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Side-by-side comparison · Productivity & Notes

Granola vs Otter.ai vs Todoist

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Best overall

Granola

4.4

From $14/user/mo

Otter.ai

3.6

From $16.99/mo

Todoist

4.3

From $7/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Best overall

Pick it if: Founders, consultants and managers who sit in back-to-back calls and hate the awkward recording bot.

Pick it if: Journalists, students, researchers and anyone who records conversations outside of video calls.

Best value

Pick it if: Anyone who wants a dependable task list that is fast to use and stays out of the way.

Granola scores highest overall, but Todoist gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.

Overview

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
In one lineTakes meeting notes from your computer's audio, so no bot ever joins the call.Live transcripts for meetings, lectures and in-person conversations on your phone.A simple to-do list that works everywhere and understands plain-English due dates.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumFreemium
Starting price$14/user/mo$16.99/mo$7/mo
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Works with Claude Code Yes No Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Overall rating4.4Winner3.64.3
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
5.0
4.0
5.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers the job it's built for, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.5
4.0
4.0
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
4.5
3.5
3.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
3.0
4.5
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
3.5
4.5

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes Yes
Mobile app Yes Yes Yes
Desktop app Yes– Yes
Browser extension No Yes Yes
API access Yes Yes Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes Yes No
Connects to other apps Yes Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files No Yes Yes
Understands images No No No
Makes images No No No
Makes video No No No
Writes code No No No
Runs agents or automations No Yes No
Learns your brand or style No No No
Works in many languages Yes– Yes
Capabilities score8/ 179/ 179/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Plans

Basic

Free

Trying it, or anyone who only needs the last month of notes.

Basic

Free

Occasional in-person recording.

Beginner

Free

Anyone with a simple list.

BusinessOur pick

$14/user/mo

Anyone in regular client or sales calls.

ProOur pick

$16.99/mo, or $8.33/mo billed yearly

Anyone who records a few conversations a week.

ProOur pick

$7/mo, or $5/mo billed yearly

Anyone who wants more projects and the calendar view.

Enterprise

$35/user/mo

Companies that need admin control over who records what.

Business

$30/user/mo, or $19.99/user/mo billed yearly

Teams who record all day.

Business

$10/user/mo, or $8/user/mo billed yearly

Small teams sharing a workspace.

Enterprise

Custom

Organisations needing SSO, API and compliance.

Which plan to pickStart on Basic and see how it fits your week. If you find yourself wanting a call from six weeks ago, that's your signal to move to Business. Enterprise is only for IT-managed rollouts.Pro on the yearly plan is the sensible choice, and the monthly price is more than double it, so commit for a year or don't bother. Business is only worth it for teams recording several hours a day.Beginner is fine until you hit the five-project wall. Pro on the yearly plan is the obvious move after that. Business is for teams who want a shared space; it is not a substitute for a real project tool.

Key features

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Standout features
  • Bot-free capture
  • Notes built on yours
  • Ask across meetings
  • Templates
  • Phone apps
  • Claude connection
  • Live transcription
  • Phone recording
  • File import
  • Meeting bot
  • AI chat and agents
  • Summaries and action items
  • Natural language entry
  • Projects, labels and filters
  • Everywhere
  • Calendar layout
  • Shared projects
  • Claude connection

Pros and cons

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Pros
  • No bot in the call keeps clients and candidates relaxed
  • Notes read like something you wrote, not a wall of transcript
  • Quick to set up and almost nothing to learn
  • Cross-meeting chat is genuinely useful for follow-ups
  • Phone apps cover in-person meetings
  • Covers in-person, phone, video and uploaded files in one app
  • Live transcripts you can follow in the meeting
  • Good mobile app for recording on the go
  • Searchable archive with speaker labels
  • Fastest task capture of anything here
  • Works on every device you own and syncs instantly
  • Cheap, with a free plan that covers a lot
  • Natural language dates and repeats just work
  • Official Claude connection
Cons
  • No video recording or shareable clips
  • The free plan locks notes older than 30 days
  • No annual discount shown, so $14 a user adds up for a team
  • Needs the desktop app running; it won't record from a phone call on your laptop if the app is closed
  • Free plan limits are tight and the per-conversation cap is only 30 minutes
  • Accuracy suffers with accents, noise and people talking over each other
  • Monthly billing is twice the yearly price
  • The meeting bot is pushy by default and will join calls you didn't intend it to
  • Interface is cluttered compared with Granola
  • Not a project management tool: no timelines, dependencies or dashboards
  • Prices went up at the end of 2025
  • Business plan lacks single sign-on
  • The AI features are light compared with the rest of the category

Who each one is for

AttributeGranolaOtter.aiTodoist
Best for
  • Client and sales calls
  • Interviews and one-on-ones
  • Bot-free recording
  • Asking questions across past meetings
  • In-person meeting transcripts
  • Interviews and research
  • Transcribing uploaded audio
  • Lectures and training sessions
  • Personal task management
  • Recurring reminders
  • Quick capture from any device
  • Tasks Claude can add for you
You'll find it used by
  • Founders
  • Consultants
  • Managers
  • Sales teams
  • Recruiters
  • Journalists
  • Researchers
  • Students
  • Consultants
  • Solo founders
  • Freelancers
  • Managers
  • Students
  • Small teams

Questions people ask

Which is better, Granola, Otter.ai or Todoist?

Granola scores highest overall in our ratings (Granola 4.4/5, Otter.ai 3.6/5 and Todoist 4.3/5). Granola is best for client and sales calls and interviews and one-on-ones. Otter.ai is best for in-person meeting transcripts and interviews and research. Todoist is best for personal task management and recurring reminders.

Which is cheaper, Granola, Otter.ai or Todoist?

Granola: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $14/user/mo. Otter.ai: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $16.99/mo. Todoist: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $7/mo.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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