Can You Get a Transcript of a Microsoft Teams Meeting?

Whether you need to review your notes or want to share the meeting with someone who couldn't attend, getting a transcript of your Microsoft Teams meeting is incredibly helpful. Doing so allows you to focus on the call, and there’s no need to watch the recording after the meeting. 

In this article, we’ll show you how you can manually download the meeting transcript natively on Microsoft Teams and a better alternative that downloads the transcript from MS Teams automatically. This can improve your overall note-taking process for all your calls, including Zoom and Google Meet. 

The best tool for saving Transcripts and Taking Notes on Microsoft Teams 

Are you a product manager, marketing specialist, or contractor who can’t afford to miss important action items or details in a meeting? 

Tactiq is perfect for you because you’ll be able to automatically transcribe all Microsoft Teams meetings.

Here’s how to install and use Tactiq in your next Microsoft Team Meeting: 

1. Install the Tactiq.io Chrome extension. It's free!
2. If you're new to Tactiq, sign up for a free account.
3. If you already have Tactiq but haven't enabled Microsoft Teams, navigate to the Integrations section on the left side of the dashboard and click "Connect" next to the Teams icon.

4. Join your meeting as usual. 

5. Once you’re on the call, you'll see the Tactiq on the right side of your screen. On this window, you'll see the live transcription. 

6. You can also perform other actions, such as taking screenshots and adding your notes.

7. Click on the icons next to any sentence for easy note-taking.

Tactiq comes with handy icons next to the sentence, so you can highlight: 

• 🎯Decisions 
• ✅Action Items 
• ❓Questions 
• 💡Callout 

Instead of noting down all of these items during the call, all you have to do is click those icons. After the call, you can access all of the highlights on Tactiq.

8. After the meeting, you'll receive an email with a link to your transcription. You can easily access all of your highlights and screenshots.

9. Share the transcription as a PDF or upload it to your Google Drive.

You can also use it with other tools like Notion, Confluence, and Slack. Tactiq is the ultimate transcription and note-taking tool that can take your calls to the next level.

How to Get a Copy of a Meeting Transcript from Microsoft Teams Manually

First, make sure that transcription is enabled for everyone in your organization. A quick way to know if this feature is enabled is to start a meeting by yourself.

Click the three dots and open "More Actions."

If the "Start transcription" is grayed out, it's not currently set up for your organization.

If you don’t see “Start transcription” at all, you may not have the proper license to access this feature.

For example, I’m just using the free version of Office 365, and I don’t belong to any organization that uses the Microsoft ecosystem. As you can see from the screenshot, those are all of my options under “More Actions.” In this case Tactiq is the solution for you.

Now, if you do belong to an organization and you have admin access, here are the steps to enable transcription:

1. Go to Microsoft Teams Admin Center and then click Teams. 
2. Click on "Meeting policies." 
3. Under Recording & transcription, turn the toggle to "On" to enable transcription. 

If you don't have admin access, you'll need to talk to your IT department or dev team, so they can enable it for you. (👇Later, we’ll discuss how you can have transcription regardless of your Microsoft account type.)

Once all the proper settings have been set up, every user in your organization can access the live transcription and transcription file after the meeting.

{{rt_cta_ai-convenience}}

How to Download Transcript from Microsoft Teams Meeting

All right! Now, you’re ready to join your call. 

1. Start recording and click on the three dots to open "More Actions." Choose "Start transcription." 

Everyone in the meeting will get a notification that they are being transcribed. The live transcription will recognize each speaker and include the time stamps.

2. After the meeting, you'll see a summary of the call. Click on the three dots, and then you'll have the option to download the transcript.

‍

3. You can also navigate to the Calendar, choose the meeting, and then click on Recording & Transcripts. 

Download the transcript as .docx or .vtt file. Use .docx if you want to easily share the file with other participants or send it to your Google Drive.

The .vtt file is usually used when you want to edit or caption a video. 

Limitations of Microsoft Teams Transcripts

Note that there are limitations on who can access the transcription depending on the type of meeting and user.

Here's a quick summary of who can stop, start, and download a transcription for Microsoft Teams meetings:

In a nutshell, the host and guests of the meeting from the same company will be able to view the transcript in real time and download the transcript file after the meeting.

Guests from other companies may not have the same capability and may not have access to the transcript. 

What If the Meeting Wasn’t Recorded?

To get the transcription, the call must be recorded. But what if some hosts don't want to record the meeting due to the sensitive nature of the call? Or if you're a guest and don't have all the access to the transcription settings.

This is where a third-party tool comes in handy. A tool that lets you see the live transcription and allows you to highlight and take screenshots as part of your notes is Tactiq.io.