The best AI note takers for iPhone, compared
Short answer: Otter for the biggest free plan, Granola for notes from your computer with no bot, Plaud if you want a recorder that is not your phone, Apple Notes if a free transcript is enough — and Roomtone for unlimited recording in 100+ languages from the phone, with a notetaker for calls. Roomtone is ours; the table says where the others are better.
Free to start · 30 minutes a month, no card
The problems you know too well
Free plans that stop mid-meeting
Otter's free plan ends a conversation at 30 minutes, Notta's at 3. Check the cap per recording, not only the minutes per month.
A bot cannot come to a room
A notetaker bot needs a meeting link. A meeting across a table needs a microphone in the room — the phone's, or a recorder's.
Hardware with a plan on top
A Plaud recorder is $159 to $189, and unlimited transcription is another $239.99 a year.
Side by side
| Roomtone | Otter | Granola | Fireflies | Plaud | Apple Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (US) | Free; Pro $14.99/mo or $119.99/yr | Free; Pro $16.99/mo or $99.99/yr | Free; Business $14 per user/mo | Free; Pro $18/mo, or $10/mo billed yearly | Recorder $159–$189; Pro plan $99.99/yr | Free, built in |
| Free plan | 30 min a month; a recording is never cut off | 300 min a month, 30 min per conversation | No daily limit; 30 days of history | Limited AI summaries; 400 min of storage | 300 min a month, with a recorder | Transcripts on iPhone 12 and later; summaries need Apple Intelligence |
| Meeting in the room | iPhone microphone | iPhone app (English, Spanish, French, Japanese) | iPhone app | iPhone app | The Plaud recorder | iPhone microphone (10 languages) |
| Zoom, Meet, Teams | Notetaker joins the call (Pro) | Notetaker joins the call | No bot: computer audio on Mac and Windows | Notetaker joins by default; desktop app without one | Plaud Desktop (beta) captures the computer's audio | No |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad; web app for reading | Web, iPhone, Android | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android | Web, iPhone, desktop | Recorder, phone app, Windows, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| US App Store rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) | 4.8 (85,600) | 5.0 (14,600) | 4.8 (5,300) | 4.9 (23,700) | Built in |
Compiled from each product's own site and US App Store listing, checked October 21, 2026. If something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
What you get
Records the room
The iPhone's microphone, with the screen locked; a phone call that interrupts it does not end it.
Joins the call
Send a notetaker into Zoom, Meet or Teams when there is a link (Pro).
Summary, decisions, action items
Every recording, with the transcript behind it to check any line.
100+ languages
The notes come back in the language that was spoken.
Perfect for
- Client meetings
- One-on-ones
- Site visits
- Multilingual teams
- Interviews
Questions
What is the best free AI note taker for iPhone?+
For the most free minutes, Otter: 300 a month, with each conversation capped at 30 minutes. For a transcript with no account at all, Apple's Voice Memos and Notes on iOS 18 or later, on iPhone 12 and later. Roomtone's free plan is 30 minutes a month, and a recording started with minutes left is never cut off.
Which AI note takers work for in-person meetings?+
Roomtone, Otter, Granola, Fireflies and Apple Notes all record a meeting in the room from the iPhone; Plaud records it with its own device. A tool that only sends a bot cannot, because a room has no link to join.
Which one works without a bot in video calls?+
Granola, and Plaud Desktop (in beta), capture the computer's audio on Mac and Windows. Roomtone, Otter and Fireflies send a notetaker that everyone in the call can see; Roomtone can also record a call played on speaker from the room.
Does a bot join my meeting?+
Only if you send one. Paste a Zoom, Meet or Teams link and a notetaker joins that meeting, visible to everyone in it. For anything else — a table, a car, a site walk — Roomtone records the room from your phone, where no bot can go at all.
Is there a free plan?+
Yes: 30 minutes of recording a month, with the transcript, the summary, the action items and a share link — no card. A recording you start with minutes left is finished in full, however long it runs, and the minutes reset on the 1st. Pro makes recording unlimited and adds the notetaker for Zoom, Meet and Teams, importing files and YouTube links, chat across all your notes, and export.
What languages does it handle?+
Over 100. The notes come back in the language that was spoken, not translated into English first.
What happens to my recordings?+
The audio is used to produce the transcript and then deleted from the server; your phone keeps its own copy until you delete it. Nothing is used to train a model.
Record the next one
Free for 30 minutes a month. No card.
Download for iPhone