Savory vs Otter, without the strawman.
Otter helped invent the AI-notes category, built on cloud transcription and collaboration. Savory rebuilds the category's core loop with the processing moved onto your own machine.
The key differences
Cloud or on device
Otter transcribes in its cloud. Savory transcribes on your Mac, so nothing is uploaded.
Caps or no caps
Otter meters recording minutes by plan. Savory has no minute ceiling, because transcribing more costs nothing when it runs on your own hardware.
What the notes orbit
Otter organizes around conversations and collaboration. Savory organizes around the people you meet.
| Privacy and architecture | Savory | Otter |
|---|---|---|
| Transcription runs on your device | Yes | No |
| Audio never stored, anywhere | Yes | No |
| Works fully offline | Yes | No |
| No bot joins the call | Yes | Partial |
| Speaker separation / diarization | Yes | 1Yes (see note 1) |
| Identifiers scrubbed before any AI summary | Yes | No |
- 1Fireflies and Otter separate speakers in their cloud, and capturing a call for them means a bot in the room. Savory separates speakers on your device, with no bot.
| People and follow-through | Savory | Otter |
|---|---|---|
| A page per person, not a pile of meetings | Yes | Partial |
| Two-way action-item ledger, per person | Yes | No |
| Relationship cadence and last met, automatic | Yes | No |
| More than a meeting recorder | Savory | Otter |
|---|---|---|
| Unified Google and Apple calendar, record any event | Yes | Partial |
| Built-in Markdown notebook (Notes mode) | Yes | No |
| Separate academic space for lectures (Student mode) | Yes | Partial |
| Where cloud tools still win | Savory | Otter |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-device sync | Yes | Yes |
| Team sharing and workspaces | No | Yes |
| Windows and web apps | No | Yes |
Reflects publicly documented behavior as of July 2026. Corrections welcome via the contact page.
Where each tool wins
Where Savory wins
- On-device transcription with no monthly minute ceiling.
- Audio never leaves your Mac and is never stored.
- A page per person, with a running action-item ledger.
- Meetings, Student, and Notes modes in one app, all offline.
Where Otter wins
- Real-time cloud collaboration and comments during the meeting.
- Apps for Windows, Android, and the web.
- Shared team workspaces with admin controls.
Pricing, side by side
The Savory app is free. Here is what each plan includes.
Savory
- Free$0the whole app on your device, forever
- Pro$19.99 a monthAI summaries and action items, first 30 days free
No card to use the app. Cancel Pro anytime.
Otter
- Free$0300 minutes a month, 30 minutes per meeting
- Pro$16.99 per seat a month1,200 minutes a month
- Business$30 per seat a monthunlimited meetings and admin controls
Otter pricing as observed July 2026. Tell us if it has changed.
You do not have to switch to find out
No import, no migration, no lock-in. Run Savory alongside Otter and keep whichever earns the habit.
1Download Savory, free
The whole app on your Mac, no card. Nothing to cancel later.
2Record your next real meeting
Capture happens on your device, with no bot in the room and nothing uploaded.
3Keep Otter as long as you like
Nothing to export and nothing to migrate. Run both until Savory has earned the switch.
Savory vs Otter, answered straight
Not on Savory. Transcription runs on your Mac with no monthly ceiling. Otter caps recording minutes by plan, starting at 300 a month on Free.
Not with Savory. It stays on device. Otter transcribes in its cloud.
No. Savory builds your library from your next meeting on. Your Otter data stays in Otter.
Otter is strong on real-time cloud collaboration and comments. Savory focuses on private, people-centric notes on your own hardware.
Yes. Everything runs on device, with no connection required.
Try the private one first. It's free.
If the architecture argument lands, the download settles it.
Free forever · 30-day Pro trial · macOS 26+ and iOS 26+