Complete How-To Guide

How to Use BoardBreeze

Everything you need to know to get from your first sign-up to your first set of polished, exported minutes — step by step.

Sign Up

BoardBreeze gives you a free 15-day trial — no credit card required. You can sign up three ways:

Option 1: Google account (fastest)

Click Sign Up → Continue with Google → pick your Google account. You're in.

Option 2: Microsoft account

Click Sign Up → Continue with Microsoft → sign in with your work or personal Microsoft account. Works with Office 365, Outlook.com, and most school and government Microsoft accounts.

Option 3: Email + 6-digit code

Enter your full name and email address → click Send verification code → check your inbox for a 6-digit code from BoardBreeze → enter it on the next screen.

  • The code arrives within 30 seconds. If it doesn't show up, check your spam folder.
  • The code expires after 1 hour. If it expires, just request a new one.
  • Microsoft Outlook / Defender users: your email may show a link instead of a code. Click the link — it'll log you in the same way.

Once you're signed up, you'll land on your dashboard and can immediately upload or record your first meeting.

Log In

Use the same method you signed up with:

  • Google → click Log In → Continue with Google
  • Microsoft → click Log In → Continue with Microsoft
  • Email → enter your email → click Send code → enter the 6-digit code from your inbox

If your code says "expired" but you just got it

Refresh the page and try entering it again — most of the time it actually worked. If it still fails, click Send new code and use the fresh one. Codes expire after 1 hour.

If you can't remember which method you used

Try Google first, then Microsoft, then email. If you signed up with Google but try to sign up again with email using the same address, the system will tell you an account already exists and prompt you to log in.

Your Trial & Plans

Your free trial gives you 15 days to try BoardBreeze with no credit card required. You can transcribe up to 3 hours of audio during the trial.

When your trial ends, you'll see the pricing page when you log in. Pick a plan to keep going — your account and any minutes you've already generated stay safe.

Plans

PlanPriceAudio per month
Essential$29.99/mo3 hours
Pro$99/mo40 hours
Enterprise$499/mo240 hours + custom templates + dedicated support

To upgrade or cancel: Email help@appboardbreeze.com or call our 24/7 concierge at 1-844-786-2076 and we'll take care of it for you. We use Stripe for billing — your card details never touch our servers, and if you cancel you keep access until the end of your billing period.

Upload Audio

Best for: meetings you've already recorded (anything from 5 minutes to 8+ hours). Recorded on video instead? See Upload Video below.

How to upload

  1. From your dashboard, click the Upload Recording tab.
  2. Click Browse Files (or drag your audio file onto the upload area).
  3. Choose the file from your computer.
  4. Click Transcribe Audio.

Supported formats

MP3, WAV, M4A, WebM, OGG, and FLAC.

How long does it take?

  • 1-hour meeting: ~5 minutes
  • 3-hour meeting: ~15 minutes
  • 8-hour meeting: ~20 minutes

You'll see a progress bar, and you can leave the page — we'll keep working in the background.

Plan limits

  • Trial & Essential: up to 3 hours of audio per month
  • Pro: up to 40 hours per month
  • Enterprise: up to 240 hours per month

If you hit your limit, you'll see an option to upgrade.

Tip: For very long meetings (4+ hours), uploading is much more reliable than recording in the browser.

Upload Video

Best for: boards that record meetings on video — Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet cloud recordings, the board room camera, or a phone. Upload the video file directly and BoardBreeze extracts the audio track automatically. No conversion step, no exporting audio first.

How to upload

  1. From your dashboard, click the Upload Recording tab — the same one used for audio.
  2. Click Browse Files (or drag your video file onto the upload area).
  3. Choose the video file from your computer.
  4. Click Transcribe Audio — BoardBreeze pulls the audio out of the video for you.

Supported formats & sizes

  • MP4 — Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet cloud recordings, board room camera exports, YouTube source files.
  • MOV — iPhone and QuickTime recordings.
  • WebM — browser and screen recordings.
  • Files up to 9GB. Big meetings are welcome — we've processed real 6-hour, 6.5GB district board meeting videos end-to-end. Long recordings are split and transcribed in parallel automatically.

Video counts against your plan's monthly hours the same way audio does — it's the meeting's duration that matters, not the file size.

Tip for video-only districts: upload the file exactly as it comes out of your recording system — and add your agenda (see Upload Your Agenda below) so the minutes follow your meeting's structure.

Record a Meeting Live

Best for: short meetings (under 1 hour) where you want minutes ready the moment the meeting ends.

How to record

  1. From your dashboard, click the Record tab.
  2. Click Start Recording. Your browser will ask for microphone permission — click Allow.
  3. You'll see your transcript building in real time as people speak.
  4. When the meeting ends, click Stop Recording → Generate Minutes.

A few important notes

  • Keep the browser tab open and your laptop awake for the entire meeting. If your laptop sleeps or the tab closes, recording stops.
  • Browser recording works best for meetings under 1 hour. For 2–3 hour board meetings, we strongly recommend recording on your phone or a dedicated recorder, then uploading the file afterward — it's far more reliable.
  • For in-person meetings, place your laptop or phone near the center of the table for the cleanest audio.
  • For Zoom / Teams / Google Meet calls, record using the meeting platform's built-in recording, then upload the file to BoardBreeze.

Upload Your Agenda (Optional — But Powerful)

New: upload your meeting agenda and your minutes will follow its exact structure — the same item numbers and section titles, recommended actions word-for-word, consent items rolled into a single motion, and closed session handled correctly. Available on every plan, including the trial.

How to use it

  1. On your dashboard, find the “Have an agenda?” card (just below the Upload / Record tabs).
  2. Upload your agenda as a PDF or TXT file (up to 3MB) — the standard exports from board-portal systems like Diligent Community or BoardDocs work great, and so does an agenda you wrote yourself.
  3. Wait about 15–45 seconds while BoardBreeze reads it, then check the preview — you'll see how many sections and items it found, and whether it detected a closed session or consent items. Click the preview to expand the full outline, or the ✕ to remove it.
  4. Transcribe your recording as usual, then click Format Minutes. Your minutes come back mirroring the agenda's structure.

What agenda-aware minutes do

  • Keep your agenda's numbering and section titles exactly.
  • Preserve recommended-action language verbatim — no AI paraphrasing of motion text.
  • Record consent items as one motion with the itemized list.
  • Record closed session correctly: the recess, the reconvening, and reportable actions — nothing else.
  • Never guess a vote that isn't in the recording.
  • Clearly mark agenda items the meeting never reached.
  • Your original agenda file is not stored — BoardBreeze keeps only the parsed structure it needs to build your minutes.
  • It can never block your minutes. If an agenda can't be read, you'll see a friendly message and your minutes are generated in the standard format instead.
  • The agenda applies to your current session — if you refresh the page, simply upload it again.

Format & Edit Your Minutes

Once your audio finishes transcribing, you'll see the raw transcript first. From here:

  1. Click Format Minutes. BoardBreeze turns the transcript into properly formatted, compliance-ready minutes — with sections, action items, and motions/votes where applicable. If you uploaded an agenda (see the section above), your minutes will follow its exact structure.
  2. Review and edit directly. Click anywhere in the formatted minutes to make changes — fix names, adjust action items, add or remove sections.
  3. Click Save Draft when you're done.
  4. Want richer formatting? After saving, send your minutes to Google Drive (via the Export menu), open in Google Docs, finish your edits there, then download as Word (.docx) or PDF.

Final review: Always read your minutes against the original transcript before sharing. AI can occasionally miss or mis-attribute things, and you (or your board secretary) are responsible for accuracy.

Minutes Assistant (Q&A Chatbot)

The Minutes Assistant is a chatbot that answers questions about your meeting. Click Minutes Assistant below your minutes to open it. What it can see depends on when you ask:

Before you click Format Minutes

The Assistant has access to your raw transcript. Use it to dig into anything the transcript captured:

  • "Did anyone mention the Q3 budget?"
  • "What did the Chair say about the bylaw amendment?"
  • "Was a motion made to approve the financials?"

Especially useful for double-checking what was actually discussed before you generate the formatted version.

After you click Format Minutes

The Assistant can only refer to the formatted minutes (not the raw transcript). Use it to quickly pull info from the finished draft:

  • "Summarize the action items for me"
  • "Who's responsible for the vendor follow-up?"
  • "What was decided about the contract renewal?"

Once you click Format Minutes, the Assistant loses access to the original transcript — so ask transcript-specific questions before formatting.

Export Minutes

Click Export Minutes to open the dropdown. You have four ways to get your minutes out:

Export as Word (.docx)

Opens in Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Pages, or any word processor. Formatted in Times New Roman 12pt with no BoardBreeze branding — ready to drop into your board packet.

Export as Text (.txt)

A plain-text version for pasting into another system (board portal, email body, CMS, etc.).

Save to Google Drive

Connects to your Google account the first time, then saves your minutes straight to Drive as a Google Doc. From there you can do further editing and download as Word or PDF.

Email Minutes to Me

Sends a formatted email to your account email with the full minutes inline. Great for quick distribution or forwarding to your board secretary.

Settings & Custom Templates

Click your name in the top-right corner → Settings.

Profile

Update your full name and organization name. (Your email is your login and can't be changed — contact us if you need to switch.)

Subscription

View your current plan and your usage for the current billing period. To upgrade, downgrade, or cancel, email help@appboardbreeze.com or call 1-844-786-2076.

Custom Templates (Enterprise only)

Choose how action items appear in your minutes:

  • Grouped at the end — all action items together in their own section
  • Inline with each discussion — action items appear next to the topic they came from

If you need a more customized template (your own headings, sections, or format), email us — Enterprise plans include template customization.

Need More Help?

24/7 AI Concierge

Call 1-844-786-2076 any time. Our AI concierge answers product questions, helps with governance issues (Robert's Rules, Brown Act, open meetings law), and connects you to a human when needed.

Contact form

appboardbreeze.com/contact for questions, demos, or feature requests.

Email

help@appboardbreeze.com

We respond to all email within one business day, usually much faster.

Ready to try BoardBreeze?

Start your free 15-day trial — no credit card required.

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