Zoom dominates video conferencing with superior meeting quality and ease of use, while Microsoft Teams excels as an integrated workplace platform with deeper Office 365 integration and better collaboration features for enterprise users already in the Microsoft ecosystem.
Microsoft Teams vs Zoom — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
All-in-one workplace collaboration platform with video, chat, and Office integration
Industry-leading video conferencing platform with advanced features and enterprise reliability.
Video Quality at Scale. Free Meeting Duration Limit. Office Integration. Maximum Participants Per Meeting. Chat and Messaging. Ease of Use (First-Time Users). Cost for 500+ Employees (Annual)
Choose Zoom if you need the simplest, most reliable video conferencing with minimal setup and best-in-class call quality for external meetings and webinars. Choose Microsoft Teams if your organization uses Office 365, requires deep document collaboration, persistent team communication, and wants to consolidate tools into one platform.
Microsoft Teams: 320 million | Zoom: 300 million
Microsoft Teams: Included with M365 | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: No, paid only | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Full native integration | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Often requires app/account | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $6/month (Microsoft 365 bundle) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Limited translation features | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $6.00 (with Microsoft 365 Business Basic) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $72 (bundled pricing) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Up to 10,000 | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Native with SharePoint, OneDrive, Office Web Apps | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Microsoft Copilot Pro (enterprise AI, meeting insights) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 2-4 seconds average | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $6 (Teams Essentials) | Zoom: $0
Maximum Free Tier Group Meeting Duration
Microsoft Teams: 100 participants | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Premium only ($10/user/month) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 8+ apps (Outlook, Excel, Word, OneDrive, SharePoint, Project, Planner, Power BI) | Zoom: N/A
Advanced Chat Features (Channels, Threading, Workflows)
Microsoft Teams: Advanced (channels, nested threads, queues, connectors) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 3,669 reviews | Zoom: N/A
3-Year Total Cost of Ownership (1,000 users)
Microsoft Teams: Lower (integrated M365) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 3,668 reviews | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 7.9% positive | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Limited to basic captions | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Basic transcription only | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Third-party device support only | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 60 minutes | Zoom: 40 minutes
Microsoft Teams: Limited (Copilot requires E5) | Zoom: Yes (AI Companion 3.0)
Microsoft Teams: 4K at 30fps | Zoom: 60fps at 1080p
Microsoft Teams: 31 languages | Zoom: 40+ languages (2026)
Enterprise Deployment Adoption (500+ seat orgs)
Microsoft Teams: 67% of deployments | Zoom: 33% of deployments
3-Year TCO Advantage for 1,000 Users with M365
Microsoft Teams: 47% lower cost | Zoom: Baseline (higher cost)
Microsoft Teams: $7.00 (Business Basic 2026 price) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 300+ participants | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Excellent (optimized for reliability) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 4K (3840x2160) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 40+ languages (Teams Premium) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Steep (enterprise-focused interface) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 350+ million monthly active users | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: ISO 27001, SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 1080p (1920x1080) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 60 minutes (group calls) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Unlimited (OneDrive) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Full (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Copilot Pro required ($20+ per tenant) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Web | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 320 million | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $0 (Free) or $6 (Standard) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 10,000 participants | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Cloud-only (SaaS) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Proprietary (closed-source) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Copilot with GPT-4, speech-to-text, real-time translation | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Microsoft-managed regional datacenters (limited control) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, GDPR, DLP, eDiscovery | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 360 million | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 100 GB per user | Zoom: N/A
Annual Subscription Cost (Pro, 100 users)
Microsoft Teams: $7,800 or free with Microsoft 365 | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 60 minutes (100 participants max) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 60+ languages | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Limited (fixed structure) | Zoom: N/A
Free Tier Meeting Duration for Group Calls
Microsoft Teams: 60 minutes (unlimited participants) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $70/year (via Microsoft 365 Business Basic) | Zoom: $191.88/year
Microsoft Teams: 300 participants | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 5 GB (OneDrive) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 50 breakout rooms | Zoom: N/A
Global Enterprise Video Conferencing Market Share (2024)
Microsoft Teams: Native: Word, Excel, SharePoint, OneDrive, Outlook, Power BI | Zoom: N/A
Monthly Subscription Cost (Pro/Standard)
Microsoft Teams: $0 (bundled) or $12.50 (standalone) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Last 3 months only | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Native (deep) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 300+ million users | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: $4.00 (Teams Essentials) - $12.50 (Teams Premium) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 2 GB per file | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 1,000+ native integrations | Zoom: 1000+
Microsoft Teams: Proprietary closed-source | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Cloud-only SaaS | Zoom: N/A
Annual TCO (1,000 users, 3-year average)
Microsoft Teams: $48,000-150,000 | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 1000 (1TB OneDrive) | Zoom: N/A
Maximum Video Conference Participants (Free)
Microsoft Teams: 4.1/5 (8,300 reviews) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Basic keyword search (limited free tier) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: 300 standard | Zoom: 300 standard (1000 webinar)
Microsoft Teams: $0 (limited) | Zoom: $0 (limited)
Microsoft Teams: 1920x1080 | Zoom: 1920x1080
Microsoft Teams: 1 primary | Zoom: 1 primary
Microsoft Teams: Unlimited in OneDrive | Zoom: Paid only
Microsoft Teams: 8 (Copilot, live transcription, noise suppression, translation) | Zoom: 3 (auto-transcription, noise suppression, chat summary)
Microsoft Teams: 8 (SOC 2, FedRAMP, HIPAA, ISO 27001) | Zoom: 6 (SOC 2, FedRAMP, HIPAA)
Microsoft Teams: 4 participants | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Available (free in 43 languages) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Office 365/Microsoft 365 (native) | Zoom: N/A
Microsoft Teams: Unlimited | Zoom: 40 minutes
Microsoft Teams: 1080p @ 30fps | Zoom: 1080p @ 30fps
Microsoft Teams: 4K @ 30fps (Premium only) | Zoom: 4K @ 60fps (Pro+)
Microsoft Teams: 10,000 | Zoom: 10,000 (Webinar)
Microsoft Teams: $15 (Essentials) / $20 (Standard) | Zoom: $20.99
Microsoft Teams: 36+ months | Zoom: 30 days
Microsoft Teams: 8-10 (account creation + installation) | Zoom: 1 (one-click join link)
Microsoft Teams: Native (OneDrive, SharePoint, Outlook, Excel co-auth) | Zoom: Basic (Calendar sync only)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 300 participants
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 5+ (Companion, Summaries, Previews, Smart Compose)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Rich formatting, code blocks, file sharing, emoji reactions
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Third-party plugin required
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 6+ (polls, Q&A, reactions, hand raising, breakout rooms, live transcription)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 1GB cloud storage
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Extensive HD with filters
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: iOS, Android, full feature parity
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 2-3 per month
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Yes (AI Companion)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Limited (varies by plan)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 100 participants
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 4.5 stars (6,286 reviews)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Separate add-on service
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Basic analytics
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Third-party compatible
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 1080p at 60fps
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 40 minutes (3+ participants)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Synchronous (real-time)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Basic editing, transcription
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: AI Companion 3.0, real-time translation, auto bug reporting
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 1000+ (webinar feature)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Schedule meeting in advance
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: AI Companion 3.0, agentic AI
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: AI Companion 3.0, real-time translation, agentic AI
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Available (AI Companion 3.0)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Secondary with Zoom Chat
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Moderately complex
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, ISO 27001
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Free Basic plan
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Pro plan $14-29
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 500+ (Professional tier)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 95+ languages (2026)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Not applicable (meeting-focused)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: AI Companion 3.0 with agentic AI
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Yes, SOC 2 Type II
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Up to 100 (time-limited to 40 minutes)
Average Setup Time for New Recording/Meeting
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 1,500+ integrations
AI Transcription Support (Standard Tier)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 40 hours/month (Zoom One plan)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: None (40 min meeting limit, no cloud recording)
Auto-Generated Captions Languages Supported
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Zoom English only (free plan); 128+ (paid)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 5-10 (scheduling + setup)
Enterprise Plan Starting Price (Monthly)
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: 10,000 participants
Microsoft Teams: N/A | Zoom: Local device only (extra $2.49/mo for cloud)
How to choose between Microsoft Teams and Zoom
Microsoft Teams vs Zoom — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Microsoft Teams vs Zoom. Contains 214 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Microsoft Teams vs Zoom — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Microsoft Teams vs Zoom.
Can I use Teams or Zoom for free without time limits?
Microsoft Teams offers unlimited free group meetings with no duration restrictions. Zoom's free plan limits group meetings to 40 minutes with 3+ participants, though one-on-one calls are unlimited. For organizations needing frequent group calls, Teams wins on free tier functionality.
Which platform integrates better with Microsoft Office?
Microsoft Teams is deeply integrated with Office 365—you can co-author documents in Teams without switching apps, access OneDrive and SharePoint files directly, and calendar invites sync with Outlook automatically. Zoom requires third-party integrations or manual setup for Office file access.
What's the video quality difference in real-world use?
Both support 1080p standard, but Zoom's 1080p is consistently cleaner and maintains quality better in poor network conditions. Zoom also offers 4K at 60fps on Pro plans versus Teams' 4K at 30fps (premium only). For external client/customer meetings where first impression matters, Zoom's video quality is demonstrably superior.
Which is cheaper for a 1,000-person company?
Microsoft Teams at $15-20/user/month standalone (or bundled in Microsoft 365) costs $15,000-20,000/year. Zoom Pro at $20.99/user/month costs $250,000+/year. However, if your organization already pays for Microsoft 365, Teams' marginal cost is zero, making it significantly cheaper.
Can meeting participants join without creating an account?
Yes, with Zoom—you can click a meeting link and join instantly without signing up. Microsoft Teams requires at least a guest account or Microsoft login, adding 2-3 minutes of friction for external participants. This makes Zoom superior for ad-hoc external meetings.
How to Choose Between Microsoft Teams and Zoom
Video Quality at Scale: Microsoft Teams has Up to 1080p at 30fps (standard), 4K with premium, while Zoom has 1080p at 30fps standard, 4K at 60fps with Zoom Pro.
Free Meeting Duration Limit: Microsoft Teams has Unlimited group meetings, while Zoom has 40 minutes for 3+ participants.
Office Integration: Microsoft Teams has Native integration with Office 365, SharePoint, OneDrive, Outlook, while Zoom has Basic calendar integration, requires third-party apps for Office sync.
Consider: Maximum Participants Per Meeting
Maximum Participants Per Meeting: Microsoft Teams has Up to 10,000 participants, while Zoom has Up to 10,000 participants (Zoom Webinar).
Chat and Messaging: Microsoft Teams has Full persistent chat with channels, threads, and 3+ years history, while Zoom has Limited chat, primarily meeting-focused, message history varies.
Consider: Ease of Use (First-Time Users)
Ease of Use (First-Time Users): Microsoft Teams has Steeper learning curve, requires account/sign-in, while Zoom has One-click join, no account required, intuitive interface.
Consider: Cost for 500+ Employees (Annual)
Cost for 500+ Employees (Annual): Microsoft Teams has $60-80/user with Microsoft 365 bundle ($15-20 standalone), while Zoom has $20.99/user/month (Pro Plan) or $31.99 (Business Plan).