Are you tired of juggling note-taking and active participation during meetings? In the world of remote work and digital collaboration, having a reliable AI meeting assistant is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity. Two standout tools in this space, Otter AI vs Fireflies, offer powerful transcription and meeting management features. But which one truly fits your workflow?
In this detailed comparison, we’ll explore their strengths, weaknesses, pricing, and core functionalities to help you make an informed decision.
Whether you’re a freelancer, part of a global team, or simply looking to enhance meeting productivity, understanding the differences between these platforms is key. Let’s dive in!
What Is Otter AI?
Otter AI is an AI-powered meeting assistant designed to transcribe conversations in real time. It’s like having a personal note-taker who never misses a word. Whether you’re in a team meeting, conducting an interview, or attending a virtual lecture, Otter AI helps you stay engaged by converting speech into accurate text instantly.
Beyond basic transcription, Otter AI organizes your notes into actionable summaries and highlights, making it easier to track decisions and follow-ups. Its user-friendly interface and robust speaker identification feature allow for a seamless note-taking experience, so you can focus on the conversation instead of frantic scribbling.
Pros of Otter AI
- Delivers highly accurate transcriptions in optimal conditions
- Saves significant time and reduces cognitive load during meetings
- Powerful search function makes it easy to find specific conversation moments
- Reliable speaker identification for multi-person discussions
- User-friendly interface with minimal learning curve
Cons of Otter AI
- Background noise can reduce transcription accuracy
- May struggle with uncommon words or technical terminology
- Doesn’t capture emotional tone or sarcasm in conversations
- Requires stable internet connection for optimal performance
- Limited language support beyond English
For more details, read our guide on Otter AI Review.
What Is Fireflies AI?
Fireflies AI positions itself as more than just a transcription tool—it’s a comprehensive meeting management solution. It records, transcribes, summarizes, and even analyzes conversations across platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. The AI bot joins meetings as a silent participant, capturing dialogue and generating searchable transcripts.
A unique feature of Fireflies is AskFred, the built-in chatbot that allows users to query meeting content conversationally. From tracking action items to summarizing key takeaways, Fireflies aims to be an all-in-one tool for teams that value collaboration and efficiency.
Pros of Fireflies AI
- Excellent transcription accuracy across diverse accents and speaking styles
- Detailed AI-generated summaries that highlight decisions and action items
- Extensive integration support with over 40 tools including CRMs and project management software
- Supports 100+ languages, ideal for global teams
- Intuitive user interface with minimal learning curve
- AskFred chatbot allows conversational querying of meeting content
- Enhances team collaboration through accessible transcripts and summaries
Cons of Fireflies AI
- Transcription quality may suffer in noisy environments or with overlapping dialogue
- Language support for regional dialects and African languages can be inconsistent
- Advanced features require premium subscriptions
- Free plan has limitations on storage and summary capabilities
- Being cloud-based, requires strong internet connection for best results
Otter AI vs Fireflies: Pricing
When it comes to pricing, both tools offer tiered plans designed to cater to different user needs.
Fireflies Pricing
Fireflies provides a free plan that includes 800 minutes of storage per seat, along with unlimited transcription and basic summaries.
The Pro plan costs $10 per seat per month (billed annually) and offers 8,000 minutes of storage, unlimited transcriptions, and full integrations.
The Business tier, at $19 per seat monthly, adds video recording and conversational intelligence. For large organizations, the Enterprise plan ($39 per seat/month) includes HIPAA compliance and private storage.
Otter AI Pricing
Otter AI’s free plan offers 300 monthly transcription minutes, with conversations capped at 30 minutes each.
The Pro plan, priced at $8.33 per seat per month (annual billing), includes custom vocabulary and 1,200 minutes per month.
The Business plan ($20 per seat/month) raises the limit to 6,000 minutes and allows meetings up to four hours long. Enterprise pricing is custom and includes advanced security and deployment options.
Although Otter AI is slightly cheaper, Fireflies often delivers more value for the price with its broader feature set—especially for teams that need robust integrations and multi-language support.
Otter AI vs Fireflies: Features Comparison
1. Transcription Accuracy
Both platforms perform well in converting speech to text, even with multiple speakers. However, in our tests, Fireflies handled noisy environments and overlapping dialogue slightly better. Its ability to parse varied accents gives it a small but noticeable edge in accuracy.
2. Meeting Summaries
Otter AI provides “highlight summaries” that pinpoint key moments automatically. Fireflies goes further by using AI to analyze conversations and generate detailed recaps that include action items, decisions, and even emotional undertones. This makes Fireflies a better choice for users who need deeper meeting insights.
3. Language Support
Here’s where the two diverge significantly. Otter AI focuses mainly on English (US and UK), with limited support for Spanish and French. It’s a great tool for monolingual teams but falls short in global contexts.
Fireflies, by contrast, supports over 100 languages—from Mandarin and Hindi to German and Arabic. This makes it the clear winner for international teams or businesses dealing with cross-border clients.
4. Integrations with Other Tools
Otter AI integrates with major conferencing platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, as well as cloud storage services.
Fireflies, however, offers over 40 integrations, including CRM systems like Salesforce, project management tools like Asana and Trello, and communication apps like Slack. If your team uses a diverse tech stack, Fireflies is the more flexible option.
Final Verdict on Otter AI vs Fireflies
So, which AI meeting assistant should you choose—Otter AI or Fireflies?
If you primarily need real-time transcription and operate in an English-speaking environment, Otter AI is a cost-effective and reliable solution. It’s user-friendly, accurate under good conditions, and perfect for individuals or small teams.
But if you’re part of a global or multilingual team, need deeper meeting analysis, and want extensive integrations, Fireflies is worth the investment. Its superior language support and feature-rich plans make it a versatile tool for growing businesses and remote collaborators.
