Looking for an Otter.ai alternative without yet another subscription?
Otter.ai is a fine meeting assistant, but it is a subscription built around live calls: monthly minutes reset whether you used them or not, file imports are capped, and your data is processed on US infrastructure. Verlio was born in Europe: it transcribes audio in any language, delivers a polished document in one of 35+ output languages and charges per credit — no subscription at all.
How it works — in 3 steps.
Pay only for what you use
Otter is a subscription: the month's minutes reset whether you used them or not. Verlio runs on €5 credit packs, 1 credit covers 30 minutes and credits never expire. If you transcribe nothing for a month, you spend nothing.
Your files stay in Europe
Otter is a US company and your recordings travel on American infrastructure. Verlio processes and stores everything exclusively on servers in the European Union, in compliance with the GDPR: often a non-negotiable requirement for companies, professional firms and research.
A finished document, not just meeting notes
Otter produces notes and action items for meetings. Verlio delivers a polished document: punctuation fixed, speakers labeled, and a context document that pushes terminology accuracy beyond 98% — exported to Word or PDF in one of 35+ output languages.
Verlio vs Otter.ai, line by line.
| Verlio | Otter.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | €5 credit packs, no subscription (1 credit = 30 min) | Subscription: Pro plan from $8.33/month billed annually ($16.99 monthly) |
| Languages | Audio in any language, final document in 35+ languages | 6 transcription languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and Chinese |
| File uploads | Unlimited files, up to 6 hours and more each | 3 total imports on the free plan, 10 per month on Pro |
| Free trial | Always free under 10 minutes + 1 trial hour, no card | 300 live recording minutes per month, but only 3 importable files in total |
| Live meeting bot | No: record with the native feature and upload the file afterwards | Yes: OtterPilot joins Zoom, Meet and Teams and takes notes in real time |
| Data & privacy | Processing and storage in the EU only, GDPR | US company, US infrastructure |
| Minute expiry | Credits never expire | Monthly minutes reset at every renewal |
| Output | Word, PDF, subtitles and the AI Structured Document with summary and key points | Meeting-oriented notes, summaries and action items |
Pricing and feature data verified in June 2026 on official sites.
When Otter is the right choice
Let's say it plainly: if you live inside English-language meetings on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams and want a bot that joins the call, takes notes live and sends a recap when the meeting ends, Otter does exactly that and does it well. The Salesforce and HubSpot integrations and real-time shared notes are built for sales teams.
Verlio plays a different game: no bot in the call, but a far more polished final document from any recording — interviews, lectures, voice memos, field recordings — in one of 35+ output languages. If everything you do happens inside Zoom in English, Otter remains an excellent pick. If your work is files, languages and documents, it isn't built for you.
Subscription vs credits: do the math on real usage
Otter's Pro plan includes 1,200 minutes per month: if you burn through them every single month, the subscription makes sense. But if you transcribe in waves — a week of interviews, then a month of silence — you pay for the empty months too, and unused minutes vanish. The free plan adds its own catch: 300 live minutes monthly, yet only 3 file imports in total, ever.
Verlio credits start at €5, cover 30 minutes each and stay in your account forever. On top of that, every file under 10 minutes is free and you get 1 trial hour at signup without entering a card: you can compare quality on your real audio before spending a cent.
European data on European servers — and any language in between
For many European organizations, sending voice recordings to US infrastructure is a legal problem, not a nuance: audio is personal data and often contains special categories. Verlio removes the issue at the source: processing and storage happen only on servers in the European Union, in compliance with the GDPR, and you can delete your files whenever you want.
There is also the language ceiling: Otter transcribes in six languages. Verlio takes audio in any language — including meetings that drift between two — recognizes up to 8 and more speakers, and delivers the document in the language you choose from 35+, so an interview in Spanish can land on your desk as an English report with a single upload.
Frequently asked questions.
Can I move my Otter recordings to Verlio?
Yes: download the original audio or video files from your Otter account and upload them to Verlio. Transcripts you already made remain yours; new projects come back as a finished document in the language you choose.
Does Verlio have a bot that joins video calls?
No, by design: you record with the native feature of Zoom, Meet or Teams and upload the file after the call. No ghost participant in the meeting and no integration to authorize.
Do I need a subscription to use Verlio?
No. You buy €5 credit packs when you need them: 1 credit covers 30 minutes and never expires. No auto-renewals, no minutes resetting to zero.
What happens to the minutes I don't use?
With Verlio, nothing: credits stay in your account until you use them. With Otter, the monthly allowance resets at every renewal, used or not.
Where are my files processed?
Exclusively on servers in the European Union, in compliance with the GDPR. Otter, like many competitors, processes data on US infrastructure.
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Try it on your own file, right now.
Upload an audio or video file, choose the document language and download the result as Word or PDF. Your first hour is free and we never ask for a card.