Granola vs Fathom: Native Notes or AI Summaries in 2026?

Granola launched in late 2023 with a unique pitch: don't replace note-taking, enhance it. You type notes during your meeting like normal, and Granola's AI cleans them up, adds structure, extracts action items, all in real-time. It's Mac-only and feels native - keyboard shortcuts, menu bar integration, the works.

I used it for 2 months and honestly, it changed how I take meeting notes. Your rough bullets become organized summaries without you doing extra work.

Fathom has been around since 2021 and takes the opposite approach: why take notes at all? It joins your Zoom, Meet, or Teams call as a bot, records everything, transcribes it, and generates AI summaries. You just focus on the conversation. The free tier is surprisingly generous - 800 minutes per month.

For people who have back-to-back meetings and can't keep up with notes, it's a lifesaver. The bot joining can feel awkward though.

Granola keeps you actively engaged. You're still typing notes during the meeting - bullets, key points, action items. But Granola enhances what you type with AI. Your rough 'discuss pricing model' becomes a structured summary with context.

It feels collaborative - you and the AI both contributing. Some people love this because typing helps them think. Others find it distracting when they'd rather just listen.

Fathom is completely passive. Hit record (or auto-record), and it captures everything. You don't type a single note during the meeting.

After the call, you get a transcript and AI summary. For people who process information by listening rather than writing, this is perfect. The downside? You're not actively engaging with the material, which some people find makes them retain less.

The AI in Granola works on what YOU write. Type messy bullets, it structures them. Mention action items casually, it extracts them.

The AI enhances your notes without replacing your thinking. It's more like having an editor than a replacement. The Mac integration means it works in any app - doesn't matter if you're on Zoom, Meet, Teams, or a phone call.

Fathom's AI generates everything from the transcript. It summarizes the whole conversation, pulls out action items, highlights questions asked. You get this automatically without any input.

It's impressive when it works, but sometimes misses context or nuance that you would have caught if you were taking notes. Trade-off between automation and accuracy.

Here's Granola's big limitation: Mac only. Not even iOS or iPad - just macOS desktop. If you're on Windows or Linux, you can't use it period. For Mac users though, the native integration is gorgeous.

Menu bar access, system-wide shortcuts, feels like it belongs on macOS. The team says Windows support is coming but no timeline yet. As of January 2026, it's still Mac-exclusive.

Fathom works anywhere you can run Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams. Mac, Windows, Linux - doesn't matter.

It's a web service that joins meetings, so platform doesn't constrain you. This universality is a huge advantage if your team uses different operating systems or you switch between devices.

Granola is $15/month with no free tier, just a trial. You're paying for the Mac-native experience and AI enhancement of your own notes.

If you're a heavy meeting person on Mac and value staying engaged through note-taking, it's worth it. If you're not on Mac or rarely take notes anyway, the value isn't there.

Fathom's free tier gives you 800 minutes per month of recording. If you have 10 one-hour meetings, that's plenty. Pro is $19/month for unlimited.

For most people, the free tier is enough. You're paying (if you upgrade) for unlimited recording and advanced features like custom vocabulary. The free tier being generous is honestly Fathom's secret weapon.