Granola and Spokenly solve different jobs. Pick Granola for bot-free meeting notes and team memory; pick Spokenly for system-wide dictation. Ottex sits between them with dictation, meetings, and finished-work outputs on Mac and iOS.
Ottex
Mac, iOS · Free tier · $14/mo · PAYG
Ottex is unusually broad for a young Mac/iOS-first tool: it turns dictation and meetings into emails, tickets, CRM updates, notes, and docs, but it is not the pick if you need Windows, Android, web, browser extension, or compliance paperwork.
Choose if
You want one tool for system-wide dictation, meeting recording, and finished written outcomes like follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, and docs
You want a real free path: unlimited local dictation, file transcription, and meetings on Mac with Whisper/Parakeet, or BYOK instead of a forced subscription
You need multilingual dictation with 100+ languages, auto-detection, mixed-language speech, personal vocabulary, and per-app output rules
Look elsewhere if
You need Windows, Android, Linux, web access, or a browser extension
You need mature team infrastructure such as a shared workspace, API/webhooks, third-party note destinations, or assistant chat over transcripts today.
Granola is a strong bot-free meeting notes tool with polished AI summaries and team memory, but it is not a general dictation or file-transcription app.
Choose if
You want bot-free meeting capture that records from your mic and computer audio without joining calls.
You want AI meeting notes shaped by your own notes, with action items, decisions, follow-up emails, and reusable prompts.
You want a team meeting memory with shared workspaces, folders, cross-meeting Q&A, and Google Calendar or Outlook Calendar support.
Look elsewhere if
You need system-wide dictation, hotkeys, voice commands, auto-formatting, snippets, or text insertion into other apps.
You need imported audio or video file transcription, batch processing, timestamps, or export controls with public vendor claims behind them.
Spokenly
Mac, Windows, iOS · Limited free · $9.99/mo
Spokenly is a strong pick for Mac-first dictation with real offline and BYOK options, but it is not a meeting assistant and has no web, Linux, Android, or live meeting workflow.
Choose if
You want system-wide push-to-talk dictation on macOS, iOS, or Windows, with text inserted directly into the active app.
You want unlimited free local dictation in 100+ languages, or BYOK transcription where Spokenly charges nothing beyond your provider costs.
You need file transcription from the terminal, including batch audio/video jobs and TXT, SRT, VTT, Markdown, or JSON output.
Look elsewhere if
You need meeting recording, calendar detection, summaries, action items, follow-up emails, or shared meeting memory.
You need a browser, web app, Android, or Linux workflow instead of installed desktop/mobile apps.
The evidence
What actually differs, claim by claim.
Each section opens with the takeaway. The table underneath is the receipt — every cell carries its source and the date we checked it.
Pricing
Spokenly wins pricing for dictation: Local Models are free with unlimited use, BYOK is free from Spokenly, and Pro is $9.99/mo. Granola is better priced only if you need meetings, with Basic free for 25 meetings/month and Business at $18/seat/mo. Ottex is the broader middle path, with free local and BYOK options, PAYG at $0.2/hour, Pro at $14/mo, and Team at $24/seat/mo.
See the evidence — 13 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026
Ottex
Granola
Spokenly
Free tier
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Whisper & Parakeet run on your Mac. Dictation and meetings, $0.
PartialSource: granola.ai/pricing — checked Jun 202625 meetings/month
PartialSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Jun 2026Unlimited use; no usage limits
Subscription
$14/moSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
$18/moSource: granola.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026Business is $18 per member/month or $14 per member/month billed annually.
$9.99/moSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Jun 2026The pricing page shows annual billing at $99.99 per year and references Pro cloud features.
Pay-as-you-go / one-timeEscape the flat subscription
$0.2/hourSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted models at cost: dictation ~$0.2/h, meetings ~$0.5/h (~$3/mo average).
NoSubscription only
NoSubscription only
Bring your own keyPay the model provider, not the middleman
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026OpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, and compatible providers.
No public claim
YesSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Jun 2026Users can connect their own API keys from OpenAI, Deepgram, Groq, ElevenLabs, Mistral, and other providers.
Education discount
NoSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Same pricing for everyone.
No public claim
YesSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Jun 2026Verified students get 50% off Pro after contacting support with an academic email.
Platforms
Granola wins platform coverage across Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android. Spokenly covers Mac, Windows, and iOS, but has no Android, Linux, web, or browser workflow in the input. Ottex is narrower than both for device coverage, limited to Mac and iOS.
See the evidence — 4 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026
Ottex
Granola
Spokenly
Platforms
Mac, iOSSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
Mac, Windows, iOS, AndroidSource: granola.ai/download — checked Jun 2026
Mac, Windows, iOSSource: spokenly.app/download — checked Jun 2026
Native app footprintLight on memory, instant to invoke
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Native Swift app, ~50MB RAM.
No public claim
No public claim
Meetings & team memory
Granola wins meeting capture because it records bot-free from mic and computer audio, supports calendar workflows, and offers team meeting memory. Spokenly is not a meeting tool at all. Ottex also supports meetings, but Granola is the safer pick when shared workspace, folders, cross-meeting Q&A, and mature team memory are the priority.
See the evidence — 17 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026
Ottex
Granola
Spokenly
Meeting recordingThe call is captured at all
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026With speaker separation.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Granola records and transcribes meetings without joining as a bot.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Bot-free captureNo "recording bot" joins your call
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026System-audio capture, no bot joins the call.
YesSource: granola.ai — checked Jun 2026Granola does not send a bot to meetings.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Speaker separation
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
No public claim
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported for live meetings.
Calendar detection
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Calendar-based meeting detection.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Granola surfaces calendar events and can start notes from upcoming meetings.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Cross-meeting search
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Ask Granola can answer across past meetings.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Shared team memory
PartialSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Public share links, not a full team workspace.
YesSource: granola.ai/pricing — checked Jun 2026Business workspaces include shared notes and folders for teams.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
From meeting to finished work
Granola wins classic meeting intelligence with AI notes, action items, decisions, follow-up emails, reusable prompts, and cross-meeting Q&A. Spokenly does not cover summaries, action items, follow-up emails, or shared meeting memory. Ottex wins if the goal is finished work beyond notes, because it turns dictation and meetings into follow-up emails, Linear tickets, CRM updates, PRDs, docs, and notes.
See the evidence — 12 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026
Ottex
Granola
Spokenly
Decisions, owners, action itemsLeave the meeting with next steps clear
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Decisions with owners extracted.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Granola can extract decisions from meetings through templates and AI notes.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Follow-up email draftedThe outcome is sent, not summarized
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Drafted from templates or your own.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Recipes can generate follow-up emails from meetings.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
CRM update / ticket draft
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Structured for the target app.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Granola lists Attio as an integration for sending meeting notes to CRM records.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Your rough notes steer the result
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Rough notes and instructions steer the result.
YesSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026User notes are used to guide the generated meeting notes.
NoSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Not supported.
Dictation & transcription AI
Spokenly wins pure dictation over Granola with system-wide push-to-talk, local models, BYOK, and 100+ languages. Granola has no dictation, no local option, no BYOK, and no language count in the input. Ottex matches Spokenly on dictation, BYOK, local models, and 100+ languages, then adds meetings and file transcription on Mac and iOS.
See the evidence — 10 claims across 3 toolsverified Jun 2026
Ottex
Granola
Spokenly
Engines
Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3.Source: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Hosted routing, BYOK, or fully local.
No public claim
Whisper, Parakeet, Apple Speech Analyzer, GPT-4o Transcribe, Deepgram Nova 3, Soniox, Groq, ElevenLabs, Mistral, Fireworks, CerebrasSource: spokenly.app/pricing — checked Jun 2026Published pages name local, BYOK, managed cloud, and third-party providers across pricing and privacy materials.
Local / on-device optionAudio never leaves the machine
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Whisper and Parakeet v3 run fully on-device.
NoSource: help.granola.ai/article — checked Jun 2026Granola states it requires an internet connection to transcribe and generate notes.
YesSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Local Only Mode keeps transcription on-device and blocks network access.
Model selection per task
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Choose the model per task and per provider.
No public claim
YesSource: spokenly.app/docs — checked Jun 2026Docs say users choose between fast and high-accuracy dictation models.
Languages & mixed speechWork that crosses languages mid-sentence
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026100+ languages · Mid-sentence language switching.
No public claim
No public claim
Per-app output rules
YesSource: ottex.ai — checked Jun 2026Per-app output rules: exact in AI chats, polished in email.
NoSource: granola.ai — checked Jun 2026Not supported
No public claim
Cost
What a year actually costs at your volume.
Personal or team — switch tabs. Subscriptions are flat; usage-based pricing depends on how much you speak and meet.
OttexPro$168/yr$14/mo — unlimited dictation and meeting intelligence, all hosted models included.
GranolaBusiness+ Dictation Daddy Free for dictation — $0/yr$168/yr$168 + $0Business is $18 per member/month or $14 per member/month billed annually. · Unlimited meetings
SpokenlyPro+ Granola for meetings — $168/yr$268/yr$100 + $168The pricing page shows annual billing at $99.99 per year and references Pro cloud features. · High-accuracy cloud models; AI text processing; works out of the box; priority support
Estimates, not quotes. Striped bar segments are the cost of the second app you picked above to cover the gap — rankings use that combined total. PAYG and BYOK usage are estimated at provider at-cost rates ($0.2/h dictation, $0.5/h meetings) — bring-your-own-key plans still pay the model provider per use. One-time licenses are amortized over 2 years. Subscriptions use published pricing, checked Jun 2026.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
Granola vs Spokenly: which should I pick?
Pick Granola if your job is meeting notes: it has bot-free meeting capture, 25 free meetings/month, and $18/seat/mo Business for unlimited meetings. Pick Spokenly if your job is dictation: it has system-wide push-to-talk, local models, BYOK, 100+ languages, and Pro at $9.99/mo.
Is Granola free?
Yes, Granola has a Basic plan that is free for 25 meetings/month. That is useful for occasional meetings, but unlimited meetings require Business at $18/seat/mo or Enterprise custom pricing.
Is Spokenly free?
Yes, Spokenly has a real free path for dictation: Local Models are free with unlimited use, and Your API Keys is free from Spokenly while you pay the provider directly. Its Pro plan is $9.99/mo for high-accuracy cloud models, AI text processing, out-of-the-box setup, and priority support.
How much does Granola cost compared with Spokenly?
Granola costs free for 25 meetings/month, then $18/seat/mo for Business with unlimited meetings. Spokenly costs free for unlimited local dictation or BYOK, then $9.99/mo for Pro, so it is cheaper if dictation is the need.
Is Granola safe?
Granola is the better fit if you want bot-free meeting capture because it records from your mic and computer audio without joining calls. If privacy means local or BYOK dictation, Spokenly is stronger because it offers local models and BYOK.
Is it worth switching from Granola to Spokenly?
Switch from Granola to Spokenly if meetings are not the job and you mainly want system-wide dictation into other apps. Stay on Granola if you rely on AI meeting notes, action items, follow-up emails, team memory, calendar support, or cross-meeting Q&A.
Does Granola or Spokenly work on Windows or Android?
Granola works on Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android. Spokenly works on Mac, Windows, and iOS, so Granola is the pick if Android matters.
