In any discussion of video conferencing software, it’s worth noting that digital teleconferencing and screen sharing were already very popular among multinational corporations before COVID-19. But as businesses everywhere had to switch to a work-from-home model, the use of teleconferencing software skyrocketed.
With its catchy name, intuitive design, ability to expand easily, and a great array of free features, soaring Undoubtedly one of the most popular business communication tools today. It allows businesses to easily hold video conference calls, host webinars and host virtual events.
Compared to other alternatives, Zoom stands out for its cloud storage, HD video calling, and ability to accommodate large audiences. However, there may be other teleconferencing products on the market that better suit your needs. We’ve tested dozens of Zoom alternatives and compiled a list of the best alternatives available today.
Most notably, we love using Nextiva’s holistic teleconferencing capabilities, RingCentral’s powerful standalone meeting solutions, and ClickMeeting’s remote team management capabilities.
Let’s take a closer look.
Best Zoom Alternatives
In our research, we found Nextiva Be the best teleconferencing service for most business users. The software offers a powerful voice and video conferencing solution bundled with fax and team messaging, which is part of every subscription plan. Additionally, Nextiva offers programs for teams of all sizes that facilitate communication from team gatherings to public-facing events and webinars. If you are interested in Nextiva, Sign up for the program today and get up to 27% off.
If you’re looking for the best standalone video conferencing solution, our picks are Ring Central. This is the best tool for your organization if you don’t need internal messaging and phone services. RingCentral Video Pro is a free plan that gives you unlimited calling and up to 100 participants can join your calls without installing an app. This gives you the opportunity to try the software for as long as possible and upgrade to Pro+ for up to 200 participants and many other useful features. If you want to try RingCentral, subscribe to an annual payment plan and save 33%.
When it comes to phone calls, webinars and conference calls, we find Click to Conference Be the best alternative to Zoom. We chose ClickMeeting for this category because of the collaboration and presentation tools it offers, such as its whiteboard and conference call recording and playback capabilities. It’s important to note that, regardless of the plan you choose, ClickMeeting can accommodate up to 25 participants per meeting. If this sounds like the tool you need, Start your 30-day free trial today.
More Top-Rated Conference Calling Services
We’ve spent countless hours analyzing and comparing the best teleconferencing services on the market today. Every business has its own specific needs, and we believe there is a near-perfect teleconferencing solution for every type of organization. Our review analyzes and dissects what each of these tools has to offer to help you find the best match for your requirements. See all our top picks.
Our take on Zoom
Over the past few years, Zoom has become almost synonymous with video calling, like Google’s Internet searches. Today, organizations of all sizes in every industry use Zoom for their business communication needs. In the teleconferencing space, Zoom is the go-to app for video calling on desktops, tablets, and mobile devices.
Some of Zoom’s major customers include:
- 20th Century Fox
- Zendesk
- conductor
- Pandora
- drop box
- go daddy
- Uber
- Western Union
Affordability and scalability are one of the main reasons for Zoom’s popularity. The app can support video calls for up to 1,000 participants and up to 10,000 viewers on a large conference license, starting at $600 per year. For SMBs, Zoom offers a United Business plan that allows up to 300 participants for $300 per year.
Desktop users can join calls using a simple link without installing an app. Zoom meetings can run in any popular browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge or Safari.
In addition to video calls, Zoom allows you to collaborate during conference calls, share files, host webinars, enable cross-platform messaging, and record calls in the cloud.
Zoom is intuitively designed to enhance video calls, keeping only the most important options on the home screen and hiding the rest in the settings menu. This results in a focused and uncluttered experience for the user.
For all its advantages, Zoom also has some disadvantages. During our research, we came across some negative reviews about Zoom’s lack of adequate customer support, even for users of paid plans. Some customers have complained that it is difficult to reach a support agent, calls are dropped midway, and emails go unanswered.
Overall, Zoom is an affordable teleconferencing solution with a strong free plan.but as our Detailed Zoom Reviews Display, it may not be the best choice for you.In fact, in our A Comparison of the Best Conference Calling ServicesZoom is seventh out of eight.
Let’s take a look at how Zoom compares to some of its alternatives.
zoom ratio. Nextiva
When it comes to comprehensive and user-friendly software suitable for most users, Nextiva Seems like the best option today. Nextiva’s video conferencing capabilities, collaboration tools, and messaging capabilities are as good, if not better, than Zoom’s. Whether it’s a team gathering or a company-wide meeting, Nextiva shines with its powerful cross-platform application.
Zoom offers a robust free plan that allows unlimited meetings for up to 100 people. However, Nextiva doesn’t offer a free plan at all. They’ve only started offering conference calls on the Professional plan, $22.95 per user per month for up to 40 participants. This price level is available for 22 to 99 users. As the number of users increases, the price decreases.
Compared to Zoom, we found that Nextiva also did a better job of customer support and security. If you’re a small business with limited conference calling needs, we recommend Zoom. However, if you need a wider range of paid features along with strong security and customer service, Nextiva is the way to go.
zoom ratio.Ring Central
A big advantage of Zoom Ring Central is its powerful free plan. The most affordable RingCentral Essential plan with all the basic features starts at $20 per user per month. However, if you don’t need in-house messaging and telephony features, RingCentral offers a free lifetime standalone video conferencing plan that offers unlimited calling for up to 100 participants, cloud storage, and useful integrations of other features.
With its robust paid plans, RingCentral provides you with the ability to enable your entire call center to collect, log and redirect incoming calls. While Zoom is suitable for a variety of business use cases, such as video calling and webinars, if your business wants to support its sales force and needs a dedicated calling solution, messaging and reliable video conferencing options, RingCentral is better for you .
zoom ratio.go to the meeting
on Zoom and go to the meeting, the latter is considered the best solution for working with remote teams. With GoToMeeting, you can host a call with up to 3000 participants in just a few clicks. The intuitive user interface makes it very easy to set up the application on desktop and mobile devices for easy conference calling.
Similar to Nextiva, GoToMeeting does not offer a free plan. However, as a paid tool, it’s more affordable than Zoom, especially if your business needs cloud storage. GoToMeeting offers a simple $19 business plan per user per year, while Zoom charges a separate fee for cloud storage.
Unlike Zoom, GoToMeeting doesn’t offer any image softening features, but you can still adjust image saturation, gamma level, and image sharpness. Similar to Zoom, GoToMeeting’s interface is very simple and easy to use on all platforms and devices.
However, GoToMeeting’s customer support is better than what Zoom offers. Users can take advantage of 24/7 phone support, live chat, and a detailed knowledge base, and in our experience, Zoom’s customer service is difficult to answer calls and emails. GoToMeeting also offers better security than Zoom, which has had multiple security breaches in the past, including calls being hacked.
Overall, if your business needs cloud storage for conference call management, top-notch customer support, and better security, we recommend GoToMeeting over Zoom.
zoom ratio.grasshopper
grasshopper is a virtual phone system for small businesses looking for a mobile solution that differs from traditional teleconferencing software. However, Zoom also offers a telephony solution called Zoom Phone. The cheapest Zoom Phone plan is $120 per user per year.
Grasshopper, on the other hand, charges you $26 per month for one phone number and three extensions. So, if you need a simple and cheap virtual phone solution, Grasshopper is the way to go. On the other hand, Zoom Phone may be more attractive to large enterprises with its advanced phone features.
zoom ratio.Click to Conference
Where Zoom excels at video calling, Click to Conference is the go-to app for hosting feature-rich webinars. ClickMeeting makes hosting online meetings, online training sessions, demos and product demos a breeze.The app’s whiteboard and private chat features are particularly popular among its users
To host a webinar on Zoom, the cheapest plan available costs $690 per license per year. On the other hand, ClickMeeting’s most affordable plan will allow you to host live webinars for up to 25 participants for $25 per month, billed annually. Therefore, if your organization is webinar-focused, we recommend ClickMeeting.
zoom ratio.huge meeting
Zoom may be good at video calling, but huge meeting is a tool designed specifically for the task. You can assign network call managers, share files, send messages to any team member, and generate detailed reports.
Unlike Zoom, though, Vast Conference doesn’t offer a free plan. You can start with their cheapest plan at $11.99 per user per month for up to 10 participants and host unlimited conference calls and interactive online meetings. However, it’s only worth it if you’re looking for a dedicated video conferencing tool. If you’re a small business that needs casual video calling, Zoom may still be the best option for you.
generalize
soaring Is a complete teleconferencing service, good at video calls. It is easy to use, integrates well with browsers, and supports a large number of participants with ease. The app’s simplicity across a variety of platforms and devices has made it the video calling solution of choice for organizations around the world.
However, it’s not a perfect solution for all types of businesses. Zoom has its drawbacks, especially when it comes to customer support and security. Zoom seems perfect for general conference calls, but there are plenty of viable alternatives for special use cases. Some are better than Zoom in terms of features and functionality, some offer better security and customer service, while others offer more affordable solutions for specific business needs.
we saw Nextiva Challenging Zoom in most ways and excelling in customer support and security. Ring Central Offers a stand-alone video calling solution comparable to Zoom, while excelling in professional telephony.
go to the meeting Considered a better solution for remote team management and cloud storage, while grasshopper Stand out as a more affordable virtual phone solution.Finally, let’s see how Click to meet is a more powerful webinar hosting tool than Zoom, and huge meeting As a professional video conferencing application, it has more advanced features than Zoom.
All of the apps we looked at work for different types of businesses and have a place in the market. With this in mind, the Zoom alternative you ultimately choose will depend on your business goals, industry, and organization size.
For a more in-depth analysis of these tools, check out our Best Conference Call Service guide.
