The best AI note takers for students

Notedly is our top pick for students because one account covers live lectures, YouTube lectures and readings, with notes in standard, Cornell or outline format. Otter suits classes held on Zoom, Meet or Teams, and Knowt and StudyFetch suit flashcard-heavy studying.

Best of 3 min read
On this page
  1. The list
  2. Why Notedly is our top pick
  3. How to take live lecture notes with Notedly
  4. How we compiled this list
  5. FAQ
  6. Sources

The list

  1. 1. Notedly Our product

    Best for Lecture notes and readings in one place: live lectures, YouTube lectures, chapters and articles, in standard, Cornell or outline format

    Free: 10,000 words/month for readings and YouTube. Live lecture notes on Premium Plus, $24.99/month or $129.99/year

  2. 2. Otter.ai

    Best for Transcripts and notes for classes held on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams

    Free: 300 transcription minutes/month, up to 30 minutes per conversation. Pro $16.99/month[1]

  3. 3. Turbo AI

    Best for Notes plus flashcards and quizzes from recordings, PDFs and videos

    Free tier. $14.99–$19.99/month or up to $119.99/year on the US App Store, depending on offer[2][3]

  4. 4. StudyFetch

    Best for An AI tutor and flashcards built from your recordings and uploads

    Free to start. Premium $19.99/month or $96/year (US App Store)[4][5]

  5. 5. Mindgrasp

    Best for Flashcards, quizzes and an AI tutor from recordings and uploads

    Recording starts on the Scholar plan (5 hours a month in the browser)[6][7]

  6. 6. Knowt

    Best for Free flashcards and study modes

    Basic free. Lecture recording summarizer on Ultra, $24.99/month or $149.99/year[8][9]

  7. 7. Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)

    Best for Studying recordings you already have alongside your readings, in one notebook

    Free. Audio files are transcribed when you add them; up to 50 sources per notebook[10][11]

Why Notedly is our top pick

  • Live lectures, on Premium Plus. Start recording in your browser and your notes build as the lecture goes.
  • Recorded lectures, on every plan. Paste a YouTube link. Long videos with captions work, and short videos without captions are transcribed by AI.
  • Your readings too. The same account turns textbook chapters and articles into notes, so a whole course lives in one place.
  • Notes in your class's format. Standard, Cornell or outline.

How to take live lecture notes with Notedly

  1. Upgrade to Premium Plus and open live lecture notes in your browser.
  2. Pick a note style and start recording when the lecture starts.
  3. Watch the notes build. They save to your account as they go, and when class ends you click Save Summary to finish them.

How we compiled this list

We checked each tool's own site, help center or App Store listing (sources below) for what a student needs from a note taker: notes from lectures and readings, a real way to try it free, which plan includes lecture recording, and the cost of a semester. Notedly is our product.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best AI note taker for students?

We recommend Notedly, because one account covers your whole course: live lecture notes on Premium Plus, YouTube lectures, and textbook chapters and articles on every plan, all in standard, Cornell or outline format.

Can Notedly take notes during a live lecture?

Yes. Live lecture notes are part of Premium Plus ($24.99 a month or $129.99 a year). Open Notedly in your browser, pick a note style and start recording. A summary builds as the lecture goes and is saved to your account.

Is there a free AI note taker for lectures?

Notedly's free plan covers recorded lectures on YouTube and your readings, with 10,000 words a month. Live recording is a paid feature on several tools in this list, including Notedly, Mindgrasp and Knowt. Otter's free plan caps each conversation at 30 minutes.

Do I need permission to record a lecture?

Often, yes. Many schools and instructors have rules about recording classes. Check your course policy and ask your instructor before you record.

Sources

  1. 1 Otter.ai pricing
  2. 2 Turbo AI homepage FAQ
  3. 3 Turbo AI on the US App Store
  4. 4 StudyFetch homepage
  5. 5 StudyFetch on the US App Store
  6. 6 Mindgrasp homepage
  7. 7 Mindgrasp Help, How to use the live recording feature
  8. 8 Knowt pricing
  9. 9 Knowt homepage FAQ
  10. 10 Gemini Notebook plans
  11. 11 Gemini Notebook Help, Add or discover new sources

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