Zoom transcription, Google Meet transcription and Teams transcription all come down to the same job: get the audio of the call into something that writes down who said what, then turn that into minutes someone will actually read. MeetNotes does this by sending the MeetNotes Notetaker into the call, and the minutes arrive when the call ends. Below: how it works, what you get at the end, and an honest word on the transcripts the platforms already have.
Capturing an online meeting
| MeetNotes Notetaker | |
|---|---|
| How it starts | Paste the meeting link in the phone app, or add notes@getmeetnotes.com to a calendar invite you organise |
| Works with | Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams |
| Shows up in the call | Yes, as "MeetNotes Notetaker" |
| Needs your computer | No |
| Hears people in the room with you | No |
The notetaker uses the minutes on your MeetNotes account, and the results land in the same place as meetings you record on your phone.
Send the MeetNotes Notetaker
The notetaker is a participant that joins the call for you. There are two ways to send it:
- Paste the link. Copy the Zoom, Google Meet or Teams link and paste it into the MeetNotes app on Android or iPhone. The notetaker heads to the call.
- Put it on the invite. When you organise a meeting, add notes@getmeetnotes.com as a guest on the calendar invite. The notetaker is scheduled for the meeting's start time. This works per invite you organise; it does not join every meeting on your calendar.
What happens next:
- It joins as a visible participant named MeetNotes Notetaker. Everyone on the call can see it in the participant list.
- Depending on the meeting's settings, the host may need to admit it from the waiting room or lobby, just like any other guest.
- It records the call.
- It leaves on its own shortly after everyone else has left, so you do not need to remember to remove it.
Recording uses the minutes on your account.
It works whether you join from a computer, from your phone, or not at all, and it can be scheduled in advance from the invite.
How to record a Zoom meeting and get minutes, step by step
- Invite the notetaker: paste the link in the app, or add notes@getmeetnotes.com to your invite.
- Tell the participants you are recording. More on that below.
- Hold the meeting as normal. Nobody needs to take notes.
- When the meeting ends, open it in MeetNotes. Check that the speaker names are right, then read the minutes.
- Share the minutes as a PDF, a Word file or a link.
The same steps work for Google Meet and Microsoft Teams.
What you get after the call
- A speaker-labelled transcript. The full conversation, broken up by speaker, so "who agreed to what" is on the record.
- Minutes, not just a transcript. A summary, key takeaways, the decisions made, and action items, each with an owner and a date where one was mentioned. Action items also land in one Tasks list in the app; our guide to action items from meetings explains why that second life matters.
- Documents to send. Export the minutes as a PDF or an editable Word file, or share a link, including with people outside your company who do not use MeetNotes.
When the meeting switches language mid-sentence
International calls rarely stay in one language. Someone explains a point in English, a colleague answers in Spanish, and a term in a third language lands in the middle of a sentence. There is no language to pick before you record: MeetNotes works out what is being spoken and treats switching as normal. The minutes can then be written in any of 100+ languages, whatever language the call was held in.
What about the transcripts Zoom, Teams and Meet already have?
Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet each have their own recording and transcription features. Whether you can use them depends on your plan, your region and what your admin has turned on, so check your plan before assuming it is there, or not there.
If the built-in option covers you, it is a reasonable choice. MeetNotes adds value when you need:
- Minutes, not only a transcript. Decisions and action items with owners, in a document you can send.
- One place across all three platforms, plus in-person meetings. A Zoom call with a client, a Teams call with a supplier and a meeting in the office all end up in the same list and the same Tasks.
- Documents for people outside your company. A PDF or Word file anyone can open, rather than a recording that sits inside someone else's account.
For side-by-side reviews of tools people weigh up, see the comparison pages.
Tell people you are recording
Always tell participants that the meeting is being recorded, ideally at the start and in the invite. The rules on recording calls differ between countries and organisations, so check what applies where you and the other participants are.
The notetaker is visible by design: it appears in the participant list under its own name, and the host can decline to admit it. It is not meant for recording anyone without their knowledge.
FAQ
Can MeetNotes transcribe Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams meetings?
Yes. Paste the meeting link into the MeetNotes app, or add notes@getmeetnotes.com to a calendar invite you organise, and the MeetNotes Notetaker joins the call and records it. The minutes arrive when the call ends.
Will other participants see the MeetNotes Notetaker?
Yes. It joins as a visible participant named MeetNotes Notetaker, and the host may need to admit it depending on the meeting settings. It leaves on its own shortly after everyone else has left.
Does the notetaker join every meeting on my calendar?
No. It is scheduled only for meetings where you add notes@getmeetnotes.com to an invite you organise, or when you paste a meeting link into the app yourself.
Do I still need MeetNotes if Zoom or Teams already transcribes my meetings?
Not always. Built-in transcription depends on your plan and admin settings, so check your plan first. MeetNotes is useful when you want finished minutes with decisions and owned action items, one place for Zoom, Meet, Teams and in-person meetings, and a PDF or Word file for people outside your company.
Your next online meeting, minuted without typing. Invite the notetaker from the Calendar tab in the phone app, and the minutes arrive when the call ends. In the room instead? MeetNotes for Mac records through the Mac's microphone; Windows is coming to the Microsoft Store.
