Zoom Workplace Review
Reviewed by Carlos Gil · Founder & Editor, The Best Network
Updated 8 min readEditorially reviewed
Quick facts
- Starting price
- Free Basic plan; Pro $14.16/user/mo billed annually ($16.99 monthly)
- Free plan
- Yes
- Best for
- Teams that already hold most of their meetings on Zoom and want AI summaries and notes without buying a separate note-taker seat
- Platforms
- Zoom Workplace desktop and mobile apps and web; ZoomMate on web, desktop, iOS and Android
BestStacked Score
Weighted average of 5 categories. Methodology below.
Quick answer
What is Zoom Workplace's AI, and is it worth paying for?
Zoom Workplace is Zoom's suite of meetings, team chat, phone, whiteboards, mail and calendar, and its paid plans include AI meeting features at no extra cost: unlimited meeting summaries, in-meeting questions and AI note-taking (My Notes). Zoom retired the AI Companion name in June 2026; the features now carry plain names, and its agentic assistant, ZoomMate, is a separate add-on. It's worth paying for if your team already meets on Zoom and wants recaps without another subscription. Workplace Pro costs $14.16 per user a month billed annually ($16.99 monthly), checked on Zoom's pricing page on October 13, 2026. The free Basic plan includes 3 summarized meetings a month.
- Best for
- Small and mid-size teams that run most meetings on Zoom and want summaries, action items and searchable notes inside the tool they already use.
- Skip it if
- Your meetings mostly happen in Teams or Google Meet, or you need agents that update your CRM and other systems; that work needs ZoomMate at $16.67 to $20 a user extra.
- Strongest capability
- Value: Pro bundles 30-hour meetings, 10 GB of cloud recording, mail, calendar and unlimited AI summaries, in-meeting questions and note-taking for $14.16 a user billed annually.
- Biggest limitation
- Agentic features (custom agents, deep research, third-party workflows) sit in ZoomMate, which is sold separately, runs on credits and, per Zoom's whitepaper, is limited to US-hosted, English-language customers outside government, healthcare and education.
The Verdict
Zoom Workplace is the simplest way to get AI meeting notes if your team already lives on Zoom. Every paid plan includes unlimited meeting summaries, in-meeting questions and My Notes, which Zoom says also takes notes in Teams and Google Meet without a bot. Pro starts at $14.16 a user billed annually, and that price also covers 30-hour meetings for 100 people, 10 GB of cloud recording, mail and calendar. The catch is where Zoom draws the line. Agents, deep research, unlimited summary templates and workflows that touch third-party apps belong to ZoomMate, a credit-based add-on from $16.67 a user billed annually that, by Zoom's own whitepaper, isn't yet available to customers outside its US infrastructure or in government, healthcare and education. Live phone support needs more than $200 a month in subscriptions, payments are non-refundable under Zoom's terms, and its pages still mix old and new AI names. We score Zoom Workplace 8.5/10.
Best for
Teams that meet mostly on Zoom and want included AI summaries, in-meeting questions and notes at a low per-user price.
Skip if
Your meetings run in Teams or Google Meet, or you need cross-system AI agents without paying for a second subscription.
AlternativesOtter, Fathom, Microsoft Copilot
The Background
What Is Zoom Workplace?
Zoom Workplace is Zoom's collaboration suite: Zoom Meetings, Team Chat, Phone, Whiteboard, Clips, Scheduler, Mail, Calendar, Tasks, Hub and an AI Productivity Suite (Canvas, Slides, Sheets and Paper). Its AI features, sold for years under the AI Companion name, were renamed by function in June 2026, according to Zoom's blog: meeting summary, chat compose, transcription, call summaries and My Notes. Zoom says these remain included with eligible paid plans at no additional cost. ZoomMate, launched June 1, 2026 per Zoom's newsroom, is the separately priced agentic layer built on what was Custom AI Companion; it searches across Zoom, the web and connected systems, runs workflows and agents, and uses AI credits. My Notes is also sold on its own for people who don't need the full Workplace suite.
The Product
Zoom Workplace Features: What You Actually Get
Meeting summaries
When the host or co-host starts it, Zoom writes a summary of the meeting with next steps and sends it by email and to the meeting's group chat to signed-in participants the host chooses. Summaries are unlimited on Pro, Business and Enterprise, capped at 3 hosted meetings a month on Basic, and Pro adds 8 custom summary templates a month. Zoom's support article says the summary uses the language most participants speak.
A project lead runs a weekly status call and the recap with action items lands in every signed-in attendee's inbox when it ends.
In-meeting questions and AI chat
During a meeting, participants can ask what they missed, what was decided or what they've been assigned, and get answers from the live transcript. Zoom's pricing page lists this as unlimited on paid plans and 3 per month on Basic, along with AI chat in meetings.
Someone joins 15 minutes late, asks what was decided about the launch date and catches up without interrupting.
My Notes AI note-taking
My Notes transcribes and summarizes meetings, and Zoom says it works in Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet and other platforms without adding a bot to the call, plus a separate in-person transcription mode. Zoom's My Notes pricing page says all My Notes features are included with Workplace Pro; Basic gets 3 uses a month, and a standalone My Notes plan costs $8.33 a user billed annually ($10 monthly). It needs Zoom client version 6.7.5 or later.
A consultant whose clients use Teams takes AI notes on those calls from the Zoom app instead of inviting a recording bot.
ZoomMate agents and search (add-on)
ZoomMate costs $20 a user a month, or $16.67 billed annually, with 2,200 AI credits per user a month. It adds custom and pre-built agents, deep research, agentic search across the web and connected third-party data, workflows with third-party apps, the full AI Productivity Suite and live voice translation. Zoom's newsroom names ServiceNow, Salesforce and Workday among the systems it connects to. Its whitepaper says it currently supports only English and customers hosted on Zoom's US infrastructure.
A sales team adds ZoomMate so follow-ups from customer calls update Salesforce records and draft recap emails automatically.
AI data controls
Zoom's terms (section 10.2) and AI whitepaper say it doesn't use customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments or other communications-like content to train Zoom or third-party AI models. Zoom uses a federated mix of its own and third-party models, naming Anthropic and OpenAI, and says it has zero data retention agreements with those providers, with limited trust-and-safety exceptions. Admins can disable and lock AI settings such as meeting transcripts at the account or group level.
An IT lead reviews the whitepaper, turns summaries on for sales and leaves them locked off for the HR group.
Feature recap
- Unlimited meeting summaries on every paid Workplace plan
- Unlimited in-meeting questions and AI chat on paid plans
- My Notes AI note-taking in Zoom, Teams and Google Meet, included with Pro
- Free Basic plan with 3 summarized meetings and 20 AI queries a month
- Custom summary templates (8 a month on Pro)
- ZoomMate add-on for agents, deep research and third-party workflows
- Admin controls and a published no-training policy for communications content
The Numbers
Zoom Workplace Pricing: Every Plan Explained
Zoom Workplace plans are priced per user. The figures below come from Zoom's Workplace, ZoomMate and My Notes pricing pages, checked October 13, 2026, in USD; annual prices are shown as a monthly figure billed yearly. Zoom's public pricing page lists Basic, Pro, Business and Enterprise only; it doesn't show a Business Plus plan.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Included Features | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | Free | Free | 40-minute meetings, 100 participants, local recording only; 3 meeting summaries, 3 in-meeting questions, 3 AI note-taking uses and 20 AI queries a month | Trying the AI features |
| ProBest value | $16.99/user/mo | $14.16/user/mo | 30-hour meetings, 100 participants, 10 GB cloud recording per user, unlimited summaries, in-meeting questions and AI note-taking, 8 custom summary templates a month, Mail and Calendar, live chat support | Small teams |
| Business | $21.99/user/mo | $18.33/user/mo | 300 participants, same AI features as Pro plus AI on Whiteboard, SSO and managed domains, unlimited whiteboards and booking pages, device management, data loss prevention APIs | Companies that need SSO |
| Enterprise | Contact sales | Contact sales | 1,000 participants on the plan card (500+ in the comparison table), unlimited cloud recording, full PBX phone system, 500 webinar attendees, Rooms, translated captions | Large organizations |
| ZoomMate (add-on or standalone) | $20/user/mo | $16.67/user/mo | 2,200 AI credits per user a month, custom agents, deep research, third-party workflows, unlimited summary templates, AI Productivity Suite, voice translation; US-hosted, English-only customers for now | Teams that want AI to act across systems |
For meeting AI alone, Pro is the plan to price: $14.16 a user billed annually buys unlimited summaries, in-meeting questions and My Notes along with the meeting platform itself. Adding ZoomMate to Pro brings the cost to about $30.83 a user a month billed annually (our arithmetic from Zoom's listed prices), and Zoom doesn't publish a per-credit price for usage beyond the included 2,200 credits. Verified nonprofits get 50% off Pro and Business, per Zoom's pricing FAQ. Plans renew automatically each month or year; Zoom's terms (section 14.1) require notice at least 30 days before a renewal term, given through the billing portal or by email to renewals@zoom.us, while its pricing FAQ says you can turn off renewal by canceling during the term. Section 12.2 says charges are final and non-refundable unless Zoom agrees, the law requires it or an order form says otherwise, and section 12.3 lets Zoom change prices with at least 30 days' notice. Zoom's cancellation article says cancelling doesn't trigger a refund, paid features run to the end of the term, and cloud recordings are deleted 30 days after the paid plan ends.
Data
How Zoom handles meeting data in its AI features
Zoom's terms of service (section 10.2) and its AI whitepaper say Zoom does not use customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments or other communications-like content to train its own or third-party AI models. That is a limit on training, not on processing: the whitepaper notes that AI features must use certain content to work, and section 10.2 still grants Zoom a license to customer content for the permitted uses it lists.
Zoom routes requests across its own models and third-party models, naming Anthropic and OpenAI, and says it holds zero data retention policies with those providers, with exceptions for trust and safety such as detecting child sexual abuse material. Data is processed and stored according to your account's hosted data center region. Zoom's Meeting Summary article says the feature is available to customers with an active BAA, which matters for US healthcare users, though ZoomMate itself isn't offered to healthcare yet. None of this is legal advice; check Zoom's data processing terms against your own obligations.
Read before you buy
Where Zoom's own pages differ
AI Companion name: Zoom's June 24, 2026 blog post says the AI Companion name has been retired and the features are now called by what they do, yet the Workplace pricing page still tells buyers to "get instant answers with AI Companion," and the newsroom lists a 2026 award for "Zoom AI Companion."
Free-plan AI: the Workplace and ZoomMate pricing pages give Basic 3 meeting summaries and 3 in-meeting questions a month, but the Meeting Summary support article lists only paid account types as eligible (Pro, Pro Plus, Business, Business Plus, Enterprise, Enterprise Plus and Enterprise Bundle). That support list also names Pro Plus and Business Plus, which the public pricing page doesn't sell.
Enterprise meeting size: the Enterprise plan card says 1,000 participants while the comparison table on the same page says 500+.
AI note-taking: the Workplace pricing page and the My Notes page say unlimited AI note-taking is included with Pro, while the ZoomMate pricing page presents unlimited AI note-taking as part of what ZoomMate adds over Basic.
ZoomMate launch: Zoom's newsroom announced ZoomMate as generally available on June 1, 2026; Zoom's blog introduced it as "Zoom's next chapter in AI" on June 24, 2026, and both say access is rolling out gradually.
The Tradeoffs
Zoom Workplace Pros and Cons
What we love
- AI summaries, in-meeting questions and notes included in every paid plan
- Pro is $14.16 a user billed annually, with the meeting platform included
- Free Basic plan includes a small monthly AI allowance
- My Notes covers Teams and Google Meet calls without a bot
- Published policy against training AI on meeting content
- Admin controls to turn AI features off by account or group
What could be better
- Agents, deep research and third-party workflows need ZoomMate at extra cost
- ZoomMate is limited to US-hosted, English-language customers for now
- Live phone support requires more than $200 a month in subscriptions
- Charges are non-refundable under Zoom's terms
- Renewal notice rules differ between the terms and the pricing FAQ
- Zoom's pages still mix the retired AI Companion name with new names
The Audience
Who Should Use Zoom Workplace?
Best for: small teams that already meet on Zoom
Pro at $14.16 a user billed annually gives every licensed host unlimited summaries and in-meeting questions, so there's no separate note-taker to buy or bot to admit into calls.
Best for: consultants who join clients' Teams and Meet calls
My Notes, included with Pro, takes notes on other platforms from the Zoom app, which keeps notes from Zoom and non-Zoom calls in one place.
Skip if: you live in Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace
If your company already pays for Teams or Google Workspace with built-in recaps, adding Zoom seats just for AI notes duplicates what you have. Microsoft Copilot or Gemini in Google Meet is the more natural fit.
The Methodology
How We Reviewed Zoom Workplace
This is an editorial review, not a documented hands-on test. We didn't use a Zoom account for this review. It's based on Zoom's Workplace, ZoomMate and My Notes pricing pages, its ZoomMate and AI note-taking product pages, its AI comparison page, the June 2026 ZoomMate blog post and newsroom release, Zoom support articles on meeting summaries and cancellation, its terms of service, its AI whitepaper sections on data governance and ZoomMate, and its App Marketplace, all checked on October 13, 2026. Where Zoom's pages differ, we report both statements. No summary accuracy or transcription quality results are claimed.
Our editorial evaluation considers product information, official documentation, pricing, features and professional experience. It is not a claim of documented hands-on testing.
Our review methodology →What changed
- : First published. Editorial review based on Zoom's Workplace, ZoomMate and My Notes pricing pages, ZoomMate and AI note-taking product pages, AI comparison page, June 2026 blog post and newsroom release, support articles on meeting summaries and cancellation, terms of service, AI whitepaper and App Marketplace, all checked October 13, 2026.
The Field
Zoom Workplace vs The Competition
Zoom's AI competes with the recap features inside other meeting suites and with standalone AI note-takers. Prices below were checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 13, 2026.
| Tool | Starting Price | Free plan | Best Feature | BS Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoom Workplace | Free Basic plan; Pro $14.16/user/mo billed annually ($16.99 monthly) | Yes | Meeting summaries | 8.5/10 |
| Microsoft Copilot / Teams | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on $18/user/mo paid yearly (promo; from $21) | No | Recaps tied into Outlook, Word and the rest of Microsoft 365 | 8.5/10 |
| Gemini in Google Meet | Workspace Business Standard $14/user/mo (flexible plan) | No | Take notes, summaries and translation inside Meet | 8.9/10 |
| Otter | Free; Pro $8.33/user/mo billed annually ($16.99 monthly) | Yes | Note-taking across Zoom, Teams and Meet | 8.8/10 |
| Fathom | Free; Premium $16/mo billed annually ($20 monthly) | Yes | Free unlimited recordings and summaries | 9.1/10 |
Microsoft Copilot / Teams: For companies standardized on Microsoft 365, Teams meeting recaps and Copilot keep notes next to email and documents. Microsoft lists the Copilot Business add-on at $18 a user a month paid yearly (a promotion from $21, July 1 to December 31, 2026) on top of an eligible Microsoft 365 Business plan, or Business Standard with Copilot at $23.50. Zoom includes its meeting AI in the $14.16 Pro plan itself.Read our Microsoft Copilot / Teams review →
Gemini in Google Meet: Google's pricing page lists Gemini in Meet on Business Standard and Plus, not Starter. A sensible choice if your team already runs on Google Workspace.Read our Gemini in Google Meet review →
Otter: Otter is a standalone note-taker with a free plan (300 minutes a month) that works across meeting platforms. Better if you need notes everywhere but don't need a video platform.Read our Otter review →
Fathom: Fathom's free plan includes unlimited recordings and call summaries, with team and CRM-sync plans above it. A strong free option for individuals on any platform.Read our Fathom review →
Use cases
Example setups by buyer type
A 10-person agency on Zoom
Pro billed annually (10 x $14.16) gives every host unlimited summaries and in-meeting questions. Have hosts share recaps with signed-in attendees; guests who aren't signed in won't receive them.
A freelancer testing AI notes
Start on the free Basic plan to try 3 summarized meetings and 3 note-taking uses a month, keeping in mind the 40-minute meeting limit, then move to Pro or the $8.33 My Notes plan.
A sales team that wants CRM updates
Workplace plans connect to Salesforce and HubSpot, but agentic follow-ups that update records run on ZoomMate, so budget about $16.67 a user extra billed annually and confirm your region qualifies.
The Ecosystem
Zoom Workplace Integrations
Zoom's pricing page lists Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, ServiceNow and HubSpot integrations on every Workplace plan, with more in its App Marketplace and deeper AI connectors in ZoomMate.
- →Microsoft 365 (plus Teams calls via My Notes)
- →Google Workspace (plus Meet calls via My Notes)
- →Salesforce
- →HubSpot
- →ServiceNow
- →Slack (My Notes summaries)
- →Workday and other systems via ZoomMate
- →Zoom App Marketplace and developer APIs
Integration names come from Zoom's pricing, My Notes and ZoomMate pages. Workflows that connect to third-party apps and agentic search over third-party data are ZoomMate features; on Workplace plans, workflows are listed as basic and agentic search is limited to 10 searches a month across Microsoft and Google sources.
Common Questions
Zoom Workplace FAQ
The Final Word
Should You Use Zoom Workplace?
Zoom Workplace gives paying teams unlimited meeting summaries, in-meeting questions and AI notes at no extra charge, which makes Pro at $14.16 a user billed annually one of the cheapest ways to get meeting AI if you need a video platform anyway. Buy ZoomMate only if you need agents and cross-system workflows, and confirm your region and industry qualify first. Treat payments as final and note the 30-day renewal notice in the terms. We score Zoom Workplace 8.5/10.
Yes, if
Your team meets mainly on Zoom and wants included AI summaries and notes without another subscription.
No, if
Your meetings run in Teams or Google Meet, or you need AI agents across your systems outside ZoomMate's current regions.
About the reviewer
Carlos Gil
Founder & Editor, The Best Network
Carlos Gil is the Founder & Editor of The Best Network, bestselling author of The End of Marketing, and a LinkedIn Top Voice. His digital marketing career began in 2008 and spans corporate roles at LinkedIn and BMC Software, consulting for global brands, creator partnerships, and building his own businesses.
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