At a glance
Otter details are from Otter's public pages and may change.
- Bot in the call — Nod: never, in any mode · Otter: bot-free desktop mode, but also auto-join assistant behaviour from your calendar.
- Stored audio — Nod: none, held in memory ~5s then discarded · Otter: recordings and transcripts kept in the cloud by default; Enterprise workspaces can remove audio from all past and future conversations.
- Platforms — Nod: macOS only · Otter: web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Otter wins outright here.
- Cross-meeting recall — Nod: "Ask Nod" semantic search over your whole history · Otter: search within its workspace.
- During the call — Nod: live answers and cards while you're still talking · Otter: primarily a post-meeting recap.
- Price — Nod: 14-day trial, no card, then $12–$24/mo billed annually · Otter: free tier plus paid plans.
The real dividing line: what survives the meeting
Otter's default model is that the meeting becomes an asset — a recording, a transcript, a searchable library in an account. That's genuinely useful, and it's why teams standardise on it. Enterprise workspaces can remove audio from all historical and future conversations, so retention depends on the workspace setting and plan.
Nod's model is that the audio was never the point. Capture is local on your Mac; transcription isn't. Each audio segment is sent through a European proxy to hosted transcription, and Nod discards it when the text returns. No model trains on the data. Groq may retain transient error or abuse logs for up to 30 days unless Zero Data Retention is enabled. Only the transcript and summary are saved by Nod, encrypted at rest in the EU (AWS eu-west-1). See the security page.
Neither is universally right. If you need to re-listen to the exact words months later, Otter's retention is a feature and Nod cannot give it to you. If a retained recording of a candid client call is a liability, Nod removes the liability entirely.
Teams without a shared recording library
Otter is built around a shared library of recordings. Nod has organizations too, but joining one shares nothing: you share a folder or a single meeting, and admins cannot open anyone's private meetings. See team context.
Who should pick which
Choose Nod if you're on a Mac, you want nothing joining your calls, no stored audio, EU hosting you can point at, and recall across every conversation.
Choose Otter if you need Windows, mobile, or a permanently free tier, you want its recording library, need the Enterprise remove-audio control, or want an admin-controlled library of recordings.
Weighing the whole field instead? The Otter.ai alternatives roundup covers Granola, Jamie, Krisp, and Tactiq alongside Nod.
Frequently asked questions
Is Nod better than Otter.ai?
For a Mac user who wants no bot, no stored audio, and EU-hosted notes, yes — that's exactly the lane Nod is built for. Otter is better if you need Windows or mobile, want a permanently free tier, need a configurable recording library, or want an admin-controlled library of recordings. Enterprise workspaces can also remove audio from all past and future conversations.
Does Otter.ai join meetings as a participant?
It can. Otter has a desktop mode that captures without joining, and it has also offered auto-join assistant behaviour driven by your calendar, so it depends on configuration. Nod never joins in any mode — it reads your Mac's own audio and never appears in the participant list.
How do Nod and Otter.ai compare on price?
Otter has a free tier and paid plans above it. Nod has no free tier: 14 days free with no credit card, then annual plans that work out to $12–$24 a month. See pricing.
Which is more private, Nod or Otter?
Nod never writes an audio file, stores only transcript and summary encrypted in the EU (AWS eu-west-1) under per-user isolation, and trains no models on your data. Otter keeps recordings and transcripts in its cloud account by default, while Enterprise workspaces can permanently remove audio from historical and future conversations. Verify the plan, workspace setting, region, and current privacy terms before choosing.