The 5 best Fireflies.ai alternatives in 2026
Fireflies is built for sales orgs: record every call, score it, push it to the CRM. People look for alternatives from two directions. You're one person and $18 per user per month for enterprise machinery is absurd, or you're on a team and every conversation being recorded and reviewable started to itch. I make MeetMouse, so it's listed first. Each tool below says what it does better than us.
| Tool | Best for | Price for one person |
|---|---|---|
| 1. MeetMouse (mine) | private live coaching on a Mac | $20 once |
| 2. Fathom | free notes with no minute cap | Free |
| 3. Otter | searching months of old transcripts | Free 300 min, then $16.99/mo |
| 4. Granola | notes with no bot in the call | Free, then $14/user/mo |
| 5. tl;dv | sharing clips with your team | Free, then $29/seat/mo |
1. MeetMousemine
I built MeetMouse because years of transcripts never made me better at meetings. It listens on your Mac, shows a live transcript and talk balance, and nudges you during the call: land the ask, let them finish, pin down that vague "sounds good." Transcription and AI run on your Mac by default and it works with WiFi off. Pick it if privacy matters or you want to change the meeting, not file it away.
Good
- No bot, no account, works with WiFi off
- Coaching cues during the call, hidden from screen shares
- $20 once, cheaper than two months of most paid plans
Not so good
- Mac only (macOS 14.2 or later)
- No CRM sync or team dashboard
- If you turn on Claude or OpenAI in Settings, text goes to that provider (audio never does)
2. Fathom
The best free notetaker on the market. Recordings, transcripts and AI summaries with no minute cap. The trade is a visible bot in your calls and every meeting in their cloud. If neither bothers you, get Fathom.
Good
- Free individual plan with no minute cap
- Recordings, transcripts and AI summaries
- Team features from $19/user/month when you need them
Not so good
- A Fathom bot joins your calls
- Your meetings live in their cloud
3. Otter
Otter has been transcribing meetings the longest, and search across months of transcripts is excellent. It's the default for researchers and journalists. The free plan is about a week of real meetings. Pick it if the archive is the point.
Good
- Strong search across months of meetings
- The default for researchers and journalists
Not so good
- Free plan stops at 300 minutes a month
- Announces itself with a bot in every call
- Audio is processed in their cloud
4. Granola
Granola captures system audio on your Mac, so nobody named Granola joins the call and the notes are excellent. Notes are written with cloud AI, so it isn't the privacy pick. Pick it if the bot is your problem.
Good
- No bot: it captures system audio on your Mac
- Excellent notes
- Free plan is enough for a light meeting load
Not so good
- Notes are generated with cloud AI
- Free plan keeps only 30 days of meeting history
5. tl;dv
If what you share with your team is "watch these 40 seconds," tl;dv's clipping beats everyone's. The free plan records without limits, but AI notes stop after 10 meetings and data is kept up to 3 months. Pro is $29 per seat per month.
Good
- Best clip-sharing on the list
- Free plan records unlimited meetings
Not so good
- Free AI notes stop after 10 meetings; data kept up to 3 months
- A bot joins calls and recordings live in their cloud
What each costs
| Tool | Free plan | Paid | Bot joins? | Where audio goes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MeetMouse | No free plan | $20 once. No subscription, no account. 30-day refund. | No | Stays on your Mac |
| Fathom | Unlimited recordings and summaries | Free for individuals. Teams from $19/user/month. | Yes | Their cloud |
| Otter | 300 minutes a month | Free for 300 minutes a month. Pro $16.99/month. | Yes | Their cloud |
| Granola | Unlimited meetings, 30 days of history | Free with 30 days of meeting history. Business $14/user/month. | No | Cloud AI for notes |
| tl;dv | Unlimited recordings, AI notes on 10 meetings, data kept up to 3 months | Free with unlimited recordings and AI notes on 10 meetings. Pro $29/seat/month. | Yes | Their cloud |
| Fireflies | Unlimited recording, limited AI credits | Free plan with limited AI credits. Pro from $18/user/month. | Yes | Their cloud and your CRM |
Prices for one person, monthly billing, read from each tool's pricing page on October 2, 2026. Check before you buy; these change.
When Fireflies is enough
If you manage a sales team that needs every call in the CRM and scored for managers, Fireflies is built for exactly that. Stay. MeetMouse is for one person, and nobody else sees its coaching.
Checked, but not ranked
Poised. It coaches live too, but it coaches delivery (filler words, pace, confidence) as a cloud subscription with an account. A good pick if public-speaking mechanics are the problem. MeetMouse vs Poised
Voice memo + an AI chat. $0. Record with QuickTime or Voice Memos, drop the file into ChatGPT or Claude and ask for a summary with action items. No bot, no subscription, just a few manual steps.
How I checked
Every price and plan limit comes from the tool's own pricing page or help docs, read on October 2, 2026, for one person paying monthly. The ranking is for one person on Zoom, Meet or Teams who cares where their meetings go and wants to get better at them, not a sales team. Nobody paid to be on this list. I make MeetMouse, and its price is the one on this site.
How to switch
- Buy MeetMouse for $20 and open the DMG.
- Allow the microphone and Screen Recording, so it hears both sides without a bot.
- Start your next Zoom, Meet or Teams call. Want to try it first? The 15-second demo needs no permissions.
- Keep Fireflies running alongside if you still want its archive. They don't know about each other.
Questions
- What is the best free alternative to Fireflies?
- For individuals, Fathom: free with no minute cap, covering recording, transcription and summaries. Fireflies' own free plan exists but limits AI summaries.
- Is there a Fireflies alternative that doesn't send a bot into meetings?
- Granola takes notes with no bot by capturing system audio on your Mac. MeetMouse is also bot-free and keeps transcription and AI on your Mac by default.
- Do any Fireflies alternatives coach you during the call?
- MeetMouse does, with live cues like talk balance, buried asks and vague commitments in an overlay only you see. Fireflies and the other notetakers analyze calls after they end.
- Is there a cheaper Fireflies alternative for a team?
- Not by much. Billed monthly, Fireflies Pro is $18 per seat, Otter Pro is $16.99, Fathom Team is $19 and tl;dv Pro is $29. For one person, Fathom's free plan beats all of them.
Try MeetMouse
$20 once, no subscription and no account. If it doesn't earn its keep, email me inside 30 days and I'll refund you.
I checked prices and features for the tools here in October 2026. This stuff changes constantly, so double-check before you buy.
All trademarks belong to their owners. Named for comparison only.