Zoom AI Companion vs Copilot in Teams: Pricing, Features and Which to Pick
The two meeting platforms' built in assistants, compared on what you already pay for, what costs extra and how each handles your data.
By , research by the BestBots team · Updated Oct 19, 2026
Fact checked against each company's published pricing, documentation and verified user ratings. How we score
Zoom's AI Companion, now sold as ZoomMate, is the better value: unlimited meeting summaries and in meeting questions come with Zoom Workplace Pro at $14.16 a user annual. Copilot in Teams is the better product for Microsoft 365 companies, but it costs an extra $21 a user annual ($18 promo through December 2026) on top of your Microsoft plan.
Zoom AI Companion (ZoomMate)4.3From $16.99 per user per month (per seat)
Visit Zoom AI Companion (ZoomMate)
Side by side
| Spec | Zoom AI Companion (ZoomMate) | Copilot in Teams |
|---|---|---|
| BestBots Score | 4.3 | 4.0 |
| Starting price | $16.99 per user per month | $25.20 per user per month |
| Pricing model | per seat | per seat |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Free plan limit | Summaries and in meeting questions for 3 hosted meetings a month, 3 My Notes uses, 20 AI queries | No free plan for meeting Copilot; Copilot Chat is included with eligible Microsoft 365 plans |
| Paid from | Included with Zoom Workplace Pro at $16.99 per user monthly ($14.16 annual); ZoomMate plan $20 monthly or $16.67 annual | $25.20 per user per month monthly, $21 annual ($18 promo through December 31, 2026), plus a Microsoft 365 plan |
| Platforms | Zoom Meetings, Team Chat, Mail and Docs; My Notes also works on third party meeting platforms and in person | Microsoft Teams meetings, calls and events up to 1,000 attendees; not in end to end encrypted meetings |
| CRM sync | ZoomMate connects to third party sources such as CRMs, cloud storage and ticketing tools | Through Microsoft 365 and Dynamics connectors; no standalone CRM sync for meeting notes listed |
The short answer
Choose Zoom AI Companion if your meetings run on Zoom and you want AI notes without a new bill.
Choose Copilot in Teams if your company runs on Microsoft 365 and Teams, and you want the same AI across meetings, Outlook, Word and Excel with IT policy control.
If your meetings span both platforms, neither is enough; see the best AI note takers.
Pricing
| Zoom | Microsoft | |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Workplace Basic: summaries and in meeting questions for 3 hosted meetings a month | No in meeting Copilot without a license; Copilot Chat with eligible plans |
| Meeting AI included with | Workplace Pro $16.99 monthly, $14.16 annual; Business $21.99 or $18.33 | Not included in Microsoft 365 plans by default |
| Add on | ZoomMate $20 monthly, $16.67 annual, 2,200 AI credits | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business $25.20 monthly, $21 annual ($18 promo through December 31, 2026) |
| Bundle | n/a | Business Standard with Copilot $23.50 annual ($28.20 monthly); Business Premium with Copilot $32 annual ($38.40 monthly) |
Prices from zoom.us/pricing, zoom.us/pricing/aic and Microsoft's Copilot business pricing page in October 2026. Teams Premium, which adds intelligent recap features without Copilot, is a separate add on we could not price this month.
Company of 50 that already pays for the platform, annual. Zoom: $0 extra for unlimited summaries on Workplace Pro or Business. Microsoft: $12,600 a year for 50 Copilot Business licenses at $21 ($10,800 at the $18 promo).
Company of 50 that wants agentic features too. Zoom: ZoomMate at $16.67 adds $10,002 a year. Microsoft: the same $12,600, which also covers Copilot in Office apps.
Models and features
| Feature | Zoom AI Companion (ZoomMate) | Copilot in Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Where it works | Zoom Meetings, Team Chat, Docs; My Notes on third party platforms and in person | Teams meetings, calls and events up to 1,000 attendees |
| In meeting questions | Unlimited on paid Workplace plans | Private prompts for each licensed participant |
| After meeting summary | Unlimited on paid plans | With transcript on: during and after the meeting |
| No transcript mode | Admins disable and lock transcripts; summary from temporary data | "Only during the meeting" option uses unsaved speech to text |
| Beyond meetings | ZoomMate: agents, deep research, Slides, Sheets, Paper, Canvas, workflows | Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook |
| Models | Zoom models plus Anthropic and OpenAI (federated) | Microsoft 365 Copilot |
| Languages | ZoomMate agent features English only, per Zoom | Not stated on the pages we opened; Teams Premium adds live translated captions in 40 languages |
| Limits | Free Basic meetings capped at 40 minutes; ZoomMate actions metered by credits | Not available in end to end encrypted meetings or GCC High |
Head to head scenarios
Company already paying for Zoom Workplace
Winner: Zoom AI Companion. Unlimited summaries are already in your bill.
Microsoft 365 company standardized on Teams
Winner: Copilot in Teams. Native to Teams, governed in the Teams admin center and Purview, and one license covers Office apps too.
Lowest cost for meeting notes only
Winner: Zoom AI Companion. $0 extra on paid Zoom against $21 a user annual for Copilot.
Strict no transcript policy
Winner: Copilot in Teams, narrowly. Organizers can choose Only during the meeting per meeting, and admins can enforce defaults by policy. Zoom's no transcript mode is set by admins at account or group level and means summaries cannot be regenerated later.
Turning meetings into documents and slides
Winner: Zoom's ZoomMate plan, for English speaking teams: Slides, Sheets, Paper and agents built on meeting context at $16.67 a user annual. Copilot does similar work in Word and PowerPoint, so Microsoft shops should use that.
Large events
Winner: Copilot in Teams. Copilot works in meetings and events with up to 1,000 attendees, with organizer and presenter control in large events.
Privacy
Zoom. Its AI whitepaper says Zoom does not use customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments or other communications like content to train Zoom's or third party models, uses Anthropic and OpenAI under zero data retention terms, and offers Zoom hosted deployment options for customers who want no third party model processing.
Microsoft. Copilot in Teams runs under Microsoft 365 controls. Admins set the Copilot policy (on, on with saved transcript required, on with transcript saved by default, off), and Purview retention policies can retain Copilot prompts and responses for compliance even when recording and transcription are off.
Edge: tie. Both keep AI inside the meeting platform you already trust, with no third party bot. Pick the one whose admin model your IT team already runs.
Verdict
Zoom wins three of six scenarios, including the one that decides most purchases: cost. If you pay for Zoom, turn on its meeting AI first. Copilot wins for Microsoft 365 companies, large events and policy driven IT, at $21 a user annual. Read the Zoom AI Companion review, and if you meet across both platforms, compare cross platform tools like Fathom and Fireflies.
Frequently asked questions
Is Zoom AI Companion better than Copilot in Teams?
For meeting notes on a budget, yes: it is included with paid Zoom Workplace plans, while Copilot in Teams is an add on license from $21 a user on annual billing. Copilot is better for companies that run on Microsoft 365, because one license also covers Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
Is Copilot in Teams free?
No. Copilot in Teams meetings needs an add on Microsoft 365 Copilot license for each user who wants to use it, on top of a Microsoft 365 plan with Teams. Copilot Chat is available at no additional cost with eligible Microsoft 365 plans, but it is not the in meeting Copilot.
Is Zoom AI Companion free?
It is included at no extra cost with paid Zoom Workplace plans (Pro and Business). Free Zoom accounts get summaries and in meeting questions for 3 hosted meetings a month.
Can either one summarize a meeting without saving a transcript?
Yes. Teams organizers can set Copilot to Only during the meeting, which uses speech to text data that is not saved after the meeting. Zoom admins can disable and lock transcripts, and Zoom then writes summaries from temporary data without keeping a persistent transcript.
Does Zoom or Microsoft train AI on my meetings?
Zoom's AI whitepaper says it does not use customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing or attachments to train Zoom's or third party models. Microsoft manages Copilot under its Microsoft 365 data protections; check your tenant's terms and Purview policies for the details that apply to you.
What if my company uses both Zoom and Teams?
Neither assistant covers the other platform's meetings well. A cross platform note taker such as Fathom, Fireflies or Otter works on Zoom, Teams and Google Meet with one account.