AI meeting notes without a bot: seven tools compared
A bot-free note taker records the meeting from your own computer, using your microphone and, where the tool supports it, the system audio, instead of adding a "recording bot" to the participant list. This page compares seven tools whose official pages describe that kind of capture, as checked on September 15, 2026, and explains what bot-free does and does not change.
You start the capture on your own device, nothing appears in the participant list, and the notes stay in the tool you already use on that computer.
Some vendors offer a bot that joins scheduled calls on the team's behalf. If you need recordings of calls nobody on your side attends, check that option on the vendor's page instead.
Seven bot-free note takers at a glance
Swipe the table to compare all seven tools →
| Tool | How it captures without a bot (official wording) | Platforms the official pages list | Starting plan on the official pricing page | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cue | A desktop recorder you start yourself; a progressive transcript during longer meetings, then structured notes and action items after you stop. The notes can feed a follow-up task in a supported desktop app. | Mac and Windows | Cue is free to start. Cue Plus is $19.99/month. | You want meeting notes to become the next task on your desktop, not only a notepad. |
| Granola | "Without a meeting bot": an AI notepad that captures the meeting and shapes notes around it. | macOS, Windows, iOS and Android on the official site | A $0 plan with limited meeting history; "It's free to get started" | Your main workspace is a dedicated meeting notepad. |
| Krisp | A "bot-free AI Note Taker" that sits alongside Krisp's noise cancellation. | Not stated as a list on the pages checked; the note-taker page quotes Mac use | The note-taker app "is available with a free trial" | You also want call-audio tools such as noise cancellation. |
| Jamie | "Runs on your device without a bot joining your calls", for online and in-person meetings. | Not stated on the pages checked; see the official download page | Free at €0 per user per month | You capture in-person conversations as often as calls. |
| Fathom | Its homepage says the notetaker is "now available bot-free". | Not stated on the pages checked; see the official download page | A $0 plan for individuals | You already use Fathom's notetaker and want to drop the bot. |
| Fellow | "Use a bot, go botless, or capture conversations in person"; botless capture runs through its native desktop app. | macOS and Windows desktop app | A Free plan remains after a trial ends | Your team wants both bot and botless options in one meeting platform. |
| Otter | "A desktop app for bot-free meetings": record directly from your desktop without bots joining the call; a bot and mobile capture are also offered. | Mac or Windows desktop, plus iOS, Android and a Chrome extension | "Start for free"; Pro is listed at $16.99 per user per month | You want a choice between bot, desktop and mobile capture. |
Two tools that appear in other "bot-free" lists are not in this table. tl;dv and ScreenApp did not state bot-free capture on the official pages read on September 15, 2026, so they are left out rather than described from third-party articles.
What "bot-free" changes, and what it does not
- It changes how the capture starts. Nothing joins the call and there is no "recording bot has joined" moment. It does not remove the need for consent: explain the recording and the intended use of the notes, and follow the participants' and your organization's rules.
- It moves the audio path to your computer. Microphone-only capture does not guarantee remote voices are included. Replay a short authorized sample before relying on a full session, and check system-audio permissions when the tool offers them.
- It does not decide what happens after the meeting. Some tools keep transcript and notes in a notepad, some connect notes to a team platform, and Cue treats the reviewed notes as context for the next desktop task.
- It does not settle retention. Decide where the original recording lives, who can open it and when it is deleted. The consent and audio-source checklist walks through the order that matters.
How to choose between them
- Capture path. Confirm on the vendor page whether system audio is captured on your platform, then test it with a short authorized recording.
- What you get back. A transcript, a summary, action items or all three, and whether you can check the transcript against the audio before trusting a number or a decision.
- What comes next. If the notes are the destination, a notepad-style tool is enough. If the notes are the start of a draft, an update or a task in another app, look at what the tool can do on your desktop afterwards.
- Plan and platform. Read the current official pricing and download pages; the plan names and limits above were correct on the check date and can change.
Where Cue fits
Cue's meeting notes are one entry into a desktop voice agent for Mac and Windows. You start the recorder yourself, review the transcript and notes, then give the reviewed excerpt to Cue Agent to draft a recap, an action table or a follow-up in a supported app. The meeting notes page describes the capture workflow and its recovery steps, Cue vs Granola compares the two notepad-style workflows in more depth, and the meeting notes to action items tutorial lets you practice on a fictional excerpt without recording anything.
Official sources
Competitor details above were checked on September 15, 2026 from the vendors' own pages. Plans, platforms and capture options change, so verify the current source before deciding.
- Granola homepage and Granola pricing — "without a meeting bot", listed platforms, $0 plan with limited meeting history
- Krisp AI note taker — "bot-free AI Note Taker" and free-trial wording
- Jamie homepage and Jamie pricing — "runs on your device without a bot joining your calls", €0 plan
- Fathom homepage and Fathom pricing — "now available bot-free", $0 plan for individuals
- Fellow homepage and Fellow download — bot, botless and in-person options; macOS and Windows desktop app; Free plan after trial
- Otter homepage and Otter pricing — desktop app for bot-free meetings on Mac or Windows; Pro price
- Cue meeting notes and Cue pricing — Cue's own capture workflow and public offer
Frequently asked questions
Does bot-free mean I do not need consent to record?
No. Bot-free changes how the capture starts, not the rules. Nothing joins the participant list, so tell people you are recording, follow your organization's and the participants' requirements, and decide where the recording and notes will be kept before you start.
Can a bot-free recorder capture the other participants?
Only if the tool can capture system audio on your computer as well as your microphone. A working microphone does not prove remote voices are recorded, so make a short authorized test, replay it and confirm every needed voice is audible before relying on a full session.
Which of these tools also offer a meeting bot?
Fellow and Otter describe both bot and bot-free capture on their official pages, and Fathom's homepage says its notetaker is now available bot-free. Cue, Granola, Krisp and Jamie describe capture from your own device without adding a participant.
Is Cue free?
Cue is free to start. Cue Plus is $19.99/month. Competitor plans change, so check each tool's official pricing page before deciding.
Take notes without adding a bot to the call
Start with Cue on Mac or Windows, choose when to record from your desktop, and turn the reviewed notes into the next task.
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