Can I record a call in California?

Not without everyone agreeing. California requires the consent of all parties to record a confidential communication, and that includes phone and video calls.

All-party consent Everyone in the conversation has to agree before it is recorded.

General information, not legal advice. Last reviewed September 2026. Laws change and facts differ; check before you rely on any line here, and ask a lawyer licensed where you record for anything that matters.

What the rule means

A communication is confidential when a party reasonably expects that it is not being overheard or recorded. A one-to-one or small work call usually qualifies.
Consent does not need a signature. Telling everyone at the start that the call is being recorded, and carrying on when nobody objects, is the common way to get it.
The rule covers the person who records. It does not matter that the recording stays on your own computer.
A person whose call was recorded without consent can sue under § 637.2, which is why this law is the one most often cited in claims against notetaker vendors.

Federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d)) allows a participant to record unless the recording is made to commit a crime or a tort. State law can ask for more.

The law

California Penal Code § 632 (confidential communications)
California Penal Code § 632.7 (calls involving a mobile or cordless phone)
California Penal Code § 637.2 (civil action)

A violation is a crime punishable by a fine, jail or both, and the person recorded can bring a civil claim for statutory damages per violation.

When the others are somewhere else

California courts have applied the rule to calls between a Californian and someone in a one-party state (Kearney v. Salomon Smith Barney, 2006). If anyone on the call may be in California, treat the call as a California call. Video meetings are treated like phone calls, and the strictest rule that applies to anyone on the call is the one to follow.

What to say

Say it at the start, before anything else, and say it again when someone joins late.

“Quick note before we start: I’m recording and transcribing this meeting on my own computer for my notes. It isn’t shared with anyone unless I send it to you. Let me know if you’d rather I didn’t.”

How Recordist fits

You are the participant. Recordist records your own microphone and the audio arriving at your computer. No bot joins the call.
It asks before every recording. Nothing records until you confirm, and the confirm card can show the sentence above as a reminder.
The notice is still yours to give. Software cannot give consent for the other people. In California, tell them and get their agreement first.

Recordist is opening in small waves. Ask for a place.