How do you find and download a Zoom transcript?

A Zoom transcript is a separate file that sits beside the cloud recording it was made from. Zoom saves it after the meeting, and you find it in the web portal, not in the meeting itself. Zoom's article says that once the transcript is processed, it appears as a separate VTT file in the list of recorded meetings ¹.

Find the transcript in the web portal

These steps follow Zoom's article on using audio transcription for cloud recordings:

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal.
2. In the navigation menu, click Recordings & Transcripts.
3. Click the Cloud recordings tab.
4. Click the name of the meeting you want. You will see a list of the recording files.
5. Find the row for the Audio transcript file.

If you cannot remember which meeting it was, search the words in the transcripts. In the Cloud recordings tab, type a word or phrase in the Search text in audio transcript field, then click Advanced search. Zoom highlights the recordings that match. Admins can also search every audio transcript in the account, from Account Management, then Recording & Transcript Management.

Download it and open it in a text editor

Zoom saves audio transcripts in VTT format ². Zoom's article says that if you download the VTT file, you can open it with a text editor or a word processing application ³. You can also read and edit the transcript in the web portal, by clicking the thumbnail of the recording. The browser then opens a new tab that plays the recording and shows the transcript beside it.

Zoom's article does not name the exact download control, and the labels can change with the web portal version, so look for the download option on the row of the audio transcript file. Once the file is on your computer, keep a copy with the meeting notes, so you do not depend on finding it in Zoom again.

Zoom labels some speakers as Unknown Speaker. You can click the pencil icon to rename them, which is the speaker labelling covered by speaker diarization. Edit the names before you send the file to anyone else.

When the transcript is missing

Most missing transcripts have one of three causes.

• It is still processing. Zoom says the audio transcript may take additional time to process after the cloud recording becomes available ⁴. Zoom sends an email when the transcript is ready, and the email links to your recordings or the audio transcript ⁵.
• The meeting was not recorded to the cloud. Zoom makes audio transcripts only from cloud recordings. A recording saved to your computer has no Zoom transcript ⁶.
• The setting was off when the meeting was recorded. The transcript is made when the meeting is recorded, so check the setting in how to turn on transcription in Zoom before the next meeting.

If none of these applies, contact Zoom Support or your admin. Do not assume the transcript is lost until the processing time has passed.

Check the text before you share it

A transcript is a first draft. Read it against the recording before you send it on, and check names, numbers and dates first. The accuracy depends on the audio, the speakers and the language. For a practical way to check, read our guide to transcribing an audio file, and see the transcription overview for the wider options.

For the set-up steps, read the guide to Zoom, Teams and Google Meet transcription. If you need a transcript from a meeting that was not recorded to the cloud, see whether Zoom can transcribe without recording.