Quick verdict
Short answer: If tl;dv’s free plan ran out on you, Fathom is the closest replacement — unlimited free recordings with AI summaries that renew monthly. Fireflies suits CRM-heavy sales teams, Granola and Tactiq suit anyone who hates a recording bot joining the call, and Otter.ai wins for live transcription. Pricing below was checked on the vendors’ own pages in November 2026.
Why do people look for tl;dv alternatives?
tl;dv records Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams calls and transcribes them in 30+ languages, with unlimited free recordings and transcripts. The catch is the AI layer: people start shopping after their tenth meeting, when the summaries stop, or after an old recording disappears. Others leave over per-seat pricing — Pro is $18 per seat per month billed annually, $29 monthly — or because they want a bot-free option.
What tl;dv’s pricing page doesn’t make obvious
Three details, verified on tl;dv’s own pricing and help pages, explain most switching. The free plan’s AI notes cover 10 meetings for the life of the account — not 10 per month; after that you get notes on roughly the first 10 minutes of each call. Free recordings are deleted after 3 months, so the free tier is no archive. And tl;dv’s terms make fees non-refundable, which matters when annual billing is the only route to the $18 rate.
The 8 best tl;dv alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Free plan | Paid starts at | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fathom | Unlimited recordings and storage | $16/user/mo (annual) | Closest free replacement |
| Fireflies.ai | Yes, 800 min storage cap | $10/seat/mo (annual) | CRM and sales teams |
| Otter.ai | 300 min/mo, 30 min per call | $8.33/user/mo (annual) | Live transcription |
| MeetGeek | 3 transcription hrs/mo | $9.99/user/mo (annual) | Data residency, budget |
| Granola | Yes, limited history | $14/user/mo | Bot-free notes |
| Tactiq | 10 transcripts/mo | $8/user/mo (annual) | Bot-free live captions |
| Grain | Limited | $19/seat/mo (annual) | Sales call clips |
| Krisp | Yes | $8/user/mo (annual) | Noise cancellation plus notes |
1. Fathom — the closest like-for-like replacement
Fathom records Zoom, Meet, and Teams calls with unlimited recordings and storage free, and — the key difference — its free AI summaries renew monthly instead of stopping after ten meetings. Premium is $16 per user per month billed annually ($20 monthly). If the lifetime cap is your only complaint, start here; our Fathom alternatives roundup covers its rivals.
2. Fireflies.ai — best for CRM-heavy and sales teams
Fireflies goes wider: transcription in 100+ languages, a searchable archive, conversation intelligence (talk time, sentiment, topics), and integrations that log calls to HubSpot, Salesforce, and Pipedrive automatically. The free plan caps storage at 800 minutes per seat; Pro starts at $10 per seat per month billed annually. Pick it when meetings feed a pipeline. See our Fireflies alternatives.
3. Otter.ai — best for live transcription
Otter transcribes in real time, so participants can read and highlight while the call is still happening — something tl;dv’s post-call workflow can’t match. Free gives 300 minutes a month but caps each conversation at 30 minutes, truncating long workshops; Pro, from $8.33 per user per month billed annually, raises the limits. English is its strength. Our Otter.ai alternatives roundup details its caps.
4. MeetGeek — best for data residency and tight budgets
MeetGeek lets you choose EU or US data storage on every plan, free included, and applies SOC 2 and HIPAA coverage across tiers instead of reserving them for enterprise. Free includes 3 transcription hours a month; Pro starts at $9.99 per user per month billed annually, the cheapest full-featured tier here. Summaries, action items, and meeting KPIs are emailed automatically after each call.
5. Granola — best bot-free notes
Granola never sends a bot into your call: it captures audio from your own device and blends the transcript with notes you type yourself, suiting sensitive client conversations. Free Basic limits how far back your history goes; Business, $14 per user per month, unlocks full history and Notion, Slack, and HubSpot integrations. It is built around your own meetings, not a team library. More in our Granola alternatives roundup.
6. Tactiq — best bot-free live captions on a budget
Tactiq is a Chrome extension that turns live captions from Meet, Zoom, and Teams into transcripts and AI summaries — no bot, and no audio or video stored at all. Free covers 10 transcripts and 5 AI credits a month. Pro starts at $8 per user per month billed annually with unlimited transcripts, but honestly note: Pro still caps AI credits at 10 a month, so heavy summary users need Team.
7. Grain — best for sales call clips
Grain is built around moments, not meetings: clip the exact 40 seconds where a prospect raised a pricing objection and share it into HubSpot, Salesforce, or Slack. Paid plans start at $19 per seat per month billed annually, with a limited free tier. If your team lives on recordings for coaching and deal reviews, Grain’s clip library beats tl;dv’s general archive.
8. Krisp — best if your calls also sound bad
Krisp started as AI noise cancellation — stripping background noise, echo, and other voices in real time — and added bot-free transcription and notes on top. It is the one pick that fixes your audio as well as your notes. Paid plans start at $8 per user per month billed annually, with a free tier. Lighter than Fireflies on meeting intelligence, but unmatched for noisy home offices.
Verdict: which tl;dv alternative should you pick?
For most people switching because the free AI notes ran out, Fathom is the answer — the same job with a free tier that renews. Pick Fireflies if meetings feed your CRM, Otter.ai for live collaboration, MeetGeek for data residency or price, Granola or Tactiq if a visible bot is the problem, Grain for sales clips, and Krisp if your audio needs help too. tl;dv stays fine for rare recording — just don’t mistake its free plan for an archive.
Frequently asked questions
Is tl;dv really free?
Recording and transcription are free and unlimited. The limits are on the AI: full AI notes cover only your first 10 meetings for the life of the account, and free recordings are deleted after 3 months.
What is the best free alternative to tl;dv?
Fathom. Its free plan includes unlimited recordings and storage, and its AI summaries renew monthly rather than expiring after a lifetime allowance.
Which tl;dv alternative does not join calls as a bot?
Granola and Tactiq capture meetings without a visible bot — Granola from your device’s audio, Tactiq from live captions in your browser. Krisp also offers bot-free recording.
How much does tl;dv Pro cost?
$18 per seat per month billed annually, or $29 monthly. Business is $29 billed annually, or $39 monthly. Fees are non-refundable under tl;dv’s terms.