The 3 Best Fireflies.ai Alternatives in 2026
Looking for an alternative to Fireflies.ai? Below we compare the best ai meeting notes alternatives by pricing, free tiers, and what each is best for — so you can pick the right fit for your budget and stack.
Category
AI Meeting Notes
Fireflies.ai pricing
Free tier available
Free tier
Yes
Alternatives
3 compared
Why look for a Fireflies.ai alternative?
Fireflies.ai is a solid ai meeting notes choice, but it isn't the right fit for everyone. The most common reasons teams evaluate alternatives:
- −A bot has to join the meeting
- −Free plan storage runs out quickly
- −Best features sit on the per-seat Business plan
Fireflies.ai vs Alternatives — Quick Comparison
| Tool | Pricing | Free tier | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fireflies.aiYou searched | Free · paid from $10/seat/mo | 4.6 | |
| 1.Granola | Free · paid from $14/user/mo | 4.8 | |
| 2.Meetily | Free · paid from $10/user/mo | 4.6 | |
| 3.Otter.ai | Free · paid from $8.33/user/mo | 4.5 |
Top Fireflies.ai Alternatives, Explained
1. Granola
Free tier4.8· Free · paid from $14/user/moGranola works differently from Otter and Fireflies. Instead of sending a bot into the call, the desktop and iPhone app captures your device audio, so it works with any meeting app and nobody sees a recorder join. You type rough notes during the meeting and Granola expands them into structured notes using the transcript, with templates per meeting type and AI chat across all your meetings. Basic is free with 30 days of history. Business is $14 per user per month with unlimited history, integrations (Notion, HubSpot, Zapier), an API and an MCP server. Enterprise is $35 per user per month with SSO, SCIM and HIPAA workspaces.
- No bot joins the call
- Your own notes steer the summary, so it captures what you cared about
- Works with any meeting app, including in-person
2. Meetily
Free tier4.6· Free · paid from $10/user/moMeetily is an MIT-licensed desktop app (31K+ GitHub stars) that records meeting audio on your own machine, transcribes it locally with Whisper or Parakeet models and writes the summary with a local model through Ollama, or with a cloud LLM if you choose. No bot joins the call and no audio leaves the device, which makes it the default pick for regulated teams and anyone who wants free, unlimited transcription. The Community Edition is free. Pro (from 2026 vendor and review sources: about $10 per user per month billed yearly) adds more accurate models, automatic meeting detection, PDF and DOCX export and custom templates.
- Open source (MIT) and free
- Audio never leaves your machine
- No bot joins the call
3. Otter.ai
Free tier4.5· Free · paid from $8.33/user/moOtter.ai is the best-known AI notetaker. Its OtterPilot bot joins Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams calls, writes a live transcript with speaker labels, then produces a summary, action items and a searchable archive you can chat with. Basic is free with 300 minutes a month and a 30-minute cap per meeting. Pro is $8.33 per user per month billed yearly ($16.99 monthly) for 1,200 minutes and 90-minute meetings. Business is $19.99 per user per month billed yearly ($30 monthly) and removes the minute cap, with meetings up to 4 hours.
- Real-time transcript you can read during the call
- Generous free plan to try it
- Strong search and AI chat across past meetings
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best alternatives to Fireflies.ai in 2026?⌄
The best Fireflies.ai alternatives in 2026 are Granola, Meetily, Otter.ai. Each is a ai meeting notes option you can compare on pricing, free tiers, and features in the table above.
Is there a free alternative to Fireflies.ai?⌄
Yes — Granola, Meetily, Otter.ai offer free tiers, making them strong free Fireflies.ai alternatives for bootstrapped startups.
Why look for a Fireflies.ai alternative?⌄
A common reason teams switch is a bot has to join the meeting. Beyond that, people compare ai meeting notes tools on pricing, specific feature gaps, ease of use, and whether an open-source or free-tier option exists — so they can pick the best fit for their stack and budget.
What is the cheapest Fireflies.ai alternative?⌄
Granola is among the most affordable Fireflies.ai alternatives — free · paid from $14/user/mo. Check the comparison table above for the full pricing breakdown.
Which Fireflies.ai alternative is rated highest?⌄
Granola is the highest-rated Fireflies.ai alternative in our catalog at 4.8 out of 5, making it a strong pick if you want a well-reviewed option.
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