Fathom vs Otter.ai
An independent, side-by-side comparison to help you pick the right tool. Pricing, features, strengths, and trade-offs.
Free / Premium $20/mo / Team $19/user/mo / Business $34/user/mo / Enterprise custom
Acquired by Superhuman (September 2026); $30M+ raised before the deal
Free / Pro $16.99/mo monthly ($8.33 annual) / Business $30/mo monthly ($19.99 annual) / Enterprise custom
$73M
User ratings
5/5
on G2 (6645 reviews)
98% satisfaction
4.4/5
on G2 (464 reviews)
75% satisfaction
Source: G2.com. Ratings may change over time.
At a glance
| Fathom | Otter.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / Premium $20/mo / Team $19/user/mo / Business $34/user/mo / Enterprise custom | Free / Pro $16.99/mo monthly ($8.33 annual) / Business $30/mo monthly ($19.99 annual) / Enterprise custom |
| Type | AI Notetaker | AI Notetaker |
| G2 Rating | 5/5 (6645 reviews) | 4.4/5 (464 reviews) |
| Team Size | ~185 | ~200 |
| Funding | Acquired by Superhuman (September 2026); $30M+ raised before the deal | $73M |
Feature comparison
| Feature | Fathom | Otter.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Unlimited free recording | No | |
| Bot or bot-free capture (bot-free via Mac desktop app) | No | |
| AI highlights and summaries | No | |
| One-click CRM sync | No | |
| Call clip sharing | No | |
| Real-time transcription | No | |
| OtterPilot auto-join | No | |
| AI meeting summary | No | |
| Action item extraction | No | |
| Slack and Salesforce integrations | No |
What makes each tool different
Fathom
Fathom made waves by offering unlimited free recording and transcription for individuals. A Fathom bot joins the call on Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams unless you use bot-free capture, a beta in the Mac desktop app (bot-free video is narrower still, Zoom only). The highlight-and-clip workflow is fast and intuitive. Superhuman, the AI productivity suite behind its email, calendar, and docs apps, acquired Fathom on September 14, 2026; Fathom says the app, login, and product stay the same for now.
Otter.ai
Otter pioneered the real-time transcription space and remains one of the most recognized names. Its OtterPilot auto-joins meetings and generates live summaries, action items, and searchable transcripts across Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Truly free for individuals with no minute caps
- Choose bot or bot-free capture per meeting on Mac
- Fast, clean UI with great clip workflow
Weaknesses
- Teams features require paid plan
- Fewer integrations than Fireflies or Otter
- A bot joins unless you use the Mac app's bot-free capture, which is still in beta
- Owned by Superhuman since September 2026; no long-term pricing or roadmap commitments published yet
Strengths
- Generous free tier with 300 minutes/mo
- Strong real-time transcription accuracy
- Works across all major meeting platforms
Weaknesses
- Bot presence can feel intrusive to attendees
- Limited language support outside English
- Enterprise pricing jumps significantly
Try both and decide
The best way to choose is to test each tool with your own workflow. Most offer free tiers or trials.