Alternatives to Read.ai

AI meeting notes platforms provide four primary deliverables:

  • Transcripts create a word-for-word record of the meeting. For example, a one-hour product development meeting generates a searchable document containing every feature discussion, technical requirement, and team decision.

  • Action items are pulled directly from the conversation. When someone says "John will update the wireframes by Friday," the AI automatically creates a tracked task with the assignee and deadline.

  • Meeting summaries distill hour-long conversations into 2-3 paragraphs. A 45-minute sprint planning meeting becomes a concise overview of sprint goals, resource allocation, and key decisions.

  • Topic segmentation breaks discussions into labeled sections. A client call covering multiple projects is automatically divided into sections like "Website Redesign," "Q1 Marketing Campaign," and "Budget Review."

In addition to the quality of these deliverables, we'll want to look at a number of other key factors:

  • Free trial: can you test it for free before committing?

  • Ease-of-use: does it have a simple, intuitive setup that works for non-technical users?

  • In-person meeting support: can it transcribe audio from live recordings or uploaded files, not just virtual calls?

  • Security and privacy: how is customer data handled on the platform?

  • Integrations: can it connect with your existing stack, like HubSpot, Notion, or Slack?

  • Functionality: does it go beyond transcriptions and actually help you take action?

  • Languages: can it transcribe and summarize meetings in different languages?

  • Desktop and mobile apps: can you access it on Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android for on-the-go meetings?

  • Recordings: is there support for saving and playing back audio and video recordings of meetings?

Read.ai quick pros and cons

Read.ai excels with its comprehensive feature set, offering smart meeting summaries, engagement analytics, and seamless integrations with tools like Slack and Zoom. The platform's multilingual support and real-time translation capabilities make it particularly valuable for global teams.

The service has notable drawbacks including a restrictive free tier, a somewhat complex interface that can overwhelm new users, and privacy concerns around recording meetings. Technical inconsistencies with live metrics and premium pricing further limit its appeal for smaller organizations.

Read.ai features

Feature

Read.ai

Good for in-person

Local recording

Integrations (HubSpot, Notion, etc.)

Automation engine

Language support

Desktop app

Mobile apps

Closest Read.ai competitors

Three Notable Meeting AI Tools to Consider

Fathom - A Zoom/Meet/Teams notetaker with a generous free tier that includes unlimited recordings. Produces instant, accurate summaries in multiple formats and lets you query meeting content via AI. Main drawback is lack of mobile app.

Granola - A Mac-only tool that runs locally and captures system audio, turning light notes into enhanced summaries. Works with any meeting platform without needing a bot. Clean interface but platform-limited currently.

Krisp - Unique combo of noise cancellation and meeting notes. Removes background noise in real-time while providing transcription and summaries. CPU intensive and free tier is limited to 60 mins/day.

Read.ai vs. Circleback

Circleback provides best-in-class AI-powered meeting notes and automations. We support over 100 languages and automatic participant identification in both in-person and online meetings.

  • Automatically-identified and assigned action items

  • AI-enabled search across all meetings

  • Automations with 100+ app integrations

  • Industry-leading security with SOC 2 Type II, EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, and HIPAA compliance

  • Ability to capture both online and in-person meetings with desktop and mobile apps

Comparison table

Feature

Read.ai

Circleback

Good for in-person

Local recording

Integrations

Automation engine

Language support

Desktop app

Mobile apps

Trial or free plan

Security & privacy

Unbelievably good meeting notes with

AI-powered notes, action items, and automations.

Try it free for 7 days. Subscribe if you love it.

Try it free for 7 days. Subscribe if you love it.

Try it free for 7 days. Subscribe if you love it.

Try it free for 7 days. Subscribe if you love it.