Bots, audio, accounts and price. Checked against Otter’s own pages on September 25, 2026.
The short answer
Choose Otter if your meetings are Zoom, Teams or Google Meet calls, you want a live transcript, or your team works on Android, Windows or the web. Choose Phrase if you record in-person meetings, lectures and interviews on iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch and want no bot, no account, a note you edit like a document, and transcription in 100+ languages.
Otter and Phrase both turn a conversation into a transcript and a summary, and both have iPhone apps. They differ in how they capture a meeting and in how much of the note you can change afterward. We make Phrase; the Otter facts on this page come from Otter’s own pricing page and help center.
Choose Otter if
Most of your meetings are Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams calls. Otter Notetaker can join them, or Otter’s desktop app can record them from your computer’s audio without a bot.
You want to read the transcript live while people are still talking.
You or your team work on Android, Windows or the web, share conversations in Otter Channels, or need DOCX, PDF or SRT exports and integrations such as Salesforce, HubSpot or Zapier.
You want free recording time every month (Otter Basic includes 300 transcription minutes), or your iPhone or Mac can’t update to iOS 26 or macOS 26, which Phrase needs.
Choose Phrase if
You record in-person meetings, lectures or interviews, and you want nothing joining the conversation and no account to create.
You want to change any part of the AI note, summary included, and keep the recording beside it to check a line against the audio.
Your conversations are in languages beyond Otter’s six, or switch languages partway through.
You use Apple devices and want the same app on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch under one App Store subscription, with follow-ups that wait for your OK.
Side by side
What differs
Phrase
Otter
Where it runs
Apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. Needs iOS 26 or macOS 26 or later; the Mac app is on the Mac App Store.
Apps for iPhone, iPad and Android, a web app, desktop apps for Mac (macOS 12.3 or later) and Windows 10 or later, and a Chrome extension.Otter desktop app
Meeting bot
None. Nothing joins your call or meeting.
Otter Notetaker joins Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams as a participant everyone can see. The desktop app can record those calls without it.Otter Notetaker
Audio it records
What the device’s microphone hears in the room. On a Mac it never captures audio from other apps, such as Zoom or Teams.
The microphone on a phone, tablet or computer, for in-person conversations. The desktop app can also record audio playing on the computer, and the Chrome extension audio playing in the browser.Record a conversation
Transcript
Created after you stop recording and the upload is processed. Timestamped and speaker-labeled, with the audio attached so you can jump to any moment.
Live while you record, with an internet connection. The audio stays in the conversation for playback.Record a conversation
Editing the note
The whole note is a document. Retype any line, drag sections, check off to-dos, add headings, images, code, math or diagrams, and undo any change.
Correct transcript words, punctuation and speakers, and edit action items and the outline. The summary gist changes only when you regenerate it from the transcript.Regenerate the summary
Account and storage
No sign-up and no Phrase account. Notes stay on your devices and, with Pro, sync through your own iCloud. Recordings are uploaded for processing to create the note.
An Otter account is required, and you verify your email before first use. Conversations are stored in that account and sync across web, desktop and mobile.Otter quick start
Transcription languages
100+ languages, detected automatically, including conversations that switch languages partway through.
English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Chinese (Simplified). One language per conversation; French with English is the exception.Supported languages
Price
Free download: keeps up to 100 notes at a time and includes one media-to-note conversion. Pro is one App Store subscription for iPhone, iPad and Mac, with AI usage limits; the App Store lists current prices.
Basic is free: 300 transcription minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation, 3 file imports in total, 25 most recent conversations. Per user per month: Pro $16.99, or $8.33 billed annually; Business $30, or $19.99 billed annually. Enterprise is priced through sales.Otter pricing
Export and integrations
Copy a transcript, and export decks, briefs and study sets as PDF with Pro. With Pro, follow-ups go to Reminders, Calendar or an email draft after you approve them.
Text as TXT on Basic, plus DOCX, PDF and SRT on paid plans; audio as MP3. Integrations include Slack, Zoom, Google Calendar, Salesforce, HubSpot and Zapier, and an MCP server.Export conversations
Bots, computer audio and the room
Otter captures meetings three ways. Otter Notetaker joins Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams calls as a participant everyone can see, and Otter’s help center says it can’t join anonymously. The desktop app for Mac and Windows records a call from your computer’s audio with no bot, and the phone app and browser record through the microphone.
Phrase has one way. It records what the microphone on your iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch hears, and on a Mac it never captures audio from Zoom, Teams or other apps, so on headphones the other side of a call isn’t recorded. If your meetings happen on a screen, Otter is the better tool. If they happen around a table, in a lecture hall or across from someone you’re interviewing, both apps record them, and the choice comes down to the account and the note.
What you can change after the recording
In Otter you correct the transcript: words, punctuation, paragraph breaks and speaker names. Action items and the outline are editable too. The summary gist changes only when you edit the transcript and regenerate it, and Otter doesn’t keep earlier versions of the summary. Otter can also email a meeting summary to your calendar guests after the meeting when auto-share to guests is turned on.
In Phrase the whole note is a document. Retype a line of the summary, drag a section, check off to-dos, add headings, images, code, math or diagrams, and undo any change. The recording stays attached with a timestamped, speaker-labeled transcript; on iPhone, tap a line to hear that moment. With Pro, Phrase can add action items to Reminders or draft a recap email, and it asks for your OK first and never sends anything on its own.
Where each app runs, and where notes live
Otter reaches more places: iPhone and iPad, Android, the web, desktop apps for Mac and Windows, and a Chrome extension. Teams get shared Channels, admin tools on Business and Enterprise, and integrations such as Salesforce, HubSpot and Zapier. Phrase is Apple-only. Its apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch need iOS 26 or macOS 26 or later, and one Pro subscription through the App Store covers all of them.
Otter keeps conversations in your Otter account, which you create and verify by email before first use. Phrase has no account. Notes live on your devices and, with Pro, sync through your own iCloud. To create a note, Phrase uploads the recording for cloud processing, so that step needs a connection.
Checked on Otter’s own pricing and help pages on September 25, 2026.
Does Otter AI use a bot to record meetings?
Otter Notetaker is a bot. It joins Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams calls as a participant everyone can see, and Otter says it can’t join anonymously. Otter’s desktop app for Mac and Windows can record the same calls from your computer’s audio without a bot. Phrase has no bot at all; it records only what the microphone on your iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch hears.
Can Phrase record Zoom, Teams or Google Meet calls?
Phrase records what the device microphone hears and never captures audio from other apps. On a Mac with headphones on, the other people on the call are not recorded. For online calls, Otter’s desktop app or Otter Notetaker is the better fit. Phrase is built for conversations in a room: in-person meetings, lectures, interviews and voice notes.
Is Phrase an Otter alternative for iPhone?
For conversations recorded in person, yes. Phrase runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch, needs no account, transcribes 100+ languages, and turns each recording into a note you can edit, with the audio attached. It needs iOS 26 or later. Otter’s iPhone app also records in person and shows a live transcript, and Otter adds Android, Windows and web access that Phrase doesn’t have.
Do I need an account to use Phrase or Otter?
Otter needs one: you sign up and verify your email before you can use it, and your conversations are stored in that account. Phrase has no sign-up and no Phrase account. Notes stay on your devices, and with Pro they sync through your own iCloud. Phrase does upload each recording for cloud processing to create the note.
How do the free plans compare?
Otter Basic is free with 300 transcription minutes a month, up to 30 minutes per conversation, 3 file imports in total and your 25 most recent conversations, per Otter’s pricing page on September 25, 2026. Phrase is free to download, keeps up to 100 notes at a time and includes one media-to-note conversion. If you want to record often without paying, Otter’s free plan goes further.
Can I move my Otter recordings into Phrase?
Yes. Otter exports a conversation’s audio as an MP3 file, and Phrase imports audio files. After processing, each import becomes a Phrase note with a summary, a transcript and the audio attached. The free download includes one media-to-note conversion, and Pro includes more. Imports have a length limit, so split very long recordings first.
Sources
Otter pricingPlans and prices, Basic limits, exports and integrations by plan
