How to transcribe a Zoom, Meet or Teams call on a Mac
A microphone hears the room. In a video call the people who matter are not in the room; they are coming out of your speakers or headphones. Transcribing a call means listening to the computer, not just to you.
Why the microphone is not enough
With headphones on, the other participants never reach your microphone at all. A transcript made from the microphone alone is half a conversation: your side, in full, and silence where everyone else spoke.
On a Mac the app can watch system audio — the sound the computer itself is playing — alongside the microphone. That is where the call's other voices are, whatever app the call is running in.
Setting it up
The first time takes a few extra clicks, because macOS asks for permission.
- Start a session on the Mac, from the template that fits the call — client discovery, sales demo, design review, or a plain meeting.
- Turn on system audio for the session, so the other participants are heard.
- If the call includes a shared screen that matters, choose the screen or window to capture. The assistant then answers with the shared material in view.
- Grant screen recording when macOS asks. It is macOS's permission for anything that captures the screen or its sound, and without it there is nothing to hear.
- Start the session before the call gets going, and end it when you hang up.
Screen context, not just sound
Calls are often about something on a screen: a deck, a document, a dashboard. When the app captures that window, the assistant can answer questions about it during the call — what the third bullet on the slide said, what figure the chart showed — alongside what people said about it.
On a Mac the session can also be recorded, when you need the call itself and not just the text.
Tell the people on the call
This matters more on a call than in a room, for one reason: when a meeting platform records a call, it usually announces it to everyone. A separate app on your Mac does not trigger that announcement. Nobody will know unless you tell them.
So tell them. A sentence at the start is enough: “I'm using an assistant to transcribe this call, is that all right?” In some places the law requires everyone's consent, and in almost every workplace it is simply expected. The guide on recording and transcribing other people goes into more detail.
On iPhone and iPad
On iPhone and iPad the session listens through the microphone. Listening to the computer's own sound — the other side of a call — is a Mac feature. For calls on headphones, the Mac is the tool.
Does it work with Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams?
It listens to the Mac's system audio, so it hears the call whichever app is running it. It does not integrate with those services.
Why does macOS ask for screen recording permission?
It is the permission macOS uses for capturing the screen and system audio. Without it the app cannot hear the call.
Will the other participants be notified?
No, not automatically — which is why you should tell them yourself at the start of the call.
