Around vs Otter.ai: Complete Comparison (2026)
Choosing between Around and Otter.ai is a common decision for video conferencing buyers in 2026. Both Around and Otter.ai are established players, founded in 2020 and 2016 respectively. Around serves 200K+ users while Otter.ai has 10M+ users globally. Around differentiates with floating bubble ui and screen sharing, while Otter.ai leads with real-time transcription and ai meeting summaries. In this head-to-head comparison, Otter.ai earns a higher hiltonsoftware.co score of 90/100 — but the right choice depends on your specific needs, budget, and team size.
Quick Comparison
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Pros & Cons at a Glance
After comparing Around and Otter.ai across features, pricing, and user satisfaction, Otter.ai takes the lead with a score of 90/100 versus Around's 86/100. Otter.ai's key advantages include "excellent transcription accuracy" and "integrates with zoom, teams, and meet". That said, Around has its own strengths — particularly "minimal screen real estate" — making it a viable alternative for specific use cases.
Both Around and Otter.ai offer free plans, lowering the barrier to entry. Around's paid plans start at $9/user/mo while Otter.ai begins at $10/user/mo. Evaluate which paid features — Noise cancellation, Team spaces (Around) vs Action items, Speaker identification (Otter.ai) — justify upgrading for your team.
Bottom line: Choose Around if you need remote teams wanting a less formal, always-on video presence. Go with Otter.ai if your priority is professionals needing automatic meeting transcription and ai-generated summaries. Both are strong video conferencing tools — we recommend trying the free plan of each before committing.
Remote teams wanting a less formal, always-on video presence.
Professionals needing automatic meeting transcription and AI-generated summaries.