It's close: Otter.ai edges it 8.0 to 7.9, so the right pick depends on what you need. Otter.ai wins on 1 of the 5 scores, Grok on 2, with 2 tied.
Students, journalists and teams who want searchable transcripts of every meeting
X users and news followers who want fast takes on what is happening right now
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Otter.ai | Grok |
|---|---|---|
| Category | AI Assistants | AI Assistants |
| Category rank | #13 of 16 | #15 of 16 |
| Developer | Otter.ai | SpaceXSI (formerly xAI) |
| Pricing | Free + paid plans | Free + paid plans |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | — |
| Windows | ✓ | — |
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
Common questions
Is Otter.ai better than Grok?
It's close: Otter.ai edges it 8.0 to 7.9, so the right pick depends on what you need. Otter.ai wins on 1 of the 5 scores, Grok on 2, with 2 tied.
Which is cheaper, Otter.ai or Grok?
Otter.ai: Free: 300 minutes a month; Pro is $8.33 a month billed yearly or $16.99 monthly. Grok: Free tier; SuperGrok plans from $10, with higher tiers for heavy use. On value for money, Grok scores higher.
Do Otter.ai and Grok work on the same devices?
Only Otter.ai runs on Mac, Windows.
Which is more private, Otter.ai or Grok?
Otter.ai scores higher on privacy (5.8/10). Otter trains its AI on de-identified recordings and transcripts, with no in-app opt-out. The App Store label lists identifiers used to track you and links audio, contacts and location to you.
Strengths and weaknesses
Otter.ai
- Years of experience with meeting and lecture transcripts
- Free plan includes 300 minutes a month
- Apps for phone, computer and web
- Free conversations stop at 30 minutes
- Trains AI on recordings with personal details removed, by default
- Faces a class action lawsuit over recording consent
Otter has typed up meetings and lectures for years. It writes live transcripts with speaker labels. Its notetaker can join Zoom, Meet and Teams on its own. AI Chat answers questions across your meetings. A new desktop app records calls and chats outside scheduled meetings. The free plan works but stops each conversation at 30 minutes. Otter trains its AI on recordings with personal details removed. It also faces a class action lawsuit over recording consent.
Full Otter.ai review
Grok
- Up-to-the-minute answers on news and trends
- Strong reasoning models on paid plans
- Image and video generation for subscribers
- Deepfake scandal led to probes in several countries
- Closely tied to X and its data practices
- Best models and Grok Imagine require a subscription
Grok stands out for real-time knowledge pulled from X, so it is quick on breaking news and trending topics. Paid plans add Grok 4.7 in Expert and Heavy modes, plus Grok Imagine for images and video. It is looser with content limits than most rivals, and that backfired in January 2026, when sexualized deepfakes made with Grok triggered investigations in the EU, UK and beyond. Privacy and safety remain the weak spots.
Full Grok review
