Granola AI has earned a loyal following for its clever, “bot-free” approach. Its native Mac, Windows, and iOS apps are polished, privacy-conscious (no bot joins your call), and excellent at turning messy audio into clean, AI-enhanced text notes. But this design choice comes with a massive, fundamental trade-off. Granola transcribes, but it does not record audio or video. It is blind to your screen. This means you can never verify the transcript against the original audio, judge the tone of a conversation, or see the presentation slides, product demo, or design file being discussed. For any work that isn’t just audio, Granola captures only half the story. This “visual context” gap is why professionals are seeking a granola ai alternative for ios. This guide ranks the best alternatives, including ScreenApp’s powerful iOS app, demonstrating why an all-in-one platform that records and captures visual context is the superior choice.
Try ScreenApp iOS App Free
Download ScreenApp Meeting Minutes AI for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Unlike Granola AI, ScreenApp records audio and video, captures screen context, and includes voice-to-text, live transcription, and AI meeting summaries.
Download on App StoreGranola AI vs ScreenApp Comparison 2026
| Criteria |
Granola AI (Polished Text Notes)
Trusted by 500K+ users
|
ScreenApp (All-in-One Content Platform)
Loved by 1M+ professionals
|
|---|---|---|
| Core Function | Bot-free text note generation | Screen recording & content creation |
| Overall Rating | 4.2/5 ★★★★☆ | 4.8/5 ★★★★★ |
| Platform Availability | Web, Mac, Windows, iOS | Web, iOS, iPad, Mac, Android |
| Native iOS App | ✅ (Voice Recording Only) | ✅ (Voice + Screen Recording) |
| Records Audio/Video | ❌ No (Never saves recordings) | ✅ Yes (Full audio & video) |
| Visual Context | None (Audio & Screen NOT Recorded) | Full (Video, Screen, Audio Recorded) |
| Transcription Accuracy | Good (90-95%) | Excellent (99%+) |
| AI Features | AI-enhanced text summaries | AI summaries, notes, Video-to-Document |
| Content Creation | Text summaries only | Video demos, training guides, SOPs |
| Collaboration | Basic note sharing | Full team collaboration & sharing |
| Pricing Model | Per-user subscription | Team-based (no per-user charges) |
| Best For | Polished text-only summaries | All-team content creation + collaboration |
What is Granola AI? The AI Notepad
Granola is an AI notepad designed for professionals in back-to-back meetings. It runs locally on your Mac, Windows, or iOS device and transcribes your system audio (or phone audio) without an “AI bot” joining the call. Its strength is taking your messy, live notes and using AI to flesh them out with details from the transcript, creating a polished, readable document.
However, the limitations are its core design. Granola never saves the audio or video you only get the text transcript. This means you can’t verify accuracy, judge tone, or re-watch a critical moment. Because it doesn’t record your screen, it’s completely “blind” and useless for product demos, design reviews, or any meeting where a screen is shared. The iOS app is great for in-person audio notes, but it cannot record your iPhone or iPad screen, missing the most common mobile work.
What is ScreenApp? The All-in-One Content Platform
ScreenApp is a modern platform available on web, iOS, iPad, and Mac that combines high-quality screen recording, real-time AI transcription, and instant visual content analysis. The ScreenApp iOS app (rated 3.8/5 on App Store) is a complete mobile workflow tool.
It not only includes a high-fidelity voice recorder and live transcription (like Granola) but also adds mobile screen recording and, crucially, saves all recordings. This allows you to capture a product demo on your iPhone, a workflow on your iPad, or an app bug, have the AI transcribe what you said while analyzing what you did on screen, and verify everything later.
Where Granola gives you an unverifiable text file, ScreenApp gives you a dynamic, searchable, and visual knowledge asset you can revisit anytime, available across all your devices.
#1: RECORDINGS: VERIFY OR LOSE
Granola AI
Never records audio or video. You get a text transcript but can't verify it against the original. Can't judge tone, emotion, or context. If the AI misunderstands something, you'll never know. One-time output with zero proof.
ScreenApp
Records everything. Full audio and video saved automatically. Verify transcripts against the original recording. Judge tone and emotion. Re-watch critical moments. Share specific clips. Permanent, searchable knowledge asset.
Winner: ScreenApp
For professional work that requires accountability and verification, ScreenApp's recording capability is essential. Without recordings, you're trusting an AI transcript you can never verify. That's unacceptable for legal, medical, sales, or any high-stakes communication.
#2: VISUAL CONTEXT: SEE WHAT YOU MEAN
Granola AI
Is blind by design. Audio-only tool. If you say "this chart looks great," Granola has no idea what chart you're talking about. Misses 70% of the context in visual meetings. Cannot record screen shares, presentations, or demos.
ScreenApp
Is multi-modal. Captures and analyzes everything your voice, your video, and your screen. AI "watches" your screen recording, understands visual elements, and integrates them into notes. Essential for demos, training, and design reviews.
Winner: ScreenApp
It's the only solution that captures the complete picture. Modern work is visual product demos, presentations, screen shares, and design reviews all require seeing what's on screen, not just hearing what's said.
#3: ASSET CREATION VS TEXT NOTES
Granola AI
Workflow ends with a polished text note. It's a "throwaway" asset that's hard to reuse. No recordings to share. No visual content. No training materials. One-time summary with limited lasting value.
ScreenApp
Workflow begins with recording. Instantly turn 5-minute mobile screen recording into step-by-step SOPs, training guides, or knowledge base articles with screenshots. Reusable asset with permanent value.
Winner: ScreenApp
Provides value across the entire content lifecycle. One recording becomes training videos, documentation, demos, and more. The iOS app makes content creation mobile-first.
Summary and Top Recommendations
Our Top 3 Picks
ScreenApp - All-in-One Content Platform
Best overall alternative with recordings, visual context, and team value
Otter.ai - Real-Time Transcription
Best direct alternative for in-person audio recording & transcription
Fathom - Free Alternative
Best free alternative for transcribing online meetings
Choose Based on Your Needs
iOS Users (Voice + Screen)
→ ScreenApp iOS (complete mobile solution)
Visual Content Creation
→ ScreenApp (demos, SOPs, training)
Free Alternative
→ Fathom (100% free for online meetings)
In-Person Audio Recording
→ Otter.ai (iOS & Android apps)
Sales Team Analysis
→ Fireflies.ai (conversation intelligence)
Other Audio-Only Tools
→ Minutes AI or Flownote
Top 10 Granola AI Alternatives for iOS & Web (2026)
ScreenApp - All-in-One Content Platform
Best overall alternative with recordings, visual context, and team value
Why It Wins: ScreenApp is the best granola ai alternative because it solves Granola's biggest flaw: the lack of recordings and visual context. Its native iOS app is a powerhouse, offering voice recording, live transcription, and mobile screen recording. Unlike Granola which never saves recordings, ScreenApp keeps everything, letting you verify transcripts and create complete training guides and SOPs from your iPhone.
Key Features:
Pros
- • Records everything (Granola's biggest missing feature)
- • Visual context capture that Granola completely lacks
- • Team pricing saves 70-95% vs per-user models
- • Content creation platform, not just notes
- • Native iOS app with screen recording
Cons
- • More features than needed for simple text notes
- • Requires internet for AI processing
Best For
Teams that need more than unverifiable text notes. Perfect for organizations that need recordings, visual context, content creation, or team-based pricing. Ideal replacement for Granola's limited no-recording platform.
Otter.ai - Best for In-Person Audio
High-accuracy audio transcription with speaker ID
Why It Stands Out: If your only use case is Granola's (capturing in-person audio on your phone), Otter.ai is a superior choice. Its iOS app is fantastic at real-time transcription and, crucially, identifies different speakers far more reliably than Granola. It also records the audio, so you can listen back to verify the transcript unlike Granola.
Key Features:
Pros
- • Records audio (Granola doesn't)
- • Excellent mobile apps
- • Better speaker identification than Granola
- • Strong collaboration features
Cons
- • Still audio-only, no visual context like ScreenApp
- • Per-user pricing can be expensive
- • Limited free plan (300 minutes/month)
Best For
In-person audio recording with speaker identification. Better than Granola because it saves recordings. Lacks ScreenApp's visual context capabilities. Good for simple audio-focused documentation.
Fireflies.ai
Best for sales teams with conversation intelligence
Powerful meeting assistant with good mobile apps. Strength is "Conversation Intelligence" analyzes sales calls for sentiment, talk time, and key topics, then syncs to CRM. Records audio (unlike Granola) but bot-based approach is less private.
Fathom
Best 100% free alternative for online meetings
Killer feature is "100% Free" plan with unlimited recording and transcription for online meetings. Supports 28 languages. Records meetings (unlike Granola). Not a standalone iOS app for in-person recording; designed to join online calls.
MeetGeek
Best for meeting analytics and productivity metrics
Provides detailed AI summaries and "meeting productivity" metrics. Helps understand if meetings are efficient and tracks key topics. Strong analytics tool for online calls. Records meetings but designed for online, not in-person iOS recording.
Notta
Best for multilingual audio transcription
Powerful audio-only competitor. Key advantages are 98.86% accuracy and support for 58 languages. Mobile apps are highly-rated. Records audio (which Granola doesn't). Great choice if you only need audio recording and transcription.
Sembly AI
Good for team management with multi-language support
Offers good mobile apps and strong multi-language support. Focuses heavily on task and meeting management with AI-generated action items. Records meetings (unlike Granola). Solid audio-only alternative for management-focused teams.
tldv
Good for Google Meet and Zoom with AI highlights
Records and transcribes Google Meet and Zoom meetings with AI-powered highlights. Unlike Granola which never saves recordings, tldv keeps video files. Good integration with meeting platforms but limited to online calls, not for in-person iOS recording.
Avoma
AI meeting assistant for revenue teams
Full meeting lifecycle platform with recording, transcription, and AI notes. Records everything (unlike Granola's no-recording approach). Strong for sales and customer success teams. Focuses on online meetings rather than in-person mobile recording.
Read.ai
AI meeting summaries with video highlights
Automated meeting summaries with video playback and highlights. Records meetings (which Granola doesn't) and provides AI-generated insights. Good for Zoom and Teams but bot-based approach lacks Granola's privacy appeal. No standalone iOS app for in-person recording.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, as of 2025, Granola has a native iOS app. However, it is an audio-only recorder for in-person meetings and cannot record your screen. More importantly, Granola never saves the audio recording you only get a text transcript you can't verify.
For a free plan on a native iOS app that includes voice recording, transcription, and even screen recording, the ScreenApp iOS app offers the most generous free tier. Unlike Granola, it saves all recordings for verification.
No. Granola AI is designed to be audio-only and does not record audio or video on any platform. It cannot record your iPhone or iPad screen. You need a platform like ScreenApp for mobile screen recording.
Granola is blind and doesn't record, ScreenApp can see and records everything. Granola only transcribes audio and never saves recordings you can't verify. ScreenApp is a multi-modal platform that records and analyzes your audio AND your screen, giving you a complete, verifiable, visual record.
ScreenApp is the best for teams. Granola's per-user pricing gets expensive. ScreenApp's team-based, flat-rate pricing provides far more value and includes recordings, visual content creation tools (like SOPs and demos), and full verification capabilities for your entire organization.
Yes. Unlike Granola which never saves recordings, the ScreenApp iOS app features a high-fidelity voice recorder, live transcription, and screen recording all of which are saved automatically. You can verify transcripts, re-watch key moments, and share specific clips.
ScreenApp has the best mobile app for comprehensive needs because it records everything (audio + video + screen) and saves it all for verification. Granola's iOS app is polished but doesn't record anything. Otter.ai has an excellent iOS app for audio recording with better speaker ID than Granola.
No. Granola AI only provides text transcripts and has no recordings or visual elements. ScreenApp is far better suited for this because you can record, transcribe, and turn recordings into step-by-step SOPs, training guides, and documentation with screenshots all from your iPhone or iPad.
Final Verdict: Choose a Platform That Records the Full Story
Granola AI is a beautifully designed notepad. It’s perfect if you want a polished, AI-enhanced text file and are willing to sacrifice audio recordings, video recordings, and all visual context.
For everyone else, this is a critical flaw. Modern work is visual and accountable.
ScreenApp is the superior alternative because it’s built for today’s teams. It works everywhere (including a native iOS app that can record your screen), it captures and records the complete picture (your voice and your screen), and it transforms your recordings into verifiable, reusable assets.
Don’t settle for half the story with no proof.
Ready to Record The Full Picture?
Experience the power of recordings and visual context with ScreenApp. Available on iOS, iPad, Mac, Android, and web with full recording capabilities.
