220 posts and comments in 48 threads, read and counted
The short answer: Reddit is split on Fireflies.ai. Fans praise its integrations and team search. Complaints come from two groups: users who left over the visible bot, accuracy or AI-credit charges, and admins or guests who find it joining calls uninvited. We read every post and comment that names Fireflies in 116 Reddit threads from 30 Google searches about AI note takers and dictation apps. Of 85 people with a clear verdict, 34 were positive, 40 negative and 11 mixed.
Key takeaways
- Fans praise integrations, the API and team-wide search. 8 of the 34 positive voices sit in one thread built around an affiliate link.
- Fireflies' own defaults match the spread admins describe: auto-join is set to "All meetings", and recaps go to everyone on the invite.
- To stop it, switch off auto-join, type "/ff leave" in the call, or delete the account. IT teams need Microsoft, Google or Zoom controls.
- Fireflies' pages contradict each other on AI-credit auto-upgrades and refunds, and word AI training differently.
- Proposed class actions say Fireflies captured voiceprints without consent: two are pending and one was dropped. No court has ruled on the claims.
What Do Reddit Users Say About Fireflies.ai?
They're split. In the 48 Reddit threads that mention Fireflies, 85 people gave a clear verdict: 34 positive, 40 negative and 11 mixed. Praise is concentrated in 14 threads; complaints are spread over 22. Most of it is recent: 188 of the 220 posts and comments are from 2025 or 2026. Some searches were complaint-shaped, like "credits" and "notetaker bot", so this isn't a satisfaction rate.
| Topic | People | Positive | Negative | Mixed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transcript and summary quality | 29 | 10 | 8 | 5 |
| Spreading through calendars, admins fighting it | 25 | 4 | 13 | 1 |
| The visible bot in the call | 20 | 1 | 12 | 0 |
| Consent, privacy and the lawsuits | 18 | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| Integrations and workflows | 14 | 10 | 2 | 2 |
| Money: credits, trials, refunds | 14 | 2 | 6 | 3 |
Read the praise with care. 8 of the 34 positive people come from one thread: an r/LovedByCreators review from June 2025 whose links carry an affiliate code. In the first 80 minutes after the post, 15 accounts posted short praise, about five minutes apart, and later commenters call it paid. Another 8 come from a 2024 r/buhaydigital comparison thread, where a reply says the top pro-Fireflies comment reads like a marketing post. We left out comments with referral codes or copied text, and people who build rival apps. That leaves 34 positive, but the concentration is worth knowing.
What Do People Who Like Fireflies Say?
They like what happens after the call. Integrations drew the most one-sided praise: 10 of the 14 people who discussed them were positive. Fans describe piping meetings into Notion and CRMs, using the API, and searching every past call as a team. Two people who compared it with Otter found Fireflies more accurate or better at telling speakers apart.
- A RevOps manager choosing a tool for 40-plus people rated it above Fathom, for its AI assistant, a transcript API, templates and more integrations.
- A venture investor built a custom workflow that files each Fireflies meeting in a Notion database, in an r/venturecapital thread on meeting notes.
- After a three-month trial of both, one user found Fireflies' notes more accurate than Otter's, in an r/ChatGPT thread; another found its speaker identification better in group calls.
- One person likes the bot: a commenter in the affiliate thread, posting within a minute of two other praise comments, says they moved to Fireflies because it joins by itself.
Quality is still contested. 29 people discussed transcripts and summaries, and 8 were negative: errors in summaries, notes that needed cleanup, and trouble with anything but clear English. Fireflies' own pricing FAQ calls English its primary language and lists more than 100 others as "in beta".
Why Do People Object to the Fireflies Bot?
Because everyone in the call can see it, and clients don't like it. 20 people raised the visible bot, and 12 of them were negative. Fireflies says its bot appears as "Fireflies.ai Notetaker" and is always visible in the participant list. Renaming it costs $5 a month on Pro and Business; Enterprise gets it free.
The stories are about awkwardness more than accuracy. In an r/NoteTaking thread on bot-free note takers, a remote team says the bot felt awkward and sometimes caused technical problems, and another commenter says half their team stopped using Fireflies because clients weren't comfortable. A 2026 commenter says accuracy wasn't their problem; a bot joining every call was.
Fireflies has an answer now. Its desktop app for Mac and Windows has a no-bot mode called Take Notes. Fireflies' help center says it keeps no audio or video file and labels speakers "Speaker 1" and "Speaker 2". In that mode an audio message is on by default, plus a chat message on Mac and a camera notice on Windows. The camera notice only shows once you pick Fireflies' virtual camera in your meeting app. Fireflies' consent guide lists the watermark as on by default on Mac too, so its pages differ there.
Why Does Fireflies Keep Joining My Meetings, and How Do I Stop It?
Because of three defaults. Signing in with Microsoft or Google syncs your calendar, auto-join is set to "All meetings" by default, and recap emails go to "Everyone on the invite". And for accounts created since September 1, 2026, the free plan's unlimited transcription requires auto-join: switch it off and you're limited to 3 meeting transcriptions.
This is what Reddit's IT threads describe. In "Teams meeting AI note taker virus", an r/sysadmin post with a score of 250, a user clicked a note-taker link in a Teams meeting; afterwards Fireflies joined their meetings and messaged attendees, and blocking the app didn't stop it. One reply calls it a great tool that "spreads like malware". Others say it's a tenant-settings problem: lock down user consent and it stops. Here's how to stop it as a user, per Fireflies' help center:
- Switch off auto-join: toggle off Auto-record meetings, or choose "Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai". Recording rules you set can still make it join, so check them.
- In a live call: type /ff leave in the meeting chat. If it's removed within 3 minutes, no transcript or notes are created.
- Stop the recap emails: change the recipients from "Everyone on the invite" to "Only me".
- Remove it completely: Fireflies says you need to delete your account. It's deactivated at once and permanently deleted after 30 days.
- Still joining after that? Fireflies gives two causes: you cancelled only the paid plan, not the account, or another participant or invitee has an active Fireflies account. In that case the bot is theirs, not yours.
How Do IT Admins Remove Fireflies From Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and Zoom?
Fix two separate problems. Your own users granting Fireflies access is an identity problem: limit user consent and revoke existing grants. Outside guests bringing their own bot is a meeting problem: use the lobby, bot detection and sign-in rules. 25 people in our threads discussed this spread, many of them admins; a few said their first fixes, such as blocking the domain or deleting the app, didn't stop it.
| Platform | What to do | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Entra | Limit user consent, for example to verified publishers, and turn on the admin consent workflow so users can ask | Changes only affect future consent; existing grants stay |
| Microsoft Entra | Remove existing grants with PowerShell (Remove-MgOauth2PermissionGrant), or set the app's "Enabled for users to sign-in?" to No | The portal can't revoke user-consent grants |
| Microsoft Teams | Meeting policy "Manage external bots and their access to meetings": the default holds detected bots in the lobby for approval | Microsoft says some external bots may not be detected |
| Microsoft Teams | Let only organizers and co-organizers admit people from the lobby | Blocked domains can still join anonymously if anonymous access is allowed |
| Google Workspace | API controls → App access control: set the app to Blocked, or restrict Calendar access | Restricting revokes tokens of apps you haven't trusted |
| Google Meet | Since spring 2026 (the rollout began March 24), risky join requests land in a second queue that defaults to deny | There's no admin setting; hosts decide |
| Zoom | Keep the waiting room and "Only authenticated users can join meetings" on; if Fireflies appears in Zoom's list of apps that join as participants, block it | Fireflies says its Zoom integration bypasses both if a host connected it; end-to-end encryption blocks it |
Two more details matter. Microsoft is retiring the Teams CAPTCHA that some admins relied on, as bot detection rolls out. And admins on Reddit found that blocking the app didn't stop it; Fireflies says its bot joins your meeting just like a participant would. In Google Meet, Fireflies says its Notetaker may show up under "With potential risks", so hosts can simply decline it.
Is Fireflies Legal? Consent and the Lawsuits
Fireflies puts consent on the Fireflies user who brings it. Its terms say you must make sure each meeting participant consents, and when you host, they count everyone's audio as your content. The bot's advance email and chat notice are settings that user turns on. Separately, proposed class actions under Illinois' biometric privacy law claim it captured voiceprints without consent: two are pending, one of them stayed, and a third was voluntarily dismissed. No court has ruled on the claims.
- Fricker v. Fireflies.AI Corp. (N.D. Ill., No. 1:26-cv-02675), filed March 10, 2026 and consolidated with Martinez v. Fireflies.AI Corp. Fireflies moved to dismiss in July; briefing ended August 26, 2026. No ruling appears on CourtListener's copy of the docket as of its September 23 update.
- Parrinello v. Fireflies.AI Corp. (N.D. Cal., No. 3:26-cv-02479), filed March 23, 2026. Stayed until the Illinois motion is decided.
- Cruz v. Fireflies.AI Corp. (C.D. Ill., No. 3:25-cv-03399), filed December 18, 2025, voluntarily dismissed without prejudice on March 11, 2026.
These are allegations, not findings. A 2026 Reddit comment says Fireflies is being sued over AI training; the complaints are about voiceprints, and training appears only as a hedged allegation. The sharpest Reddit story is from an August 2026 r/legaltech post: a California organizer who had banned recording received a Fireflies recap after the meeting, with the bot listed under an attendee's name. This isn't legal advice. Fireflies' terms put consent on whoever brings the bot, and the lawsuits argue Fireflies is responsible too.
What Do Fireflies AI Credits Really Cost?
Transcription doesn't use credits, but AI extras do, and two of them are on by default: Daily Digest and Meeting Prep. Fireflies' help center says a paid account that runs out of plan credits is subscribed to 50 credits for $5 a month, and its billing terms say auto-upgrade is on by default for AI-credit trials. Its terms of service say auto-upgrade is off by default. AI credits are non-refundable.
| Plan | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | "Unlimited transcription" for shared bot meetings, the Chrome extension and the mobile app; 400 minutes of storage per team (its help pages say per seat); 20 AI credits; 2-hour cap per meeting |
| Pro | $18 monthly, or $10 billed yearly | 2-hour cap per meeting |
| Business | $29 monthly, or $19 billed yearly | 3-hour cap; the free trial starts here, with a card required |
| Enterprise | $39, annual only | 4-hour cap; free bot renaming |
Money came up with 14 people. In a 2026 r/AIAssisted thread, a solo business owner on the Business plan says they're billed AI credits for features they don't use, and a reply describes credits charged for a Daily Summary they never set up. To stop it, switch off Daily Digest and Meeting Prep in AI Skills settings, and turn off "Auto upgrade" under Settings → Billing → AI Credits → Edit. Refunds are murky too: one Fireflies page offers a full refund within 7 days if you've recorded few meetings, another says there are no refunds on subscriptions or AI credits. Cancel at least 24 hours before your period ends. Our guide to cancelling an AI note taker before it charges you covers Fireflies step by step.
Where Is Fireflies Data Stored, and Is It Used for Training?
In the United States by default, on AWS and Google Cloud. Enterprise private storage can keep data in the EU, but it's still processed in the US. On training, Fireflies' wording varies: "No AI Training. Ever." in the help center; a security page that says both "We don't train on it by default" and that data is never used for AI training; and terms that rule out generative-AI training but allow derived data.
Voice data is its own category. Fireflies' privacy policy says its providers may extract voice data that can count as biometric identifiers, that Fireflies never receives or processes it on its own servers, and that it's destroyed when its purpose is met or within three years of your last interaction, whichever comes first. Closing your account deletes your personal information within 30 days, the policy says. An EU admin in an r/msp thread worried their data sat in the US; by default, it does.
What Did People Switch To?
Mostly to tools without a bot. Among people who were negative or mixed and named a replacement, Granola led with 6, then Krisp and Fathom with 3 each, though 2 of the 3 Krisp votes came from three endorsements posted within 17 minutes. The most common reason given was the bot in the call: 11 of the 28 people who named an alternative.
Treat the long tail with care. Builders of rival apps posted in several threads, and one Fellow comparison post was copied word for word by another account 14 minutes later. Fathom's three votes all came from people who preferred its free plan or its simplicity.
Is There a Fireflies Alternative That Never Joins the Call?
On a Mac, yes. MetaWhisp is a free Mac app that records meetings from your microphone and your Mac's own audio, so no bot joins and nothing goes to your guests. By default it transcribes on your Mac with Whisper large-v3, and the free version needs no account. MetaWhisp didn't come up in any of these threads; it's our product, so weigh this section accordingly.
It answers the two loudest complaints, the bot and the spread: nothing joins your call and nothing reaches your guests. Meeting Recording is free, off until you turn it on in Settings, and by default you start each recording from the menu bar or the Meeting Coach window. By default no audio leaves the Mac; it does if you add your own Groq, OpenAI, Deepgram or Gemini key, or use Pro, at $7.77 a month or $30 a year, which moves transcription to Groq through MetaWhisp's server. MetaWhisp's privacy page says its servers don't store audio or transcripts.
It doesn't answer what Fireflies' fans love, and it has limits:
- No team features. It's a personal app: no shared workspace, team-wide search or admin console.
- It can't stop other people's bots. Guests can still bring their own Fireflies.
- No named speakers. Calls are split into "Me" and "Them"; in a room, every voice is "Me".
- Consent is all on you. MetaWhisp sends no notice to anyone, so tell people you're recording.
- Mac only, no file uploads. macOS 14 or later on Apple Silicon, and it can't transcribe an audio file.
If that fits, see how meeting notes work without a bot.
FAQ
Is Fireflies.ai free?
Yes, with conditions. The free plan offers unlimited transcription for shared bot meetings, the Chrome extension and the mobile app, 400 minutes of storage (per team on the pricing page, per seat in the help center) and 20 AI credits. For sign-ups since September 1, 2026, turning off auto-join limits you to 3 transcriptions. Pro costs $10 a seat billed yearly or $18 monthly.
How do I get the Fireflies bot out of my meeting?
Remove it from the participant list, or type /ff leave in the meeting chat. Fireflies says that if it's removed within 3 minutes, no transcript or notes are created. In Google Meet, hosts can decline it when it waits under "With potential risks".
Why did I get a Fireflies recap email when I don't use Fireflies?
Because someone in your meeting uses Fireflies, and its recap emails go to everyone on the invite by default. Fireflies says the email shows who invited it, though one 2026 Reddit organizer says theirs didn't. You can unsubscribe from the recap emails.
Does Fireflies tell people it's recording?
The bot shows in the participant list as "Fireflies.ai Notetaker", though the name can be changed for a fee. Its advance email, with a decline link, and its chat notice are settings the Fireflies user turns on. On Zoom, Fireflies says Zoom shows its own recording prompt or notice, though the organizer in our r/legaltech thread says Zoom showed none. The no-bot desktop mode's notices are on by default. The terms make the Fireflies user responsible for consent.
Does Fireflies use my meetings to train AI?
Fireflies' help center says "No AI Training. Ever.", its security page says both that it doesn't train on your data by default and that data is never used for AI training, and its terms rule out generative-AI training while allowing derived usage data. Its privacy policy says voice data is destroyed when its purpose is met or within three years of your last interaction, whichever comes first.
Can I get a refund from Fireflies?
It depends on which Fireflies page you read. Its refund policy offers a full refund within 7 days if you've recorded few meetings; another help page says no refunds on subscriptions or AI credits. AI credits are non-refundable. Cancel at least 24 hours before your period ends.
How we counted
On October 21, 2026, we ran 30 Google searches of the form "<topic> reddit" and saved the Reddit threads on the first page (one search returned only threads we already had): 116 threads after removing four off-topic ones. Reddit itself blocks automated reading, so we read public copies of the threads, with every comment, from the Arctic Shift archive. Fireflies came up in 48 of them, in 220 posts and comments from 177 accounts, from 2022 to 2026. We labeled each one as positive, negative, mixed or neutral and noted the reasons. We counted each person once per verdict and left out thread authors, self-promotion, text copied between accounts (when at least 90 percent of the shorter text's wording appears in the other), comments with referral codes, and people who build rival apps. Topic counts use each person's overall verdict, with mixed verdicts shown separately. We didn't test Fireflies for this piece. We read what people wrote and checked their claims against Fireflies' pages.
Related reading
- Fireflies Alternatives That Don't Join Your Calls
- How to Cancel an AI Note Taker Before It Charges You
- AI Note Taker Not Joining Meetings? Fixes That Work
- Bulk Export Meeting Transcripts Before You Cancel
- AI note taker without a bot
Sources
Fireflies' pages, admin docs, court dockets and the Reddit threads were read on October 21, 2026. Fireflies updates its help center often, and several of these pages changed within the past month, so check them before you rely on a detail. Reddit comment scores are from the archive copy and may differ from the live page.
- Fireflies: pricing, terms of service, privacy policy, security
- Fireflies help center: stop auto-join, remove it from a meeting, recap emails, how Fireflies joins, renaming the bot, recording without a bot, free plan and auto-join, joining after deletion, deleting an account, AI credits, billing terms, pausing auto-upgrade, refund policy, subscriptions and refunds, data storage, keeping information safe, Zoom integration, signing in with Google or Microsoft, recording consent, recaps for non-users, revoking access, free trial, auto-join settings
- Admin docs: Microsoft Learn on user consent, application permissions, disabling sign-in, external bots in Teams meetings, external meetings; Teams blog on bot protection; Google app access control and Meet's admit flow; Zoom authenticated users and apps that join as participants
- Court dockets: Fricker v. Fireflies.AI, Parrinello v. Fireflies.AI, Cruz v. Fireflies.AI (CourtListener)
- Reddit threads quoted or summarized: r/sysadmin, r/msp, r/NoteTaking, r/LovedByCreators, r/venturecapital, r/legaltech, r/AIAssisted, r/buhaydigital, r/ChatGPT, r/ArtificialInteligence
- MetaWhisp: pricing, privacy
