In today’s remote and hybrid work environments, the ability to accurately transcribe meetings, interviews, and presentations is invaluable.

Otter is a well-known AI meeting recorder and transcription tool, offering users the ability to record meetings and convert speech to text in real time with impressive accuracy. Its features include automatic recording and transcription for meetings, lectures, interviews, and more, alongside capabilities such as speaker identification, keyword searches, and collaborative note-taking.

As a tool that has become widely used for teams needing meeting recording and transcription, Otter provides various pricing plans to cater to different needs and budgets. This guide breaks down the specifics of each Otter pricing tier and what you get at each level.

Alongside this, we’ll look at an alternative to Otter for those teams seeking functionalities that extend beyond transcription, offering a broader suite of tools to boost productivity and collaboration.

TLDR

• Otter offers four pricing tiers: Free ($0), Pro ($16.99/user/month), Business ($30/user/month), and Enterprise (custom pricing).
• The Free plan caps transcription at 300 minutes/month with a 30-minute per-conversation limit — suitable for light, occasional use only.
• Pro and Business plans unlock longer conversations, more transcription minutes, team workspaces, and advanced admin controls.
• Enterprise is built for large organizations needing SSO, compliance (including HIPAA), and sales-focused features like OtterPilot for Sales.
• Teams that need more than transcription — like automatic action item capture and ticket filing — may find Spinach a better fit at a lower price.

Who is Otter for?

Otter is designed to meet the needs of a diverse array of users looking for reliable transcription services. Its core functionality caters especially to teams who require accurate, real-time transcriptions of meetings, lectures, interviews, and other spoken content. Whether you’re part of a small startup, an educational institution, a large corporation, or even an individual in need of transcription services for personal projects, Otter provides a way to capture and share spoken words in written form. Professionals who find Otter particularly valuable include project managers, journalists, researchers, and educators who often rely on detailed records of discussions and presentations.

Is Otter Completely Free?

No, Otter is not completely free. The tool offers a free tier, but it comes with limitations that might not meet the needs of all users or teams. These limitations exist because the technology behind Otter (including advanced speech recognition and AI-driven meeting recording and transcription) requires substantial resources for development and maintenance. To support continuous improvement and maintain a high level of service, Otter provides paid subscriptions that unlock additional features beyond what the free tier offers.

The free version of Otter is a good starting point for individuals or teams looking to test the basics of what the tool can offer in terms of transcription. However, for those who require more extensive usage, such as longer transcription times, additional storage, or advanced features like team collaboration tools and enhanced security, the limitations of the free tier may prompt the need for an upgrade. In the following sections, we’ll go deeper into the specifics of what the free tier includes and how the paid plans compare, helping you make an informed decision based on your transcription needs.

How much does Otter cost? Meeting recording pricing plans explained

Otter offers a range of pricing plans to accommodate the varying needs of its users, from individuals and small teams to large organizations. Each plan is designed to provide value by enhancing the transcription process with advanced features, additional transcription minutes, and more. Let’s break down what each plan has to offer, starting with the Free plan and then moving on to the Pro plan, to help you determine which might be the best fit for your transcription needs.

Free plan

The Free plan serves as an entry point to experience Otter’s core meeting recording and transcription features without any initial investment. This plan includes an AI meeting assistant capable of recording, transcribing, capturing slides, and generating summaries in real-time.

It’s a viable option for individuals or teams just starting with transcription services, providing 300 monthly transcription minutes with a limit of 30 minutes per conversation. Users can import and transcribe up to three audio or video files during their lifetime under this plan. While the Free plan offers a taste of what Otter can do, it’s tailored more toward occasional users or those with minimal transcription needs. To sum it up, here’s what you get from the free plan:

• AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes, captures slides, and generates summaries in real time.
• 300 monthly transcription minutes with a limit of 30 minutes per conversation.
• The ability to import and transcribe up to 3 audio or video files over the lifetime of the account.

The 30-minute per conversation limit means longer meetings will stop transcribing automatically, requiring you to start a new recording. The 3 lifetime audio/video file imports cannot be reset or renewed; once used, you must upgrade to import more files. As of 2026, the Free plan now includes the Otter MCP server integration and multi-language support for English, French, and Spanish transcriptions.

Who should use the Free plan?

The Free plan works for individuals testing Otter for short meetings, students attending 30-minute lectures, or anyone needing basic transcription without team collaboration. If you’re running longer standups or need to import recordings regularly, the constraints will push you toward Pro within the first month.

Pro plan

For those requiring more from their meeting recording and transcription tool, the Pro plan is priced at $16.99 USD per user, billed monthly. It expands on the Free plan, designed for professionals and teams seeking enhanced functionality and greater recording capacity. The Pro plan allows users to add teammates to their workspace, supporting collaboration through features like shared custom vocabulary, speaker tagging, and the assignment of action items to teammates.

With advanced search, export, and playback capabilities, searching and reviewing meeting transcripts becomes much faster. The plan boosts monthly transcription minutes to 1200, with up to 90 minutes allowed per conversation. Users can import and transcribe 10 audio or video files per month, catering to users with regular meeting recording requirements. This plan is suitable for professionals and small teams looking to use meeting recording and transcription for better productivity and collaboration.

To summarize, this is what the Pro plan plan looks like:

• 1200 monthly transcription minutes; up to 90 minutes per individual conversation before requiring a new recording.
• Import and transcribe up to 10 audio or video files per month.
• Team workspace with shared custom vocabulary, speaker tagging, and action item assignment.
• Advanced search, export, and playback capabilities.
• Advanced meeting templates for customized note-taking workflows (new in 2026).
• Integrations with Salesforce, HubSpot, and Zapier for automated workflow connections.
• Unlimited cloud storage for all transcriptions and recordings.

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Business plan

The Business plan is tailored for larger teams and organizations that require extensive meeting recording and transcription coupled with administrative control. Priced at $30 USD per user per month, this plan offers a full suite of features to improve workflow and boost productivity. Users gain access to admin features such as usage analytics and dedicated support, so teams can monitor their meeting recording habits and receive assistance promptly.

With 6000 monthly transcription minutes and the capacity for up to 4 hours per conversation, the Business plan meets the demands of teams with heavy meeting recording needs. The plan offers the flexibility to import and transcribe an unlimited number of audio or video files, making it a viable option for businesses that rely on extensive documentation and analysis of meetings, lectures, or interviews.

• Admin features for full control and oversight.
• Joins up to 3 concurrent virtual meetings for efficient note-taking.
• 6000 monthly transcription minutes; up to 4 hours per conversation.
• Unlimited imports and transcriptions of audio or video files.

Enterprise plan

Designed for the largest and most complex organizations, the Enterprise plan offers a tailored approach to meet specific needs through custom pricing. This plan requires scheduling a demo to review the full range of services and customization options available. It includes advanced features like Single Sign-On (SSO) for secure and convenient access, organization-wide deployment for scalability, and domain capture for enhanced data management.

The introduction of OtterPilot™ for Sales is a benefit for sales teams with tools designed to optimize their workflows. Advanced security and compliance controls keep the organization’s data safe and meet regulatory requirements, making it a viable choice for enterprises concerned with data integrity and security.

• Customizable solutions with single sign-on (SSO) and organization-wide deployment.
• OtterPilot™ for Sales to enhance sales team productivity.
• Advanced security and compliance controls for data protection.
• Video replay for Zoom and Google Meet meetings (coming soon in 2026).
• AI Chat integration with Gmail, Google Drive, Notion, and Jira (coming soon).
• Otter Sales Notetaker specifically optimized for sales calls with custom CRM integrations.
• Otter API and Webhooks for custom integrations and automation.
• HIPAA compliance available as an add-on for healthcare organizations.
• Dedicated Customer Success Program with onboarding and training.

Enterprise pricing is customized based on your organization’s size, security requirements, and integration needs. Most Enterprise contracts start with a minimum of 50 users and include volume discounts for larger deployments. Schedule a demo to receive a tailored quote and implementation timeline.

How long does Otter take to transcribe?

When considering Otter for transcription needs, an important factor is the turnaround time for transcriptions. Otter says that it takes 3 minutes per 15 minutes of audio. However, this doesn’t factor in the time it takes to edit the transcription, as it is not always 100% accurate.

Frequently Asked Questions about Otter AI Pricing

Is Otter AI free to use?

Yes, Otter offers a free plan that includes 300 transcription minutes per month with a 30-minute per-conversation limit. You can also import and transcribe up to 3 audio or video files over the lifetime of the account. While the free plan is a good starting point, it has clear constraints that may push regular users toward a paid plan.

How much does Otter AI cost per month?

Otter’s paid plans start at $16.99 per user per month for the Pro plan, and $30.00 per user per month for the Business plan. Enterprise pricing is custom and based on your organization’s size, security needs, and integrations. All prices reflect the billed-monthly rate; annual billing typically reduces the per-user cost.

What is the difference between the Pro and Business plans?

The Pro plan ($16.99/user/month) is aimed at professionals and small teams who need 1,200 monthly minutes, 90-minute conversation limits, and up to 10 audio/video file imports per month. The Business plan ($30.00/user/month) scales this up to 6,000 monthly minutes, 4-hour conversation limits, unlimited file imports, and adds admin controls, usage analytics, and the ability to join up to 3 concurrent virtual meetings.

Does Otter offer HIPAA compliance?

HIPAA compliance is available as an add-on for Enterprise plan customers. It is not included in the Free, Pro, or Business tiers. Healthcare organizations that need HIPAA-compliant meeting transcription should contact Otter’s sales team to discuss Enterprise options and the compliance add-on.

Can I transcribe pre-recorded audio or video files with Otter?

Yes, Otter supports audio and video file imports across all plans. Free users can import up to 3 files over the lifetime of their account. Pro users get 10 imports per month. Business and Enterprise users have unlimited imports. Supported formats include common audio and video file types.

How long does Otter take to transcribe a recording?

Otter transcribes approximately 3 minutes of audio per 15 minutes of content. This means a 1-hour recording takes roughly 12 minutes to process. Keep in mind that the output may need some review and editing, as automated transcription is not always perfectly accurate for every speaker or audio environment.

Spinach, an Otter alternative for teams who want more than transcription

While Otter offers good transcription services, teams looking for something beyond a transcript might find Spinach to be the ideal alternative.

Spinach goes beyond transcription to capture decisions and turn them into action. As a leading AI note taker, it generates meeting summaries, identifies action items with owners, and files tickets directly into your project tools, all before the call ends. The decisions made in your meetings get documented and routed to the right place automatically, without requiring manual follow-up.

Spinach goes beyond mere transcription to provide an integrated suite of tools designed to improve team workflows, boost meeting output, and surface actionable insights from discussions. With features that support task assignment, meeting summaries, and actionable item tracking, Spinach makes sure that valuable ideas and decisions from your meetings are effectively captured and acted on.

Spinach offers a free plan that supports up to 50 users, making it an exceptional choice for startups and small to medium-sized teams looking to maximize their resources without financial strain. For those needing more advanced features, Spinach’s Pro plan is attractively priced at only $4 per user per month, presenting a superior pricing advantage for teams seeking extensive capabilities at a fraction of the cost.

If you need more than meeting transcripts: if you need recorded conversations turned into assigned tickets before the call ends, get started with Spinach.

What to do now

Next, here are some things you can do now that you've read this article:

1. You should check out our library of meeting agenda templates for every type of meeting.
2. Check out Spinach to see how it can help you run a high performing org.
3. If you found this article helpful, please share it with others on Linkedin or X (Twitter)