{"question": "best transcription services for small businesses", "category": "transcription-services", "category_name": "transcription services", "audience": "small-businesses", "audience_name": "small businesses", "engine": "Claude (Anthropic) with web search", "model": "claude-opus-5", "asked_at": "2026-10-23T23:45:50Z", "permalink": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/s/transcription-services-small-businesses-2026-10-23", "question_page": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/q/transcription-services/small-businesses", "brands_named": [{"position": 1, "brand": "Otter", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 2, "brand": "Otter.ai", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 3, "brand": "Zoom", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 4, "brand": "Sonix", "label": "recommended"}, {"position": 5, "brand": "Rev", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 6, "brand": "GoTranscript", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 7, "brand": "Descript", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 8, "brand": "Fireflies", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 9, "brand": "Fireflies.ai", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 10, "brand": "OpenAI Whisper", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 11, "brand": "OpenAI Whisper / AssemblyAI", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 12, "brand": "Whisper", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 13, "brand": "AssemblyAI", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 14, "brand": "Notta", "label": "compared"}], "sources_cited": [{"url": "https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/360047538094-Conversation-import-and-app-limits-on-the-Basic-free-plan", "domain": "help.otter.ai", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://sonix.ai/how-much-does-transcription-cost", "domain": "sonix.ai", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://www.rev.com/pricing", "domain": "rev.com", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://sonix.ai/resources/gotranscript-pricing/", "domain": "sonix.ai", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://www.descript.com/price", "domain": "descript.com", "source_type": "vendor"}, {"url": "https://www.outdoo.ai/blog/fireflies-ai-pricing", "domain": "outdoo.ai", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://costbench.com/best/ai-transcription-apis-for-small-business/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}], "answer_text": "## Short answer\n\nThe right pick depends almost entirely on whether you need **AI transcription** (cheap, ~90-96% accurate, you clean it up) or **human transcription** (99%+, costs 5-20x more). Most small businesses need the first for internal stuff and the second only for things that leave the building - contracts, legal, published content, client deliverables.\n\n## What I'd actually recommend\n\n**1. Otter.ai - best default for meeting-heavy businesses.** Free tier gives 300 min/month; Pro is ~$8.33/user/mo annual (1,200 min), Business ~$20/user/mo annual (6,000 min). It joins Zoom/Meet/Teams automatically, labels speakers, and writes summaries and action items. If your transcription need is \"I want a record of our calls,\" start and probably stop here. ([otter.ai](https://help.otter.ai/hc/en-us/articles/360047538094-Conversation-import-and-app-limits-on-the-Basic-free-plan))\n\n**2. Sonix - best for file-based transcription and the best value per hour.** $10/audio hour pay-as-you-go with no subscription, dropping to ~$5/hr on Core ($25/mo for 5 hrs), ~$2.50/hr on Advanced, ~$2/hr on Pro. Good editor, speaker labels, timestamps, 54+ language translation, SOC 2 Type 2. This is my pick if", "answer_truncated": true, "measurement": "One answer from one engine on one date. Not a ranking and not a claim about the world; brands the engine did not name are not recorded.", "limitation": "Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.", "alerts": {"name": "Answer Watch Pro", "price_usd": 79, "period": "month", "gets": "daily change alerts for up to 5 brands in what one AI answer engine says, history, CSV export. Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included", "url": "https://bikoosh.com/answers"}}