How to transcribe a Zoom meeting on a Mac without a bot

Last updated: November 7, 2026

You can transcribe a Zoom meeting on your Mac without a bot joining, without a paid Zoom plan and without being the host. Zoom's own transcript comes from a cloud recording, which needs a paid account and the host's go-ahead. Brieva transcribes the call on your Mac from the audio Zoom plays, makes no recording, and uploads nothing.

Transcribe a Zoom call with Brieva

1. Install Brieva and let the first run finish. On first launch it downloads its AI models once (5 to 25 GB, depending on your Mac’s memory). macOS then asks for two permissions: Screen Recording, which is how Brieva hears the audio of other apps (it does not record your screen), and Microphone, for your own voice.
2. Find the meeting in Brieva. Meetings from your calendar appear in Brieva’s week view once you paste in your calendar’s ICS link. For a call that is not on your calendar, click the + (New meeting) button and give it a title.
3. Join the call in Zoom as you normally would. Nothing changes on the Zoom side: no bot, no add-in, no setting to turn on.
4. Click Start Transcribing on the meeting. Brieva listens to the call audio your Mac plays, together with your microphone, and the transcript appears as people speak. When it asks “Who is this?”, name the voice; the name carries through to the summary.
5. Click Stop Transcribing when the call ends. Brieva writes the summary, with decisions, action items and follow-ups, on your Mac. No audio file is saved; the transcript is the record.

What Zoom offers built in

Zoom’s audio transcript is part of cloud recording:

• It needs a Pro, Business, Education or Enterprise account, with cloud recording and audio transcription turned on in the Zoom web portal.
• Only hosts and co-hosts can start a cloud recording, so a participant has to ask the host.
• The recording is stored on Zoom’s servers, and the transcript is processed afterwards and saved as a separate file next to it.
• Free accounts can record to their own computer, but audio transcription applies only to cloud recordings, not to recordings saved on your device.

If you host on a paid plan and are happy for the recording to be kept in Zoom’s cloud, the built-in transcript works. Brieva fits when you are a participant, on a free account, or want a transcript without a recording anywhere.

Sources: Zoom Support: audio transcription for cloud recordings, Enabling audio transcription, Starting a cloud recording, checked 7 November 2026. Plans and settings change; if something here is out of date, email support@brieva.app.

Tips for Zoom

• App or browser, both work. Brieva listens to the audio your Mac plays, so it makes no difference whether you join from the Zoom app or from a browser.
• Breakout rooms carry on. Brieva hears whichever room you are in, so the transcript follows you from the main session into a breakout room and back.
• Keep other sound off. Brieva hears everything your Mac plays, so pause music and videos and silence notification sounds while the call runs.
• Headphones are fine. Brieva takes the call audio inside your Mac, not from the speakers, so AirPods or a headset make no difference to the transcript.

Telling the other people

Brieva adds nothing to the call, so Zoom shows no notice that a transcript is being made. Whether you should tell the other people that you take notes is a matter of local law and courtesy, so check what applies to you.

The details

Brieva needs an Apple silicon Mac (M1 or later) on macOS 14.4 or newer. It costs US$25 once, with a 14-day free trial that needs no card, and transcribes Mandarin and 25 European languages. Everything runs on your Mac and works offline: the How Local AI works page explains how, and the FAQ answers the rest. Download Brieva and try it on your next Zoom call.

The same steps for other meeting apps: Microsoft Teams and Google Meet.