October 18, 2026 · 5 min read
How to transcribe a Zoom meeting (with or without recording it)
A Zoom meeting is forgotten the moment the window closes. Having the transcript and minutes with the decisions and tasks avoids the «I understood something different» conversation. Here are the ways to get them, including when someone else's company hosts the meeting.
Option 1: transcribe the Zoom recording
If the host can record, Zoom saves the meeting to your computer or the cloud, depending on your plan. To transcribe, the audio file (m4a) is the most convenient, and it's small. Upload it to SwiftBOL and within minutes you have the transcript, the summary, the decisions and the tasks.
Its limit: you depend on the organizer having recording turned on and on them giving you the file. In client meetings or meetings hosted by another company, you usually can't record.
Option 2: an assistant that joins the meeting
The assistant joins the call as another participant, records and, when it ends, hands you the minutes. In SwiftBOL you paste the Zoom meeting link into «Meeting assistant» and press «Send the bot». If the meeting has a waiting room, someone has to admit it, and when it joins it says in writing in the chat that it is recording.
It works even if your Zoom plan doesn't allow recording and it needs no access to your Zoom account. If the host restricts who can join, they will need to allow it. If your meetings are in Google Calendar, the assistant can join each one on its own.
Option 3: record from your browser
If you'd rather nobody else joins, you can record from your computer. In SwiftBOL, with Chrome or Edge, press «Record a video call from another tab». If you use Zoom in the browser, choose its tab and tick «Also share tab audio». With the desktop app, choose to share the entire screen with system audio.
When you stop recording you get the same result as with the assistant.
What you get at the end
A summary, the decisions, the action items with owners and the full transcript, where you can search any phrase or ask «what deadline did we give the client?». Also a follow-up email ready to send. The Free plan includes 1 hour of assistant and 2 of audio a month, no card, to try it on a real meeting.
Tell people before you record
However you record, tell participants at the start and respect anyone who objects. In the European Union, GDPR requires telling people who processes their data and why.
Zoom is a trademark of its owner. SwiftBOL isn't affiliated with or endorsed by Zoom; we mention it only to explain how to use its meetings.
Try it with your own audio
SwiftBOL turns your meetings and calls into minutes with decisions and action items in minutes. The Free plan includes 120 minutes of audio a month, no credit card required.