Best AI for Meeting Notes in 2026
Five meeting tools tested on the same 60-minute call: action item accuracy, speaker labeling, search, and CRM integration. Otter for general meetings, Fireflies for sales calls, Fathom for free, Grain for clip sharing, Krisp for noise.
- 1.Otter.ai — Cross-team general meetings.
- 2.Fireflies.ai — Sales teams in HubSpot or Salesforce.
- 3.Fathom — Solo founders and small teams.
- 4.Grain — Customer interviews, research, sales playbacks.
- 5.Krisp — Anyone in a noisy environment.
- 1
Otter.ai
Best all-around. Live captions, accurate speakers, instant summaries, and the cleanest mobile app.
- Best for
- Cross-team general meetings.
- Watch out
- Sales-CRM integrations trail Fireflies.
- 2
Fireflies.ai
Strongest sales-CRM pipeline integration and the best AI search across past meetings.
- Best for
- Sales teams in HubSpot or Salesforce.
- Watch out
- Steeper learning curve than Otter.
- 3
Fathom
The free tier is genuinely usable. Highlights are punchy, summaries are accurate.
- Best for
- Solo founders and small teams.
- Watch out
- Search across past meetings is weaker.
- 4
Grain
Best clip-sharing workflow. Pull moments, add notes, send to Slack in one motion.
- Best for
- Customer interviews, research, sales playbacks.
- Watch out
- Less robust than Otter on raw transcript quality.
- 5
Krisp
Not a notes tool, but the best noise-removal and meeting-transcription combo for hybrid offices.
- Best for
- Anyone in a noisy environment.
- Watch out
- Notes layer is thinner than the dedicated tools.
FAQ
Which is the best free AI meeting assistant?
Fathom. The free tier covers most solo and small-team needs.
Can these tools join Zoom and Google Meet?
All five support both. Fireflies and Otter also support Microsoft Teams.
Is Otter still worth it in 2026?
Yes for general meeting use. Sales teams should compare it against Fireflies head-to-head.
How we test. Each tool is tried against the same brief, with identical inputs where possible. We report what we shipped, not what the vendor promised.
Disclosure. Some links above are affiliate links. We earn a commission when you click them, at no extra cost to you. Affiliate status does not change the ranking; every winner here was tested before any partnership existed.