Compare free and local meeting transcription tools
Choose a meeting tool around what you need to do after the call. Loofah is a free, open-source Mac app for recording, on-device transcription, and notes you keep as files. It suits people who want their own local archive and are comfortable choosing a model for optional AI summaries.
Four questions to ask
Section titled “Four questions to ask”- Where should transcription happen? Loofah transcribes on your Mac after you download a speech model. Recording on a device does not, by itself, mean a tool transcribes there.
- What does free include? Loofah has no paid tier or monthly transcription allowance. Your Mac supplies the processing and storage. Hosted AI summaries may incur charges from a provider you choose.
- What should you keep? Loofah stores notes and summaries as Markdown, transcripts as JSON, and retained recordings as audio files. Export a session if you want the transcript in a Markdown document.
- Who needs access? Loofah has local search, a read-only MCP server, and CLI write commands. Shared workspaces, organization administration, and hosted collaboration may call for another product.
Try your own workflow
Section titled “Try your own workflow”Start with a short recording that uses your usual microphone and languages. Check the transcript for names, dates, and decisions. If you use summaries, compare the result against the conversation and account for the time needed to configure a local model.
These comparisons are written by the Loofah maintainer using Loofah’s documented behavior and linked vendor documentation. They are not independent reviews or head-to-head accuracy benchmarks. Each page records its verification date; recheck vendor plans before deciding.