Autorec vs OBS Studio
Automatic recording vs a manual one
OBS Studio is the free, open-source screen recorder a lot of people already trust, and it can absolutely record a meeting. Both OBS and Autorec record locally, so this is not a privacy comparison. The difference is automation. With OBS you build a scene, route the audio sources, and remember to hit record and stop for every call. Autorec detects the meeting, starts and stops on its own, and transcribes the result. OBS gives you total control and costs nothing; Autorec trades that control for not having to think about it.
Side by side
| Autorec | OBS Studio | |
|---|---|---|
| How it records | Captures the meeting window from your desktop | You start and stop the recording yourself |
| Where recordings live | Your disk only, never uploaded | Your disk |
| Transcription | On-device with whisper.cpp, writes .txt and .srt | None built in |
| Visible in the call | No, nothing extra appears in the call | No |
| Pricing | €20 once per major version, free tier available | Free and open source |
| Works offline | Yes, recording and transcription run locally | Yes |
| Platforms | Linux, Windows (macOS in development) | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Team features | No, single-user; no shared library or admin | No |
Pricing and features for OBS Studio last checked 2026-05-22. Vendor pricing changes; check their site for the current number.
Which one fits you
Choose Autorec if
You want meetings recorded without setting anything up or remembering to press record. Autorec detects the call, captures the right window, stops when it ends, and transcribes it. You also get a local transcript and AI summary, which OBS does not produce.
Choose OBS Studio if
You want full control over scenes, sources, bitrate and layout, you record more than just meetings, or you simply do not want to pay anything. OBS is free, open-source and far more flexible. If you are happy configuring it and starting recordings yourself, OBS does the job well.
What it costs over time
OBS Studio is free and open-source, so there is no price to compare. The cost is your time and attention: a scene to configure, audio sources to route correctly, and a record button to remember on every call. It also produces only a video file. Autorec is €20 once per major version, and for that you get automatic detection, automatic start and stop, and an on-device transcript and summary OBS does not generate. You are paying for the meetings you would otherwise forget to record.
Moving off OBS Studio
There is nothing to export from OBS, it writes plain video files to your disk already. Keep your existing OBS recordings where they are. Install Autorec alongside it; Autorec handles meeting capture automatically while OBS stays available for anything else you record. They do not conflict.
Common questions
OBS is free. Why pay €20 for Autorec?
OBS records anything, but you drive it: configure a scene, route the audio, press record, press stop. Autorec does that for you. It detects the meeting, starts and stops on its own, then transcribes it. The €20 buys automation and a transcript, not a privacy upgrade. Both are local.
Does Autorec transcribe recordings? OBS does not.
Yes. After a recording stops, Autorec runs whisper.cpp on-device and writes a .txt transcript and an .srt subtitle file, plus an optional AI summary. OBS only produces a video file.
Can Autorec record things other than meetings, like OBS?
No. Autorec is built specifically for Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls. OBS is a general screen recorder for streaming, tutorials and anything else. For non-meeting recording, OBS is the right tool.
Do I have to configure Autorec like OBS?
No. OBS needs scenes and audio sources set up before it records cleanly. Autorec detects the meeting and picks up the audio without that setup. The trade is flexibility: Autorec does not give you OBS-level control.
Compare Autorec to other tools
Decide for yourself
Record three meetings a day on the free tier, no account and no upload. Buy once for €20 when you are ready.
Download Autorec