tl;dv (short for too long; didn't view) records your Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams calls and turns each one into a video with a searchable transcript, AI notes, and timestamped highlights you can clip and share. It started as a way to send a colleague the two minutes of a call that mattered, and that instinct still shows: sharing a moment is easier here than in most competitors.
The current product is aimed squarely at sales, customer success, product, and user research teams. Notes follow templates you define (discovery call, churn call, user interview), summaries push into HubSpot and Salesforce fields, and multi-meeting reports scan dozens of calls to answer questions like which objections came up most this month or what customers said about pricing. A German company, tl;dv leans on GDPR compliance as part of its pitch.
The reservations are practical. The recorder typically appears as a participant, so external attendees see it. The AI notes are good on structured calls and looser on rambling ones. The free plan is generous for recording but limited for AI features, and the sales-oriented analytics matter little if your meetings are mostly internal.
Best for
- Sales teams that want call notes and CRM fields filled without typing
- Customer success and account managers building a searchable history of every customer conversation
- Product managers and UX researchers who clip user-interview moments to share with the team
- Distributed teams where people who missed the call want the video rather than only a summary
- Managers coaching reps by reviewing calls with timestamps and speaker analytics
Not ideal for
- Confidential meetings (legal, HR, healthcare) where a visible third-party recorder is inappropriate without explicit consent and a vendor agreement
- Teams whose meetings are mostly internal and who mainly need a quick summary; a native tool may be cheaper
- Anyone whose primary need is in-person or phone-call recording
Key features
Pricing
A free plan that allows recording and transcription with limited AI notes and reports; a Pro plan for individuals and small teams with unlimited AI notes, integrations, and clips; a Business plan adding multi-meeting reports, coaching analytics, and CRM automation; and Enterprise plans with admin controls, security features, and custom terms.
Free-plan allowances and which tier includes multi-meeting reports have shifted several times, as of mid-2026; check the vendor's current documentation. Recording requires consent in many jurisdictions; set an announcement policy before rollout.
Pricing changes often. Confirm current plans on the vendor's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Sharing a clip of the exact moment is fast and useful
- Note templates keep a team's meeting notes consistent
- Multi-meeting reports surface patterns across many calls
- Generous free recording tier for evaluating the product
- EU-based vendor with a GDPR focus, useful for teams with European customers
Cons
- The recorder is a visible participant, which some clients and candidates dislike
- AI notes drift on unstructured conversations; read the transcript before acting
- Most advanced features sit on the Business tier, so the real cost is higher than the entry price suggests
- Fewer native integrations than some rivals; Zapier fills gaps but adds setup
- In-person and phone recording are not the focus
How people use tl;dv at work
Sales professionals: fill the CRM from the call
Use a discovery template that captures budget, timeline, decision makers, and objections, map those fields to HubSpot or Salesforce, and review the auto-filled record before moving the deal stage. Announce the recorder at the start of every call.
Product managers: a library of customer voice
Record user interviews with a research template, clip the moments where a customer describes a pain point in their own words, and drop the clips into the product brief. Run a multi-meeting report each quarter on the top requested features and check it against your tracker.
Customer success managers: churn signals across calls
Ask a multi-meeting report which accounts mentioned budget cuts, executive changes, or a competitor in the last ninety days, then open the source calls to confirm context before escalating.
Recruiters: structured interview notes
Use one interview template so every candidate's notes cover the same questions, tell candidates they are being recorded, and keep hiring decisions grounded in the answers, never in the talk-time or filler-word statistics.
Getting started
- Install the recorder for your meeting platform, connect your calendar, and set it to join only meetings you choose until you trust the behavior.
- Write two note templates that match your most common call types and use them on the next five meetings.
- Compare the AI notes with the transcript on those calls and decide what you will send to others without reading first.
- If you sell, connect the CRM on a test deal first and check every mapped field.
- Agree on a consent script with your team and check the recording laws in the states and countries where your customers sit.
Alternatives to tl;dv
Otter.ai
Meeting transcription and summaries that follow you into Zoom, Teams, and Meet.
Fireflies.ai
A meeting note-taker with deep integrations, search across calls, and an AI assistant.
Read AI
Meeting notes plus engagement analytics, with search across meetings, email, and chat.
Zoom AI Companion
The meeting notetaker and assistant already built into your paid Zoom account
Frequently asked questions
Is tl;dv free?
Do participants know tl;dv is recording?
tl;dv or Fireflies or Otter?
Where is my meeting data stored?
Independent review. Pricing is described in words because plans change often; check the vendor's site.