Free AI Note Taker for Zoom (2026): The Best Free Plans, No Bot, No Host Needed

The best free AI note taker for Zoom in 2026 is Scribbl. Its free plan gives you 10 meetings a month with no limit on meeting length, and every Zoom meeting gets the video, a transcript with speaker names, AI notes and action items. Scribbl Desktop records Zoom from your own Mac or Windows computer, so nothing joins the call and you don't need to be the host. Zoom's own AI summarizes only 3 meetings you host a month on a free Zoom account, and the other free note takers send a bot into the call and cap the minutes or the AI notes.

Every free AI note taker for Zoom, compared

Checked on each company's pricing and help pages. Scribbl, our pick, first. Prices are per user per month in US dollars.

Competitor free plans checked October 6, 2026, and prices October 19, 2026. Zoom AI checked on Zoom's pricing and support pages, October 7, 2026.

Scribbl is the only free plan here that gives every Zoom meeting the video, a transcript, AI notes and action items with nothing joining the call, whoever hosts the meeting.

Is Zoom AI Companion free?

Partly. Zoom renamed AI Companion to Zoom AI in June 2026. On a free Zoom account you get meeting summaries and in-meeting questions for 3 meetings you host each month, AI note-taking with My Notes 3 times a month and 20 AI queries a month. Free Zoom meetings end at 40 minutes. Paid Zoom Workplace plans include these features with no monthly cap; Zoom Pro is $14.16 per user per month billed annually, or $16.99 monthly. More in our guide to Zoom AI.

Why Scribbl is the best free AI note taker for Zoom

• Nothing joins the call. Scribbl Desktop records Zoom on your Mac (Apple silicon) or Windows computer. There's no extra participant for anyone to ask about, and nothing for the host to admit.
• You don't need to be the host. It works in your own meetings and in meetings other people run.
• The whole meeting, every time. No limit on meeting length on the free plan, so a 90-minute call is recorded and summarized like a 10-minute one.
• Notes you can act on. The video, a transcript with speaker names, AI notes and action items after every meeting.
• One account for every platform. The free plan includes Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams, 10 meetings a month in total, and it resets every month.
• Pro when you want more: unlimited meetings for $13 per user per month billed annually ($20 monthly), and on Pro you can ask Claude or ChatGPT about every meeting.

How to get free AI notes in Zoom with Scribbl

1. Download Scribbl Desktop for Mac or Windows and sign in. The free plan needs no credit card.
2. Join your Zoom meeting in the Zoom desktop app as usual. Scribbl starts when the meeting begins.
3. When the call ends, open the meeting in Scribbl: the video, the transcript with speaker names, the AI notes and the action items are there.

Tell people at the start that you're recording. Recording-consent rules apply whether or not anything joins the call; see do you have to tell people you're recording.

The other free AI note takers for Zoom

Otter. The free Basic plan gives 300 transcription minutes a month and 30 minutes per conversation, and only your 25 most recent conversations stay visible. Its notetaker joins the Zoom call as a participant.

Fathom. Records and transcribes without a cap, but advanced AI summaries cover only your first 5 calls a month, and AI action items need Premium ($16 per user per month billed annually). Its bot joins the call by default.

Fireflies. New accounts since September 1, 2026 get unlimited transcription only with calendar auto-join turned on, which sends its bot into your meetings; otherwise it's 3 transcriptions. 400 minutes of storage in total.

tl;dv. Unlimited recordings, but AI notes on only your first 10 meetings for the life of the account. Its bot joins the call.

Read AI. 5 meeting transcripts a month, up to 1 hour each, and its assistant joins Zoom calls.

For every tool's full free plan, see the best free AI note takers compared, and for paid Zoom note takers, the best Zoom AI notetakers.

Free AI note taker for Zoom FAQ

What is the best free AI note taker for Zoom?

Scribbl. Its free plan gives 10 meetings a month with no limit on meeting length, and every Zoom meeting gets the video, a transcript with speaker names, AI notes and action items. Scribbl Desktop records Zoom from your own Mac or Windows computer, so nothing joins the call and you don't need to be the host. The free plan includes Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams.

Is Zoom AI Companion free?

Partly. Zoom renamed AI Companion to Zoom AI in June 2026. A free Zoom account gets meeting summaries and in-meeting questions for 3 meetings you host each month, AI note-taking with My Notes 3 times a month and 20 AI queries a month, and free meetings end at 40 minutes. Paid Zoom Workplace plans include it with no monthly cap; Pro is $14.16 per user per month billed annually.

Can I get AI notes in a Zoom meeting if I'm not the host?

Not from Zoom's meeting summary: only the host and co-hosts can start it, and as a participant you can only ask the host to start it. Scribbl Desktop works for any participant. It records the Zoom call from your own computer, nothing joins the call, and you get the video, a transcript, AI notes and action items. Tell people you're recording.

Is there a free AI note taker for Zoom without a bot?

Yes: Scribbl. Scribbl Desktop records Zoom from your Mac or Windows computer, so no bot appears in the participant list, and the free plan covers 10 meetings a month. Otter, Fireflies, Fathom, tl;dv and Read AI send a bot into Zoom calls by default.

Does the free Zoom plan record meetings?

Yes, to your computer, in the Zoom desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux. Cloud recording, recording on a phone and recording in a browser need a paid Zoom plan, and free Zoom meetings end at 40 minutes. A recording alone has no AI notes; Scribbl gives you the video with a transcript, AI notes and action items. See how to record a Zoom meeting.

How many Zoom meetings does Scribbl's free plan cover?

10 meetings a month, with no limit on meeting length, and it resets every month. The same 10 meetings cover Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Scribbl Pro is $13 per user per month billed annually ($20 monthly) for unlimited meetings.

Sources

Scribbl pricing; Zoom's pricing page and AI Companion help article, checked October 7, 2026; Otter help, Fathom help, Fireflies help and tl;dv help, checked October 6, 2026; each vendor's pricing page, checked October 19, 2026.