Fathom is hard to beat for free summaries. Second wins when your meetings need to become durable local context across calls, projects, and agent workflows.
$19 one-time payment
Fathom has a clean interface and good summaries. What it doesn't have is a way for AI agents to query your meeting history programmatically. Your notes are searchable inside Fathom, and that's where they stay.
Second ships with a CLI. One flag and Claude Code has access to everything.
Or run commands directly.
Fathom works by sending a bot called "Fathom Notetaker" into your meetings as a visible participant. For most meetings it's unobtrusive. For one-on-ones, sensitive calls, or anything where you'd rather not have an extra name in the participant list, it's noticeable.
Second captures system audio directly from your Mac. Nothing joins. Your meeting looks exactly the way it would without a notetaker.
Fathom's free plan is a great starting point. The paid plans — $19/month for individuals, $29/month for teams — add up over time. Second is $19 once, includes the full CLI, and never charges monthly.
Fathom stores your meetings in the cloud. That's convenient for access across devices — it also means your notes depend on Fathom's continued operation and your continued account access.
Second stores every note as a plain markdown file on your Mac. No account needed to read them. No service needed to access them. They're yours permanently.
| Feature | Second | Fathom |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 one-time | Free / $19/month ($228/year) |
| Visible bot joins calls | ||
| Audio stays on your Mac | ||
| Notes survive account issues | ✓ local files | |
| CLI for AI agents | ||
| Cross-meeting intelligence | ||
| Works offline | ||
| In-person meeting support |
Download Second — $19 one-time payment · No cloud meeting archive