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PolarParrot and other meeting recorders
PolarParrot is a Mac-only app that records meetings from your computer and writes up the notes, using the macOS permissions and without adding a bot. This page sets it next to other tools, with what each one publishes on its website as of 2 November 2026.
Written by Polargate, the company that makes PolarParrot, so we are an interested party.
Last updated:
The most searched-for recorders
| Tool | How it records | Where it runs | MCP | Spanish | Published price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PolarParrot | From the Mac, with no bot, using the macOS permissions. Only when you press record. | Mac only. | Yes, on every plan including free, and always read-only. For Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and Claude Code. | Yes. The app is in Spanish and English. | Free for 3 meetings per Mac. Pro: €15 a month or €150 a year, VAT included. |
| Granolasource | From the device, with no bot, on every plan. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and Apple Watch. | Yes, with OAuth. Basic gets 30 days of notes and no transcripts. It is not read-only by default: it can add or remove notes from folders, and on Enterprise an admin can make it read-only. | Yes on desktop and mobile. The interface is English only. | Free with 30 days of history. Business: $14 a month. |
| Ottersource | Both: an assistant that joins the meeting and a desktop app that records without a bot. | Mac, Windows, web, iOS, Android and a Chrome extension. | Yes, with OAuth. It is in the Claude and ChatGPT directories. | Yes. It transcribes English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Chinese. | Free with 300 minutes a month. Pro: $16.99 a month, or $8.33 paid yearly. |
| Firefliessource | Both: the Fireflies Notetaker bot, a Chrome extension with no bot and a desktop app that records system audio. Without the bot, labels stay as Speaker 1 and Speaker 2. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and a Chrome extension. | Yes, with OAuth or an API key. It also has an API on every plan. | Yes. Spanish is one of its languages. | Free plan. Pro: $18 a month, or $10 paid yearly. |
| Fathomsource | Both: a bot by default, and bot-free device recording, in beta and only on Mac. | Mac and Windows. Without the bot, Mac only. | Yes, for Claude, ChatGPT and Claude Code. Its pricing page lists a public API and MCP. | Yes, among 38 transcription languages. The multi-language rollout is happening in phases. | Free with unlimited recordings. Premium: $20 a month, or $16 paid yearly. |
| tl;dvsource | Both: a bot in the meeting or a desktop app with no bot. | Mac, web, iOS, Android and a Chrome extension. | Yes, from Pro up, and read-only: it cannot create, edit, delete or share meetings. | Yes: Spanish from Spain and Mexico. | Free plan. Pro: €29 a month, or €18 a month paid yearly. |
| Jamiesource | From the device, with no bot. | Mac, Windows, web and iOS. | Yes, with OAuth, for Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and Claude Code. From Pro up, plus an API. | Yes, in its language table. | Free with 10 notes a month. Pro: €39 a month paid yearly. |
| Krispsource | Both: on-device capture with no extra participant, and an optional bot for Zoom. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and a browser extension. | Yes, with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and others, on all three Meeting AI plans. | Yes, on the server. On the device, English only. | 7-day trial. Core: $16 a month, or $8 paid yearly. |
| MacWhispersource | From the Mac, with no bot and automatic meeting detection. It transcribes locally. | Mac. There is no Windows version. | Its website does not mention MCP. It has a command line tool for agents and takes your own OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini and other keys. | It says over 100 languages, without naming Spanish in what we read. | Free version. Pro: €64, one-off. |
How to read these tables
Prices are what each website showed on 2 November 2026. Some websites change the currency by country. If a row does not mention tax, its website does not say whether it is included. Details we could not settle are on each tool's alternatives page or, for the others, at the end of this page.
When another tool fits better
- You use Windows or want to record on your phone. PolarParrot only runs on a Mac. Granola, Otter, Fireflies, Krisp and Jamie run in more places.
- You want to stay free. Fathom publishes unlimited recordings on its free plan.
- You want nothing to leave your Mac. MacWhisper transcribes locally. PolarParrot uploads the audio to write the notes.
- You are a team. Fireflies, Otter, Fathom and Jamie sell team plans. PolarParrot does not.
What to know about PolarParrot
- FaceTime. PolarParrot cannot record the other people on FaceTime: macOS only lets it record your voice.
- Teams. On Teams calls with three or more people there is an open bug: the others can stop being heard. The app warns you and tries to reconnect.
- Download. The App Store version is not available yet. You download PolarParrot from this website.
- Permissions. It records with no bot, but it needs two macOS permissions: the microphone and system audio recording.
Other tools and each platform's own notes
| Tool | How it records | Where it runs | MCP | Spanish | Published price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read AIsource | Both: Read Assistant joins Zoom, Teams or Meet, and the desktop apps record from the computer. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and a Chrome extension. | Yes, on every plan including free, according to the official search snippet. | Yes. | Free with 5 transcripts a month. Pro: $19.75 a month, or $15 paid yearly. |
| Circlebacksource | Both: a bot or a desktop app with no bot, on every plan. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android and Apple Watch. | Yes, from Free, with an API and a command line. For Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, Codex and Raycast. | Yes. | Free with unlimited meetings. Pro: $15 a month. |
| Notion AI Meeting Notessource | No bot: the desktop app records the microphone and system audio. The browser only picks up the microphone. | Mac, Windows, web and iOS. On web and iOS it does not capture other people on a video call. | Yes, from Business with Notion AI. | Yes. Speaker labels are English only. | Business: €19.50 per member a month. |
| Bluedotsource | A Chrome extension or desktop app. It says it invites no bot. | Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, Apple Watch and a Chrome extension. | Yes, from Basic. Organisation-wide on Business. | Yes. | 5 free meetings. Basic: $14 or $18 a month. |
| Tactiqsource | A browser extension that transcribes with no bot. | Chrome and Edge extension. It lists no native apps. | Yes, in beta. Free and Pro search and list; from Team it reads notes and transcripts. | Yes, with a Spanish interface. | Free with 10 transcripts a month. Pro: €6.67 paid yearly. |
| Fellowsource | Both: a bot and bot-free recording with the desktop app. | Mac. | Yes, and an admin has to turn it on. According to its blog, the Claude connector can write agendas by default and an admin can make it read-only. | It says over 100 languages, without naming Spanish in what we read. | 5 free notes for life. Team: $11 a month, or $7 paid yearly. |
| Zoom AI Companionsource | Inside Zoom. My Notes also works on Teams, Meet and in person from the Zoom app, with no bots. | Zoom client on desktop and mobile. | Yes: an official Claude connector, with a Workplace plan and licence. | Yes, in the meeting summary. | 3 free notes a month. Workplace Pro: $16.99 a month. |
| Copilot in Teamssource | Inside Teams. Transcription has to be turned on. | Teams clients. | There is a Teams MCP server in preview. Agent access to transcripts is off by default and depends on the admin. | Yes, in the recap. | No free plan. Copilot Business: $25.20 a month. |
| Gemini in Google Meetsource | Inside Meet. Participants get a notice and the notes go to a document in the organiser's Drive. | Web. | We did not find an MCP server for Meet. | Yes, one language per meeting. | No free plan. Workspace Standard: €13.60 a month, excluding tax. |
What we could not check
- Read AI. Its help centre could not be opened. A web app is not confirmed.
- Circleback. Its page does not state the billing period. An example in its FAQ points to yearly.
- Notion AI Meeting Notes. Its page gives prices per member a month and a yearly discount, without the yearly prices.
- Bluedot. Its two price series have no label: the page does not say which is monthly and which is yearly.
- Tactiq. The price changes by country. Pricing and help pages disagree on MCP access per plan.
- Fellow. Windows: its features page says yes and its help says Mac only.
- Zoom AI Companion. Its pricing page does not say which plan includes AI Companion under that name.
- Copilot in Teams. The Teams Premium price could not be read. It is not confirmed that its MCP server exposes transcripts.
- Gemini in Google Meet. Whether an outside AI can read those notes through the Docs MCP is not checked.
Sources
- Granola: pricing, checked on
- Granola: languages, checked on
- Granola: MCP, checked on
- Otter: pricing, checked on
- Otter: desktop app, checked on
- Otter: MCP server, checked on
- Fireflies: pricing, checked on
- Fireflies: recording without a bot, checked on
- Fireflies: MCP setup, checked on
- Fathom: pricing, checked on
- Fathom: bot-free notes, checked on
- Fathom: requirements, checked on
- Fathom: MCP, checked on
- tl;dv: pricing, checked on
- tl;dv: free plan, checked on
- tl;dv: bot-free notes, checked on
- tl;dv: MCP, checked on
- Jamie: pricing, checked on
- Jamie: home page, checked on
- Jamie: MCP, checked on
- Jamie: languages, checked on
- Krisp: pricing, checked on
- Krisp: meeting assistant, checked on
- Krisp: MCP, checked on
- MacWhisper: home page and pricing, checked on
- MacWhisper: command line tool, checked on
- Read AI: pricing, checked on
- Read AI: API and MCP, checked on
- Circleback: pricing, checked on
- Circleback: MCP, checked on
- Notion AI Meeting Notes: pricing, checked on
- Notion AI Meeting Notes: AI Meeting Notes help, checked on
- Notion AI Meeting Notes: MCP tools, checked on
- Bluedot: pricing, checked on
- Bluedot: MCP, checked on
- Tactiq: pricing, checked on
- Tactiq: MCP, checked on
- Fellow: pricing, checked on
- Fellow: botless recording, checked on
- Fellow: MCP, checked on
- Zoom AI Companion: pricing, checked on
- Zoom AI Companion: AI note taking, checked on
- Zoom AI Companion: Claude connector, checked on
- Copilot in Teams: intelligent recap, checked on
- Copilot in Teams: Copilot pricing, checked on
- Gemini in Google Meet: take notes with Gemini, checked on
- Gemini in Google Meet: Workspace pricing, checked on
One page per tool under alternatives, and every option explained in Mac meeting recorder.
Prices change. If you spot a mistake, write to hello@polargate.ai and we will correct it.