I Tested Google Gemini Meeting Notes So You Don't Have To

If you've come to rely on Gemini for day-to-day admin tasks, you're probably wondering: can it handle my meeting notes too? Yes, but the devil's in the details.

Can Google Gemini Take Meeting Notes?

Gemini itself, the AI assistant you're familiar with, doesn't join your meetings like other AI notetakers. There's no "Gemini bot" that automatically hops into your Zoom calls or Teams meetings.

Instead, Google has built something called "Take notes with Gemini" into Google Meet. It's part of their premium Google Workspace offering, and it works differently from the regular Gemini you might use for other tasks.

When you use this feature, Gemini listens to your Google Meet conversations and creates structured notes in real-time. It shows you running summaries during the call and generates a polished document afterward with key points, decisions, and action items.

However, there's a catch - it only works with Google Meet. 

If your team uses Zoom, Teams, or literally any other meeting platform, you're out of luck with the built-in solution.

How to Use Google Gemini to Take Meeting Notes

The approach depends on whether you're sticking with Google's ecosystem or need to work with other meeting platforms.

1. If You’re on a Google Meet Call

If your organization uses Google Workspace and you're having Google Meet calls, the process is straightforward.

Source

During the meeting:

• Gemini listens to the entire conversation

• Creates real-time summaries as the meeting progresses

• Shows you "Summary so far" that updates throughout the call

• Organizes everything in a structured Google Doc

After the meeting:

• Automatically generates a complete meeting summary

• Creates suggested next steps and action items

• Saves everything to the meeting organizer's Google Drive

• Attaches the notes doc to your Calendar event

• Emails a summary to the host and co-hosts

But, there are some prerequisites:

• You need Google Workspace Business Standard or higher (starting at $12/user/month)

• Your meeting has to be in one of nine supported languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, or Spanish

• You need to have enough storage space in your Google Drive

• You can only use it on a desktop; no mobile support

2. The Manual Approach (For Everything Else)

For most people using Zoom, Teams, or other platforms, you'll need to take a more hands-on approach. You get the transcript from your meeting platform, then feed it to Gemini for summarization.

Zoom includes cloud recording with transcription on paid plans. Teams automatically transcribes when you record. Once you have that text, you can paste it into Gemini and ask for a summary.

The results can be pretty good—Gemini excels at taking messy transcripts and turning them into clean, organized notes. But it's definitely more work than the automated Google Meet solution and if you prefer real-time transcription, this approach is not for you. 

What Are the Pros and Cons of Using Gemini to Take Meeting Notes?

Let's be honest about what Google Gemini meeting notes actually delivers versus what it promises.

The Good Stuff

• It's genuinely smart. When Gemini works, it produces surprisingly good meeting summaries. It catches key decisions, identifies action items, and organizes everything in a clean format that's actually useful.

• Real-time summaries are helpful. The "Summary so far" feature during Google Meet calls is genuinely handy. You can glance over and see if you missed anything important without interrupting the flow.

• It integrates seamlessly (if you're in Google's world). Notes automatically attach to your calendar events and save to your Drive. No extra steps needed.

The Not-So-Good Stuff

• Those subscription costs add up fast. At $12-18 per user per month for Workspace plans that include this feature, you're looking at serious money for larger teams. A 20-person company pays $2,880-4,320 annually just to take meeting notes in Google Meet.

• Privacy concerns are real. Every word spoken gets uploaded to Google's servers. That might be fine for internal team meetings, but what about client consultations, legal discussions, or healthcare conversations? Many organizations simply can't risk it.

• Manual workflows are clunky. For non-Google Meet platforms, you're essentially doing the AI's job yourself: downloading transcripts, copying text, crafting prompts, and organizing results. It defeats the purpose of having an automated assistant.

So Should You Use It?

Here's what I've found after testing Google Gemini meeting notes extensively: it works well if you meet three specific criteria:

1. Your entire organization uses Google Meet exclusively

2. You're comfortable with Google processing sensitive conversations

3. You're already paying for expensive Workspace subscriptions

If any of those don't apply, and for most teams, at least one doesn't, you'll find yourself constantly working around limitations rather than benefiting from the automation.

What Is the Best Alternative to Gemini for Note-taking? 

To be honest, the list of alternatives is huge, because any decent AI meeting assistant can do a better job. And we have comprehensive articles on AI note-takers for Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams, that you can check out. 

But, if I have to single out one platform that works well universally, is free, and keeps your data where ot belongs (with you!), then Hyprnote would be my recommendation. 

Quick disclaimer: I’m the co-founder of Hyprnote, but you’ll soon find out that my vouching for the platform is not out of personal bias. 

Here's what it delivers:

• Local-first privacy. Hyprnote is a local AI notepad that uses on-device AI models to transcribe and summarize meetings without sending data to the cloud.

• Universal platform support. Works with any meeting software and in-person conversations without bots or restrictions.

• Real-time intelligence. Live transcription and summaries while meetings happen, not just afterward like Gemini.

• Flexible deployment. Run locally on your Mac or deploy on-premises for enterprise teams.

• Fastest time to value. Core features free forever. Pro upgrade ($8/month) only when you need advanced functionality.

• Minimizes compliance risks. Local processing reduces audit trails and third-party data exposure concerns.

And talking specifically about Hyprnote’s note-taking and summarizing features:

• Familiar interface that just works. Feels like Apple Notes with powerful AI running locally in the background.

• Custom templates for every situation. Tailored formats for therapy sessions, legal meetings, job interviews, or casual coffee chats.

• Search your meeting history naturally. Ask "What did Sarah say about the budget?" instead of scrolling through months of notes.

• AI chat for instant clarification. Get immediate answers about action items, deadlines, or who said what during meetings.

• Control how much AI changes your notes. Choose minimal improvements to your original thoughts or complete AI restructuring.

• Verify everything with source analysis. Hover over summaries to see the exact transcript quote behind every AI-generated point.

So as you can see, the difference is night and day. Instead of hoping Google's limited solution works with your workflow, you get a tool that adapts to however your team actually meets.

Want to try Hyprnote? Download it for free!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can Google Gemini transcribe audio files?

Yes, you can upload audio files directly to Gemini and ask it to transcribe the content. This works well for recorded meetings, interviews, or voice memos, but keep in mind you're uploading your audio to Google's servers.

2. Can Gemini generate meeting notes?

Absolutely. Gemini excels at generating structured meeting notes when you provide it with source material like transcripts. The key is crafting good prompts that specify what sections and format you want in your notes.

3. Is Gemini Note Taker free?

The basic Gemini chatbot has free and paid tiers, but the automatic meeting note-taking features require Google Workspace Business subscriptions starting at $12/user/month.

4. How do I transcribe Google Meet calls?

You have two main options: Google Meet's built-in transcription (which requires expensive Workspace subscriptions) or a third-party tool like Hyprnote. 

Unlike cloud-based tools like Otter or Fireflies that send your conversations to their servers, Hyprnote provides unlimited real-time transcription completely free while keeping everything local on your device for maximum privacy.

5. Does Google Meet transcription work in all languages?

No. Google Meet only supports transcription in 9 languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish. You can only use one language per meeting.

6. Is there a free AI note taker for Google Meet?

Yes - Hyprnote is a completely free AI note taker that works with Google Meet, Zoom, Teams, and any other meeting platform. 

Unlike Google's "Take notes with Gemini" feature, which requires expensive Workspace subscriptions, Hyprnote's core transcription and note-taking features are free forever. 

Plus, your conversations stay private since everything processes locally on your device instead of being sent to the cloud.