Choose Cluely if you're on a Mac or want the AI to hear the call and write notes for you. Choose AuraCloak if you're on Windows 10 or 11, want screen share hiding without paying $149.99 a month, or want to use your own OpenAI, Claude, Gemini or Copilot access. AuraCloak costs $9 a month or $49 once.
Quick verdict
Choose Cluely if:
- You want automatic meeting notes, transcripts and follow-ups.
- You want the AI to pick up context from the conversation without you typing.
- You use a Mac or want an iPhone app.
- You don't need screen share hiding, so the free Starter or $19.99 Pro plan covers you.
Choose AuraCloak if:
- You're on Windows 10 (version 2004+) or Windows 11.
- You need the window kept out of Zoom, Teams or Meet shares and recordings on a budget.
- You already pay for ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, GitHub Copilot or an API and want to use that.
- You'd rather nothing records the call audio.
At-a-glance comparison
Cluely data from cluely.com, cluely.com/pricing and cluely.com/download, checked October 11, 2026.
| AuraCloak | Cluely | |
|---|---|---|
| Price with screen share hiding | $9/mo or $49 once | $149.99/mo |
| Free plan | No | Yes, limited responses |
| Platforms | Windows 10 (2004+), Windows 11 | macOS 10.15+, Windows 11, iOS |
| AI models | Your choice: OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Azure OpenAI, custom endpoint, or web AI in browser mode | Bundled by Cluely |
| Call audio | Never captured | Listens, records, transcribes |
| Voice input | Push-to-talk mic: Windows speech, Azure, Whisper API, Google, or local Whisper | Listens to the conversation |
| Screenshots to AI | All monitors or one, via hotkey | Yes, reads your screen |
| Meeting notes | No | Yes |
| Where chats live | On your PC only, no account | Stored by Cluely, so you can ask AI about past meetings |
How we compared
We build AuraCloak, so read this with that in mind. For Cluely we used its own public pages on October 11, 2026: the pricing grid, the download page's system requirements and the product descriptions on its homepage. We didn't subscribe to the $149.99 tier, so we don't rate how well Cluely's hidden mode works or how good its answers are. Where we're not sure, we say so.
Head-to-head
Price: AuraCloak wins on hidden mode, Cluely wins on free
Cluely's Starter plan is free, and AuraCloak has no free plan. That's a real point for Cluely if you just want to try an overlay. But the moment you need the window kept out of your screen share, Cluely's price jumps from $19.99 to $149.99 a month. AuraCloak's $49 lifetime license is about a third of one month of that.
Platforms: Cluely covers more, AuraCloak covers Windows 10
Cluely runs on Mac, iPhone and Windows 11. AuraCloak is Windows only. If your work laptop is still on Windows 10 (very common in companies that delay upgrades), Cluely doesn't list support for it and AuraCloak does, back to version 2004 from May 2020.
AI models: AuraCloak lets you choose
Cluely picks the models for you and folds the cost into the plan. AuraCloak doesn't include AI; you connect it. That sounds like a chore until you notice what it allows. A developer can sign in with GitHub and use their Copilot subscription. A company on Azure OpenAI can point AuraCloak at its own deployment. Someone running Ollama or LM Studio can keep prompts on their own machine. And anyone with ChatGPT Plus or Claude Pro can use browser mode, which loads the normal web app inside the hidden overlay with no API key.
Listening: Cluely hears the call, AuraCloak doesn't
This is the biggest difference and it cuts both ways. Cluely listens to the meeting, so it can suggest an answer to a question you didn't type. AuraCloak never captures call audio. You press Alt+V, speak into your own mic, and press it again to send. With the local Whisper option (base model 141 MB, small 465 MB), that audio doesn't leave your PC at all.
If you work under rules about recording calls (client confidentiality, two-party consent, a company policy), a tool that never touches call audio is much easier to justify.
Screen share hiding: same idea, different price
AuraCloak calls SetWindowDisplayAffinity with WDA_EXCLUDEFROMCAPTURE, so Windows leaves it out of Zoom, Teams, Meet in a browser, Slack, Discord, OBS, Loom, Xbox Game Bar and the Snipping Tool. Cluely says its window "never shows up in shared screens, recordings, or external meeting tools" on the undetectability plan. Neither can hide from a phone camera pointed at the screen. We cover the details in WDA_EXCLUDEFROMCAPTURE explained.
Hidden from screen share on both plans, with the AI you already use.
See AuraCloak pricingPricing over one and two years
AuraCloak's AI usage is billed by your provider, or covered by an existing ChatGPT or Claude subscription in browser mode. Cluely's prices include AI.
| Plan | Hides from screen share | Year 1 | Two years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cluely Starter | No | $0 | $0 |
| Cluely Pro, billed yearly | No | $143.88 | $287.76 |
| Cluely Pro, monthly | No | $239.88 | $479.76 |
| Cluely Pro + Undetectability | Yes | $1,799.88 | $3,599.76 |
| AuraCloak monthly | Yes | $108 | $216 |
| AuraCloak lifetime | Yes | $49 | $49 |
Cluely's "from $11.99/mo" figure is Pro billed yearly. The full breakdown, including the free plan's limits, is in Cluely pricing 2026.
Which one for which job
- Account manager on a Mac running back-to-back client calls: Cluely. The automatic notes save real time, and you might not need screen share hiding at all.
- Sales engineer on a Windows 10 corporate laptop, demoing while sharing the full screen: AuraCloak. It runs on that laptop, hides during the demo, and can use the company's Azure OpenAI deployment.
- Developer pairing over Teams: AuraCloak. Screenshot a stack trace with Alt+S and ask Copilot or Claude without the overlay showing in the shared IDE.
- Someone who just wants to try an overlay for free: Cluely Starter, or Natively and Pluely if you want free plus hidden mode. See all alternatives.
Pros and cons
Cluely pros: free plan; listens and takes notes; Mac, iPhone and Windows 11; no AI setup.
Cluely cons: hidden mode costs $149.99 a month; no Windows 10 listed; no bring-your-own-key; built around recording and transcribing call audio.
AuraCloak pros: hidden mode on both plans; $49 lifetime option; Windows 10 and 11; six AI provider types plus browser mode; no account; never captures call audio.
AuraCloak cons: Windows only; no free plan; no transcription or meeting notes; you set up the AI yourself.
Still deciding? The Cluely alternative page walks through switching in about ten minutes.
FAQ
Is AuraCloak cheaper than Cluely?
For screen share hiding, yes. Cluely includes it only in Pro + Undetectability at $149.99 a month (checked October 2026). AuraCloak includes it in both plans: $9 a month or $49 once. Cluely's free Starter plan costs less than either AuraCloak plan, but it doesn't hide from screen share.
Does AuraCloak take meeting notes like Cluely?
No. AuraCloak does not record, transcribe or summarize meetings. It is an AI chat overlay that answers what you type, say with push-to-talk, or screenshot. If automatic notes matter most, Cluely is the better fit.
Can I use Claude or Gemini in Cluely?
Cluely bundles its AI models into its plans and does not offer a bring-your-own-key option on its pricing page. AuraCloak lets you pick OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, GitHub Copilot, Azure OpenAI or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint, or use ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini web through browser mode.
Which is better on Windows 10?
AuraCloak. It supports Windows 10 version 2004 or later and Windows 11. Cluely's download page lists Windows 11 as the Windows requirement.
Can I switch from Cluely to AuraCloak?
Yes. There is nothing to migrate since AuraCloak stores no meeting history. Install AuraCloak, enter your license key, choose an AI provider or browser mode, test with a self-meeting screen share, then cancel your Cluely renewal.