How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Ratings come from G2, Capterra or Trustpilot, with the date we checked them.
NoteGPT is the best overall pick for most buyers because it covers YouTube videos, uploaded files, PDFs and audio in one place, with mind maps and flashcards for study. Eightify is the best pick for fast YouTube summaries inside the browser. Buyers who only need a quick gist should start with the free Summarize.tech instead of paying for a subscription.
Key takeaways
- NoteGPT is the best all-round pick for students and researchers who summarize videos, PDFs and audio in one tool.
- Eightify is the fastest option for YouTube, with summaries shown on the video page itself.
- Summarize.tech is the best free starting point, with no account needed for a few videos a day.
- YouTLDR is the best pick for videos without captions, since it transcribes the audio.
- Check the free limit before you pay, because most tools cap free summaries at a small number per week or month.
An AI video summarization tool reads a video transcript or transcribes the audio, then turns that text into a short summary with key points and timestamps. Most tools start from a YouTube link and use the captions YouTube already has. YouTLDR and ScreenApp can also transcribe audio when captions are missing, which matters for recorded lectures and webinars. The output is usually a short overview, key points and clickable timestamps. Some tools add chat, so you can ask a question and get an answer tied to a timestamp.
Pick by the type of video you watch most. YouTube viewers should pick Eightify, Recapio or YouTLDR, because all three are built around YouTube links and show timestamps. Students working from lectures should pick NoteGPT or Mindgrasp, because both add flashcards, quizzes and mind maps. People who record meetings or webinars should pick ScreenApp, because it records, transcribes and summarizes in one place. Monica suits buyers who already want a general AI assistant and only summarize videos some of the time.
Most tools in this guide cost between 5 dollars and 19 dollars a month on annual billing. The cheapest paid entry is 4.99 dollars a month, for Eightify on annual billing and for Recapio Starter. The dearest entry is ScreenApp Pro at 19 dollars a month on annual billing, which reflects its recording and transcription features. A subscription makes sense when you summarize at least 10 to 20 videos a month. Below that level, the free tiers of Summarize.tech, Recapio and NoteGPT cover the work at no cost.
What are the limits to watch before you buy?
Free plans look generous until you hit the cap. Eightify limits free users to a few summaries a week and to videos under 30 minutes. NoteGPT gives 15 basic quotas a month on its free plan, and its Unlimited plan still caps premium credits at 2,800 a month. ScreenApp gives only 2 free transcriptions and 3 uploads to try. Mindgrasp offers a short trial rather than an ongoing free plan. YouTLDR has no free plan for processing new videos. Summarize.tech limits its free tier to a few videos a day and gives only basic paragraph output. Monica caps advanced model queries at 200 a month on Pro.
| Tool |
Starting price |
Free plan |
Best for |
Input |
Chat with video |
| Eightify |
$4.99 per month, billed annually |
Yes, 3 summaries per week |
Fast YouTube summaries |
YouTube links |
Yes |
| NoteGPT |
$9.99 per month |
Yes, 15 basic quotas per month |
Study and research |
YouTube, files, PDFs, audio |
Yes |
| ScreenApp |
$19 per month, billed annually |
Yes, 2 transcriptions to try |
Recorded meetings and webinars |
Recordings, uploads, YouTube |
Yes |
| Mindgrasp |
$5.99 per month, billed annually |
Trial only, no ongoing free plan |
Lecture notes and study |
YouTube, files, audio, links |
Yes |
| YouTLDR |
$12 per month |
No free plan for new videos |
Videos without captions |
YouTube links |
Yes |
| Summarize.tech |
$10 per month |
Yes, a few videos a day |
A quick free gist |
YouTube links |
No |
| Monica |
$9.90 per month |
Yes, 40 basic queries per day |
General AI help plus video summaries |
Web pages, YouTube, PDFs |
Yes |
| Recapio |
$4.99 per month |
Yes, dozens of summaries per month |
Saving video knowledge |
YouTube, web articles |
Yes |
Worked cost example and decision steps
Take a buyer who summarizes 20 videos a month. Eightify on annual billing costs 59.88 dollars a year. Recapio Starter costs 59.88 dollars a year. Mindgrasp Basic costs 71.88 dollars a year. Monica Pro costs 99 dollars a year. NoteGPT Pro costs 108 dollars a year. Summarize.tech Premium costs 120 dollars a year. YouTLDR Pro costs 144 dollars a year. ScreenApp Pro costs 228 dollars a year. The gap between the cheapest and dearest entry plan is about 168 dollars a year. Use these five steps to decide. First, count how many videos you summarize in a normal month. Second, check whether your videos have captions, because caption-free video needs a transcribing tool. Third, test the free plan on your longest video. Fourth, check whether you need chat, export or study tools, or just a short summary. Fifth, compare the yearly total before you commit to annual billing.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 Eightify | Fast YouTube summaries inside the browser | $4.99 per month billed annually ($9.99 per month billed monthly) | Yes, 3 summaries per week for videos up to 30 minutes |
 NoteGPT | Students and researchers who summarize videos, PDFs and audio in one place | $9.99 per month ($9 per month billed annually, $108 per year) | Yes, 15 basic quotas per month |
 ScreenApp | Recorded meetings, webinars and uploaded video files | $19 per month billed annually ($228 per year, or $30 per month billed monthly) | Yes, 2 transcriptions of recordings up to 45 minutes each and 3 uploads to try, plus 10 AI chats per month |
 Mindgrasp | Lecture notes, flashcards and study from video and documents | $5.99 per month billed annually ($71.88 per year, or $9.99 per month billed monthly) | Trial only, no ongoing free plan on the standard pricing page |
 YouTLDR | YouTube videos without captions and long videos up to 5 hours | $12 per month | No free plan for processing new videos, though public transcript pages are free to read |
 Summarize.tech | A quick free gist of a YouTube video with no account | $10 per month | Yes, a few videos a day with no account |
 Monica | People who want a general AI assistant in the browser as well as video summaries | $9.90 per month ($8.30 per month billed annually, $99 per year) | Yes, 40 basic-model queries per day |
 Recapio | Saving video knowledge in a searchable personal library | $4.99 per month (Starter plan) | Yes, dozens of summaries per month with no credit card required |
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Starting price$4.99 per month billed annually ($9.99 per month billed monthly)
Free planYes, 3 summaries per week for videos up to 30 minutes
Eightify is a browser extension that turns a YouTube video into a summary with 8 key ideas, timestamps and a chat box for follow-up questions. It is the fastest tool in this guide for a simple job, because the summary sits beside the video and you do not need to paste a link anywhere. The paid plan adds unlimited summaries, longer videos and translation. This price is third-party reported, because published sources disagree on the current figure and report 4.99, 8.99 and 9.99 dollars a month for different billing periods. Check the checkout page before you buy, and start on the free tier to test it on your own videos.
What we like- Summaries appear on the YouTube page itself, output is clean and structured, and it handles long videos on the paid plan
Watch out for- It is a browser extension, so it does not work well on phones or on work computers that block extension installs, and the free tier is too small for regular use
#2
NoteGPT
Best for: Students and researchers who summarize videos, PDFs and audio in one place
Visit notegpt.io
Starting price$9.99 per month ($9 per month billed annually, $108 per year)
Free planYes, 15 basic quotas per month
NoteGPT is an all-round study tool that summarizes YouTube videos and turns the result into notes, mind maps, flashcards and quizzes. It also transcribes audio and video files, which makes it useful for lectures without captions. The Pro plan gives 1,000 basic quotas and 100 premium credits a month. Videos with subtitles have no length limit, while videos without subtitles are limited to 120 minutes on Pro. This price is third-party reported from sources that cite the vendor pricing page in October 2026. Refunds apply only within 24 hours of the first payment, so test the free plan first.
What we like- Covers YouTube, uploaded video and audio files, PDFs and articles, and adds mind maps, flashcards and quizzes
Watch out for- The quota system is confusing, with basic quotas and premium credits counted separately, and the Unlimited plan still caps premium credits at 2,800 a month
#3
ScreenApp
Best for: Recorded meetings, webinars and uploaded video files
Visit screenapp.io
Starting price$19 per month billed annually ($228 per year, or $30 per month billed monthly)
Free planYes, 2 transcriptions of recordings up to 45 minutes each and 3 uploads to try, plus 10 AI chats per month
ScreenApp is a recorder and transcription tool with AI summaries, chat and templates built in. It suits people who record meetings or webinars and want notes from the recording, rather than people who only watch YouTube. The Pro plan allows recordings up to 2 hours, 50 transcriptions a month, 500 uploads a month and 50 AI chats a month. The Max plan costs 34 dollars a month on annual billing and adds unlimited transcriptions and AI chat. A 7-day trial of the annual Pro and Max plans needs a credit card, so set a reminder to cancel if you only want to test it.
What we like- Records, transcribes and summarizes in one tool, with a meeting bot, export options and a desktop app
Watch out for- It is the dearest entry plan in this guide, and the free trial is very small, with only 2 transcriptions before you must pay
#4
Mindgrasp
Best for: Lecture notes, flashcards and study from video and documents
Visit mindgrasp.ai
Starting price$5.99 per month billed annually ($71.88 per year, or $9.99 per month billed monthly)
Free planTrial only, no ongoing free plan on the standard pricing page
Mindgrasp is a study tool that takes a YouTube link, a video file, a PDF or an audio file and returns notes, a summary, flashcards and quiz questions. It is built for students who work through course material and want revision aids. The Basic plan covers unlimited AI assistant questions, study tools, file uploads and library storage. Scholar adds the AI Math Expert, the Chrome extension, iOS access and live recording. This price is third-party reported from sources that cite the official plan picker in 2026. Check the checkout total, because the monthly figure is an annual billing equivalent.
What we like- Turns YouTube videos, lectures, PDFs and audio into summaries, notes, flashcards and quizzes, with a Chrome extension and iOS app on higher plans
Watch out for- There is no ongoing free plan, the trial is short at 3 to 4 days, and the cheapest plan does not include the Chrome extension, iOS access or live recording
#5
YouTLDR
Best for: YouTube videos without captions and long videos up to 5 hours
Visit you-tldr.com
Starting price$12 per month
Free planNo free plan for processing new videos, though public transcript pages are free to read
YouTLDR is a YouTube-first summarizer that uses captions when they exist and transcribes the audio when they do not, for videos up to 5 hours. Each video gets a summary with timestamps, a full transcript you can search and download, a chat box, a quiz and drafts for a blog post, LinkedIn, Twitter or PowerPoint. Pro allows up to 10 new transcripts and 10 summaries a day, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. It replaces Gistly in this guide, because the Gistly name covers two different products and its YouTube tool does not publish a clear paid price. YouTLDR is the clearer pick for the same job.
What we like- Transcribes audio when captions are missing, supports 125 plus languages, and adds quizzes, video comparison and content repurposing
Watch out for- There is no free plan, so you must pay 12 dollars a month before you can process a single new video, and it has no flashcards or spaced repetition
#6
Summarize.tech
Best for: A quick free gist of a YouTube video with no account
Visit summarize.tech
Starting price$10 per month
Free planYes, a few videos a day with no account
Summarize.tech is the simplest tool in this guide. You paste a YouTube link and get a section-by-section summary with timestamps, with no account and no payment. The Premium plan costs 10 dollars a month, with no daily limits and up to 200 videos a month. That makes it a fair step up for regular use, but the output stays simpler than the paid tools above. This price is third-party reported. One comparison updated 7 November 2026 reported that the site was down when it checked, so test the free version yourself before you pay for Premium, and do not rely on it for work you cannot redo elsewhere.
What we like- No signup and no setup, just paste a YouTube link, and the free tier covers occasional use at no cost
Watch out for- Output is basic paragraph text rather than structured key points, it is mainly English focused, and there is no chat, library or export
#7
Monica
Best for: People who want a general AI assistant in the browser as well as video summaries
Visit monica.im
Starting price$9.90 per month ($8.30 per month billed annually, $99 per year)
Free planYes, 40 basic-model queries per day
Monica is a browser sidebar assistant that summarizes YouTube videos, web pages and PDFs, and also handles chat, writing, translation and image and video generation. It is not a video-only tool, so video summarization is one feature among many. The Pro plan gives 5,000 basic queries, 200 advanced queries and 1,500 Advanced Credits a month. Max costs 16.60 dollars a month on annual billing and is sold as unlimited, with fair-use limits behind that label. This price is third-party reported from sources that read the vendor pricing page on 28 October 2026. Start on the free plan, because the credit rules take time to learn.
What we like- One login gives access to models from several AI labs, plus web search, page summaries, writing help and image and video generation
Watch out for- Advanced model queries are capped at 200 a month on Pro, heavy work uses a separate Advanced Credits pool, and payments are mostly final outside the EU, UK and Turkey
#8
Recapio
Best for: Saving video knowledge in a searchable personal library
Visit recapio.com
Starting price$4.99 per month (Starter plan)
Free planYes, dozens of summaries per month with no credit card required
Recapio is a knowledge tool that turns YouTube videos into transcripts, timestamped summaries and whiteboard-style mind maps, then stores them in a private searchable library. You can ask questions about a video and get answers tied to timestamps, and you can set up daily digests of new content. The Starter plan costs 4.99 dollars a month, Pro costs 8.99 dollars a month and Business costs 19.99 dollars a month, with annual discounts available. The free plan is generous for light users, but power users will need a paid tier for higher limits. It is one of the cheapest paid entries in this guide.
What we like- Full transcripts, timestamped summaries, chat with YouTube videos, mind maps and a private searchable memory, with a generous free plan
Watch out for- It is mainly limited to YouTube and web articles, with file uploads for DOCX and other platforms still in development, so local files are not yet covered
Frequently asked questions
Can I summarize a YouTube video for free?
Yes. Summarize.tech gives a few free summaries a day with no account, and Recapio gives dozens of free summaries a month with no card. Eightify gives 3 free summaries a week, and NoteGPT gives 15 basic quotas a month. If you summarize daily, or you need long videos, chat or a saved library, a paid plan is the realistic next step.
Do these tools work on videos without captions?
Some do, and some do not. YouTLDR transcribes the audio when captions are missing, and ScreenApp and NoteGPT can transcribe uploaded audio and video files. Eightify, Summarize.tech and Recapio rely mainly on YouTube captions, so they struggle with caption-free videos. Check this point before you pay, because it is the most common reason a tool fails on a real lecture.
How long a video can these tools summarize?
It depends on the plan. Eightify handles videos up to 10 to 12 hours on its paid plan, but only 30 minutes on its free plan. YouTLDR handles videos up to 5 hours. NoteGPT has no length limit for videos with subtitles, but caps videos without subtitles at 120 minutes on Pro. ScreenApp caps recordings at 2 hours on Pro and 3 hours on Max.
Are AI video summaries accurate?
They are usually accurate for clear speech and a clean transcript, and weaker for noisy audio, heavy accents or technical terms. The summary can miss a point from the second half of a long video. Treat the summary as a guide, not a quote. Click the timestamps and check the transcript for any fact you plan to use in study or work.
Which tool is best for students?
NoteGPT is the best pick for most students, because it adds mind maps, flashcards and quizzes to the summary and covers PDFs and audio as well as video. Mindgrasp is the closest alternative, with similar study tools and a lower annual entry price. Students on a tight budget should start with Recapio or Summarize.tech, which are free for light use.
Sources we checked (12)
- https://eightify.app
- https://notegpt.io/pricing
- https://screenapp.io/pricing
- https://mindgrasp.ai
- https://you-tldr.com
- https://summarize.tech
- https://monica.im/pricing
- https://recapio.com
- https://www.viraldrop.ai/compare/notegpt-pricing
- https://screenapp.io/blog/differences-screenapp-free-premium
- https://you-tldr.com/blog/best-youtube-video-summarizers-2026
- https://ai-alternative.com/tool/monica
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has 5+ years in B2B and SaaS SEO. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.