Fathom vs Fireflies.ai for meeting automation

Fathom is an AI meeting notetaker that works with Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams. It records meetings, provides real-time transcription in 25+ languages, and generates summaries in different formats (bullet lists, action items, chronological). The system identifies speakers, allows highlighting key moments, and includes an "Ask Fathom" feature for querying meeting content. It's commonly used by sales representatives and anyone wanting to focus on conversation instead of note-taking.

Fathom offers a free plan with unlimited recordings and 5 AI summaries monthly, with paid tiers from $15-29/month adding features like unlimited summaries, team collaboration, and CRM integration. It requires a desktop app, lacks a mobile app, and doesn't support uploading external audio files. The tool integrates with HubSpot, Salesforce, Slack, and Notion, and automatically generates summaries and action items that can be pushed to CRM systems.

Fireflies.ai is a cloud-based AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes, and summarizes discussions across various platforms including Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, and Webex. It functions by joining meetings as a bot participant ("Fred") and provides transcripts with speaker labels, AI-generated summaries, and action items. The system includes keyword search capabilities, an AskFred chatbot for querying meeting content, and integrations with tools like Slack, Asana, and CRM systems. It works with over 100 languages and offers both a mobile app for recording in-person meetings and the ability to upload files for transcription.

The service operates on a tiered pricing structure with a free plan that includes limited meeting credits and summaries. Paid plans start at approximately $10/user/month for the Pro tier (unlimited audio recording and transcripts), scaling to $19/user/month for the Business plan (adding video recording and advanced analytics). Some users report issues with transcription accuracy for heavy accents or technical jargon, and others note that the AI summaries can sometimes lose original phrasing or tone.

Comparing Fathom and Fireflies.ai

Fathom

• Fathom provides AI meeting transcription and summaries for Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams. Both its free tier (with 5 full AI summaries) and paid plans ($15-29/user) lack a mobile app and support for external audio uploads, limiting its utility for in-person meetings. Fathom offers real-time transcription in 25+ languages and integrates with CRMs, but its integration ecosystem remains relatively limited compared to robust workflow tools.

• Despite its accurate transcription and intuitive interface, Fathom falls short on enabling meaningful post-meeting workflows beyond basic CRM syncing. Users gain transcripts and AI summaries but must still manually implement action items and follow-ups, requiring additional tools to transform meeting intelligence into completed tasks.

Fireflies.ai

• Fireflies.ai operates as a cloud-based meeting bot that joins calls across multiple platforms to record, transcribe and summarize discussions. It offers mobile apps for iOS/Android, supports 100+ languages, and allows recording in-person meetings, but its free tier is more restrictive than Fathom's and its pricing ranges from $10-19/user/month.

• While Fireflies provides more integrations than Fathom, including connections to task management systems, users report issues with summary quality and transcription accuracy. The platform struggles to deliver actionable insights that meaningfully impact productivity beyond storing and retrieving meeting information.

Fathom is better suited for individual professionals who primarily conduct online meetings and value simplicity over extensive features. Its generous free tier and focus on user experience make it ideal for salespeople, consultants, and managers who need quick, accurate meeting summaries without complex setup. However, teams requiring mobile access or in-person meeting support will find its limitations frustrating.

Fireflies.ai works better for organizations with diverse meeting environments and teams using multiple platforms. Its mobile support, broader language capabilities, and ability to handle in-person meetings make it more versatile for global teams and field workers. Despite having more integrations than Fathom, both tools ultimately fall short in transforming meeting content into meaningful workflow automation that actually completes tasks rather than just documenting them.

Fathom vs Fireflies.ai: What do users say?

Fathom and Fireflies.ai are two popular AI meeting assistants with distinct capabilities and user experiences. Fathom integrates primarily with Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams, offering real-time transcription in 25+ languages and various AI summary styles. Users particularly praise Fathom's generous free plan, accurate transcriptions, intuitive interface, and responsive customer service. The main drawbacks noted include some advanced features being limited to paid plans, no external audio file upload option, lack of a mobile app, and occasionally distracting on-screen widgets. Fireflies.ai functions as a cloud-based assistant that joins meetings across multiple platforms to record, transcribe, and summarize discussions. Users appreciate its ease of setup, good transcription quality (even in multiple languages), quick delivery of summaries, and extensive integrations with project management and CRM tools. Common criticisms include occasionally generic summaries, reduced accuracy with accents or technical jargon, feature limitations on the free plan, and interface clutter. While Fathom works exclusively with scheduled online meetings, Fireflies.ai offers more flexibility with its mobile app for in-person meetings and the ability to upload external audio files for transcription. For more detailed information, check out Fireflies.ai reviews on Reddit, Fireflies.ai review on The Business Dive, Fathom review on The Business Dive, and verified Fathom user reviews on Capterra.

FAQs

• Would Fathom work for in-person meetings? What about Fireflies.ai? No, Fathom doesn't work for in-person meetings as it cannot import external audio and only works for scheduled online meetings (Zoom, Google Meet, Teams). Fireflies.ai does work for in-person meetings through its mobile app, which can record in-person meetings and voice notes.

• What about meeting bots? Does either of these tools require a meeting bot? Fireflies.ai uses a bot participant ("Fred") that joins meetings to record, transcribe, and summarize discussions. Fathom doesn't mention requiring a meeting bot - it uses a desktop app that automatically records meetings on supported platforms.

• What do users say about the quality of transcriptions? For Fathom, transcriptions are praised as quick and accurate according to user reviews. For Fireflies.ai, users report good transcription quality, even in other languages like Dutch, though accuracy can dip with heavy accents or technical jargon, with some reviewers noting misidentified speakers or missed slang.

Another alternative: 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