Guide
How to take notes in a meeting
To take good notes in a meeting, write down decisions, action items (who, what, by when) and key facts, not everything that's said. Prepare a template from the agenda beforehand, use short bullets and symbols during the meeting, and send a cleaned-up recap within a day.
Why most meeting notes don't work
The usual mistake is trying to write everything. You end up with pages of half-sentences, you miss the conversation while you type, and nobody reads the result. Good meeting notes answer three questions for someone who wasn't there: What did we decide? Who is doing what? What's still open? Everything else is optional.
Before the meeting (5 minutes)
- Know why you're meeting. Write the meeting's goal in one line at the top. It tells you what's worth writing down.
- Copy the agenda into your notes as headings. You'll fill in under each one instead of starting from a blank page.
- Add sections for Decisions, Action items and Open questions. Our meeting notes templates have these ready to copy.
- Check last meeting's action items so you can note what got done.
- Choose your tool. One place for every meeting (a notebook, a doc, a notes app) beats scattered files.
During the meeting
Listen for signal words
Certain phrases almost always mean something worth writing: "So we've agreed...", "Let's go with...", "I'll take that", "Can you...", "By Friday", "The number is...", "The risk is...", "We still don't know...". When you hear one, write it down. When people are thinking aloud, listen instead.
Use bullets, fragments and symbols
Full sentences are slow. A small set of symbols lets you scan your notes later in seconds:
| Symbol | Means |
|---|---|
| [ ] | Action item (check it off when done) |
| ! | Decision |
| ? | Open question to follow up |
| -> | Leads to / next step |
| @Name | Owner of a task |
| * | Important, include in the recap |
Pin down every action item
An action item needs three parts: a task, one owner and a due date. "Look into pricing" isn't an action item. "@Dana: send pricing options to the team by Thursday" is. If any part is missing, ask before the meeting moves on. It's the single most useful thing a note taker can do.
Ask for clarity
You're allowed to say "Sorry, can I confirm what we decided there?" People are usually grateful, because they weren't sure either.
Recap in the last two minutes
Read the decisions and action items aloud before people leave. It catches mistakes while everyone is still in the room, and it makes people commit to their tasks.
Listen to the meeting, not your keyboard
Hark records and transcribes your meetings on your own computer, labels who spoke, and keeps your notes next to the transcript. No bot joins the call. Free forever.
After the meeting (10 minutes)
- Clean up right away. Expand shorthand while you still remember what "pricing -> D, Thu" meant.
- Move decisions and action items to the top. That's what people read.
- Send a recap to attendees and anyone who owns a task, within 24 hours. The meeting summary template fits in an email or chat message.
- Put action items where they'll get done: your task list, the project tracker, or the next meeting's agenda.
- File the notes in one consistent place with the date in the name, so you can find them in six months.
Video calls vs. in-person meetings
| Video calls | In person | |
|---|---|---|
| Best tool | Typed notes in a second window | Notebook, or a laptop if that's normal in your team |
| Watch out for | Typing noise with an open mic; mute while you type | A laptop screen can look like you're not listening |
| Built-in help | Zoom, Teams and Google Meet can record and, on some plans, transcribe if the host allows it | A phone voice recorder, or a laptop recording app |
| Tip | Paste links and screenshots straight into your notes | Photograph the whiteboard before it's erased |
Note-taking methods worth trying
- Action-items-first: keep tasks at the top of the page, add to them as they come up. Best for most work meetings.
- Agenda-based: one heading per agenda item, each ending with an outcome. Best for structured meetings.
- Cornell method: notes on the right, questions or keywords on the left, summary at the bottom. Best for trainings and anything you'll review later.
- Mind map: the main topic in the middle, branches for subtopics. Best for brainstorming, harder to share.
For formal meetings that need an official record, follow our guide on how to take meeting minutes instead.
Record the meeting so your notes can be short
The best way to take fewer notes is to know you can check the details later. With a recording and transcript, your notes only need the decisions and action items; quotes, numbers and "what exactly did she say?" can wait. Recording laws vary, and some require everyone's consent, so always ask first.
Hark is a free desktop app for Windows, Mac and Linux built for this. It records the meeting on your own computer (your microphone and, on Windows and Linux, the computer's audio, so it works with Zoom, Teams, Meet or any call app; on a Mac it records the microphone only). No bot joins. It shows a live transcript during the meeting and a more accurate one afterwards, transcribed on your computer in English, with each speaker labeled. Its notes editor sits next to the transcript, so you can jot your own notes during the meeting, and later click any word in the transcript to replay that moment. On Windows, Ctrl+Alt+S drops a screenshot of a shared slide into your notes.
With a subscription or the 2-day preview, Claude can also write AI meeting notes from the transcript in a style you choose. That sends the transcript text to Claude; everything else stays on your computer.
Related
- How to take meeting minutes What to capture before, during and after a meeting.
- Best meeting notes apps Apps for taking, organizing and sharing meeting notes.
- Meeting notes template Meeting note formats: action-first, Cornell and agenda-based.
- 1-on-1 meeting template Manager and employee 1-on-1 templates with a question bank.
- Meeting summary template A short, shareable summary format with an example.
- Meeting cost calculator See what a meeting costs per minute, per meeting and per year.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best way to take notes in a meeting? +
Prepare a simple template from the agenda, then write only decisions, action items (with an owner and a date) and the few facts you will need later, in short bullet points. Mark action items with a symbol so they stand out, and spend five minutes cleaning up and sending the notes right after the meeting.
Is it better to take meeting notes by hand or on a laptop? +
Both work. Handwriting tends to make you summarize, which helps you remember, and it feels less distracting to others in person. Typing is faster and easier to search and share. Many people type during video calls and write by hand in person, then type up the key points afterwards.
How do you take notes in a meeting while participating? +
Write less. Capture only decisions, action items and numbers, using shorthand and symbols, and ask the chair to restate decisions before moving on. If everyone agrees, record the meeting so you can check details afterwards instead of writing them down in the moment.
What should you not write in meeting notes? +
Skip word-for-word dialogue, small talk, opinions about people, and anything confidential that should not be shared with the people who will receive the notes. Write as if anyone in the meeting might read your notes later, because they often do.
Can I record a meeting instead of taking notes? +
A recording is a great backup, but you will still want short notes of decisions and action items, because few people will listen to a recording later. Recording laws vary, and some places require everyone's consent, so always ask before you record.
Record, transcribe and remember every meeting
Hark records your calls on your own computer, transcribes them privately, and learns who is speaking. Free forever, with a 2-day preview of AI meeting notes.