Meetily vs OpenWhispr
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
Free, open-source meeting notes app for macOS and Windows that transcribes and summarizes locally.
Open source · MIT
Desktop app that turns your speech into text at the cursor, with local or cloud models.
The short answer
Choose Meetily if you need…
- People who want meeting notes without sending recordings to a cloud service
- Professionals handling sensitive conversations who need control over where data is stored
- Users on macOS or Windows who want a free, MIT-licensed alternative to paid note takers
- Teams with their own OpenAI-compatible AI infrastructure who want to point summaries at it
Choose OpenWhispr if you need…
- People who want dictation in any app without sending audio to a cloud service
- Users who want to bring their own OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, or Groq API keys
- Mac, Windows, or Linux users looking for a free alternative to paid dictation tools
- Developers who want to read or modify a desktop speech-to-text app
Side-by-side
| Meetily | OpenWhispr | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | App | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 32.4k | 10.5k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Download the app | Download the app |
| Main language | Rust | JavaScript |
| Last code update | 4 days ago | 4 days ago |
What each one is
Meetily
Meetily is a desktop app that records your meetings, turns the audio into a live transcript, and can generate summaries. The README says transcription runs on your own device using Whisper or Parakeet models, so audio and transcripts are meant to stay local. Summaries can use a local model through Ollama or a cloud provider you choose, such as Claude, Groq, OpenRouter, or an OpenAI-compatible endpoint.
OpenWhispr
OpenWhispr is a desktop app for dictation. You press a hotkey, speak, and your words are typed or pasted where your cursor is. You can run speech recognition fully on your own device with local models such as Whisper or NVIDIA Parakeet, or use cloud providers if you bring your own API keys. The README also describes meeting transcription and notes features.
Best for
Meetily
- People who want meeting notes without sending recordings to a cloud service
- Professionals handling sensitive conversations who need control over where data is stored
- Users on macOS or Windows who want a free, MIT-licensed alternative to paid note takers
- Teams with their own OpenAI-compatible AI infrastructure who want to point summaries at it
OpenWhispr
- People who want dictation in any app without sending audio to a cloud service
- Users who want to bring their own OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, or Groq API keys
- Mac, Windows, or Linux users looking for a free alternative to paid dictation tools
- Developers who want to read or modify a desktop speech-to-text app
Strengths
Meetily
- Transcription is designed to run on the local device, which the README describes as a core privacy feature
- Free and open source under the MIT license
- Supports multiple AI providers, including fully local ones through Ollama
OpenWhispr
- Local transcription keeps audio on your device, according to the README
- Open source under the MIT license, free for personal and commercial use
- Available for macOS, Windows, and Linux with prebuilt installers
Not ideal for
Meetily
- Linux users who want a packaged installer, since the README says Linux requires building from source
- People who need cloud-only convenience and do not want to manage local models or providers
- Users who need speaker diarization now, since the README says it is planned for the paid PRO edition and the free build's status is not clearly stated
OpenWhispr
- Users who need a mobile-only tool: the README describes a separate Expo mobile app with its own setup
- Intel Mac users who need speaker identification: the README says live speaker identification and voice fingerprinting are unavailable on Intel Macs
- People who want a simple no-setup install with no API keys: cloud features require your own keys, and local models depend on your hardware
Trade-offs
Meetily
- Linux requires building from source, which takes more technical effort
- The README mentions GPU acceleration differs by platform and build, so performance depends on your hardware; Windows needs an AVX2-capable x64 CPU
- Some features, such as speaker diarization and advanced exports, are mentioned as PRO or planned items, so the free edition may not include everything the marketing copy describes
OpenWhispr
- Cloud features and some AI features require your own API keys, per the BYOK model
- Some features, such as speaker identification, have platform limits like Intel Macs
- Setup for development needs Node.js 24+ and the README points to external docs for platform details
Getting started
Meetily
Clone the repository (Linux build from source)
git clone https://github.com/Zackriya-Solutions/meeting-minutesInstall frontend dependencies (Linux build)
pnpm install --frozen-lockfileOpenWhispr
Install via Homebrew (macOS or x86_64 Linux, community-maintained)
brew install --cask openwhisprFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Meetily and OpenWhispr?
Meetily: Free, open-source meeting notes app for macOS and Windows that transcribes and summarizes locally. OpenWhispr: Desktop app that turns your speech into text at the cursor, with local or cloud models. Meetily suits people who want meeting notes without sending recordings to a cloud service, while OpenWhispr suits people who want dictation in any app without sending audio to a cloud service.
Are Meetily and OpenWhispr free?
Meetily: Free and open source. OpenWhispr: Free and open source.
Is Meetily or OpenWhispr more popular?
Meetily has more GitHub stars (32.4k) than OpenWhispr (10.5k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Meetily and OpenWhispr?
Other options people compare them with include whisper.cpp, omi, Voicebox, Handy, LibreChat.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.