Otter.ai pricing: the annual and monthly numbers are twice apart
Last updated · Compiled by AI for My Craft
What the four plans cost
Basic is free forever: 300 transcription minutes a month, a 30-minute ceiling per conversation, three file imports for the life of the account, and only your 25 most recent conversations kept. Pro is $8.33 per user a month on annual billing or $16.99 monthly, and lifts that to 1,200 minutes per user, 90 minutes per meeting, ten file imports a month and unlimited storage. Business is $19.99 per user annually or $30 monthly and removes the meeting-minute limit entirely, allows four hours per meeting, and adds activity logs and usage analytics. Enterprise is quote-only and is where SSO, SCIM, the Otter API and webhooks live, with HIPAA compliance sold as an add-on.
The minute limit is the real constraint, not the price
Otter's minutes are a single shared pool covering both live recordings and imported files, and they do not roll over. A recruiter running six 45-minute interviews a week burns 1,080 minutes a month — inside Pro's 1,200 with almost nothing spare, before a single uploaded file. The per-conversation cap usually bites first though: on Pro anything past 90 minutes stops being transcribed regardless of how much of the monthly pool is untouched.
The seat caps nobody quotes
Pro tops out at five workspace members and Business at 25. Past those numbers you are in an Enterprise conversation whether or not you want the enterprise feature set. Single sign-on and SCIM provisioning carry a stated 100-user licence minimum, so a 30-person company with an SSO policy cannot simply pay more to get it — the requirement and the product do not meet.
The .edu discount is 20% and is easy to miss
Individual students and teachers using a .edu address get Otter Pro at $6.67 a month billed $79.99 annually, or $13.59 month to month. It is not offered at checkout. You sign up with the .edu address first, then open the plan page and follow the “Student & Teacher Discount” link sitting under the Pro plan description.
Which tier fits which situation
If you record under five hours a month and never need more than half an hour at a stretch, Basic genuinely works and there is no reason to pay. Pro is the plan for one person recording most days. Business is bought for the four-hour meeting length and the admin log as often as for the unlimited minutes — if 90 minutes is cutting your calls short mid-sentence, that is the upgrade trigger, not the monthly total.
Frequently asked questions
Is Otter.ai free?
Yes, permanently. The Basic plan gives 300 transcription minutes a month with a 30-minute ceiling per conversation and three file imports for the life of the account. No card is required.
Why do I see $16.99 when the site says $8.33?
$8.33 is the per-month cost of the annual plan, taken as one payment. $16.99 is the month-to-month price. Otter's pricing page shows the annual figure by default, so the number you remember and the number on your statement can differ twofold.
Is Otter priced per user?
Yes. Pro and Business are both per-user prices, so a three-person team on Pro annual pays $24.99 a month, not $8.33.
Do unused Otter minutes roll over?
No. The allowance resets each month and anything unused is lost. The same pool covers live recordings and imported audio or video files.
Can I get SSO without an enterprise contract?
No. Single sign-on and SCIM user provisioning carry a minimum 100-user licence, so they are not reachable from Pro or Business at any price.