Is Nod a good Granola alternative?

For an individual who wants privacy and EU hosting, yes. Both are bot-free Mac notepads that delete the raw audio, but Nod is built for one person (personal Gmail, no Workspace), hosts data in the EU with no model training, adds cross-meeting 'Ask Nod' search, and lets you read your meetings inside Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini. Granola 2.0 is stronger if you want shared team workspaces or Windows.

Can I import my Granola notes into Nod?

Yes. From Settings, 'Import from Granola' reads Granola's offline cache file on your Mac and imports your past transcripts — locally and offline, with no Granola account and no data ever sent to Granola. Only transcript text, speaker side, and timestamps come across.

What's the real difference between Nod and Granola?

Direction. Granola 2.0 moved toward teams and org-wide intelligence — shared folders, seats, Browse. Nod stays a personal meeting memory: built for one, EU-hosted, no stored audio, no model training, with recall across every meeting and a connector to read your meetings inside your own AI.

Is Granola or Nod better for teams?

Granola, honestly. With 2.0 it added shared team folders, seats, and an org-wide Browse view. Nod is deliberately built for one person — no Workspace, no seats, no admin — so it's the better fit for an individual, not an organization rolling out shared meeting intelligence.

Where is my data stored with each?

Nod stores only the transcript and summary in the EU (AWS eu-west-1, Ireland), encrypted with AES-256 under per-user Row-Level Security, with no model training; audio is discarded from memory about five seconds after capture. Granola runs its AI in the cloud, commonly documented as US-hosted — verify the current region on its privacy page.

Nod vs Granola — Which AI Notepad Fits You?

Nod vs Granola

Both capture your Mac's audio without a bot and turn calls into clean notes. The difference is direction: with 2.0, Granola moved toward shared team workspaces and org-wide intelligence, while Nod stays a private meeting memory built for one — EU-hosted, no stored audio, and readable inside your own AI. Here's the side-by-side.

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At a glance

Both are bot-free Mac notepads that delete the raw audio after transcribing. Where they diverge is who they're built for, where your data lives, and whether you can take your meetings into your own AI.

Bot in the call — Nod: none · Granola: none. Both capture your device's audio.
Stored audio — Nod: never — held in memory ~5s, then discarded · Granola: deletes raw audio after transcribing (verify current policy).
Where data lives — Nod: EU (AWS eu-west-1, Ireland), AES-256, per-user isolation · Granola: cloud AI, US (verify).
Model training — Nod: none, Zero Data Retention upstream · Granola: check their current policy.
Built for — Nod: one person — personal Gmail, no Workspace, no seats · Granola 2.0: teams and orgs — shared folders, seats, org-wide Browse.
Your own AI — Nod: read your meetings inside Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini via a connector · Granola: not offered (verify).
Cross-meeting recall — Nod: 'Ask Nod' semantic search across your whole history · Granola: chat across a shared folder (2.0).
Platforms — Nod: macOS only · Granola: Mac and Windows. (If you're on Windows, Granola wins here.)
Languages — Nod: 14, including Serbian; notes return in the meeting's language · Granola: verify current list.
Pricing — Nod: free for now, paid pricing to be published before anyone is billed · Granola: free plus paid tiers.

Built for one vs built for the org

This is where they split. Granola 2.0 leaned into the team: shared folders by function, chat across a folder of meetings, an org-wide Browse view, and seats. That's useful when a company is paying and wants shared context. Nod assumes the opposite — no company, no Workspace, no IT ticket. You sign in with a personal Gmail, it works on your first call, and your meetings stay yours instead of becoming a shared org asset.

If you want admin-controlled, org-wide meeting intelligence, that's Granola's lane now, and we'll say so. If you're the person who picks and pays for your own tools, Nod is built for exactly that.

Where your data lives — and who can train on it

Both delete the raw audio, so on that axis they're close. The difference is region and verifiability. Capture is local on your Mac; transcription runs in the EU cloud — each audio segment is sent through a European proxy to a transcription service and discarded the instant the text returns, with Zero Data Retention and no model training. Only the transcript and summary are saved, encrypted at rest in the EU. See the security page.

For people who need EU data residency, or who want plain first-party guarantees they can read rather than infer, that's the axis to weigh.

Your meetings, inside your own AI

Nod exposes your meetings, read-only, to the AI clients you already use: a connector lets Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini list your meetings, pull a transcript, and answer across them — scoped to just your account. So instead of chatting only inside the notepad, you can bring your recall into whatever assistant you work in. See Nod with Claude.

Switching from Granola

Already have history in Granola? Nod imports it. From Settings, Import from Granola reads Granola's own offline cache file on your Mac and brings your past transcripts in. It reads a local file only — no Granola account, no password, no network call to Granola, and nothing is ever sent to Granola. Only transcript text, speaker side, and timestamps are imported; Granola's own notes aren't. Details on the security page.

Who each is for

Choose Granola if you're rolling out shared meeting intelligence across a team, want Windows support, or want the breadth of a well-funded incumbent.

Choose Nod if you're an individual who wants a private, EU-hosted meeting memory with no bot, no stored audio, recall across every call, and the option to read it all inside your own AI.

Still shopping the whole category? See our Granola alternatives roundup, with Jamie, Krisp, Tactiq, and others.

Frequently asked questions

Is Nod a good Granola alternative?: For an individual who wants privacy and EU hosting, yes. Both are bot-free Mac notepads that delete the raw audio, but Nod is built for one person (personal Gmail, no Workspace), hosts data in the EU with no model training, adds cross-meeting 'Ask Nod' search, and lets you read your meetings inside Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini. Granola 2.0 is stronger if you want shared team workspaces or Windows.
Can I import my Granola notes into Nod?: Yes. From Settings, 'Import from Granola' reads Granola's offline cache file on your Mac and imports your past transcripts — locally and offline, with no Granola account and no data ever sent to Granola. Only transcript text, speaker side, and timestamps come across.
What's the real difference between Nod and Granola?: Direction. Granola 2.0 moved toward teams and org-wide intelligence — shared folders, seats, Browse. Nod stays a personal meeting memory: built for one, EU-hosted, no stored audio, no model training, with recall across every meeting and a connector to read your meetings inside your own AI.
Is Granola or Nod better for teams?: Granola, honestly. With 2.0 it added shared team folders, seats, and an org-wide Browse view. Nod is deliberately built for one person — no Workspace, no seats, no admin — so it's the better fit for an individual, not an organization rolling out shared meeting intelligence.
Where is my data stored with each?: Nod stores only the transcript and summary in the EU (AWS eu-west-1, Ireland), encrypted with AES-256 under per-user Row-Level Security, with no model training; audio is discarded from memory about five seconds after capture. Granola runs its AI in the cloud, commonly documented as US-hosted — verify the current region on its privacy page.