Do I need permission to record a meeting?
Guide · 2026 · Meiotic, Inc.
The short answer
Usually yes, and in many places from everyone present. Recording laws vary by country and by US state, and the fact that vabletNotes processes audio on your phone changes nothing about your obligations to the people in the room.
The basics
Recording a conversation is regulated almost everywhere, and the rules are about the conversation, not the technology. In the United States, federal law and most states allow recording when one party to the conversation consents, which can be you. Roughly a dozen states require the consent of everyone taking part, California among them, and several treat in-person conversations differently from phone calls. Outside the US the picture varies by country, and in the European Union and the United Kingdom a recording of identifiable people is personal data, with the obligations that brings.
This page is not legal advice and cannot be, because the answer depends on where you are, where the other people are, and what was said. It is a list of what to check.
What to check
- Where the meeting is. The state or country you are in when you record, and, for calls, where the other people are. Some jurisdictions apply the stricter rule when they differ.
- Whether it counts as private. A closed-door meeting almost always does. A public event usually does not.
- Your employer’s and your customer’s policies. Many companies, hospitals and government sites prohibit recording on their premises regardless of the law.
- Sector rules. Health care, finance and legal work carry their own confidentiality duties that sit on top of recording law.
- What you will do with the transcript. Keeping it on your phone is one thing. Emailing it, exporting it or pasting it into another system is a disclosure, and that has its own rules.
The simplest rule
Ask everyone, every time, out loud, before you start. It takes five seconds, it satisfies the strictest jurisdictions, and it is what most people would want from you regardless of the law. If someone says no, take notes by hand.
What vabletNotes does and does not do about this
- It does not announce itself. The meeting count-in is silent so that a phone on the table between two people does not interrupt them. Saying you are recording is your job.
- It keeps no audio. Speech is transcribed live and the text is what is saved, so there is no recording of anyone’s voice to leak or to be demanded.
- It keeps the transcript on your device only. Nothing is uploaded to us and there is no account.
- Deleting a meeting deletes its transcript and notes with it. There is no other copy.
- Anything you send, export or share is your decision and your responsibility, exactly as it would be with notes typed by hand.
A reference for US state rules
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press maintains a state-by-state Reporter’s Recording Guide that is kept current and written for non-lawyers. For anything that matters, ask a lawyer in your jurisdiction.
Questions people ask
If the transcript is only on my phone, do I still need consent?
Yes. Consent laws are about the act of recording a conversation, not about where the recording is processed or stored. Processing on your own device is a privacy advantage for you and for the people in the room, but it is not a substitute for asking them.
Is a business meeting private enough to be covered by these laws?
Often, yes. Many laws turn on whether the participants reasonably expect the conversation to be private, and a meeting in a closed office or a customer’s site usually qualifies. A conference talk or a public event usually does not. When in doubt, treat it as private and ask.
What should I actually say?
Something plain, before you start: “I am going to record this on my phone so I get the notes and the follow-up right. It stays on my phone. Is that all right with everyone?” If anyone objects, do not record. The app will not announce itself; the meeting count-in is silent by design, so this sentence is yours to say.