# How to Use Otter on a Mac: Desktop App, Notetaker or Browser > Install Otter's Mac app, record meetings without the Notetaker bot, fix browser recordings that only catch your voice, and see what the free Basic plan covers. - URL: https://freelivecaption.com/en/posts/otter-mac-desktop-app - Published: 2026-10-01 - Updated: 2026-10-01 - Author: Vocena team (https://freelivecaption.com/en/about) - Topic: Meetings (https://freelivecaption.com/en/topics/meetings) - Tags: Otter, Mac, Meetings, Transcription ## Summary - Otter's Mac app needs macOS 12.3 or later. Allow Microphone and Screen & System Audio Recording, and it records meetings without sending a bot. - Otter Notetaker joins Zoom, Google Meet and Teams as a guest that everyone can see, and the meeting has to let guests in. - Browser recording at otter.ai uses your microphone. Headphones can leave out the other speakers, and Safari can't capture your Mac's speaker playback. - The free Basic plan includes the Mac app, 300 transcription minutes a month and up to 30 minutes per conversation. --- We make Vocena, a live caption app. Everything we say about Otter comes from Otter's help center and pricing page, read on October 1, 2026. We didn't install Otter or record a meeting with it for this guide. ## Which Otter recorder to use Otter can hear a meeting on a Mac in three ways, and they don't pick up the same sound: - The [Otter desktop app](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/35973988280215-Otter-Desktop-App-Mac-Windows) records the audio your Mac plays, so it hears the other people even while you wear headphones. It records without adding Notetaker to the call. - [Otter Notetaker](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/4425393298327-Otter-Notetaker-Overview) is a bot that joins Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams as a participant. It can go to a meeting you can't attend. - Recording in a browser at otter.ai uses your microphone. Otter's page on [audio that isn't being recorded](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/18961710640151-My-audio-isn-t-being-recorded) explains that it hears the other side only when their voices come out of your speakers. For calls on your own Mac, start with the desktop app. Send Notetaker when you won't be there. Keep browser recording for a conversation in the room. ## Install Otter on your Mac The [Otter desktop app guide](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/35973988280215-Otter-Desktop-App-Mac-Windows) lists macOS 12.3 or later. 1. Download the Mac app. On the [Otter pricing page](https://otter.ai/pricing), the free Basic plan has a Download for Mac button. 2. Double-click the DMG file and drag Otter into your Applications folder, then open it. 3. Sign in, or create an Otter account. 4. Allow the two permissions Otter asks for. In System Settings, turn Otter on under Microphone and under Screen & System Audio Recording. The second one is what lets Otter hear other people through your headphones. 5. Choose Quit & Reopen when macOS asks, so the permissions take effect. If you later record a call and only your voice shows up, check the Screen & System Audio Recording switch first. ## Record a meeting without the bot Otter calls this botless recording, and the [desktop app guide](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/35973988280215-Otter-Desktop-App-Mac-Windows) lists it among the features only the desktop app has. If you connected a calendar, Notetaker can still join events set to auto-join. To keep it out, [change auto-join](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/12906714508823-Stop-Otter-Notetaker-from-automatically-joining-your-meetings) to Meetings I manually select, then check that Notetaker is off for this meeting on your homepage calendar. Events you switched on one by one keep their own setting. 1. Join the call as usual. 2. Click Record in the upper-right corner of the Otter app. If meeting detection is on, Otter can instead offer to start when it notices the call. 3. Go back to your meeting. A small Otter indicator floats over your other windows with Pause, Resume Recording, Open Otter and Finish Recording. 4. Click Finish Recording when you're done. It ends the recording and takes you back to the conversation in the Otter app. To have Otter prompt you, or start by itself, open Desktop App Settings from your profile menu and set Meeting detection notifications. Detection covers Zoom, browser meetings such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Slack huddles, dialers and messaging apps such as WhatsApp. The same settings can end a recording for you if you forget. If Otter hears no conversation for 10 minutes, it warns you and stops 15 seconds later unless you click Keep recording. Otter says you are responsible for telling participants and getting any consent the law or your company requires. For Teams calls, the desktop app can post "I am using Otter to record this meeting." in the meeting chat when you start recording; you can change that message. If your connection drops, keep the app open. Otter uploads and transcribes the recording once it's back online. To work without any connection, see [offline alternatives to Otter on a Mac](/en/posts/otter-offline-mac-alternatives). ## Send Otter Notetaker To set it up, follow the [Notetaker overview](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/4425393298327-Otter-Notetaker-Overview): go to Integrations in Otter and connect your Google or Microsoft calendar. Events with a Zoom, Meet or Teams link then appear on your Otter homepage, and you choose which ones Notetaker joins. Zoom and Teams each need a few extra steps, linked from that page. Before you rely on it: - Everyone sees it. It joins as "[Your Name]'s Notetaker (Otter.ai)" and can't join anonymously. - The meeting has to accept guests. If your company's meeting settings block guests, Notetaker can't get in. - It leaves after 12 minutes of continuous silence, or after 5 minutes of silence once the meeting has run past its scheduled end. For a meeting that isn't on your calendar, paste its link into the Paste meeting URL to add Otter field on the homepage and press Return or click Record, as described in [adding Notetaker manually](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/13676219922711-Manually-add-Otter-Notetaker-to-a-meeting). Include the password in the link. Notetaker can take a few minutes to show up in the participant list, and the host may need to admit it from the waiting room and allow it to record. ## Browser recordings that miss the other speakers In a browser, click Record next to Import on otter.ai. Otter's [recording guide](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/360048269733-Record-a-conversation) says real-time transcription needs an internet connection. Otter's page on [audio that isn't being recorded](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/18961710640151-My-audio-isn-t-being-recorded) lists why the other speakers go missing: - You're wearing headphones. The microphone may not pick up the other participants when their voices only reach your ears. Use the desktop app, or play the meeting through your speakers. - You're in Safari. Apple doesn't let Safari record sound coming out of the speakers, so only your voice gets in. Otter suggests Chrome or Firefox. - Noise suppression is filtering it out. Apps such as Krisp and the Microsoft Teams app have settings that can treat voices from your speakers as background noise. Turn those features off while you record. For a meeting in the room, Otter's [in-person recording tips](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/31672594631063-Getting-the-most-out-of-Otter-ai-Best-Practices-for-in-person-recordings) say to put the microphone near the speakers, pick it as the input in your Mac's Sound settings, and make a short test recording before the event. ## Recordings you already have For a file, click Import in the upper right of the Otter homepage and choose Browse. Otter's [import guide](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/360047733574-Import-an-audio-or-video-file) accepts files up to 5 GB, including MP3, WAV, M4A from Voice Memos, MP4 and MOV, and each import counts toward your plan's limits. Keep the Mac awake while a large file uploads. ## Basic plan minutes and languages On the free Basic plan, the [Otter pricing page](https://otter.ai/pricing) lists 300 transcription minutes a month and up to 30 minutes per conversation. The import and export limits, and what happens when you hit each one, are in [Otter's free plan limits](/en/posts/otter-free-plan-limits). Otter's [language guide](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/26660468516631-Transcribe-conversations-in-English-Spanish-French-German-Japanese-or-Chinese-Simplified) lists English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Simplified Chinese, one language per conversation; Otter says German and Simplified Chinese support is still being finished. It uses the default language you set, so change it in Account Settings before the meeting. French and English is the only mix it supports: for a meeting in both, set the default language to French, and Otter switches to English when it hears it. ## Live Captions and Vocena on a Mac If you only want to read what people say while it happens, a Mac with Apple silicon has Live Captions built in. Apple's [Live Captions guide for Mac](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/get-captions-of-spoken-and-computer-audio-mchldd11f4fd/mac) puts it in System Settings → Accessibility → Live Captions and says it isn't available in every language or region; [fix Live Captions on a Mac](/en/posts/apple-live-captions-mac-fix) covers the usual problems. To choose between Otter and Notta for meetings, see [Notta vs Otter](/en/posts/notta-otter-comparison). On macOS 15.5 or later, Vocena shows live captions from your microphone and Mac system audio in a floating window. It never joins the call, live captions are free, and each session is saved so you can go back through it. ## Sources and checks - [Otter Desktop App (Mac & Windows)]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Pricing | Otter.ai]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Stop Otter Notetaker from automatically joining your meetings]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Otter Notetaker Overview]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Manually add Otter Notetaker to a meeting]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [My audio isn't being recorded]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Getting the most out of Otter.ai: Best Practices for in-person recordings]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Import an audio or video file]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Transcribe conversations in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, or Chinese (Simplified)]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Record a conversation]() — Checked 2026-10-01 - [Get captions of spoken and computer audio on Mac]() — Checked 2026-10-01 ### Device testing We have not tested these steps on a device. This guide is based on official documentation and Vocena's product information.