How to transcribe a Zoom meeting (free, and without a bot)

The Loro team Updated October 13, 2026 3 min read

In short

Zoom transcribes your meetings if you record them to the cloud, which needs a Pro, Business, Education or Enterprise account with cloud recording and audio transcription turned on; the text arrives later, as a VTT file next to the recording. To transcribe any Zoom meeting, even on a free account, an app that listens from your computer works: with Loro it's free, there's no bot, and when you hang up you get a note with the topics and the next steps.

Zoom's transcription

What it needs: a Pro, Business, Education or Enterprise account, with cloud recording and audio transcription turned on.
How it works: you record the meeting to the cloud; you get an email when the recording is ready, and the transcript may take a bit longer.
Where it's saved: as a separate VTT file, in your list of recorded meetings. It can also be shown as captions on the video.
Languages: several, including Spanish (English is the default).
Live: during the meeting you can turn on automated captions, without waiting for the transcript.

Zoom also has AI summaries (AI Companion) on its paid plans. What the free plan includes changes often: check Zoom's website.

How to transcribe Zoom with Loro

Download Loro for free for Windows or Mac.
Join your Zoom meeting. Loro recognizes the call and asks "Take notes on this call?" (or reminds you a minute before, if you connected Google Calendar).
Click Take notes. What's being said shows up live.
When you hang up, you get the note with the topics, who said what and each person's next steps.

You don't need to record the meeting or have a paid Zoom account: Loro listens from your computer and doesn't store the audio.

The options, compared

	Zoom transcription	Loro
What you need	A Pro, Business, Education or Enterprise account	Install Loro
You have to record	Yes, to the cloud	No
When you get it	Later, once it's processed	Live and when you hang up
Summary and next steps	With AI Companion, on paid plans	Yes, free
Works with Meet, Teams or WhatsApp	No	Yes
What's stored	The recording and the text	Only the text; the audio is never stored

Tell the others

Recording in Zoom notifies everyone. Loro doesn't add a bot or record, so nobody sees anything new: tell people yourself that you're taking notes.

Try Loro for free

Dictate in any app and get notes from your meetings, with no bot. For Windows and Mac, no card needed.

Download for free

Frequently asked questions

Does Zoom transcribe for free?

Cloud recording transcription needs a Pro, Business, Education or Enterprise account. With Loro you can transcribe any Zoom meeting for free, from your computer.

Does Zoom transcribe Spanish?

Yes, Spanish is one of its transcription languages. Loro's notes come out in the meeting's language, English or Spanish.

Where do I find the Zoom transcript?

In your list of cloud recordings, as a separate VTT file. You get an email when the recording is ready; the transcript may take a bit longer.

Do I have to record the meeting to transcribe it?

With Zoom, yes: it transcribes cloud recordings. With Loro, no: it listens to the call from your computer and doesn't store the audio.

Does Loro work with the Zoom app?

Yes. It recognizes the call in the Zoom app on Windows and Mac, and in the browser too.

Sources

Zoom, Using audio transcription for cloud recordings, checked on October 13, 2026.

Keep reading

Meeting notes Transcribe Google Meet Google Meet only transcribes on some Google Workspace plans. How its transcripts and Gemini notes work, which plans include them, and how to transcribe any Meet for free and without a bot with Loro.

Meeting notes Transcribe Teams meetings How to start live transcription in Teams, who can do it, where the transcript ends up and how to download it, and how to transcribe any Teams call without a bot with Loro.

Comparisons Granola alternatives Six Granola alternatives for AI meeting notes, compared: Loro, Wispr Flow, Jamie, Fathom, Fireflies and Otter. Which ones add a bot, which run on Windows and in Spanish, and what they cost.

Integrations Loro + Google Calendar What Loro does with your Google Calendar (a reminder a minute before each meeting, naming the note and showing who attended), what it reads and what it doesn't, and how to connect it step by step.

Zoom is a trademark of its owner. Loro is not affiliated with it. The details come from its official pages, checked on October 13, 2026.