AI Notetakers That Don't Send a Bot to Your Zoom or Teams Call (2026)

TL;DR: Circleback's desktop app records Zoom, Meet, and Teams calls without a bot on macOS and Windows, on every plan including Free. It keeps video of the meeting window by default, and what's shown on screen makes it into the notes. Granola never sends a bot, and it doesn't save the recording. Fathom records without a bot only on a Mac, and that mode is in beta.

Sometimes a notetaker bot isn't an option. The call belongs to a client, and you can't add anyone to it. Or it's an investor call, and a "Notetaker" tile in the participant list would change the tone of the conversation.

A bot-free notetaker transcribes the audio that already reaches your computer, so it works on calls you don't control. Every fact below comes from each vendor's own pricing page or help docs. We make Circleback, one of the tools on this list. When a visible bot is the better choice is a separate question, and we've covered it on its own.

The short version

Competitor columns reflect each vendor's own pricing pages and help docs as of Oct 2026. "Not stated" means the behavior was not confirmed for this table; see each tool's section below.

Circleback — best for bot-free recording, notes, and action items on every plan

The Circleback desktop app for macOS and Windows records Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, or any other call without a bot, on every plan including Free. Whether a recording comes from the desktop app or the bot, what's shown on screen, like slides, dashboards, and docs, makes it into the meeting notes, so you can find it with Ask Circleback and any AI tool connected over MCP. Audio-only recordings, or recordings with storage turned off, don't include screen content.

The desktop app runs on macOS Sonoma 14.2 or later and Windows, captures your microphone and computer audio, and records video of the meeting window by default for meetings it detects. To keep audio only, turn off the Record meeting video setting. Unlike tools that keep only a transcript, it keeps the recording itself: play it beside the transcript, download it, link to a moment, or make a clip. Every recording gets a speaker-labeled transcript, notes, and action items, assigned automatically when the conversation makes the owner clear.

The desktop app detects a meeting when an app like Zoom starts using your microphone, and prompts you to record. You can turn on automatic start after a short countdown, and automatic end when the microphone goes quiet. To make sure a bot never joins, turn off joining preferences in Settings → Calendar, and use the per-meeting toggle for exceptions. With joining preferences on, Circleback tries the bot first. Then, "if it's unable to join (for example, if the host doesn't admit it)", it falls back to the desktop app, which must be running with Detect meetings on.

Strengths: The desktop app is on every plan, with unlimited meetings on Free. Every meeting keeps its recording, speaker-labeled transcript, notes, and action items. You can use the bot with a desktop fallback, or the desktop app only. iOS, Android, and Apple Watch apps cover in-person meetings. Automations to Slack, Linear, and meeting sharing are on Free, and Pro adds Notion, HubSpot, Salesforce, Attio, webhooks, and more. Ask Circleback answers across meetings and connected email, and the API, MCP server, and CLI are on every plan. It supports over 100 languages, it's SOC 2 Type II, and customer data isn't used to train models.

Limitations: Free keeps 30 days of meeting history (older meetings are locked, not deleted). Recordings are deleted after 1 year on Free and Pro, 2 years on Business. Free also limits automations to the Slack, Linear, and Share meeting steps. There's no Linux app and no browser extension. Mobile recording is audio only. HIPAA with a BAA is Enterprise only.

Who should pick Circleback: A founder who turns joining preferences off so no bot appears on investor or candidate calls. A consultant whose clients host on Zoom or Teams. Or a team that keeps the bot for internal meetings and goes desktop-only for external ones.

Pricing: Free, Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans, with the desktop app on all of them. See current pricing.

Granola — best for people who already take notes in Granola

Granola is built around your own notes, with no bot and no recording. Its free Basic plan includes unlimited meetings with "bot-free, device-audio capture" and 30 days of accessible history. Business is $14 per user per month and Enterprise is $35 per user per month; its pricing page gives no billing period. Granola "uses your computer's system audio and microphone" and "does not record or save audio or video at any point during the call".

Granola says "you can transcribe any meeting you can hear regardless of host permissions". You write as much or as little as you like during the call, and Granola "uses meeting context to write clear notes, personal to you". Apps cover macOS 14 or later, Windows, iOS, and Android, plus Apple Watch. Speaker tags work on Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams on macOS and Windows. Elsewhere, the transcript shows "Me" and "Them".

Strengths: Nothing joins the call, and no audio is kept. Unlimited meetings on the free plan. Your own notes shape the summary.

Limitations: There's no recording to play back, ever. You start each note yourself, and automatically starting Granola for all meetings is "under consideration". Basic stores notes older than 30 days but hides them until you upgrade.

If you want the same bot-free capture and also need the recording, Circleback's desktop app keeps it, along with a speaker-labeled transcript, notes, and action items, on every plan. You can type private notes during the call there too, and they enhance its AI notes.

Who should pick Granola: People who already take notes in Granola and don't need a recording to go back to or automations after the call.

Pricing: Free (Basic), Business ($14 per user per month), and Enterprise ($35 per user per month) (pricing).

Krisp — best for recording as a participant from a noisy room

Krisp started with noise cancellation, and it records the call as one more participant. Its Core plan is $8 per user per month, billed annually, or $16 month to month, with bot-free transcription, audio and video recording, and 10 GB of storage. The pricing page offers a 7-day free trial with no credit card, rather than a permanent free plan. Krisp says you can "record meetings and conferences without host permission", and that it "records your Zoom meetings as a participant, no host permissions required".

Desktop apps cover Windows and macOS, with mobile apps for iOS and Android, and Krisp describes its note taker as one that "works with any voice app". It also offers the "flexibility to join with or without a bot", transcribes meetings in 17 languages, and runs its noise cancellation on the same calls.

Strengths: Explicit no-host-permission recording, including on Zoom. Bot-free audio and video recording with noise cancellation. A low annual price.

Limitations: No permanent free plan, and 17 transcription languages. Core includes 10 GB of storage. Advanced ($15 per user per month, billed annually, or $30 monthly) raises it to 60 GB and adds commenting and tagging, manager view, and company deal grouping. SSO and SCIM, on-device private transcription, and HIPAA compliance are Enterprise features.

Who should pick Krisp: Consultants and support or sales people who record client-hosted calls from a noisy home office and want the recording as well as the notes.

Pricing: 7-day free trial, then Core ($8-16/user/mo), Advanced ($15-30/user/mo), and Enterprise (custom) (pricing).

Jamie — best for consultants who want data hosted in the EU

Jamie answers the question European clients ask first: where does the data live? Its free plan includes 10 AI notes a month, with a 30-minute limit per meeting. Plus is $24 a month with 20 notes and a 2-hour limit, and Pro is $46 a month with unlimited notes and a 5-hour limit, both billed annually. Jamie's docs say it "can only be used on your macOS or Windows device and therefore does not require any virtual bot to join your meeting". On a Mac, it needs macOS 14.4 or later.

When Jamie detects that you've joined a video call on Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams, a notification asks whether to start recording. Audio is "processed on servers in Germany, then permanently deleted after transcription", and "all data is hosted and processed exclusively in the EU on servers in Germany". The iOS and Android apps record in-person meetings, and notes and transcripts come in 99+ languages.

Strengths: Desktop capture on Mac and Windows with a detection prompt. EU hosting, with audio deleted after transcription. 99+ languages.

Limitations: Every plan caps meeting length: 30 minutes on Free, 2 hours on Plus, and 5 hours on Pro, Team, and Enterprise. The mobile app can't record phone calls. Team is listed at $37 without a billing note. There's no audio to play back.

Who should pick Jamie: Consultants and founders in Europe whose clients or investors ask where meeting data lives, and who can work within per-meeting duration limits.

Pricing: Free (10 AI notes a month, 30-minute meetings), Plus ($24/mo, billed annually), Pro ($46/mo, billed annually), Team (listed at $37), and Enterprise (custom) (pricing).

Fellow — best for teams that already run their meetings in Fellow

Fellow gives you both modes in one product, chosen per meeting. Its Free plan includes 5 AI notes and 5 AI recordings per user for the lifetime of the account. Team is $7 per user per month, billed annually ($11 monthly), with 10 AI notes per user a month and 10 AI recordings per user. Business ($15 billed annually, $23 monthly) makes both unlimited. "Desktop Botless Recording lets you capture meetings directly from Fellow's desktop app, without a bot appearing in the call", on Mac and Windows.

Botless recording "works on any meeting platform (Slack huddles, Microsoft Teams, dialers, Google Meet, Zoom, and more)". It needs microphone access plus screen recording access "to capture audio of other participants on the call". You pick Botless from the Record now menu, or click the Meeting Detected notification. Fellow also offers a Note Taker bot for Google Meet, Zoom, and Teams, Zoom Native Capture for paid Fellow and Zoom accounts, and iOS and Android recording without a bot. Its help center notes that under Zoom's new rules, enforced from October 14, 2026, every bot has to be tied to a real Zoom user who has authorized the app. It lists botless recording as the option when no one on the call can sponsor the bot.

Strengths: Bot and botless in one product, chosen per meeting. Any platform, including dialers and Slack huddles. Mobile recording without a bot.

Limitations: The Free plan's 5 notes and 5 recordings are a lifetime total, so it works as a trial. Team caps you at 10 AI notes per user a month and 10 AI recordings per user. Enterprise ($25 per user per month, billed annually) has a 10-user minimum. The botless article describes an audio recording, a transcript, and AI notes, and doesn't mention video.

Circleback covers the same split. Its joining preferences send the bot only to the meetings you choose, such as internal ones, and its desktop app records the rest, on every plan.

Who should pick Fellow: Teams that already run agendas and recurring meetings in Fellow and want its bot and botless modes in the same tool.

Pricing: Free (5 AI notes and 5 AI recordings per user, lifetime), Team ($7-11/user/mo), Business ($15-23/user/mo), and Enterprise ($25/user/mo, billed annually, 10-user minimum) (pricing).

Fathom — best for unlimited free storage, with bot-free capture on a Mac

Fathom is a bot-first tool that's adding a bot-free mode, starting on the Mac. Its Free plan includes unlimited recordings and transcriptions, with a "choice of bot-free (in beta) or bot capture", and the pricing page footnote reads "Beta feature for Mac". Premium is $16 per user per month, billed annually ($20 monthly). Fathom's help center says "Right now, Fathom 3.0+ is only available for Mac users", with Windows coming soon.

On a Mac, Fathom "captures meetings without a bot in the call, including full video, along with audio-plus-transcript and transcript-only options". Bot-free video is available for Zoom on Mac, and it's coming to Google Meet "in the coming weeks". For Microsoft Teams, "initial availability may vary depending on how you join Teams". As of October 1, 2026, Fathom 3.0 "supports English and 38 additional languages", rolling out in phases. Fathom records on Mac and Windows computers but not Chromebooks or Linux, and lists an iOS app for in-person conversations.

Strengths: Unlimited free recording and transcription. Three bot-free modes on Mac, including transcript-only. Clips, playlists, and search across calls on Free.

Limitations: Bot-free is a Mac-only beta, so Windows users get the bot. Once your calendar is connected, "the Fathom Notetaker joins your calls automatically", so bot-free is a choice rather than the default. Advanced call summaries and AI-generated action items are listed under Premium.

Circleback's Free plan includes its bot-free desktop app on both macOS and Windows.

Who should pick Fathom: Mac users already on Fathom who want to try its bot-free beta, or teams on Fathom's bot that want to switch it off for specific calls.

Pricing: Free, Premium ($16-20/user/mo), Team ($15-19/user/mo, for 2 or more users), Business ($25-34/user/mo), and Enterprise (custom) (pricing).

Notion AI Meeting Notes — best for teams already on Notion Business

Notion puts meeting notes where your docs already live. Notion AI Meeting Notes requires a Business or Enterprise workspace. The pricing page lists Business at $20 per member per month, billed annually ($24 monthly), and shows only a "Limited Trial" of meeting notes on Free and Plus. The Notion desktop app "captures all sides of the conversation using your system audio and mic", so nothing joins the Zoom or Teams call. In the browser, "only mic inputs will be transcribed", and the mobile app "can't capture audio playing from your phone itself".

The local copy of audio is "deleted after successful processing or within 24 hours, whichever comes first", leaving a transcript and summary on a Notion page. Usage is capped at 10 hours per user per day. Notion lists 16 supported languages, and "speaker labeling is currently available in English only".

Strengths: Notes land next to the docs and projects your team already keeps in Notion. No bot, and the local audio copy is deleted within 24 hours. The product page says it "supports every video tool".

Limitations: Business or Enterprise only, priced per member. Browser and mobile sessions hear only the microphone. Speaker labels are English-only, and 16 languages are listed. There's no recording to replay in Notion, though an optional setting, off by default, keeps the 10 most recent audio files on the recorder's device for download.

Who should pick Notion AI Meeting Notes: Teams whose wiki and projects already live in a Notion Business workspace and want meeting notes as pages rather than a separate meeting tool.

Pricing: Included with Business ($20-24/member/mo) and with Enterprise (custom) (pricing).

Zoom AI Companion — best for teams already paying for Zoom Workplace

Zoom's notes are built in, but only the host can turn them on. Zoom's Meeting Summary can only be started by the host or co-host, so as a participant you receive a summary only if the host turns it on and chooses to share it. Zoom retired the AI Companion name in June 2026. The features are "still included with eligible paid plans. They're just called by what they do now."

For calls you don't host, Zoom's answer is My Notes. It uses "system and microphone audio on the device where My Notes is enabled" and works with third-party apps such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, or Google Chrome. It needs the Zoom Workplace desktop app 6.7.5 or later on Windows or macOS, and a Pro, Business, Enterprise, or My Notes standalone account ($10 per user per month, or $8.33 billed annually). A Zoom host "can see who is currently using My Notes transcription during a meeting, as well as end the use of My Notes transcription for individual participants". Basic accounts get summaries for 3 hosted meetings and 3 My Notes uses a month.

Strengths: Nothing extra to buy on an eligible paid Workplace plan. My Notes covers Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, and other platforms from the desktop with "no bots required".

Limitations: The host can end your My Notes transcription in a Zoom meeting. My Notes on mobile doesn't support third-party platforms. Zoom AI in a Google Meet or Teams meeting through the calendar integration "will join the meeting as a participant", which is a bot.

Who should pick Zoom AI Companion: Teams on paid Zoom Workplace plans that host most of their own meetings, with My Notes for the occasional Teams or Meet call.

Pricing: Included with eligible paid Zoom Workplace plans. My Notes standalone is $8.33-10/user/mo, and ZoomMate is $16.67-20/user/mo. Basic accounts get 3 summaries and 3 My Notes uses a month (pricing).

No bot still means telling people

Going bot-free solves the technical problem. The host doesn't have to admit anyone, and nothing in the participant list changes the tone of the call. It doesn't remove the social one. A bot announces itself, and a desktop app doesn't, so the disclosure is now yours to make.

The other difference is what you keep. Circleback, Krisp, and Fellow save a recording you can replay. Granola and Jamie don't keep the audio, and Notion deletes its local copy once processing finishes. Circleback's notes also include what was shown on screen when the video is saved. If you ever need the exact words a client used, that matters more than any feature list.

The fastest way to choose is to run two of them on the same call and compare the notes afterward. That will tell you more than any comparison post can, including this one.

Frequently asked questions

Which AI notetaker works on Zoom or Teams calls that my client hosts?
Any tool that records from your own computer: Circleback, Granola, Krisp, Jamie, and Fellow on Mac and Windows, Fathom on a Mac, and Notion's desktop app. Granola says "you can transcribe any meeting you can hear regardless of host permissions", and Krisp "records your Zoom meetings as a participant, no host permissions required". The platforms' own features don't help here. Zoom's Meeting Summary is host-started, and Microsoft's documentation says "external participants can't record meetings" in Teams.

Do I have to tell people I'm recording when there's no bot in the call?
Often, yes. A bot gives notice by appearing in the participant list, and desktop capture gives none, so disclosure is on you. Consent rules differ by country and by US state, and all-party consent jurisdictions require everyone's agreement. Say at the start of the call that you're taking AI notes. See recording consent for AI meeting notes for how the rules apply.

Can I use a bot for team meetings and go bot-free on investor calls?
Yes, with Circleback, Fellow, Fathom, and Krisp. Circleback's joining preferences send the bot to the meeting types you choose, with a per-meeting toggle, and if the bot's join request is denied while you're on the call, the desktop app prompts you to record. Fellow lets you pick Bot or Botless per meeting. Fathom's Free plan offers bot or bot-free capture (bot-free on Mac only), and Krisp offers the "flexibility to join with or without a bot". Granola, Jamie, and Notion have no bot at all.

What is the best free AI notetaker that doesn't use a bot?
Circleback's Free plan includes the desktop app, with unlimited meetings and 30 days of history. Fathom's Free plan has unlimited recordings, with bot-free capture in beta on Mac. Granola's Basic plan has unlimited meetings and 30 days of history. Jamie's free plan allows 10 AI notes a month, and Fellow's Free plan is 5 AI notes and 5 recordings per user in total. Krisp has a 7-day trial, Notion needs a Business plan, and Zoom Basic accounts get 3 My Notes uses a month.

Does Zoom AI Companion take notes without a bot?
In meetings you host on a paid Zoom Workplace plan, yes, because Meeting Summary runs inside Zoom. On calls you join, My Notes records your desktop's audio with "no bots required" on a Pro, Business, Enterprise, or standalone account, though the host can end your transcription. Zoom AI in a Google Meet or Teams meeting through the calendar integration "will join the meeting as a participant".

Can a host block notetaker bots, and does that affect desktop recording?
Yes, and no. Zoom hosts and admins can block Meeting SDK apps with an allow list, require sign-in to join, or hold guests in the waiting room. Since March 2, 2026, a bot joining a meeting hosted by another account needs a token that "can only be obtained for participants who have authorized the app via OAuth, and who are actively present in the meeting". Circleback's docs list the usual reasons a bot can't get in: no admission before the waiting-room timeout, required authentication or registration, or a block on external participants. Desktop recording is unaffected, because nothing joins.

Circleback's desktop app records any meeting on macOS or Windows without a bot, on every plan, including Free. Download the desktop app.

Last updated October 2026. Pricing and features change frequently — check each tool's website for current information.