How to invite Fireflies to Zoom meetings (and set up Zoom settings beforehand)

Want Fred from Fireflies to capture your Zoom calls automatically or only when needed? Whether you're hosting scheduled calls or jumping into last-minute syncs, this guide helps you make sure Zoom is set up correctly and Fireflies joins your meetings as expected, without hiccups.

📌 First time using Zoom with Fireflies?
Make sure you've connected your Zoom account to Fireflies before inviting Fred:
📄 How to integrate Zoom with Fireflies

Using Zoom on phone? Refer to this guide: 📄 How to integrate Fireflies with Zoom Phone

Step 1: Zoom settings to check (must-do!)

Before inviting Fireflies, make sure Zoom is ready for it. Here’s what to update:

1. Allow guests without authentication to join

• Go to Zoom Settings > Meetings > Security

  

• Turn OFF Only authenticated users can join from Web client

  

  Fireflies joins via the Zoom web client as a guest. If this is turned ON, Fireflies won’t be able to enter.

2. Disable end-to-end encryption (E2EE)

• Go to Zoom Settings > Meetings and Turn OFF Allow use of end-to-end encryption

  

3. Turn off the waiting room

• Go to Zoom Settings > Meetings > Security

• Turn OFF Waiting Room (If this is ON, someone will have to manually admit Fireflies, or it may get stuck waiting)

  

4. Enable computer audio

• Ensure Join via Computer Audio is turned ON (Fireflies won’t be able to hear or record users who join by phone)

  participants.

  

⚠ Important: Update your Zoom settings before creating the Zoom meeting link

Zoom settings like guest access, waiting room, and audio controls are embedded in the meeting when the link is created.

If you adjust these settings after generating the Zoom invite, Fireflies may still fail to join—even if everything looks right.

🔁 Always double-check your Zoom settings first, then create your meeting link. For existing invites, recreate the link after updating settings.

5. Let participants join before host

• Go to Zoom Settings > Meetings > Security

• Turn ON Allow participants to join before host

• This helps Fireflies get in and start capturing, even if you join a bit late.\ This ensures Fireflies joins on time even if you are running late.

  

Step 2: Invite Fireflies to your Zoom meeting

There are several ways to invite Fireflies—manually, automatically, or even during a live call.

Few things to note:

• ✅ You must include the Zoom link in your calendar invite and Add Fireflies (fred@fireflies.ai) as a participant in your calendar invite (Google/Outlook)

  

• ✅ If the meeting has a password, include it in the calendar invite in the default Zoom formatting or add it to the link

  Detailed guide to handle zoom meetings with passwords: 📄 How do I invite Fireflies to Zoom meetings that have Passwords

  

What happens during the meeting?

Here’s what to expect once Fireflies is in:

• Fireflies attempts to join on time

• If the settings are right, Fred enters automatically (no manual approval needed)

• You’ll see Fred from Fireflies appear in the Zoom participant list

• Fireflies starts recording and transcribing the conversation

• It can stay for up to 4 hours, depending on your Fireflies plan

About permissions & announcements on Zoom:

• If you're the host, Fred will join automatically.

• If you're not the host, Zoom will ask the host to admit Fred via a pop-up.

• Zoom will also play an audio announcement ("This meeting is being recorded") when Fred joins, as per Zoom’s policy.

• A recording indicator will appear next to Fred’s name in the participant panel.

These notifications come from Zoom—not Fireflies—and apply even if you're not recording video.

❗Troubleshooting: Fred didn’t join your Zoom call?

Check these first:

✅ Was fred@fireflies.ai invited (or auto-join set)?

✅ Is Waiting Room turned OFF in Zoom?

✅ Is Only authenticated users via web turned OFF?

✅ Is End-to-end encryption OFF?

✅ Was the Zoom link present in your calendar invite?

✅ Did Fred stay in the meeting for at least 3 minutes?

✅ Fred needs to be present for 3 minutes minimum to capture notes.

⚠ Using a previously scheduled Zoom link?
If you changed your Zoom settings after creating the meeting link, those changes won’t apply retroactively.
You’ll need to recreate the Zoom invite after fixing the settings.