Compare Retext and Otter.ai side-by-side. See which AI note taker is the best fit for your workflow.
Choose Retext if you want bot-free notes transcribed on your Mac that turn into snippets, alongside dictation and autocomplete in one app.
Choose Otter.ai if you need teams that want every call transcribed automatically.
Otter is built for meetings: its notetaker joins your calls from the calendar, names each speaker and syncs notes to Salesforce or HubSpot. Retext never sends a bot and keeps transcription and summaries on your Mac, but it hears only your microphone and has no calendar, speaker labels or CRM sync. Choose Otter for team call records, and Retext for private notes you turn into snippets.
Native Mac app that records a note, transcribes it on your Mac, writes a summary and action items, and turns the useful parts into snippets. No bot joins your call.
Pricing:
Recording, on-device transcription and summaries come with every plan. See the pricing page.
Free tier: Notes on your Mac, plus 5 snippets
Runs on: Mac
Best for:
AI meeting assistant whose notetaker joins Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls to transcribe, summarize and share notes
Pricing:
Pro $16.99/user/month or $8.33 billed annually; Business $30/user/month (shown discounted to $24 on 2026-10-28) or $19.99 billed annually; Enterprise by quote
Free tier: 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation, 3 file imports, your 25 most recent conversations
Runs on: Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Web
Best for:
| Feature | Retext | Otter.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Transcripts & Summaries | ||
| Bot-Free Recording | ||
| Both Sides of a Call | ||
| Calendar & Auto-Start | Not available | |
| Speaker Labels | Not available | |
| CRM & App Integrations | ||
| Privacy & Local Storage | ||
| Snippet Expansion | Not available | |
| Cross-Platform |
| Product | Pricing Model | Price | Free Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retext | Freemium | Recording, on-device transcription and summaries come with every plan. See the pricing page. | Notes on your Mac, plus 5 snippets |
| Otter.ai | Freemium | Pro $16.99/user/month or $8.33 billed annually; Business $30/user/month (shown discounted to $24 on 2026-10-28) or $19.99 billed annually; Enterprise by quote | 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation, 3 file imports, your 25 most recent conversations |
Otter exports conversations as txt and mp3 on the free plan, and pdf, docx and srt on Pro, with bulk export on Business. Retext doesn't import notes, so keep your Otter exports as the archive and start fresh in Retext. Save the summaries and follow-ups you reuse as snippets.
Export format: TXT, MP3, PDF, DOCX, SRT
Otter is built for meetings: its notetaker joins your calls from the calendar, names each speaker and syncs notes to Salesforce or HubSpot. Retext never sends a bot and keeps transcription and summaries on your Mac, but it hears only your microphone and has no calendar, speaker labels or CRM sync. Choose Otter for team call records, and Retext for private notes you turn into snippets.
Yes. Otter.ai's free option: 300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per conversation, 3 file imports, your 25 most recent conversations. Paid: Pro $16.99/user/month or $8.33 billed annually; Business $30/user/month (shown discounted to $24 on 2026-10-28) or $19.99 billed annually; Enterprise by quote.
Yes. Retext's free plan includes notes on your Mac, plus 5 snippets. Recording, on-device transcription and summaries come with every plan. See the pricing page.
Otter.ai runs on Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Web. Retext runs on Mac.
Otter.ai is the better fit for teams that want every call transcribed automatically, sales teams that sync call notes to a CRM and speaker-labeled transcripts you can export. Choose Retext if you want notes transcribed and summarized on your Mac.
Otter exports conversations as txt and mp3 on the free plan, and pdf, docx and srt on Pro, with bulk export on Business. Retext doesn't import notes, so keep your Otter exports as the archive and start fresh in Retext. Save the summaries and follow-ups you reuse as snippets.
Download Retext, turn on Notes in Settings, and click Record Note. Your transcript and summary are written on your Mac.
Sources
Otter.ai, checked October 28, 2026: Otter pricing · Otter privacy policy · Otter: connect your calendar · Otter: speaker identification
Prices and features change. Check each vendor's site before you buy.