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Slack vs Teams 2026: Cost, Features, Performance

Microsoft Teams costs significantly less for organizations already using Microsoft 365 (bundled at $6-12.50/user/month vs Slack's $8.25/user/month), while Slack offers superior search functionality, faster message delivery, and a more intuitive interface favored by design-focused teams.

S

Slack

Cloud-based team messaging platform with advanced search and customization.

Design agencies, startups, non-Microsoft tech stacks, teams prioritizing search and UX over cost

Score63%
VS
Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams

Unified communications platform bundled with Microsoft 365 productivity suite.

Enterprise Microsoft 365 customers, organizations needing integrated document collaboration, cost-sensitive departments

Score63%

Quick Answer

AI Summary

Microsoft Teams costs significantly less for organizations already using Microsoft 365 (bundled at $6-12.50/user/month vs Slack's $8.25/user/month), while Slack offers superior search functionality, faster message delivery, and a more intuitive interface favored by design-focused teams.

Our Verdict

AI-assisted

Choose Microsoft Teams if your organization uses Microsoft 365, values tight Office document collaboration, and prioritizes cost-effectiveness—Teams' bundled pricing saves 40-60% versus Slack for most enterprises. Choose Slack if you need superior search capabilities, prefer a cleaner interface, work in a non-Microsoft ecosystem, or value faster real-time performance for high-volume communication teams.

Community feedback

Was this verdict helpful?

S
Slack
7/10
Microsoft Teams
8/10
S

Choose Slack if

Design agencies, startups, non-Microsoft tech stacks, teams prioritizing search and UX over cost

Microsoft Teams

Choose Microsoft Teams if

Best pick

Enterprise Microsoft 365 customers, organizations needing integrated document collaboration, cost-sensitive departments

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Key Differences at a Glance

  • Pricing (Annual Per User):Microsoft Teams wins(Free or $6-12.50/year with Microsoft 365 vs $99/year (Pro plan))
  • Message Search Speed:Slack wins(Instant indexing across all messages vs 3-month free tier limit, then indexed)
  • Free Tier Message History:Microsoft Teams wins(Unlimited with Teams Free vs Last 90 days)
See all 7 differences

Key Facts & Figures

132 numeric metrics compared

MetricSlackMicrosoft TeamsRatio
Daily Active Users(millions)~38 Million320 million
App Integrations(count)2,600+~700
Paid Starting Price(USD/user/mo)$7.25Included with M365
Standalone Monthly Pricing (Pro Tier)(USD per user per month)$7.25$6.00 (with Microsoft 365 Business Basic)
Annual Cost per User (Pro Tier)(USD)$87 (billed yearly)$72 (bundled pricing)
Third-party App Integrations(apps)2,400+1,000+
Video Meeting Capacity(participants)Up to 2,000 (with paid plan)Up to 10,000
Mobile App Feature Parity(%)95%85%
Base Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$8.25 (Pro plan, min 3 users)
Free Tier Meeting Participant Limit(participants)Unlimited (Slack Huddles for video limited to 50 participants)
Asynchronous Communication Strength(scale 1-5)5 out of 5 (core feature with channels, threads, and history)
Google Workspace Integration Level2 out of 5 (available via integration, not native)
AI Features Count (2026)(features)30+ (CRM tools, meeting summaries, automation, SlackBot enhancements)
Base Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$7.25
Business+ Tier Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$12.50
Available Integrations(integrations)2000+
Price Stability (2024-2026)(months)No increases for 33 months
Free Tier Cost(USD)Free
Pro/Standard Monthly Cost(USD per user/month)$7.25
Third-party Integrations(integrations)2000+
Minimum Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$7.25
Third-Party Integrations Available(count)2,000+
Years Price Stable (2026)(months)33+ months
Native Integrations Available(count)2,200+
Pro Plan Annual Cost(USD)$150 (billed monthly)$70/year (via Microsoft 365 Business Basic)
Free Tier Message History Retention(days)90 days
AI Transcription Languages Supported(languages)0 (not native feature)
Enterprise Uptime SLA(percent)99.99%
User Workspace Limit (Free Tier)(workspaces)1 workspace
Maximum Meeting Participants (Free)(participants)3 participants
Pro Plan Monthly Cost (Annual Billing)(USD per user)$8.75
Available Integrations(count)2,000+ integrations
Monthly Cost (Pro Plan)(USD)$12.50 per user/month
Free Message History(days)90 days maximum
Voice Audio Codec Quality(kHz)16 kHz
Third-Party Integrations(count)2000+ integrations500+
Maximum Video Call Participants(people)15 participants
Total Registered Users(millions)750 million
Enterprise Plan Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$12.50
Free Plan Message History Retention(days)90 days
Third-Party Integrations Available(integrations)2,300+ integrations
Paid Plan Starting Price(USD/user/month)$7.25$6
Cloud Storage (Base Plan)(GB)10 GB
Monthly Cost Per User(USD)$8-12.50 (Pro/Business+)
Active Workspaces(workspaces)750,000+
Native Integrations(integrations)2,300+
Message History Searchable(years)10 years standard
Workflow Automation Steps(built-in steps)50+
Native App Integrations Available(count)2,400+ apps
Monthly Cost (Pro Plan, 50 users)(USD)$412.50/month
Paid Workspaces/Users (Enterprise Adoption)(workspaces)750,000+ paid workspaces
Monthly Cost (10 Users, Annual)(USD)$150/month ($1,800/year)
Pre-built Integrations(count)2,400+ integrations
Message History on Free Plan(days)90-day limited access
Active Global Workspaces/Deployments(count)750,000+ active workspaces
Uptime SLA Guarantee(%)99.99%
Price Per User Per Month (Pro/Standard)(USD)$12.50/user (Pro plan)
Base Monthly Cost (10-person team)(USD)$80-150
Cost for 50-person team(USD/month)$400-750
Real-time Messaging Speed(ms (message delivery latency))50-100ms (instant)
File Storage Included(GB)5GB (Free), varies by plan
Setup Time for New Team(hours)0.5-1 hour
Max Video Conference Participants(people)100010000
Message History (Free Plan)(days)90unlimited
Voice Codec Quality Rating(score (1-10))7.58
Enterprise Security Certifications(count)SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, GDPRSOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, GDPR, DLP, eDiscovery
Time to Deploy(days)3-71-3
Uptime Guarantee(%)99.99%99.9%
Pro Plan Monthly Cost(USD)$8.75$6.50 or free with Microsoft 365
Video Conference Max Participants(participants)150300
Free Tier File Storage(GB per user)1 GB shared workspace100 GB per user
Message Search History (Free Tier)(days)90 days90 days
Annual Subscription Cost (Pro, 100 users)(USD)$10,500$7,800 or free with Microsoft 365
Desktop App Memory Usage(MB)280 MB450 MB
Monthly subscription cost (Pro plan)(USD per user)$12.50
Native third-party integrations(count)100+500+ apps
Message search response time(milliseconds)<500ms
User interface satisfaction rating(out of 10)9.2/10
Maximum video call participants (free tier)(people)100 participants
Service uptime SLA guarantee(percent)99.99%
Message history retention (free plan)(days)90 days searchable
Enterprise app marketplace size(applications)2,000+ apps (Slack App Directory)
Team Size Cost Efficiency Threshold(team members)Cost-effective until ~12 users
Message History Searchability(months)90 days (Free/Pro), unlimited with Enterprise
Average User Adoption Time(days)1-3 days
Global Active Users(millions)750+ million messages daily across 750k+ organizations
Monthly Subscription Cost (Pro/Standard)(USD)$8.25$0 (bundled) or $12.50 (standalone)
Message Delivery Latency(milliseconds)<100ms200-300ms
File Upload Limit(GB)20GB250GB
Message History Retention (Free Tier)(days)90 daysUnlimited
G2 Ease of Use Rating (2024)(stars)4.5/54.0/5
Video Meeting Participant Limit(participants)2000300
Maximum Webinar Participants(participants)10,00010,000
Free Meeting Duration Limit(minutes)60 minutes60 minutes
Maximum Free Breakout Rooms(rooms)50 rooms50 rooms
Starting Paid Plan Cost(USD/month)$6/month (Microsoft 365 bundle)$6/month (Microsoft 365 bundle)
Free Plan Monthly Cost(USD)$6 (Teams Essentials)$6 (Teams Essentials)
Maximum Free Tier Group Meeting Duration(hours)24 hours24 hours
Free Tier Participant Limit(participants)100 participants100 participants
Gartner Meeting Solutions Rating(stars)4.5 stars4.5 stars
Gartner Review Sample Size(reviews)3,669 reviews3,669 reviews
Gartner Customer Rating(stars)4.5 stars4.5 stars
Customer Reviews Analyzed(count)3,668 reviews3,668 reviews
Video Quality Rating(%)7.9% positive7.9% positive
Maximum Meeting Participants(participants)1,000+ participants1,000+ participants
Starting Monthly Price per User(USD)$4.50$4.50
Free Meeting Duration (3+ participants)(minutes)60 minutes60 minutes
Real-Time Translation Languages(count)31 languages31 languages
Enterprise Deployment Adoption (500+ seat orgs)(percentage)67% of deployments67% of deployments
3-Year TCO Advantage for 1,000 Users with M365(percentage savings)47% lower cost47% lower cost
Base Pricing (Monthly)(USD)$7.00 (Business Basic 2026 price)$7.00 (Business Basic 2026 price)
Maximum Video Meeting Participants(participants)300+ participants300+ participants
Language Translation Support(languages)40+ languages (Teams Premium)40+ languages (Teams Premium)
Registered Users Globally(millions)350+ million monthly active users350+ million monthly active users
Monthly Active Users (MAU)(millions)320M320M
Free Plan Meeting Duration Limit(minutes)60 minutes (group calls)60 minutes (group calls)
Minimum Bandwidth for HD Video(Mbps)4.5 Mbps4.5 Mbps
Monthly Active Users (2024)(millions)320 million320 million
Starting Price (Monthly)(USD)$0 (Free) or $6 (Standard)$0 (Free) or $6 (Standard)
Maximum Video Conference Participants(participants)10,000 participants10,000 participants
Voice Latency(ms)50-100ms50-100ms
Free Tier Call Duration Limit(minutes)60 minutes (100 participants max)60 minutes (100 participants max)
Monthly Cost (1 Pro User)(USD)$6.00$6.00
Screen Sharing Maximum FPS(fps)30fps30fps
Supported Language Captions(languages)60+ languages60+ languages
Maximum Free Server Categories(categories)Limited (fixed structure)Limited (fixed structure)
Enterprise Fortune 500 Adoption Rate(percent)80%80%
Free Tier Meeting Duration for Group Calls(minutes)60 minutes (unlimited participants)60 minutes (unlimited participants)
Maximum Participants (Standard Meeting)(people)300 participants300 participants
Free Plan Cloud Storage(GB)5 GB (OneDrive)5 GB (OneDrive)
Breakout Rooms Maximum Count(rooms)50 breakout rooms50 breakout rooms
Global Enterprise Video Conferencing Market Share (2024)(percent)28.2%28.2%

Sourced from publicly available data ·

Key Differences

7 attributes compared head-to-head

S
3Slack
Microsoft Teams leads
Microsoft Teams
4Microsoft Teams
  • Pricing (Annual Per User)

    Slack

    $99/year (Pro plan)

    Microsoft Teams

    Free or $6-12.50/year with Microsoft 365(winner)

  • Message Search Speed

    Slack

    Instant indexing across all messages(winner)

    Microsoft Teams

    3-month free tier limit, then indexed

  • Free Tier Message History

    Slack

    Last 90 days

    Microsoft Teams

    Unlimited with Teams Free(winner)

  • Microsoft 365 Integration

    Slack

    Basic API integration

    Microsoft Teams

    Native deep integration with Office, OneDrive, SharePoint(winner)

  • User Interface Rating (G2 2024)

    Slack

    4.5/5 stars (ease of use)(winner)

    Microsoft Teams

    4.0/5 stars (ease of use)

  • Message Delivery Speed

    Slack

    <100ms average latency(winner)

    Microsoft Teams

    200-300ms average latency

  • Maximum File Upload Size

    Slack

    20GB per file

    Microsoft Teams

    250GB per file (via OneDrive)(winner)

Full Comparison

SSlack
Microsoft Teams
Daily Active Users(millions)
~38 Million
320 million
App Integrations(count)
2,600+
~700
Google Workspace Native Integration
Limited (requires custom setup)
Available Integrations(count)
2,000+ integrations
Native third-party integrations(count)
100+
500+ apps
Native Microsoft 365 Integration(integration level)
API-based (basic)
Native (deep)
Show 3 more attributes
Microsoft 365 Integration Depth(integration level)
8+ apps (Outlook, Excel, Word, OneDrive, SharePoint, Project, Planner, Power BI)
Native Microsoft Office Integration
Full (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)
Microsoft 365 Ecosystem Integration(integration depth)
Native: Word, Excel, SharePoint, OneDrive, Outlook, Power BI
Paid Starting Price(USD/user/mo)
$7.25
Included with M365
Standalone Monthly Pricing (Pro Tier)(USD per user per month)
$7.25
$6.00 (with Microsoft 365 Business Basic)
Annual Cost per User (Pro Tier)(USD)
$87 (billed yearly)
$72 (bundled pricing)
Base Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$8.25 (Pro plan, min 3 users)
Base Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$7.25
Business+ Tier Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$12.50
Show 29 more attributes
Price Stability (2024-2026)(months)
No increases for 33 months
Free Tier Cost(USD)
Free
Pro/Standard Monthly Cost(USD per user/month)
$7.25
Minimum Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$7.25
Years Price Stable (2026)(months)
33+ months
Pro Plan Annual Cost(USD)
$150 (billed monthly)
$70/year (via Microsoft 365 Business Basic)
Pro Plan Monthly Cost (Annual Billing)(USD per user)
$8.75
Monthly Cost (Pro Plan)(USD)
$12.50 per user/month
Enterprise Plan Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$12.50
Paid Plan Starting Price(USD/user/month)
$7.25
$6
Monthly Cost Per User(USD)
$8-12.50 (Pro/Business+)
Monthly Cost (Pro Plan, 50 users)(USD)
$412.50/month
Monthly Cost (10 Users, Annual)(USD)
$150/month ($1,800/year)
Price Per User Per Month (Pro/Standard)(USD)
$12.50/user (Pro plan)
Base Monthly Cost (10-person team)(USD)
$80-150
Cost for 50-person team(USD/month)
$400-750
Pro Plan Monthly Cost(USD)
$8.75
$6.50 or free with Microsoft 365
Annual Subscription Cost (Pro, 100 users)(USD)
$10,500
$7,800 or free with Microsoft 365
Monthly subscription cost (Pro plan)(USD per user)
$12.50
Team Size Cost Efficiency Threshold(team members)
Cost-effective until ~12 users
Monthly Subscription Cost (Pro/Standard)(USD)
$8.25
$0 (bundled) or $12.50 (standalone)
Starting Paid Plan Cost(USD/month)
$6/month (Microsoft 365 bundle)
Free Plan Monthly Cost(USD)
$6 (Teams Essentials)
Starting Monthly Price per User(USD)
$4.50
Base Pricing (Monthly)(USD)
$7.00 (Business Basic 2026 price)
Free Plan Meeting Duration Limit(minutes)
60 minutes (group calls)
Starting Price (Monthly)(USD)
$0 (Free) or $6 (Standard)
Free Tier Call Duration Limit(minutes)
60 minutes (100 participants max)
Monthly Cost (1 Pro User)(USD)
$6.00
Third-party App Integrations(apps)
2,400+
1,000+
Third-party Integrations(integrations)
2000+
Native Integrations Available(count)
2,200+
Native Integrations(integrations)
2,300+
Video Meeting Capacity(participants)
Up to 2,000 (with paid plan)
Up to 10,000
Native Office Integration
Limited (third-party connectors)
Native with SharePoint, OneDrive, Office Web Apps
AI Copilot Features
Slack AI (summarization, search, assisted writing)
Microsoft Copilot Pro (enterprise AI, meeting insights)
Free Tier Meeting Participant Limit(participants)
Unlimited (Slack Huddles for video limited to 50 participants)
Native Video Conferencing
Huddles for brief video, limited to 50 participants; requires external tool for full conferencing
Show 31 more attributes
Meeting Recording & Auto-Transcription
Not native; requires integration with Otter.ai or similar third-party services
Asynchronous Communication Strength(scale 1-5)
5 out of 5 (core feature with channels, threads, and history)
Third-Party Integrations Available(count)
2,000+
Enterprise AI Features
Advanced AI assistant, smart summaries, automation
Free Message History(days)
90 days maximum
Free Plan Message History Retention(days)
90 days
Free Plan External Guest Collaboration(capacity)
Unlimited external guests via workspace invite
Email Service Included
No
Message History Searchable(years)
10 years standard
Workflow Automation Steps(built-in steps)
50+
Message History on Free Plan(days)
90-day limited access
Message History Retention(status)
10,000 messages (free); unlimited (paid)
Built-in Project Management(status)
No (requires integrations)
Max Video Conference Participants(people)
1000
10000
Message History (Free Plan)(days)
90
unlimited
Video Conference Max Participants(participants)
150
300
Message Search History (Free Tier)(days)
90 days
90 days
Message Search Speed (Free Tier)(indexing scope)
All messages indexed instantly
Last 3 months only
Message History Retention (Free Tier)(days)
90 days
Unlimited
Video Meeting Participant Limit(participants)
2000
300
Maximum Free Tier Group Meeting Duration(hours)
24 hours
AI Meeting Notes Availability
Premium only ($10/user/month)
AI Meeting Summaries
Basic transcription only
Free Meeting Duration (3+ participants)(minutes)
60 minutes
Real-Time Translation Languages(count)
31 languages
Maximum Video Meeting Participants(participants)
300+ participants
Language Translation Support(languages)
40+ languages (Teams Premium)
Maximum Video Conference Participants(participants)
10,000 participants
AI Assistant Integration(capability)
Copilot with GPT-4, speech-to-text, real-time translation
Supported Language Captions(languages)
60+ languages
Breakout Rooms Maximum Count(rooms)
50 breakout rooms
Message Search Speed(seconds)
Excellent - optimized search indexing
Good - improving with Copilot enhancements
Voice Audio Codec Quality(kHz)
16 kHz
Maximum Video Call Participants(people)
15 participants
Real-time Messaging Speed(ms (message delivery latency))
50-100ms (instant)
Desktop App Memory Usage(MB)
280 MB
450 MB
Show 5 more attributes
Message search response time(milliseconds)
<500ms
Message Delivery Latency(milliseconds)
<100ms
200-300ms
Minimum Bandwidth for HD Video(Mbps)
4.5 Mbps
Voice Latency(ms)
50-100ms
Screen Sharing Maximum FPS(fps)
30fps
Mobile App Feature Parity(%)
95%
85%
Mobile App Type
Native iOS/Android with feature-parity
Google Workspace Integration Level
2 out of 5 (available via integration, not native)
AI Features Count (2026)(features)
30+ (CRM tools, meeting summaries, automation, SlackBot enhancements)
Available Integrations(integrations)
2000+
Third-Party Integrations(count)
2000+ integrations
500+
Pre-built Integrations(count)
2,400+ integrations
Deployment Options
Cloud-based SaaS only
GDPR & Data Sovereignty Compliance
Compliant but data on Salesforce servers
End-to-End Encryption Available
DMs only, Enterprise+ plan
End-to-End Encryption Default
Not available
Enterprise Security Certifications(count)
SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, GDPR
SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, GDPR, DLP, eDiscovery
Enterprise Security Compliance(certifications)
ISO 27001, SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR
Maximum Meeting Participants(participants)
Unlimited group chats
Third-Party Integrations Available(integrations)
2,300+ integrations
Built-in Task Management(features)
No: messaging-only, requires integrations
Message History Searchability(months)
90 days (Free/Pro), unlimited with Enterprise
AI Features (2026)
Workflow automation, search enhancement
Real-Time Translation
Not available
Asynchronous Communication
Optimized with threads and archives
Zoom Rooms Cost(USD per room/month)
N/A
AI Assistant Capability
Slack AI (optional on paid plans)
AI Transcription Languages Supported(languages)
0 (not native feature)
AI Meeting Assistant
Slack AI (search, summarization, drafting)
AI Translation Languages (2026)(languages)
Limited translation features
AI Meeting Assistant Cost(USD/month)
Copilot Pro required ($20+ per tenant)
Workflow Automation Complexity
Advanced with conditional logic
Storage Per User (Standard Plan)(GB)
Variable by plan
Cloud Storage (Base Plan)(GB)
10 GB
File Storage Included(GB)
5GB (Free), varies by plan
Free Tier File Storage(GB per user)
1 GB shared workspace
100 GB per user
Message history retention (free plan)(days)
90 days searchable
Show 3 more attributes
File Upload Limit(GB)
20GB
250GB
Meeting Recording Retention (Free)(days)
Unlimited (OneDrive)
Free Plan Cloud Storage(GB)
5 GB (OneDrive)
Open Source
No, proprietary
Maximum Video Length (Free Tier)(minutes)
N/A
Maximum Video Resolution(pixels)
Requires 3rd party
1080p (1920x1080)
Maximum Video Sharing Quality(fps at resolution)
4K at 30fps
Free Tier Message History Retention(days)
90 days
Enterprise Uptime SLA(percent)
99.99%
Uptime SLA Guarantee(%)
99.99%
Service uptime SLA guarantee(percent)
99.99%
User Workspace Limit (Free Tier)(workspaces)
1 workspace
Maximum Meeting Participants (Free)(participants)
3 participants
Maximum Meeting Participants (Paid)(participants)
Unlimited (slide deck view only)
Free Plan Message History(months)
90 days
FedRAMP Authorization(boolean)
No
HIPAA Compliance Certified
Yes (Business+ plan required)
Yes
Data Residency Control
Microsoft-managed regional datacenters (limited control)
SOC 2 Type II Certified
Yes
Custom Workflow Automation
Advanced (Workflow Builder, automations)
Users Per Workspace(count)
Unlimited
Maximum Webinar Participants(participants)
10,000
Maximum Meeting Participants(participants)
1,000+ participants
Total Registered Users(millions)
750 million
Daily Posts Published (Organic)(millions)
N/A
Active Workspaces(workspaces)
750,000+
Global Active Users(millions)
750+ million messages daily across 750k+ organizations
Registered Users Globally(millions)
350+ million monthly active users
Monthly Active Users (MAU)(millions)
320M
Threading Model
Channel-based threads (contextual loss in active channels)
Deployment Options
Cloud-only (SaaS)
Open Source
Proprietary (closed-source)
Native Video/Audio Calls
Yes (Slack Huddles)
Native App Integrations Available(count)
2,400+ apps
Self-Hosting Capability
No, cloud-only
Self-Hosted/On-Premises Option
No (cloud-only)
Paid Workspaces/Users (Enterprise Adoption)(workspaces)
750,000+ paid workspaces
Active Global Workspaces/Deployments(count)
750,000+ active workspaces
Source Code Availability
Proprietary/closed
Proprietary (closed-source)
Setup Time for New Team(hours)
0.5-1 hour
Voice Codec Quality Rating(score (1-10))
7.5
8
Voice Chat Quality Rating(subjective score)
Excellent (optimized for reliability)
Time to Deploy(days)
3-7
1-3
Learning Curve(1-10 scale (1=easiest))
2
5
User Learning Curve(difficulty rating)
Steep (enterprise-focused interface)
Uptime Guarantee(%)
99.99%
99.9%
Monthly Active Users(users)
750,000 paid customers
320 million monthly active users
User interface satisfaction rating(out of 10)
9.2/10
Average User Adoption Time(days)
1-3 days
G2 Ease of Use Rating (2024)(stars)
4.5/5
4.0/5
Maximum video call participants (free tier)(people)
100 participants
Enterprise app marketplace size(applications)
2,000+ apps (Slack App Directory)
Free Cloud Recording Capability
No, paid only
Free Meeting Duration Limit(minutes)
60 minutes
Office 365 Native Integration
Full native integration
Browser Join Without App
Often requires app/account
Maximum Free Breakout Rooms(rooms)
50 rooms
Free Tier Participant Limit(participants)
100 participants
Maximum Participants (Standard Meeting)(people)
300 participants
Advanced Chat Features (Channels, Threading, Workflows)
Advanced (channels, nested threads, queues, connectors)
Gartner Meeting Solutions Rating(stars)
4.5 stars
Gartner Review Sample Size(reviews)
3,669 reviews
Gartner Customer Rating(stars)
4.5 stars
Customer Reviews Analyzed(count)
3,668 reviews
3-Year Total Cost of Ownership (1,000 users)(USD)
Lower (integrated M365)
Video Quality Rating(%)
7.9% positive
Real-Time Translation Support(null)
Limited to basic captions
Native Cisco Hardware Integration(null)
Third-party device support only
AI Features in Base Tier
Limited (Copilot requires E5)
Enterprise Deployment Adoption (500+ seat orgs)(percentage)
67% of deployments
Global Enterprise Video Conferencing Market Share (2024)(percent)
28.2%
3-Year TCO Advantage for 1,000 Users with M365(percentage savings)
47% lower cost
Video Resolution Support(maximum resolution)
4K (3840x2160)
Supported Operating Systems(platforms)
Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Web
Monthly Active Users (2024)(millions)
320 million
Maximum Free Server Categories(categories)
Limited (fixed structure)
Enterprise Fortune 500 Adoption Rate(percent)
80%
Free Tier Meeting Duration for Group Calls(minutes)
60 minutes (unlimited participants)

Pros & Cons

10 pros·6 cons across both

S
Microsoft Teams
S

Slack

+5-3

Pros

  • Industry-leading message search with instant full-text indexing across all conversations
  • Intuitive, aesthetically refined interface with 4.5/5 G2 ease-of-use rating
  • Sub-100ms message latency enabling real-time collaboration for fast-paced teams
  • 20GB file upload limit and robust third-party app ecosystem (2,000+ integrations)
  • Channel-first architecture with granular permission controls for security-focused orgs

Cons

  • $99/user/year (Pro) makes it 60% more expensive than Teams for Microsoft 365 subscribers
  • Limited native integration with enterprise systems compared to Microsoft's ecosystem
  • Free tier only retains last 90 days of messages, requiring paid upgrade for history
Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams

+5-3

Pros

  • Included free in Microsoft 365 subscriptions ($6-12.50/user/month), eliminating standalone costs
  • Native integration with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, and SharePoint for seamless doc collaboration
  • Unlimited message history on Teams Free tier, no paywall for conversation archival
  • 250GB per-file upload limit via OneDrive integration exceeds Slack's 20GB
  • Meeting capability with up to 300 participants included, reducing need for separate video tools

Cons

  • 200-300ms message latency creates noticeable delays in real-time fast-paced conversations
  • Search functionality limited to 3 months free; older messages require indexing before searchability
  • Interface rated 4.0/5 on G2 with more cluttered UX due to feature density and Microsoft legacy design patterns

Frequently Asked Questions

5 questions

  1. Teams is substantially cheaper for organizations using Microsoft 365. If you're already paying for Microsoft 365 ($6-12.50/user/month), Teams is bundled at no additional cost. Slack's Pro plan costs $8.25/user/month standalone, making Teams 60-100% cheaper for Microsoft shops. However, for non-Microsoft environments or teams that don't use Office 365, both tools cost similarly.

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