--- title: "Circleback vs Otter.ai: which one I'd pick in 2026" description: "Circleback vs Otter.ai on free plans, Pro and Business prices, bot-free capture, automations, API and MCP. Which one I'd pick, and for whom." canonical: "https://thenotetakers.com/circleback-vs-otter" last_updated: "2026-10-18" --- # Circleback vs Otter.ai: which one I'd pick in 2026 Otter.ai and Circleback both turn calls into transcripts and notes, but they put their effort in different places. Otter is built around the live transcript and a low Pro price. Circleback is built around what happens after the call: sending notes and action items into the tools your team already uses. ## Quick verdict **Otter.ai wins on price. Circleback wins on free plan limits, automation and developer access.** - Pick **Otter.ai** if the lowest Pro price comes first, or you want a live transcript during the call. - Pick **Circleback** if you want unlimited meetings on a free plan, bot and bot-free capture in one tool, and notes and action items routed automatically to your CRM, Slack, Notion, Linear, monday.com or Zapier. I compared them on free plans, price, capture, automations, developer access and security, based on each company's documented plans. ## Circleback Circleback turns conversations into speaker-labeled transcripts, notes, assigned action items, automations and searchable context. It's the more workflow-heavy of the two. **Key features:** - A bot for Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Webex - A bot-free desktop app for macOS and Windows with speaker labels, which, with Detect meetings on, offers to record if the bot is refused entry while you're on the call (it starts by itself only with auto-start on) - Conditional automations to CRMs, Slack, Notion, Linear, monday.com and Zapier, plus conditional sharing by participant, domain, title or tag - Ask Circleback across meetings and connected email, with cited answers - API, MCP and CLI on every plan; MCP works with Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and Raycast **Pros:** - The free plan has no meeting, minute or member caps - Bot, bot-free desktop and mobile capture in one tool - API access on every plan - Transcription in 100+ languages **Cons:** - Pro costs more than Otter Pro - Free locks meetings older than 30 days, and recordings are deleted after 1 year - CRM, Notion, monday.com and Zapier automations need Pro - HIPAA and SSO are Enterprise only **Pricing:** Free. Pro is $15 per user per month billed annually or $18 monthly. Business is $25 annually or $29 monthly. **Best for:** teams that want meetings to turn into updates in Slack, Linear or a CRM without copying anything. ## Otter.ai Otter centers on live transcription and AI Chat, with a free Basic plan and a cheap Pro tier. **Key features:** - A notetaker for Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet - Live transcription with speaker identification - AI Chat within and across meetings, and an MCP server on Basic - Bot-free capture on desktop or Chrome, plus iOS and Android apps - Salesforce, HubSpot and Zapier on Pro, with the CRM syncs subject to user limits **Pros:** - Pro is $8.33 per user per month billed annually - Live transcript during the call - Business is cheaper than Circleback's on annual billing **Cons:** - Basic caps you at 300 minutes per user per month and 30 minutes per conversation - Basic keeps only the 25 most recent conversations - API and webhooks are Enterprise only - SSO and SCIM need a 100-user minimum license **Pricing:** Basic is free. Pro is $8.33 per user per month billed annually or $16.99 monthly. Business is $19.99 annually or $30 monthly. **Best for:** individuals and small teams who want a low-cost paid plan and a live transcript. ## Side by side | Feature | Circleback | Otter.ai | |---|---|---| | Free plan limit | 30-day visible history | 300 minutes a month | | Length per conversation | No bot cap; desktop 5 hours | 30 minutes on Basic | | Pro, annual | $15 | $8.33 | | Pro, monthly | $18 | $16.99 | | Business, annual | $25 | $19.99 | | Business, monthly | $29 | $30 | | Bot platforms | Zoom, Meet, Teams, Webex | Zoom, Teams, Meet | | API access | Every plan | Enterprise | | Transcription languages | 100+ | 6 | ## Category by category ### Price On annual billing, Otter Pro is $6.67 less than Circleback Pro. Billed monthly the gap shrinks to $16.99 versus $18. On Business, Otter is cheaper annually ($19.99 versus $25) and Circleback is cheaper monthly ($29 versus $30). **Winner: Otter.ai.** ### Free plan Circleback Free has no cap on meetings or members. Otter Basic stops at 300 minutes a month and 30 minutes per conversation, so a weekly hour-long team call doesn't fit. Circleback's catch is that meetings older than 30 days are locked until you upgrade. **Winner: Circleback.** ### Capture Both offer bot and bot-free options. Circleback adds Webex to its bot, and if the bot is refused entry while you're on the call and Detect meetings is on, the desktop app prompts you to record (it starts by itself only with auto-start on). **Winner: Circleback, narrowly.** ### Automation and developer access Circleback routes notes and action items by condition to CRMs, Slack, Notion, Linear, monday.com and Zapier, and opens API, MCP and CLI on every plan. Otter keeps API and webhooks for Enterprise. **Winner: Circleback.** ### Live transcription Otter puts the live transcript front and center, with speaker identification on Basic. **Winner: Otter.ai.** ### Security Circleback is SOC 2 Type II, participates in the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, encrypts data at rest and in transit, and does not train on customer data. Otter lists TLS encryption and AES-256 encryption for real-time content. Both keep HIPAA on Enterprise, and Otter's SSO needs a 100-user license. **Winner: Circleback for smaller teams that need SSO.** ## How to choose **Choose Otter.ai if:** - Your budget decides, and Pro covers your needs - You want a live transcript during calls - You don't need API access below Enterprise **Choose Circleback if:** - You run long or frequent meetings and want a free plan without minute caps - You want notes and action items to reach your CRM, Slack or Linear automatically - You use Webex, or want bot and bot-free capture in one tool - You want to reach meetings from Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor through MCP Current plans are on [Circleback pricing](https://circleback.ai/pricing) and [Otter.ai pricing](https://otter.ai/pricing). ## FAQ ### Is Otter.ai cheaper than Circleback? Yes, on Pro: $8.33 versus $15 per user per month billed annually, and $16.99 versus $18 monthly. On Business, Otter is cheaper annually and Circleback is cheaper monthly. ### Can Circleback record without a bot? Yes. The desktop app on macOS and Windows records with no bot in the call and keeps speaker labels. ### Do both have a free plan? Yes. Circleback Free has unlimited meetings and members, with meetings older than 30 days locked. Otter Basic gives 300 transcription minutes per user per month. ### Can I use my meeting notes in ChatGPT or Claude? Yes, with both. Circleback's MCP server works with Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and Raycast on every plan, and Otter lists an MCP server on Basic. ### Which one works with Webex? Circleback. Its bot joins Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Webex, while Otter's notetaker covers Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet.