Exactum vs Fireflies.ai: Meeting Bot or File and YouTube Transcription?
By Exactum Team
Exactum vs Fireflies.ai: Two Different Jobs
Fireflies.ai is a meeting assistant. A bot joins your Zoom, Google Meet or Teams call, records it, and writes it up afterwards. It does that well, and its transcription and AI summaries are unlimited on every plan including the free one.
Exactum is not a meeting bot. It transcribes files you upload, audio you record from your microphone, and YouTube videos through a Chrome extension. If your audio arrives as a file or a URL rather than a live call, Fireflies is the wrong shape for the job — and vice versa.
This comparison is about which shape fits your work, not about one tool being a scam. If you're comparing all the top options, our best video transcription tools roundup covers the full landscape. Here's why Fireflies is one of the worst values in the transcription space and why users are switching to Exactum.
Exactum vs Fireflies.ai: The Full Comparison
On the Fireflies.ai figures below: they reflect Fireflies.ai's published plans as of August 2026 and have not been re-verified since. Vendors change pricing and limits often — check Fireflies.ai's pricing page for current terms.
One table. Pricing, real costs, and every feature side by side. See what Fireflies is really charging you.
| Exactum | Fireflies.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| PRICING | ||
| Starting price | $6.99/mo (Basic) | $10/seat/mo annual, $18 monthly (Pro) |
| Mid-tier | $11.99/mo (Starter) | $19/seat/mo annual, $29 monthly (Business) |
| Top tier | $79.99/mo (Studio) | $39/seat/mo annual (Enterprise) |
| Per-seat pricing | No — one price, full access | Yes (5 people on Business = $95/mo annual, $145 monthly) |
| Transcription volume | Upload minutes by plan, unlimited YouTube | Unlimited transcription on every plan |
| AI summaries | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| AI credits | Not used | 20 (Free/Pro), 30 (Business), 50 (Enterprise) — for AskFred queries and AI analytics |
| Free plan | 30 min/mo uploads + full AI analysis | Unlimited transcription, 400 min storage/team, file upload included |
| TRANSCRIPTION CAPACITY | ||
| File upload | 4h/mo (Basic) to 120h/mo (Studio) | Supported on every plan, including Free |
| YouTube transcription | Unlimited on all paid plans — extract, analyze, and export via Chrome extension | No YouTube support at all |
| Total transcription capacity | Upload hours + unlimited YouTube = far more total transcription | Meeting recordings only (zero YouTube, zero file uploads) |
| Max recording duration | Unlimited (Studio plan) | 2h (Pro), 3h (Business), 4h (Enterprise) |
| KEY FEATURES | ||
| Supported input formats | 100+ (MP3, MP4, WAV, M4A, FLAC, OGG, WebM, MOV, AVI, WMA, AAC...) | Meeting recordings only (bot joins calls) |
| Export formats | TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, VTT, Markdown + batch export | TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, CSV only |
| Content repurposing | 27 templates — blogs, Twitter/X threads, LinkedIn articles, newsletters, email sequences, press releases, YouTube descriptions, and more | No repurposing at all |
| AI summaries | 3 levels (short, medium, detailed 1,000-1,500 words) — unlimited | Meeting summary — unlimited on every plan |
| Translation | 79 languages, Starter plan and above | Business+ only ($29/user/mo minimum) |
| Live microphone recording | Yes (real-time transcription) | Meeting bot only (not standalone mic) |
| Speaker detection | Yes (automatic labels) | Yes |
| AI ANALYSIS (included on all paid plans) | ||
| Timestamped chapters | Yes (auto-generated) | No |
| Sentiment analysis | Yes (included) | Available via AI analytics, governed by AI credits |
| Fact-checking | Yes | No |
| Key points & action items | Yes (unlimited) | Included in the meeting write-up |
| Topic/theme detection | Yes | No |
| FAQ generation | Yes | No |
| Mind maps & checklists | Yes | No |
| Q&A on transcripts | Yes | No |
| Custom vocabulary | Yes | No |
| INTEGRATIONS | ||
| WordPress & Ghost | Yes (built-in publishing) | No |
| Notion sync | Yes | No |
| Zapier (5,000+ apps) | Yes | No |
| Google Drive & Dropbox | Yes | No |
| REST API | Yes (included) | Limited |
Fireflies' real cost is 3-5x higher than advertised once AI credits and per-seat fees stack up. Exactum delivers 30+ features Fireflies doesn't have — with zero hidden costs, 100+ supported formats, and full export to 9 formats.
Start transcribing free — plans from just $6.99/mo
Why Exactum Wins
Unlimited YouTube Transcription with Full Export
Exactum's Chrome extension embeds directly into YouTube for one-click transcript extraction and full AI analysis. Export any YouTube transcript as TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, VTT, or Markdown. Unlimited on all paid plans. Fireflies has zero YouTube support — no extension, no extraction, no export. For a step-by-step walkthrough, see our guide on how to get a transcript of any YouTube video.
100+ Supported Formats vs Meeting-Bot-Only
Upload any audio or video file in 100+ formats — MP3, MP4, WAV, M4A, FLAC, OGG, WebM, MOV, AVI, and more. Fireflies is designed around a meeting bot that joins your calls. If your audio comes from file uploads, voice recorders, podcasts, or any source outside of a meeting platform, Fireflies can't handle it properly.
9 Export Formats + Batch Export
Export any transcript as TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, VTT, or Markdown — individually or in batch. Fireflies supports TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, and CSV. No Markdown, no VTT, no batch export.
27 Content Repurposing Templates
Turn any transcript into a blog post, Twitter/X thread, LinkedIn article, newsletter, email sequence, YouTube description, press release, and more. Fireflies offers zero content repurposing — your transcript stays as raw text with no way to transform it into publishable content.
Depth of AI Analysis Per Transcript
Both tools give you unlimited summaries. The difference is how much else you get from a single transcript. Every Exactum transcription includes three-level summaries, timestamped chapters, sentiment analysis, fact-checking, key points, action items, topic clusters, FAQ generation, mind maps and Q&A. Fireflies concentrates on the meeting write-up — summary, action items, and AskFred queries against your call history, with AI credits governing how much AskFred and AI analytics you can run per month.
47+ Languages on Every Plan
Exactum auto-detects the language and supports translation into 79 languages on the Starter plan and above.
Deep Workflow Integrations
Publish to WordPress and Ghost. Sync with Notion. Connect to 5,000+ apps through Zapier. Back up to Google Drive or Dropbox. Full REST API. Fireflies offers none of these publishing or workflow integrations.
Where Fireflies Falls Apart
Per-Seat Pricing Adds Up for Teams
Fireflies charges per seat on every paid plan. A five-person team on Business pays $95/month billed annually, or $145 month-to-month. Ten people doubles it. Exactum is priced per account rather than per seat, so a Creator plan at $29.99/month covers the whole workflow. Which is cheaper depends entirely on headcount — for a solo user Fireflies Pro at $10/seat annually is less than Exactum Starter.
Storage, Not Transcription, Is What Fireflies Meters
Fireflies does not cap how much you transcribe. What it caps is retention: 400 minutes of storage per team on Free and 8,000 minutes per seat on Pro, with unlimited storage from Business up. If you need a long searchable archive on a cheap plan, that is the limit to watch — not a transcription quota.
Meeting-Bot-Only Design Limits Everything
Fireflies revolves around a bot that joins your Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams calls. If your audio comes from file uploads, microphone recordings, YouTube videos, podcasts, voice memos, or any source outside of a meeting platform — Fireflies' workflow doesn't support it well. Exactum accepts 100+ file formats, supports live microphone recording, and includes YouTube transcription. Our audio-to-text converter handles any source you throw at it.
Harsh Meeting Duration Caps
Pro plan: 2 hours max per meeting. Business: 3 hours. Enterprise: 4 hours. If you record a 3-hour workshop on the Pro plan, it gets cut off. Exactum's Studio plan supports unlimited duration — and even the Basic plan supports up to 2 hours per file.
No Chapter Generation
Fireflies produces a flat transcript with no structure. No timestamps, no topic breaks, no chapters. For long meetings, you're scrolling through walls of text. Exactum auto-generates timestamped chapters, making any transcript instantly navigable.
No Fact-Checking, No Mind Maps, No FAQ Generation
Fireflies doesn't verify claims, doesn't create visual mind maps, and doesn't generate FAQs from your content. These features transform transcripts from passive text into active intelligence — and Fireflies offers none of them.
No Content Repurposing or CMS Publishing
Fireflies can't turn your meeting transcript into a blog post, newsletter, or social thread. It can't publish to WordPress or Ghost. It can't sync with Notion or Zapier. Your transcripts sit inside Fireflies with no way to push them into your content workflow. Exactum offers 27 repurposing templates and direct publishing integrations.
Only 5 Export Formats, No Batch
TXT, PDF, DOCX, SRT, and CSV. No VTT for web video, no Markdown for documentation, and no batch export. If you need to export all your meeting transcripts for a project, you're doing them one by one.
Try Exactum free — no credit card required
The Bottom Line
Pick Fireflies if your audio is live meetings. A bot that joins the call, unlimited transcription and unlimited AI summaries on every plan, and AskFred for querying your call history is a strong package for that job, and at $10/seat billed annually it is inexpensive for one person.
Pick Exactum if your audio arrives as files, microphone recordings or YouTube videos. Fireflies has no YouTube support and is not built for bulk file work, which is the entire point of Exactum.
What Exactum adds once the transcript exists: 100+ supported input formats, unlimited YouTube transcription with full export to 9 formats, 27 content repurposing templates, AI analysis on every transcription (summaries, chapters, sentiment, fact-checking, mind maps, Q&A), 47+ language support, and deep workflow integrations — all for a flat monthly price starting at just $6.99. No credits, no per-seat fees, no hidden costs.
Looking at other meeting-focused tools? See how Fireflies compares alongside Otter.ai and Notta — both of which share many of the same limitations. For a complete overview of free options, check our best free transcription tools guide.
Stop overpaying for less. Try Exactum free and see the difference in your first transcription.
Exactum Plans and What Each One Includes
| Plan | Monthly | Yearly | Upload minutes/month | YouTube AI analysis/month | Max video length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | — | 30 min | 1 hrs | 30 min |
| Basic | $6.99/mo | $79.99/yr | 240 min | 300 hrs | 2 hr |
| Starter | $11.99/mo | $129.99/yr | 720 min | 1,000 hrs | 4 hr |
| Creator | $29.99/mo | $329.99/yr | 2,400 min | 3,000 hrs | 8 hr |
| Studio | $79.99/mo | $899.99/yr | 7,200 min | 8,000 hrs | Unlimited |
A few specifics worth knowing before you pick a tier:
- The free plan is genuinely usable. 30 minutes of uploads per month, 5 YouTube transcript extractions and 1 hour of AI analysis through the Chrome extension. No credit card.
- Every AI feature is included on every paid plan. Summaries, timestamped chapters, speaker detection, sentiment, key points, action items, translation and the repurposing templates are not metered separately and never cost extra credits.
- Annual billing adds 20% more minutes, not just a discount — for example Starter goes from 720 to 864 minutes a month.
- Extension transcript extraction is unlimited on every paid plan. The hours in the table above cover AI analysis of YouTube videos, which is the metered part.
- Need more minutes without changing plan? One-off packs: 60 minutes for $5, 180 minutes for $12, 500 minutes for $29. Purchased minutes do not expire and survive renewals.
Full details on the pricing page.
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