Otter.ai Reviews

“Weekly schedule overviews are helpful

Pros

Each week I get an overview email at the start of the week showing what the upcoming schedule looks like and it also highlights key points from follow-up meetings which is helpful.

Cons

I struggle to quickly find an older transcript once there are a lot of recordings built up over time.

“A user-friendly go-to transcription tool

Pros

I have been using Otter AI as my go-to tool for taking notes and transcribing calls. It has proven to be user-friendly and I like that it links smoothly with Google Meet and Zoom. The auto-generated meeting summaries help me quickly capture the main points and overall it functions as a very handy personal note-taker for my workflow.

Cons

At times the transcripts are off and I end up needing to correct them manually, so human intervention is still necessary.

“Great for minutes, struggles with hindi

Pros

Otter.ai really handy for generating meeting minutes. Plus the transcripts it produces are detailed, informative and genuinely helpful. It also works well with Google Meet and the rest of Google Workspace, and getting started was not a problem.

Cons

One thing I did not like is that it struggles with Hindi at times. Also the notification emails and the frequent prompts to join meetings get really irritating.

“Automatically joins and transcribes meetings

Pros

What I really like about it is how simple it is to operate and how it automatically joins meetings so I don't have to remember to start it. It also transcribes and processes things quickly which means we can get a recap and act on items almost as soon as the call wraps up. I also find it invaluable for taking screenshots of whatever's being displayed on screen during our sessions. On top of that getting it up and running is not hard and it didn't demand any deep technical skills from me.

Cons

Sometimes it is a bit tricky to tell who is speaking during a meeting. So I wish the speaker labels were clearer, though for me this has not been a major issue.

“Dependable but speaker labels are wrong

Pros

I rely on it for meetings because it is dependable, quick and very effective. It reliably picks up conversations with good accuracy, keeps transcripts neatly organized and frees me from having to go through notes so conversations remain on track and more productive.

Cons

Speaker labels are often wrong on large group calls. So I'd like better role-based tags, smarter highlights and direct connections to our project management tools to make it more useful for business.

“Best for turning talks into text

Pros

For meeting notes and transcriptions, it is the best. It makes it simple to note the main points without having to rewatch recordings. Plus it converts our conversations into concise text that we can share easily with other teams. The initial setup was simple too as it only took a day or two to complete. Overall it's been invaluable for days packed with multiple meetings, letting us record and then efficiently review everything at the end of the day. With it I don't have to take notes during sessions and managing meeting information feels much more organized and less stressful.

Cons

Often it needs a bit more context to accurately translate conversations into written form. Typically it captures around 80 to 85 percent of what's said, so I usually have to go back and edit or fill in missing parts after meetings.

“Frees you to participate in calls

Pros

Before I started using the tool, I used to write down all the important bits during calls which meant I couldn't fully engage or participate. Now I can trust Otter to take notes for me so I can concentrate on speaking up and contributing my viewpoints. I also like the different output formats it offers. Such as I can pull a full transcript, extract only action items and even grab screenshots. I've relied on it for quite a while and honestly, the app is proven useful and easy to navigate. The Zoom integration is something I genuinely enjoy and I find the interface user friendly, especially the way it organizes past meetings.

Cons

Personally, I have not explored other integrations but I've noticed their list of supported platforms is fairly small, so if your workflow relies on other tools, it may not integrate with them and could therefore be unsuitable.

“Proven valuable in daily work

Pros

Dynamics 365 Field Service

Cons

Since many of my meetings take place in Estonian, I am missing the support for the Estonian language.

“Picks up key points and summarizes

Pros

I really like how Otter.ai picks up the key points during meetings so I can stay engaged in conversations instead of frantically taking notes. One feature I find especially useful is its ability to pull up discussion points tied to the specific speakers who contributed, which makes tracking who said what easy. It also produces a concise summary and flags the decisions made during the call, helping me follow up with teammates about their assigned tasks more efficiently. I often rely on it to serve as the official minutes document. When a call includes more than four or five people, the tool is particularly strong at catching every person's remarks which results in more accurate and useful meeting minutes. On top of that the initial onboarding was very quick and simple, which made my first experiences with the product much smoother.

Cons

The limited choices for exporting documents is annoying. Data privacy is another concern for me, since I want reassurance that recordings and transcripts are protected. As an idea, giving free users at least an hour of trial-time per day would let people explore its strengths and I believe that could help attract more customers.

“Accurate for standard english, not accents

Pros

Otter.ai is reliable as it transcribes things in real time. I watch it pick up voices, tag different speakers and produce readable text as the conversation unfolds. So whether it is meetings, interviews or safety debriefs it saves me an enormous amount of time.

Cons

I have noticed its accuracy varies a lot with accents. It does a great job with standard English but I often run into trouble with African, Arabic, Somali or non-native French accents. That leads to names spelled wrong, sentences mangled and me having to fix things by hand frequently.

“Takes notes for any meeting type

Pros

I love that it takes notes and creates meeting summaries no matter what type of meeting I'm in.

Cons

The action-item features are not as good as they should be and need improvement.

“Lets you stay engaged in conversations

Pros

To take accurate meeting notes, I rely on it and it lets me stay engaged in conversations without stressing about noting down every single detail.

Cons

I noticed the speech-to-text still struggles with some words, so I have to revisit the transcript to confirm terms are transcribed correctly.

“Accurate enough for client calls

Pros

Mostly I use it for client calls and the transcripts are usually accurate enough that I can quickly verify details. I only have to add the Chrome extension and it pairs smoothly with my browser, so there is no desktop app to install for me to use it.

Cons

It sometimes cuts into my calls unexpectedly which can be disruptive. I also notice that when several people speak at once the transcript can get tangled and hard to follow.

“Works fine for customizing notes

Pros

I use it for customizing my own notes and it works fine for that.

Cons

Nothing to say here as I need more time to check different features of it.

“Best for recording and arranging meetings

Pros

The app is the best for recording and arranging meetings. Plus its AI helps me extract the most useful details so the history of my meetings gets accurately documented.

Cons

I would really appreciate having a direct way to contact support so I can get technical issues fixed or have my questions clarified promptly within a short period of time.

“Automatically joins and maps meetings

Pros

What I really like is how it links to our calendar so the Notetaker automatically joins Teams meetings without any manual steps, capturing everything and producing almost immediate transcripts. When I go back through sessions, it pulls out shared screens, highlights the main topics and assembles a kind of narrative map that lays out the conversation.

Cons

certain accents or distinctive voices can throw off the accuracy of its transcriptions. Though it does adapt over time but it still struggles to fully understand context.

“Useful for meetings and summaries

Pros

I use it to smoothly join meetings, take live notes, pull accurate transcripts afterward and especially to highlight, mark up key points and generate automated summaries. Having all those capabilities in one tool manages my entire follow-up process and makes sure nothing important gets missed.

Cons

Notes emailed after meetings can only be viewed with an account which is not always suitable when meeting people outside our organization.

“Love the accurate, fast transcription

Pros

I really love how easily Otter can take an audio recording from a meeting, podcast or any conversation and quickly turn it into a transcript that's both highly accurate and reliable. It saves me hours of manual work and gives me confidence that the content is captured correctly so I can focus on the insights and follow-ups instead of the note-taking.

Cons

At the moment the number of third-party apps it hooks into feels pretty limited and while I expect that list to grow over time, I can imagine that being a drawback for some users today.

“convenient recording, inconsistent accuracy

Pros

Otter mobile app is good as it let me record live, in-person conversations while I am out and about. Overall it made meetings outside the office much easier to capture. Note that I'm in a single-consent state so I was not required to tell the other party I was recording. I also appreciated the ability to upload pre-recorded audio for transcription which came in handy when I needed to process recordings after the fact. The interface is also user friendly so I could get basic transcriptions done without a problem. That said I did notice that both the mobile recording and upload features have limitations such as restricted durations, less contextual awareness and occasional accuracy problems when it came to action items or more complex conversations.

Cons

The monthly minute limit was frustrating as it forces me to track usage and adding stress. Accuracy was inconsistent too. I mean even with clear audio, transcripts were often only about 85% accurate, requiring frequent edits. Also its action-item detection was weak as it rarely identified real next steps or key takeaways so I still had to review everything manually. It also lacked deeper contextual understanding as it transcribed words but did not understand the meaning which limited its usefulness for meaningful insights. And in fast multi-threaded conversations, it sometimes lost track and produced generic summaries.

“User-friendly with great calendar sync

Pros

It is very user-friendly and I really like the calendar sync features.

Cons

I've noticed that the automatic transcriptions sometimes come out inaccurate whenever there are too many people speaking in the same meeting.

“Great transcription with AI search

Pros

The transcription service feature is great and easy to use. Plus I can quickly search past interviews and notes using AI.

Cons

Overall I don't have many complaints about the app. It's dependable but I did notice it doesn't offer a wide variety of features.

“accurate transcripts and fast processing

Pros

Otter gives very accurate transcripts when the audio is clear. Searching through them saves time and the fast processing is a major plus.

Cons

Accents and background noise can cause the app to mishear words and confuse speaker labels, reducing accuracy. The editing tools are also basic making transcript fixes a long process. Also the cost is a little high.

“Transcribes meetings at a fair price

Pros

It helps me transcribe meetings so I don't have to take minutes. Also it is easy to use and upload recordings. Price is fair too compared to more expensive alternatives.

Cons

I frequently get incorrect words in the transcripts. So after some digging I ended up buying a higher-quality microphone. I know it won't catch everything perfectly but occasionally the results are indeed shockingly poor.

“Low cost with high value

Pros

When I choose a software I pay attention to cost and here for a relatively low price point I get a lot. As it transcribes calls and online meetings accurately, leverages AI to create concise summaries and even allows me to ask follow-up questions about the content.

Cons

My team noticed there was very little initial training or onboarding. So we felt a structured introduction would have helped us use the product much better from the start.

“Liked summaries and auto follow-ups

Pros

What I really liked was the summary I got after each call along with the automatic email follow-ups that saved me time.

Cons

The report's breakdown lacked sufficient detail and could benefit from more thorough information.

“product is ok but the price is too high

Pros

When I am conducting an interview, recording while getting an immediate transcription of the conversation works really well for me.

Cons

I enjoyed using it so I tried to sign up for a subscription but for me the price was too high.

“Easy to use and simplifies workflow

Pros

Otter is easy to use and very user-friendly. It has greatly simplified my workflow.

Cons

That said I notice it sometimes has trouble accurately transcribing complex technical terms. To me this is a relatively small drawback given how useful the tool is overall.

“works well with microsoft apps

Pros

It works well with Microsoft apps and consistently delivers concise, useful summary reports.

Cons

One downside is that I still have to manually choose which meetings to join or record which can be a bit tedious.

“inexpensive but inaccurate transcriptions

Pros

The tool is not expensive and is really easy to use and integrate.

Cons

I notice the transcriptions often come out really strange and inaccurate.

“A set-and-forget meeting companion

Pros

I'm a huge fan of the instant transcription. Having Otter as a set-and-forget companion for my meetings is simply amazing. It joins my calls, takes notes, summarizes our conversations and even captures screenshots so I don't forget little details which really helps keep me organized.

Cons

However I can't figure out how to stop it from being invited to my offline events that don't have conference call details, even after turning it off for those specific calendar entries. It still tries to join calendar items. It even reminded me of my kid's kindergarten start and end times. I toggled it off for that event multiple times but the issue remains. Though it is a minor annoyance, given how valuable the app is. For video calls, I have no problem uninviting this tool. This only happens with in-person events it obviously cannot attend.

“comes with auto-recording

Pros

Otter.ai is really easy to use and I like that it auto-records when meetings begin.

Cons

Unfortunately I only get thirty minutes of recording with the free version.