Fathom Alternatives in 2026: When Your Calls Fall Outside Fathom

The best Fathom alternative depends on which edge of Fathom you've hit. Fathom records calls in three apps (Zoom, Teams and Google Meet) on a Mac or Windows computer, with you on the call. If your meetings happen on other apps, need recording while you're away, or must stay in Europe, Fireflies, Granola, tl;dv or Merlin will fit better.

Plenty of people searching for a replacement should stay put. Fathom's free plan is unusually generous, and switching means starting a new library of calls somewhere else. So this page starts with what Fathom does well, then goes through the specific boundaries written into Fathom's own help center, and matches each one to the tool built around it.

What Fathom gets right

The free plan is Fathom's strongest card. Fathom's pricing page lists unlimited recordings and transcriptions, instant AI call summaries, clips, playlists and search across calls on Free, at $0. Fathom's help center promises the free version for individuals stays, with "unlimited storage and recordings - forever."

Transcripts cover a lot of ground: Fathom supports transcripts in 38 languages, and summaries can be translated into Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian and Dutch. For calls with clients, the Auto Request Recording Consent setting emails external attendees 24 hours before a scheduled meeting and turns off auto-record for that meeting if anyone declines.

Paid plans are reasonably priced for what they add. Premium is $20 per user a month, or $16 a month billed annually, and adds advanced summaries, AI action items and a meeting assistant you can ask questions. Team is $19 per user a month ($15 annually) with a two-user minimum, and Business, at $34 ($25 annually), adds CRM field sync, Deal View and coaching scorecards, per the same pricing page.

If your calls are on Zoom, Meet or Teams, you join them from a laptop, and a free plan with no minute cap is what you're after, Fathom is very likely still the right tool.

Where Fathom stops

Fathom's help center is direct about what it doesn't do. These four limits come up again and again when people go looking for a replacement, and no single tool fixes all of them.

Only three meeting apps, and only live calls

Fathom's compatibility article lists three apps, Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, joined with a standard meeting link from a Mac or Windows computer. It does not support phone calls such as Zoom phone calls, Teams group-chat instant meetings, webinars, or breakout rooms (it captures the main room only). Chromebooks, Linux computers and iPads are out too. Slack Huddles are being added through the newer bot-free version as it rolls out.

Recordings you already have can't go in either: Fathom says "we do not support uploaded calls". For a podcast, an in-person interview recorded on another device, or a Webex call, Fathom has nothing to offer.

You have to be on the call

Fathom's notetaker only records if you are also present on the Zoom, Teams or Meet call. It can't be sent to a meeting you're skipping to bring back notes. Fathom says it tracks requests for that, but it isn't available today.

The bot-free option is a Mac beta

By default a Fathom bot joins the meeting. The bot-free experience, which records from your computer instead, is Mac only for now, with Windows "coming soon", and Fathom's pricing page labels it a beta. On Windows, everyone in the call still sees a notetaker in the participant list.

Your data sits in the US, and may train Fathom's models

Fathom's security article says Fathom keeps all its data in the United States. It also says Fathom uses de-identified customer data to improve its own AI models, which you can opt out of in My Settings (team admins can opt out everyone in Organization Settings), while its AI sub-processors aren't contractually permitted to train on your data. Fathom states it is HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II and GDPR compliant. For a European company that wants meeting data kept in Europe, US storage alone can rule it out.

Match the limit to the alternative

Fireflies: for meetings outside Zoom, Meet and Teams

Fireflies covers the two gaps Fathom is most open about: other meeting apps and recordings made elsewhere. Fireflies' list of supported platforms includes Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Webex, GoToMeeting, Dialpad, Lifesize and Jitsi. Its free plan accepts uploads of MP3, MP4, WAV and M4A files, up to 150 minutes and 100MB each, according to Fireflies' Free plan guide.

The notetaker also works without you. Fireflies' FAQ on joining meetings says "Fireflies will record even if you're not present," as long as its address is invited and the meeting app admits outside bots. That makes it the practical choice when you want notes from a meeting you had to skip. Check your recording-consent obligations before relying on it, since nobody from your side is there to ask.

The free plan is tighter than Fathom's. The same guide lists 400 minutes of storage per seat, 20 AI credits a month for features like AskFred, and no transcript downloads without a paid plan. Fireflies' pricing page shows Free, Pro, Business and Enterprise tiers charged per seat, a Chrome extension that records without the bot, and mobile apps for iOS and Android (Fathom's phone app is iOS only, for in-person conversations). On data, Fireflies' security policy says your meeting content doesn't go into training any AI model, its partners' included.

Best for: teams on mixed meeting software, people who need to transcribe existing files, and anyone who wants notes from calls they can't join.

Granola: no bot, on Mac or Windows

Granola never joins the meeting. Granola's pricing page lists bot-free, device-audio capture on every plan, and its setup guide says it transcribes meetings "on any software," with desktop apps for macOS (version 14 or later) and Windows. That fills the gap Fathom's Mac-only beta leaves for Windows users, and covers call apps Fathom doesn't support.

On privacy, Granola's pricing page says audio is deleted after transcription, transcript retention can be set per user, and you can opt out of model training on any plan. Every plan is SOC 2 Type II certified; HIPAA-compliant workspaces are Enterprise only.

The trade-off is history. The free Basic plan keeps 30 days of meetings, so anything older disappears from view unless you pay for Business, at $14 per user a month, which has unlimited history. Enterprise is $35 per user a month. Because Granola records from your own computer, you have to be in the meeting, just like Fathom.

Best for: Windows users who want Fathom's bot-free idea today, and anyone whose clients would rather not see a notetaker in the call.

tl;dv: when meeting data should stay in Europe

tl;dv is the pick when the US storage line in Fathom's security article is the problem. tl;dv's security page says "All our data centers are located in Europe," that you can choose whether its AI is hosted in Europe or the US, that it's GDPR compliant for all users, and that no customer data is used to train its AI. The company behind it is tldx Solutions GmbH.

Like Fathom, it works with Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams, and tl;dv's homepage says it handles more than 30 languages, logs call notes into CRMs and needs no bot. So it suits the same calls Fathom does; the reason to move is where the data lives.

Read the free plan carefully. tl;dv's help article on Free plan limits says your first 10 meetings get full AI notes, after which only the first 10 minutes of each meeting get them, and these limits "are for the lifetime of the account, they do not renew monthly." Free recordings are kept for three months, the free plan allows 5 file uploads, and every plan caps a meeting at 3 hours. tl;dv's pricing page lists Pro at €18 per seat monthly on annual billing (€29 if paid monthly) and Business at €29 billed annually (€39 monthly).

Best for: European teams, or anyone whose company requires meeting data to stay in the EU, who would otherwise be happy with Fathom.

Merlin: recording that leads to the follow-up

We make Merlin, and it isn't a like-for-like swap for Fathom. Merlin is a macOS assistant built for the work around your relationships: email, calendar, people and the commitments between you. Meeting capture is one piece of it.

Recording happens on the Mac itself, from the microphone and, when macOS allows it, system audio; if it can't get system audio, it keeps recording from your microphone alone. No notetaker joins, and it isn't limited to a list of supported call apps. When Merlin notices a call app such as Zoom start a call, it offers to record it, and you can also start a recording by hand. The audio file is kept on your Mac. With a paid plan, the audio is sent off for transcription, and Merlin turns it into a speaker-labeled transcript and writes notes from a template such as Sales call, 1:1 or Interview. Afterward you can ask about one meeting or all of them, and Merlin can message you the to-dos from the call: what you promised and what others promised you. Shortly before a calendar meeting, it can also send a short brief on the attendees and what you discussed with them before.

What Merlin doesn't do, compared with Fathom:

• Mac only. There's no Windows app and no phone app for in-person recording.
• The free plan stops at the recording. You can record and play back for free, but transcripts and notes start with Pro, at $29 monthly or $278 billed yearly (Merlin's pricing).
• No sharing or clips. Playback needs the Mac that recorded the call, and there's no share link or export; Copy transcript is the nearest thing.
• You have to be there. Like Fathom and Granola, it records from your own computer.

Best for: people on a Mac who take calls in several apps and care more about what happens after the call than about sharing the recording.

Five tools in one table

How to choose

• Your calls are all Zoom, Meet or Teams and the free plan covers you: stay on Fathom, and turn on Auto Request Recording Consent for client calls.
• Some meetings are on Webex or GoToMeeting, or you transcribe recordings: Fireflies. For files alone, our free transcription software roundup has simpler options.
• You're on Windows and want the bot gone: Granola, and plan on Business if you need more than 30 days of notes.
• Your company needs EU data storage: tl;dv, budgeted for Pro, since the free AI notes run out after 10 meetings.
• Your calls run through a Mac and what slips is the follow-up, not the recording: Merlin.

For a wider look at note takers beyond Fathom's alternatives, including Otter and the tools built into Google Meet and Zoom, see our comparison of AI note takers.

Before you cancel Fathom

1. Keep both running for two weeks. Fathom's free plan costs nothing, so record the same meetings in your new tool and compare the notes before you switch off auto-record.
2. Keep your library. Fathom keeps unlimited recordings on Free, so you can downgrade a paid plan instead of deleting the account and keep your library.
3. Redo your consent setup. Fathom's consent emails won't carry over; check how your new tool tells attendees they're being recorded.
4. Review the training setting. If you stay on Fathom for some calls, decide whether to opt out of model training in My Settings.