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SwitchDesk vs Granola: AI meeting notes on Mac, compared
Last checked
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TL;DR
- Granola runs on Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Apple Watch. SwitchDesk is Mac only; its iPhone app is coming soon to the App Store.
- SwitchDesk Essential is $12/mo billed yearly ($15 monthly). Granola Business is $14 per user a month, with no annual price listed.
- Granola’s free Basic plan keeps 30 days of meeting history. SwitchDesk has no free plan; every call is saved on your Mac as audio, a transcript and Markdown notes.
Try it · press “Add all”Try it · swipe, then press “Add all”
3 suggested todos
Side by side
Meeting notes, row by row
Price, platforms, recording, Ask and what happens after the call, each sourced to Granola’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026.
| SwitchDesk | Granola | |
|---|---|---|
| Price and billing15 | $12/mo billed yearly, or $15 billed monthly (Essential, 25 hours of calls a month). Pro is $18/mo billed yearly. | $14 per user a month (Business); no annual price listed. Basic is free with 30 days of history. |
| Platforms12 | Mac (macOS 14.6 or later). The iPhone app is coming soon to the App Store. | Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Apple Watch. |
| How it records24 | No bot. Your mic and the call’s audio are recorded as two tracks on your Mac. | No bot. It records from your computer’s audio. |
| Live captions4 | Yes — a captions drawer in the notepad, a color per person. Off by default. | A live transcript during the call.† |
| Ask across meetings34 | Yes — “Ask me about any past meetings”. Each source opens the transcript at that moment. Essential includes 15 questions a month. | Yes — Granola Chat. |
| Suggested to-dos into a list34 | Yes — when the call ends, “Add all” puts them in your to-do list, filed under a category. | Action items sit in the notes; Chat drafts follow-up emails and documents. |
| Also included1 | Voice dictation into any app, screen recording with a share link, and a to-do list. | Shared folders and custom note templates on every plan. |
Sources · last checked Oct 5, 2026
- Granola pricing · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Granola homepage · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- Granola Chat · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- SwitchDesk app labels and settings, checked in the current build · accessed Oct 5, 2026
- SwitchDesk plans (this site)
† Not confirmed on Granola’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026. Prices are list prices in US dollars before tax.
After the call
Calls end with suggested to-dos, one click from your list.
Press Stop on the Lumora kickoff. “Generating to-do items…” appears, then the action items, each with a category and a time estimate. Press “Add all” and they land under Fernhill.
They’re suggestions: nothing is added until you press “Add all” or “+ Add”. Choose how many you get with “How much to suggest”.
Settings → Meetings
Try it · press Stop, then “Add all”Try it · press Stop, swipe, then “Add all”
4 suggested todos
Send Lumora the revised proposalFernhill
Set up the pilot workspaceFernhill
Share the pilot pricing with LumoraFernhill
Book a pilot check-in with JoeFernhill
Sam’s to-do list: Today’s Todo and Fernhill, where the Lumora kickoff’s action items land.
Animation added for this page.
Ask across meetings
Ask what you promised, then open the moment it was said.
Press the question chip, “What have we promised Lumora so far?”, and the answer draws on both Lumora calls.
Pick a source and the transcript opens at that moment, so you can check the exact words before you send anything. Essential includes 15 questions a month across all meetings.
“Ask me about any past meetings”
Ask across all past meetings: "What have we promised Lumora so far?" — answered "A 12-seat pilot for their support team starting next month, a revised proposal by Thursday, and the security questionnaire you said you'd send after the intro call." Sources: Lumora kickoff · Today · 8:41; Lumora kickoff · Today · 12:11; Lumora intro call · Thu last week · 5:12.
A 12-seat pilot for their support team starting next month Lumora kickoff · Today · 8:41, a revised proposal by Thursday Lumora kickoff · Today · 12:11, and the security questionnaire you said you'd send after the intro call Lumora intro call · Thu last week · 5:12.
↑ Pick a source
The Lumora kickoff transcript, opened at 8:41.
At 8:41
Joe Raman8:41
We'd want twelve seats to start, for the support team, starting next month.
Joe Raman12:04
If the pilot goes well, we'd roll it out to all forty agents. Can you share the pilot pricing before then?
Me12:11
Great — I'll send the revised proposal by Thursday.
Maya Chen12:26
I'll set up the pilot workspace.
Me12:49
Let's book a pilot check-in with you two weeks in.
The Lumora intro call transcript, opened at 5:12.
At 5:12
Joe Raman0:52
We're looking at tools for our support team — about forty agents.
Me1:10
Happy to walk you through how the notes and follow-ups work.
Joe Raman4:38
Security will want to see your answers before anything else.
Me5:12
I'll send over our security questionnaire after this.
Your files
Every call is saved on your Mac: audio, transcript and notes.
When the Lumora kickoff ends, its folder on your Mac holds the audio (your mic and the call’s, as two tracks), the transcript and the notes in Markdown. They stay for as long as you keep them.
Granola’s free Basic plan keeps 30 days of meeting history.1 Fig. 1 shows what leaves your Mac during and after a call, and why.
Stored on your Mac
Lumora kickoff · saved on this Mac
- The call’s audio: your mic and theirs, as two tracks
- The transcript
- The notes, in Markdown
Sent — when, and why
During the call
Your mic and the call’s audio stream to our transcription provider for the transcript. The recording files stay on your Mac.
After the call
The transcript, with speaker names when they were identified, goes to an AI model for the notes, suggested to-dos and Ask.
Meeting exports
Only to destinations you set up, signed and relayed by our server.
Trade-offs
Where Granola is better
If any of these matter more to you than to-dos and the extra tools, Granola is the better pick.
- Apps for Windows, iPhone, Android and Apple Watch. SwitchDesk is Mac only.12
- Shared folders and custom note templates on every plan.1
- A free Basic plan, with 30 days of meeting history.1
- A brief before each external meeting, and notes written from what you type.2
- An MCP connector, so your AI apps can read your meeting notes.2
- Team spaces for sharing notes across a company.†
† Not confirmed on Granola’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026.
Price and switching
What it costs, and how to move over from Granola
Prices as listed
| Plan | Price | Billing |
|---|---|---|
| SwitchDesk Essential | $12/mo | Billed yearly, or $15 billed monthly |
| SwitchDesk Pro | $18/mo | Billed yearly, or $23 billed monthly |
| Granola Basic | $0 | 30 days of meeting history |
| Granola Business | $14/mo | Per user, billed monthly; no annual price listed |
| Granola Enterprise | $35/mo | Per user |
Source: granola.ai/pricing · last checked . Prices in US dollars, before tax.
Switching from Granola
Keep your Granola history
There’s no importer. Your past notes stay in Granola; new calls start in SwitchDesk.
Turn on “Countdown before meetings”
The pill offers Record before each call. Optionally turn on “Auto-record when opening a meeting”, which starts recording when you click Open Meeting.
Settings → MeetingsSet “How much to suggest”
“Everything”, “Concrete tasks only” or “High-confidence only” — how many to-dos each call suggests.
Settings → MeetingsAfter a week, ask across your calls
Try “Ask me about any past meetings” with a question you’d normally scroll for.
Shown in the Apricot theme
Dictation, screen videos and your to-do list, in the same app.
The same subscription covers three more tools from the menu bar. The to-dos land in one list; a video ends in a link you paste.
Share card for “Lumora pilot walkthrough”: Ready to share · transcript ready.
Create Video
Record your screen, paste the link
Pick Screen, Window or Area. The link is on your clipboard when you press Stop.
Explore Create Video →1.Prep pricing slides for ThursdayFernhill
SwitchDesk to-do window, Apricot theme: Today's Todo: Prep pricing slides for Thursday; Reply to Daniel about the Q4 hiring plan (in progress); Book Theo's dentist appointment (done).
To-Do List
Your to-dos, filed by category
Say “add a todo …” or press “Add all” after a call, and it’s filed under the right category.
Explore To-Do List →Teams
Plan: Both plans
Share one category with your team and keep the rest private.
Switch a category to “Shared with team” and Maya and Daniel see its to-dos. Personal, Family and Pottery Shop stay private.
“Categories you toggle on are visible to teammates. Untoggled categories stay private.” Settings → TeamsSam's to-do list holds Fernhill, Personal, Family and Pottery Shop; in Settings → Teams only Fernhill is switched on, so Maya's own list shows just Sam's Fernhill to-dos — including the Fernhill items he moved into Today.
Illustration
Teams
Shared with team
Categories you toggle on are visible to teammates. Untoggled categories stay private.
Personal, Family and Pottery Shop stay private.
The to-do window side by side: your list on the left, then Daniel Ortiz and Maya Chen's shared to-dos in their own read-only columns. A backlog item in a teammate's column can be taken with “Take & Assign to Me”.
Before you switch from Granola
More in Help →Can I import my Granola notes?
No. There’s no importer, so keep your Granola history where it is. New calls are recorded in SwitchDesk from the day you switch.
Does a bot join my calls?
No. SwitchDesk records your mic and the call’s audio as two tracks on your Mac. Granola doesn’t use a bot either.
Does it know who said what?
Yes, on Google Meet: names come from Meet’s own captions. On other call apps, transcript lines read “Me” and “Them”. Granola names Google Meet speakers too.
Will people on the call know I’m recording?
No. SwitchDesk doesn’t announce itself in the call, so tell people you’re recording. Laws vary by place.
Is there a Windows or iPhone app?
Not today. SwitchDesk runs on your Mac (macOS 14.6 or later); the iPhone app is coming soon to the App Store.
What happens to my notes if I stop paying?
They stay on your Mac. Meeting notes and transcripts stay readable and exportable, and your to-do list keeps working. Share links stay live for 90 days, then show as paused.