⏱️ Transcription Limits & Boundaries Comparison 2026
Compare transcription limits, session boundaries, and usage restrictions across all major AI meeting platforms to find the perfect fit for your needs
📊 Quick Overview
Most restrictive free tier: Notta (3-minute meeting limit), Otter.ai (300 minutes/month)
Best free allowances: Fireflies (400 minutes storage), Supernormal (1,000 minutes storage)
Hidden costs: Credit systems, fair-use policies, and overage charges on 'unlimited' plans
🔍 Platform-by-Platform Breakdown
🦦 Otter.ai Transcription Limits
Free Plan Restrictions
- 300 minutes/month total allowance
- 30-minute session limit per recording
- 3 file imports (lifetime limit)
- 100MB file size maximum
- English only transcription
- 30-day storage retention
Pro Plan ($16.99/month)
- 1,200 minutes/month allowance
- 90-minute session limit
- 10 file imports/month
- Advanced AI features included
- Multiple language support
Business Plan ($30/month)
- 6,000 minutes/month total
- 4-hour session limit
- Unlimited file uploads
- Team collaboration features
- Advanced integrations
⚠️ Key Restriction: Minutes are calculated as active speech time only. Any portion of a minute counts as a full minute. No carryover of unused minutes to next month.
🔥 Fireflies.ai Boundaries & Credits
Free Plan Limits
- 400 minutes storage per seat
- 20 AI credits/month for summaries
- 2-hour meeting limit
- Limited AI summary features
- Basic transcription quality
Pro Plan ($10/month)
- 8,000 minutes storage per seat
- Unlimited AI summaries
- Unlimited live transcription
- File uploads cost extra
- Advanced AI insights
Business Plan
- Unlimited storage
- 3,000 minutes/user/month rate limit
- Not published overage charge
- Team collaboration tools
- Enterprise integrations
⚠️ Hidden Complexity: Credit system makes it difficult to predict when you'll hit limits. 'Unlimited' plans still have fair-use policies that can trigger overage charges.
⚡ Supernormal Usage Boundaries
Free Plan Features
- 1,000 minutes storage (generous)
- Real-time notes without recording
- Chrome extension required
- Limited to Google Meet initially
- Privacy-focused approach
✅ Advantage: Much more generous free storage compared to competitors
Pro Plan ($19/month)
- Expanded storage limits
- Multiple platform support
- Advanced AI features
- Team collaboration
- Priority support
⚠️ Limitation: Complex setup process and requires Chrome extensions
🏢 Enterprise & Specialized Tools
Gong
- Sales-focused transcription
- Enterprise-grade limits
- Custom pricing model
Sembly
- Free plan with limited hours
- Pro at $29/user/month
- Sentiment analysis features
- Limited manual editing
- Multi-platform support
Notta
- 3-minute meeting limit (free)
- Real-time transcription
- Speaker identification
- Full transcript editing
- Most restrictive free tier
📊 Side-by-Side Comparison
| Platform | Free Minutes | Session Limit | File Imports | Key Restriction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otter.ai | 300/month | 30 minutes | 3 lifetime | No carryover |
| Fireflies.ai | 400 storage | 2 hours | Limited | Credit system |
| Supernormal | 1,000 storage | Varies | N/A | Chrome only |
| Notta | 3 min/meeting | 3 minutes | Limited | Unusable free |
| Gong | No free tier | Enterprise | Unlimited | High cost |
💰 Hidden Costs & Fair Use Policies
⚠️ Watch Out For
- Credit Systems: Fireflies uses credits for AI features, making actual usage unpredictable
- Fair Use Policies: 'Unlimited' plans often have hidden usage limits
- Overage Charges: Not published
- Storage vs. Processing: Some tools count storage, others count active transcription
✅ Money-Saving Tips
- Test Free Tiers: Supernormal offers the most generous free testing
- Calculate Real Usage: Monitor actual meeting minutes vs. advertised limits
- Team Plans: Per-user pricing often decreases with more seats
🎯 Usage-Based Recommendations
👤 Light Users (0-500 min/month)
Best Choice: Fireflies Free
Alternative: Supernormal Free
- ✅ Free plan with 15 credits
- ✅ No session time limits
- ✅ Room to grow before upgrading
🏢 Regular Users (500-2000 min/month)
Best Choice: Otter.ai Pro
Alternative: Fireflies Pro
- ✅ Predictable monthly limits
- ✅ Advanced AI features
- ✅ Better value per minute
🚀 Heavy Users (2000+ min/month)
Best Choice: Fireflies Business
Enterprise: Gongor Custom Plans
- ✅ Unlimited storage options
- ✅ Enterprise integrations
- ✅ Volume pricing available
🔗 Related Comparisons
📊 Free Transcription Minutes Comparison
Detailed breakdown of monthly minute allowances across all free plans
⏰ Monthly Allowances Analysis
Compare how different platforms calculate and reset usage limits
💎 Pricing Tier Value Analysis
Cost-per-minute breakdown across all subscription levels
🏢 Enterprise Tool Comparison
High-volume usage comparison for large organizations