial |
| Strong clip and highlight workflow | Basic | Limited | Basic | Yes | Yes | No | Basic |
Which tool is best for your use case?
Use case
Best overall free tier for most users
Recommended: tl;dv and Fathom AI
Both avoid harsh monthly meeting caps and are practical for regular weekly usage without immediate upgrades.
Use case
Best for short occasional meetings
Recommended: Otter.ai
Otter works well if meetings are infrequent and typically under 30 minutes.
Use case
Best for mixed conferencing environments
Recommended: Fireflies.ai
Fireflies supports the broadest set of meeting platforms and 100+ languages.
Use case
Best for customer calls and shareable moments
Recommended: Grain
Grain is optimized for turning transcripts into clips and customer-facing highlight reels.
Use case
Best for privacy and audio quality
Recommended: Krisp
Krisp is bot-free and processes audio locally, while improving voice quality for noisy setups.
Use case
Best for polished notes in small teams
Recommended: Supernormal
Supernormal is strong when teams prioritize clean formatting and auto-sharing into docs and chat tools.