Granola vs Fireflies: device audio or a meeting bot?

The main difference: how each one captures a meeting

Granola uses your computer's audio, so it doesn't invite a bot. It works with Zoom, Google Meet, Teams and other meeting apps. Because it records from your device, it fits meetings you attend yourself.

Fireflies' notetaker (fred@fireflies.ai) joins from a calendar invite, auto-join or a pasted link. It shows up as a participant, and a host may need to admit it. It can record a meeting even when you aren't there.

Fireflies also has bot-free options: a Chrome extension for Google Meet and a mobile app for in-person recordings.

Side by side

Prices are per user per month in US dollars, as each vendor lists them. Fireflies shows a lower price when billed annually. Plans change, so check both pricing pages before you buy.

Decide whether you need the recording

Granola deletes audio after transcription. You keep the notes and transcript, but there's no audio or video to replay later.

Fireflies stores recordings, and paid plans can capture video. That helps when someone needs to hear tone, watch a demo again or clip a moment for a colleague.

Ask your team which they want. Some prefer no stored audio. Others need to replay calls for training or review.

Think about the people on the call

A visible bot tells everyone a notetaker is present. In Google Meet, Fireflies notes that its bot can appear under "With potential risks" until a host admits it.

Device capture avoids that step, but nobody sees a participant announcing the notes. Granola offers a per-user setting to let people know you're using it, which admins can enforce on Enterprise. Either way, tell people you're taking AI notes and follow your organization's consent rules.

Which one fits

Run both on a few real meetings before you commit a team. Check speaker names, accuracy on your vocabulary and how easily someone else can find the notes.

• You attend most of your meetings and don't want a bot: Granola.
• You want calls captured when you can't attend: Fireflies, since its bot records without you.
• You need to replay audio or video: Fireflies; Granola keeps no audio.
• You want to try it for free on many meetings: compare Granola's 30-day history with Fireflies' 400 minutes of storage.

Where Bridge fits

Bridge gives you both capture styles in one workspace, and you can bring your Granola or Fireflies history with you.

• Record bot-free with the Mac desktop app, which works with Zoom, Meet, Teams, Slack Huddles, Webex and GoTo Meeting.
• Or send Bridge Agent to Zoom, Meet or Teams calls. It joins from your calendar or a pasted link, and the host admits it.
• Host meetings on Bridge, with live transcription and a speaker-labeled transcript, notes and recording afterwards.
• Connect Granola or Fireflies to import past transcripts and notes, and sync new ones.
• Export a transcript as PDF, Word or Markdown, or let Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini read your meetings through the Bridge MCP (paid plans).