Can Zoom transcribe a meeting without recording it?

Zoom has two kinds of text, and only one needs a recording. The audio transcript is made after a cloud recording ends. Automated captions show text during the meeting, and they do not need a recording. The captions are not a saved transcript unless someone saves it during the call.

The audio transcript needs a cloud recording

Zoom's audio transcription applies only to cloud recordings. It does not apply to computer recordings saved to your device ¹. If you record a meeting to your computer, you will not get a Zoom transcript, even when the transcript setting is on. Read how to turn on transcription in Zoom for the account setting that controls the cloud transcript.

Live captions give you text during the meeting

Zoom's article on using audio transcription says you can enable automated captions for live captioning during the meeting, instead of waiting for the transcript to be generated afterwards ². This is the route for a meeting you do not record. Zoom's automated captions article gives these steps:

1. Start or join the Zoom meeting.
2. In the meeting controls toolbar, click the Show captions icon. Captions generate automatically.
3. To change the speaking language, click the up arrow next to the captions icon and choose the language. English is the default.

Captions are created in real time, so they show what is said as it happens. Zoom says the host can also turn captions off for everyone from the host caption control settings, and that a participant may need the host's approval to turn captions on when the host has restricted who can enable them.

Save the transcript while the meeting is open

To keep a written copy, open the full transcript during the meeting. Zoom's captions article says to click the up arrow next to the captions icon, then under Captions and translation, click View full transcript ³. At the bottom of the Transcript panel, click Save transcript to download the full transcript as a TXT file ⁴.

The save happens from the open meeting. Zoom's captions article does not describe a way to get the live captions back after the meeting ends, so save the file before you leave the call. Check that the file has the whole conversation before you close the window.

Zoom recommends a manual captioner for compliance work

Automated captions depend on background noise, the volume and clarity of each speaker, and local accents and vocabulary. Zoom says that if speech-to-text is needed for compliance or accessibility, it recommends a manual captioner or a service that may be able to guarantee a specific accuracy ⁵. Treat live captions as a useful record of what was said, not as a verified one. Their error rate is the word error rate for your audio, and it is not fixed. The live captions entry explains the difference between captions on screen and a saved transcript.

When you need a spoken record after the meeting

If you need a full record after the call and your account cannot make a cloud recording, you can record to your computer. Zoom says computer recording is available to free and paid accounts ⁶. A computer recording gives you a file, not a Zoom transcript, so you transcribe that file yourself. A browser tool such as free audio to text can handle one saved file. Tell the other people in the meeting before you start recording, and test the set-up with a short recording first.

Recordings and transcripts can contain personal data, so check your organization's rules before you keep or share them.

Related questions and guides

For the Zoom download steps, read how to find and download a Zoom transcript. For Google Meet, read whether Google Meet transcribes for free. The guide to Zoom, Teams and Google Meet transcription sets out which platform keeps the transcript where, and the transcription overview covers the other options.