Otter AI Pricing: Breaking Down the Features and Cost

In today's remote and hybrid work environments, the ability to accurately transcribe meetings, interviews, and presentations is invaluable.

Otter is a well-known tool for AI transcription, offering users the ability to convert speech to text in real time with impressive accuracy. Its features includes automatic transcription for meetings, lectures, interviews, and more, alongside capabilities such as speaker identification, keyword searches, and collaborative note-taking. 

As a tool that has become widely used for many teams desiring transcription services, Otter provides various pricing plans to cater to different needs and budgets. This guide aims to delve into the specifics of each Otter pricing tier, offering insights into the value they bring to users. 

Alongside this, we'll explore an alternative to Otter for those teams seeking functionalities that extend beyond transcription, offering a broader suite of tools to enhance productivity and collaboration.

Who is Otter for?

Otter is designed to meet the needs of a diverse array of users looking for reliable transcription services. Its core functionality caters especially to teams who require accurate, real-time transcriptions of meetings, lectures, interviews, and other spoken content. Whether you're part of a small startup, an educational institution, a large corporation, or even an individual in need of transcription services for personal projects, Otter provides a platform to capture and share spoken words in written form. Professionals who find Otter particularly valuable include project managers, journalists, researchers, and educators who often rely on detailed records of discussions and presentations. 

Is Otter Completely Free?

No, Otter is not completely free, and there are several reasons for this. The platform offers a free tier, but it comes with certain limitations that might not meet the needs of all users or teams. These limitations are in place because the technology behind Otter, including its advanced speech recognition and AI-driven transcription processes, requires substantial resources for development and maintenance. To support its continuous improvement and ensure a high level of service, Otter provides paid subscriptions that unlock additional features and capabilities beyond what the free tier offers.

The free version of Otter is a good starting point for individuals or teams looking to explore the basics of what the tool can offer in terms of transcription. However, for those who require more extensive usage, such as longer transcription times, additional storage, or advanced features like team collaboration tools and enhanced security, the limitations of the free tier may prompt the need for an upgrade. In the following sections, we'll dive deeper into the specifics of what the free tier includes and how the paid plans compare, helping you make an informed decision based on your transcription needs.

How much does Otter cost? Pricing plans explained

Otter offers a range of pricing plans to accommodate the varying needs of its users, from individuals and small teams to large organizations. Each plan is designed to provide value by enhancing the transcription process with advanced features, additional transcription minutes, and more. Let's break down what each plan has to offer, starting with the Free plan and then moving on to the Pro plan, to help you determine which might be the best fit for your transcription needs.

Free plan

The Free plan by Otter serves as an entry point for users to experience the core functionalities without any initial investment. This plan includes an AI meeting assistant capable of recording, transcribing, capturing slides, and generating summaries in real-time. 

It's a viable option for individuals or teams just starting with transcription services, providing 300 monthly transcription minutes with a limit of 30 minutes per conversation. Users can import and transcribe up to three audio or video files during their lifetime under this plan. While the Free plan offers a taste of what Otter can do, it's tailored more toward occasional users or those with minimal transcription needs. To sum it up, here’s what you get from the free plan:

• AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes, captures slides, and generates summaries in real time.
• 300 monthly transcription minutes with a limit of 30 minutes per conversation.
• The ability to import and transcribe up to 3 audio or video files over the lifetime of the account.

Pro plan

For those requiring more from their transcription service, the Pro plan is priced at $16.99 USD per user, billed monthly. It expands on the Free plan, designed for professionals and teams seeking enhanced functionality and greater transcription capacity. The Pro plan allows users to add teammates to their workspace, facilitating collaboration through features like shared custom vocabulary, speaker tagging, and the assignment of action items to teammates. 

With advanced search, export, and playback capabilities, navigating and utilizing transcripts becomes more efficient. The plan boosts monthly transcription minutes to 1200, with up to 90 minutes allowed per conversation. Users can import and transcribe 10 audio or video files per month, catering well to the needs of users with regular transcription requirements. This plan is suitable for professionals and small teams looking to leverage transcription for better productivity and collaboration.

To summarize, this is what the Pro plan plan looks like: 

• $16.99 USD per user, billed monthly.
• Add teammates to your workspace for improved collaboration.
• Team features including shared custom vocabulary, tag speakers, and assign action items.
• Advanced search, export, and playback capabilities for efficient transcript management.
• 1200 monthly transcription minutes; up to 90 minutes allowed per conversation.
• Import and transcribe up to 10 audio or video files per month.

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Business plan

The Business plan is tailored for larger teams and organizations that require extensive transcription services coupled with administrative control. Priced at $30 USD per user per month, this plan offers a comprehensive suite of features to streamline workflow and enhance productivity. Users gain access to admin features such as usage analytics and prioritized support, ensuring that teams can monitor their transcription habits and receive assistance when needed promptly. 

With 6000 monthly transcription minutes and the capacity for up to 4 hours per conversation, the Business plan meets the demands of teams with heavy transcription needs. Moreover, the plan offers the flexibility to import and transcribe an unlimited number of audio or video files, making it a viable option for businesses that rely on extensive documentation and analysis of meetings, lectures, or interviews.

• Admin features for comprehensive control and oversight.
• Joins up to 3 concurrent virtual meetings for efficient note-taking.
• 6000 monthly transcription minutes; up to 4 hours per conversation.
• Unlimited imports and transcriptions of audio or video files.

Enterprise plan

Designed for the largest and most complex organizations, the Enterprise plan offers a tailored approach to meet specific needs through custom pricing. This plan requires scheduling a demo to explore the full range of services and customization options available. It includes advanced features like Single Sign-On (SSO) for secure and convenient access, organization-wide deployment for scalability, and domain capture for enhanced data management.

The introduction of OtterPilot™ for Sales is a benefit for sales teams with tools designed to optimize their workflows. Additionally, advanced security and compliance controls ensure that the organization's data remains safe and meets regulatory requirements, making it a viable choice for enterprises concerned with data integrity and security.

• Customizable solutions with single sign-on (SSO) and organization-wide deployment.
• OtterPilot™ for Sales to enhance sales team productivity.
• Advanced security and compliance controls for data protection.

How long does Otter take to transcribe?

When considering Otter for transcription needs, an essential factor is the turnaround time for transcriptions. Otter says that is takes about 3 minutes to transcribe 15 minutes of audio. However, this doesn’t factor in the time it takes to edit the transcription, as it is not always 100% accurate. 

Spinach, an Otter alternative for teams who want more than transcription

While Otter offers good transcription services, teams looking for a more holistic solution to enhance their productivity and collaboration might find Spinach to be the ideal alternative. 

Spinach goes beyond mere transcription to provide an integrated suite of tools designed to streamline team workflows, enhance meeting efficiency, and foster actionable insights from discussions. With features that support task assignment, meeting summaries, and actionable item tracking, Spinach ensures that valuable ideas and decisions from your meetings are effectively captured and implemented.

Spinach offers a free plan that supports up to 50 users, making it an exceptional choice for startups and small to medium-sized teams looking to maximize their resources without financial strain. For those needing more advanced features, Spinach’s Pro plan is attractively priced at only $4 per user per month, presenting a superior pricing advantage for teams seeking extensive capabilities at a fraction of the cost. 

This blend of affordability and functionality positions Spinach as a compelling alternative, particularly for teams aiming to enhance their productivity and collaborative efforts beyond mere transcription. Set up Spinach today and dive into a more collaborative and productive future.