Turns YouTube videos, playlists and uploaded audio into timestamped study notes, transcripts, mindmaps and reports.
Free stops at: 500 AI credits once
Listed Not yet reviewed
Free · paid from $9/mo US · checked Sep 29
Best for the job9 picks · updated Oct 10, 2026
Best AI summarizers in 2026
To summarize your own documents, start with Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM), free for up to 50 sources per notebook. For web pages in Chrome, GetTheGists gives 50 free summaries a month. For YouTube lectures, Vunote Pro is $9 a month. All 9 picks have a free tier, and 6 publish a USD price.
Summarizers differ mainly by what they read. Gemini Notebook works on files you upload; GetTheGists works on pages open in Chrome; Vunote, NoteAi and ReadTube work on YouTube videos; ScreenApp and Otter.ai summarize recordings and meetings; SocialKit is an API for developers; nbot.ai tracks topics over time. Free tiers are mostly credit-based, so heavy daily use usually needs a paid plan in the $9 to $19 a month range.
- Free tier available 9
Our picks, compared
| # | Tool | Score | Pick it for | Starting price | Free tier | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  VunoteTurns YouTube lectures into timestamped notes, with 500 free credits and Pro at $9 a month. |
9/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +1 API or integrations documented; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | YouTube lectures to notes | $9/mo (Pro) all plans |
Yes | Free credits are one-time, and AI features lock when they run out. |
| 2 |  GetTheGistsSummarizes long pages in Chrome with chat or voice, free for 50 summaries a month. |
8/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Web pages in Chrome | $9.99/mo (Premium) all plans |
Yes | Chrome-only, sends page text to a third-party AI provider, and free voice is 5 minutes a month. |
| 3 | ScreenApp Summarizes meeting and lecture recordings without a bot joining the call. |
8/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Meeting and lecture recordings | $19 (Pro (annual billing)) all plans |
Yes | Free allows only 2 transcriptions and 45-minute recordings. |
| 4 |  Otter.aiSummarizes Zoom, Teams and Meet calls with speaker identification. |
8/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Meeting summaries | $16.99 (Pro) all plans |
Yes | Free is 300 transcription minutes a month and 3 lifetime file imports. |
| 5 | nbot.ai AI trackers monitor topics across news, blogs and social sources, free for 20 credits a day. |
8/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Tracking topics over time | $9.99/mo (Plus) all plans |
Yes | Free allows 2 trackers and 3 updates a day. |
| 6 | SocialKit One REST API for transcripts, summaries and stats across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and others. |
8/10+3 Verified USD price; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Developers needing a summary API | $29/mo (Standard) all plans |
Yes | Free is 20 credits a month, and credits do not roll over. |
| 7 |  Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM)Answers, summaries and study aids grounded in documents you upload, free for up to 50 sources per notebook. |
6/10+1 Price listed, not vendor-confirmed; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Summaries grounded in your files | Not published all plans |
Yes | Higher limits need a Google AI Plus, Pro or Ultra plan, available only in some regions. |
| 8 | NoteAi Turns YouTube videos, lectures and recordings into summaries, illustrated notes and mind maps. |
6/10+1 Price listed, not vendor-confirmed; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | Videos to notes and mind maps | Not published | Yes | Plan prices could not be confirmed, and the free plan has a limited credit allowance. |
| 9 |  ReadTubeTurns YouTube and Bilibili subscriptions into an email-style inbox of summaries, free during the beta. |
6/10+1 Price listed, not vendor-confirmed; +2 Lasting free plan; +2 Documented limits, setup and FAQ; +1 Checked in the last 30 days | YouTube subscriptions as an inbox | Not published all plans |
Yes | Paid plans are not live, and quotas will arrive after the beta. |
How to choose ai summarizers
- If you summarize PDFs and notes you already have, use a tool grounded in your files. Pick Gemini Notebook
- If you read long pages, policies or tickets in the browser, pick GetTheGists
- If you learn from YouTube lectures and want timestamped notes, pick Vunote
- If you follow many YouTube channels and prefer reading, pick ReadTube, free during its beta
- If you need summaries of meetings or recorded lectures, pick Otter.ai or ScreenApp
- If you are building a product that needs video summaries, pick SocialKit's API
The picks in detail
Chrome extension that summarizes web pages, answers questions by chat or voice and combines open tabs into one brief.
Free stops at: 50 summaries per month, 5 min voice per month
Listed Not yet reviewed
Verified getthegists.com (opens GetTheGists website in a new tab)
Free · paid from $9.99/mo US · checked Sep 29
AI notetaker, transcription and summarizer for meetings, lectures and video, with recorder apps and a Chrome extension.
Free stops at: 10 AI chats and templates per month, 2 transcriptions to try
Listed Not yet reviewed
Verified screenapp.io (opens ScreenApp website in a new tab)
Free · paid from $19/mo US · checked Oct 2
AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes and summarizes Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls with AI chat across meetings.
Free stops at: 300 monthly transcription minutes per user, 3 lifetime audio/video file imports
Listed Not yet reviewed
Free · paid from $16.99/mo US · checked Sep 29
Build AI trackers that monitor topics you care about, with chat Q&A and podcast summaries.
Free stops at: 20 daily credits, 2 AI Trackers
Listed Not yet reviewed
Free · paid from $9.99/mo US · checked Sep 29
Developer API for extracting transcripts, summaries, comments, stats and profiles from YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X and LinkedIn.
Free stops at: 20 credits per month, 40 requests per minute
Listed Not yet reviewed
Verified socialkit.dev (opens SocialKit website in a new tab)
Free · paid from $29/mo US · checked Sep 29
Google's AI research partner that answers questions and creates summaries, audio and slides grounded in your own sources.
Free stops at: Standard limits for chat and generation of Slides, Audio Overviews and other artifacts, Up to 50 sources per …
Listed Not yet reviewed
Verified notebook.google (opens Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) website in a new tab)
Free plan available US price unconfirmed
Summarizes YouTube videos, audio and recordings into notes, transcripts, mind maps and chat-ready knowledge bases.
Free stops at: Limited credits
Listed Not yet reviewed
Pricing US price unconfirmed
Turns YouTube and Bilibili subscriptions into a newsletter-style inbox with AI summaries and articles.
Free stops at: Quotas planned after beta
Listed Not yet reviewed
Pricing US price unconfirmed
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI summarizer?
It depends on what you summarize. Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) is our pick for summaries grounded in your own files, GetTheGists for web pages in Chrome, and Vunote for YouTube lectures.
What is the best AI video summarizer?
For YouTube, Vunote turns videos and playlists into timestamped notes and transcripts, and NoteAi produces notes and mind maps. ReadTube turns YouTube and Bilibili subscriptions into an inbox of AI summaries.
What's the best AI document or PDF summarizer?
Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) answers questions and writes summaries grounded in the sources you upload. It has a free plan.
Which AI summarizer is best for students?
Vunote turns lectures on YouTube and uploaded audio into timestamped study notes, mind maps and reports, from $9/month (Pro) with a free plan. ScreenApp also summarizes lecture recordings.
Is there a free AI summarizer?
All nine picks list a free plan in our data, including Gemini Notebook, GetTheGists, Vunote and NoteAi.
Can AI summarize meetings?
Yes. Otter.ai records, transcribes and summarizes Zoom, Teams and Google Meet calls, and ScreenApp summarizes meeting and lecture recordings.
Related guides
How we pick: tools that do this job, ranked by verified pricing, documentation depth and fit. No paid placements. How we review.
How this list is ranked
Each pick is scored 0–10 from facts in its verified profile, not from popularity or payment. The score is shown in the table; hover it for the breakdown.
- +3 starting price confirmed on the vendor's US pricing page (+1 if only reported by reviews, −2 if no price is published)
- +2 a lasting free plan, not a trial
- +1 API or integrations documented
- up to +2 plan limits, setup steps and FAQ documented
- +1 checked in the last 30 days
- −2 still marked "needs verification"
We have not benchmarked output quality; this ranks what each vendor publishes and how well we could verify it. No paid placements. How we review.