Cockatoo: AI transcription and note-taking service that records and transcribes meetings and lectures, then turns them into structured notes and summaries. Meetingnotes: Free, open-source macOS app that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings locally using your own OpenAI API key. We compare them on cost, capture approach, and day-to-day fit so you can choose faster.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Cockatoo when transcribing recorded meetings and interviews into searchable, structured notes matters most, and Meetingnotes when individuals wanting a free, self-controlled alternative to subscription notetakers matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
AI transcription and note-taking service that records and transcribes meetings and lectures, then turns them into structured notes and summaries.
Free, open-source macOS app that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings locally using your own OpenAI API key.
Cockatoo is an AI transcription and note-taking service available through the web and an iOS app that converts spoken audio and video into text and structured notes. Users can record meetings and lectures directly or upload existing audio and video files in a wide range of formats, after which Cockatoo automatically generates a transcript with punctuation and capitalization, identifies speakers, and produces summaries with key takeaways and action items. Beyond transcription, the product offers voice typing, an AI chat agent for asking questions about content, full document translation across many languages, and video transcription with subtitles and captions. Transcripts and notes can be searched and exported to formats including PDF, DOCX, TXT, SRT, and audio, and the app syncs to the cloud. Cockatoo supports more than one hundred languages and is designed for individuals and professionals who need affordable, accurate transcription of recordings such as meetings, interviews, lectures, podcasts, and other spoken content. The service is operated by Cockatoo Inc. and is actively running in 2025 and 2026 at cockatoo.com. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Meetingnotes is a free, open-source macOS application that records meetings, transcribes them in real time, and generates AI summaries while keeping data stored locally on the user's machine. Built for engineers and privacy-conscious users, it captures both microphone and system audio, produces a live transcript via OpenAI's API, and then combines that transcript with any manual notes the user jots down to create a structured summary. Because it runs locally and requires the user to supply their own OpenAI API key, recordings and notes stay on the device rather than being uploaded to a managed cloud service, and users pay only for their direct API usage instead of a subscription. The app supports customizable system prompts so that summaries can be tailored to a person's preferred note-taking style, and it provides search, copy, and delete capabilities for managing stored notes and transcripts. Released under an open-source license, it invites community contributions and has a roadmap that includes calendar integration and AI-powered question-and-answer chat over past meetings. It is well suited to individuals who want a transparent, self-controlled alternative to commercial meeting notetakers without recurring fees or a call bot joining their meetings. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Cockatoo is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Meetingnotes is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Cockatoo | Meetingnotes |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Record or upload audio and video, then transcribe to structured text | Records both microphone and system audio for meeting capture |
| Standout feature | AI summaries with key takeaways and action items | Real-time transcription using the OpenAI API |
| Team usage | Automatic speaker detection and punctuation | AI summaries that combine transcripts with manual notes |
| Integrations | AI chat agent and full document translation across 100+ languages | Customizable system prompts for personalized note-taking |
| Languages & capture | Video transcription with subtitles and captions | Local storage of notes and transcripts for privacy |
| Best-fit workflow | Export to PDF, DOCX, TXT, SRT, and audio with cloud sync | Search, copy, and delete management for stored notes |
Cockatoo
Choose Cockatoo if you need transcribing recorded meetings and interviews into searchable, structured notes — strengths include handles both live recording and bulk upload of existing audio and video files.
Meetingnotes
Choose Meetingnotes if you need privacy-focused engineers recording and summarizing local meetings — strengths include completely free and open-source with no subscription.
Cockatoo
Meetingnotes
It depends on your workflow. Cockatoo is strong for transcribing recorded meetings and interviews into searchable, structured notes, while Meetingnotes is strong for privacy-focused engineers recording and summarizing local meetings. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Cockatoo is a free tier with paid upgrades and Meetingnotes is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
You can — some teams pair them when each covers a different part of the meeting workflow.
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