Communication Software Pricing (2026)
What 43 communication tools actually charge, taken from their own pricing pages and re-checked as they change. Cheapest first.
Pricing verified Sep 30, 2026
Prices here change. You'll hear about it.
Outmano watches pricing, features, roadmaps and reviews across your market, then sends one weekly brief: what changed, and what it means for you.
Communication pricing at a glance
| Product | Entry price | Plans | Free plan | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoho Mail | $1/mo | 5 | Yes | Yes |
| Zoho Meeting | $1/mo | 3 | Yes | Yes |
| Zoho Cliq | $1/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| Discord | $2/mo | 2 | No | No |
| Pumble | $2/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| Livestorm | $3/mo | 2 | No | Yes |
| Chanty | $4/mo | 3 | Yes | No |
| Microsoft Teams | $4/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Twist | $6/mo | 2 | Yes | No |
| Google Workspace | $7/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Yodeck | $8/mo | 5 | Yes | Yes |
| Zulip | $8/mo | 3 | Yes | No |
| Slack | $8/mo | 4 | Yes | No |
| Skool | $9/mo | 2 | No | Yes |
| OptiSigns | $10/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| Whereby | $10/mo | 3 | Yes | Yes |
| Fellow | $11/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| Webex | $12/mo | 4 | Yes | No |
| GoTo Meeting | $14/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Zoom | $14/mo | 4 | Yes | No |
| Krisp | $16/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| Loom | $18/mo | 4 | Yes | Yes |
| OpenPhone | $19/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Ooma | $19/mo | 4 | No | No |
| Vonage | $19/mo | 3 | No | No |
| ScreenCloud | $20/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| CloudTalk | $25/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| JustCall | $29/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Aircall | $30/mo | 3 | No | No |
| RingCentral | $30/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Riverside | $35/mo | 5 | Yes | Yes |
| WebinarJam | $49/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Luma | $59/mo | 3 | Yes | No |
| Demio | $63/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Mighty Networks | $79/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Circle | $89/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Discourse | $100/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Airmeet | $199/mo | 4 | No | Yes |
| Podium | $399/mo | 3 | No | No |
| Bettermode | $499/mo | 3 | No | Yes |
| Mattermost | Custom | 3 | No | No |
| Rocket.Chat | Custom | 3 | No | No |
| Weave | Custom | 3 | No | No |
Every communication tool we track, cheapest first
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Zoho Mail
Business email hosting from Zoho.
Zoho sits firmly in the budget-to-mid range of business email — cheaper than Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 at nearly every tier, especially at the $1/mo Mail Lite entry point. They're clearly going after cost-conscious small businesses and startups who want a Gmail-like experience without the Google tax.
Plans: Mail Lite $1/mo per seat · Workplace Standard $4/mo per seat · Mail Premium $4/mo per seat · Workplace Professional $7/mo per seat · Workplace Enterprise Contact Sales
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Zoho Meeting
Webinars and meetings from Zoho.
At $1-3 per host, Zoho Meeting is undercutting nearly everyone in the video conferencing space — this is a budget play aimed at cost-conscious SMBs already living in the Zoho ecosystem, not a head-on challenge to Zoom or Teams on features.
Plans: FREE $0/mo per seat · STANDARD $1/mo per seat · PROFESSIONAL $3/mo per seat
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Zoho Cliq
Team chat from Zoho.
Zoho Cliq plays the budget card in the team-chat space, especially against Slack and Microsoft Teams, banking on Zoho's ecosystem pull for existing Zoho customers rather than competing on standalone feature depth. It's positioned to win cost-conscious SMBs already inside the Zoho suite, not enterprises shopping for a best-in-class chat tool.
Plans: Free $0/mo per seat · Professional $1/mo per seat · Enterprise $3/mo per seat · Standard $16/mo per seat
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Discord
Voice, video, and text communities.
There's really no direct competitor charging this way — Discord isn't fighting Slack or Teams on price since this isn't a per-seat business tool, it's closer to a consumer subscription like a gaming service add-on. It's cheap by SaaS standards precisely because it's optional flair for a free core product, not a required business expense.
Plans: Nitro Basic $2/mo · Nitro $9/mo
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Pumble
Free team chat app from CAKE.com.
Pumble is aggressively cheap compared to Slack and even undercuts Microsoft Teams add-ons, positioning itself as the budget-friendly Slack alternative for cost-conscious small-to-mid teams. They're not chasing enterprise deals head-on — the numeric Enterprise price (vs. contact-sales) signals they want self-serve simplicity even at the top tier.
Plans: PRO $2/mo per seat · BUSINESS $4/mo per seat · ENTERPRISE $7/mo per seat · cake.com bundle $15/mo per seat
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Livestorm
Video engagement for webinars.
Livestorm sits in the mid-market lane — not fighting Zoom Webinars on rock-bottom price, but cheaper and more flexible than heavyweight enterprise webinar platforms like ON24. The attendee-based model is a pitch to teams tired of paying flat host-seat fees for tools they barely use between events.
Plans: Pro $3/mo · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Chanty
Simple team chat with built-in tasks.
Plans: FREE $0/mo per seat · BUSINESS $4/mo per seat · ENTERPRISE Contact Sales
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Microsoft Teams
Chat, meetings, and calling in Microsoft 365.
Teams Essentials at $4 undercuts Zoom and Slack's paid tiers pretty aggressively, positioning Microsoft as the budget-friendly choice for pure video/chat needs. But the real strategy is using that low price as a wedge to upsell into the Business Basic/Standard bundles, where Microsoft's actual competitive advantage — owning the whole productivity stack — kicks in.
Plans: Microsoft Teams Essentials $4/mo per seat · Microsoft 365 Business Basic $7/mo per seat · Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot $23/mo per seat
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Twist
Async-first team messaging from Doist.
At $6/seat, Twist undercuts Slack and most team chat tools, positioning itself as the budget-friendly, distraction-free alternative for teams tired of real-time chat chaos. They're not competing on feature depth — they're competing on being cheap and calm, likely targeting small-to-mid teams who find Slack overkill or overpriced.
Plans: Free plan $0/mo per seat · Unlimited $6/mo per seat
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Google Workspace
Gmail, Docs, Meet, and Drive for business.
Sits mid-pack against Microsoft 365 — not the cheapest email suite out there, but priced to win on simplicity and collaboration UX rather than competing purely on cost. The 300-seat cap on Starter/Standard/Plus signals they're chasing SMBs hard and pushing anything bigger straight into custom Enterprise deals.
Plans: Starter $7/mo per seat · Standard $14/mo per seat · Plus $22/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Yodeck
Cloud digital signage, simply.
Yodeck sits in the affordable-to-mid range of digital signage software, undercutting premium players that charge $20-30+ per screen while still offering a real free tier — a rarity in this space. They're clearly going after budget-conscious SMBs and franchises who want signage without enterprise-software sticker shock.
Plans: Free $0/mo · Basic $8/mo · Premium $12/mo · Enterprise $16/mo · Enterprise+ Contact Sales
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Zulip
Open-source threaded team chat.
Zulip sits mid-pack compared to Slack and Microsoft Teams, undercutting Slack's per-seat pricing while still offering a real free tier — but it's not fighting on price alone since it's also chasing open-source and nonprofit communities with free Standard access.
Plans: Free $0/mo per seat · Standard $8/mo per seat · Plus $12/mo per seat
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Slack
Business messaging and collaboration.
Slack sits at the premium end of team chat — Teams is bundled free with Microsoft 365, and other chat tools undercut on price, so Slack's whole pitch is that the UX and integration ecosystem justify paying more per seat. They're not fighting on price; they're betting companies already sold on Slack culture won't switch for a cheaper alternative.
Plans: Free $0/mo per seat · Pro $8/mo per seat · Business+ $18/mo per seat · Enterprise+ $45/mo per seat
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Skool
Community and courses, gamified.
That $9 entry point undercuts most community/course platform competitors (think Circle, Mighty Networks) who often start at $30-50/mo, making Skool look like the budget on-ramp. But Pro at $99 flat, regardless of member count, actually makes it a steal for larger communities compared to per-seat competitors — this is where they win on value.
Plans: Hobby $9/mo · Pro $99/mo
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OptiSigns
Digital signage made easy.
At $10-45 per screen, OptiSigns sits comfortably in the affordable-to-mid range of the digital signage market, undercutting the premium enterprise players that often charge per-device fees well north of $50. They're clearly courting small and mid-sized businesses who want professional signage without an enterprise budget, while still leaving room to capture bigger accounts with the Enterprise tier.
Plans: Standard $10/mo · Pro Plus $15/mo · Engage $30/mo · Enterprise $45/mo
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Whereby
Browser-based video meetings and API.
Sitting comfortably in the budget-to-mid range compared to Zoom or Google Meet's business tiers, Whereby is clearly courting small teams and solopreneurs who want a no-download, embeddable video tool without paying enterprise prices. They're not chasing big enterprise deals — the pricing ceiling is too low for that.
Plans: Free $0/mo per seat · Pro $10/mo per seat · Business $13/mo per seat
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Fellow
AI meeting notes and agendas.
Fellow sits mid-pack against tools like Otter, Fireflies, and tl;dv — not the cheapest AI notetaker on the market, but not premium either. They're clearly courting mid-market teams who want structured meeting workflows (agendas, action items, 1:1s) rather than just transcription, which is a different fight than the bare-bones recording apps.
Plans: Free $0/mo per seat · Team $11/mo per seat · Business $23/mo per seat · Enterprise $25/mo per seat
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Webex
Video conferencing and calling by Cisco.
Webex sits mid-pack — pricier than Zoom's equivalent tiers but not chasing the premium enterprise-only positioning of something like RingCentral's top plans. It's Cisco leaning on its enterprise IT relationships and security pedigree to win the 'we already trust Cisco for networking' crowd rather than competing purely on sticker price.
Plans: Webex Free $0/mo per seat · Webex Meet $12/mo per seat · Webex Suite $22/mo per seat · Webex Enterprise Contact Sales
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GoTo Meeting
Online meetings and video conferencing.
At $14-19/seat, GoTo Meeting lands in the mid-tier of the video conferencing market — pricier than Zoom's entry point but cheaper than most all-in-one collaboration suites. They're clearly chasing SMBs who want a no-frills, reliable meeting tool without paying for a bloated platform.
Plans: Professional $14/mo per seat · Business $19/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Zoom
Video conferencing and meetings.
Zoom sits mid-pack — pricier per seat than scrappy alternatives like Google Meet bundled into Workspace, but cheaper and simpler than heavyweight UCaaS suites like RingCentral or 8x8. They're leaning on brand trust (Zoom became the verb for video calls) rather than being the budget pick.
Plans: Basic $0/mo per seat · Pro $14/mo per seat · Business $18/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Krisp
AI noise cancellation for calls.
Krisp sits mid-pack against other AI meeting assistants — not fighting on being the cheapest (there's no free tier to hook people), but not premium-only either since Core undercuts a lot of full-featured note-taking competitors. They're going after teams who already tried free tools and hit a wall, not the price-shopping solo user.
Plans: Free Trial $0/mo per seat · Core $16/mo per seat · Advanced $30/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Loom
Async video messaging for work.
Loom sits mid-pack for async video tools — pricier than scrappy Chrome-extension competitors but way cheaper than bundling video into a full collaboration suite. They're not competing on price at all; they're betting teams will pay a premium because Loom is the default verb for 'send a quick video' the way Slack is for chat.
Plans: Starter $0/mo per seat · Business $18/mo per seat · Business + AI $24/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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OpenPhone
Business phone system for startups.
At $19-47/seat, OpenPhone lands mid-market — pricier than bare-bones VoIP apps but noticeably cheaper than enterprise contact center suites like Aircall or Talkdesk. They're courting startups and SMBs who want something more polished than a consumer app but don't need enterprise-grade call center infrastructure.
Plans: Starter $19/mo per seat · Business $33/mo per seat · Scale $47/mo per seat
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Ooma
Business VoIP phone service for small businesses.
At under $30/month per seat even on the top published tier, Ooma sits in the budget-to-mid range of the business VoIP category — cheap enough to compete with bare-bones providers but with enough tier depth to court small-to-midsize businesses that might otherwise look at pricier platforms like RingCentral or Nextiva. They're clearly chasing cost-conscious SMBs who want phone service without an IT team to manage it.
Plans: Essentials $19/mo per seat · Pro $24/mo per seat · Pro Plus $29/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Vonage
Business communications and APIs.
Sitting in the low-to-mid range of the business VoIP market, Vonage isn't undercutting on price but isn't premium either — it's the safe middle-ground pick for SMBs who want a known brand without RingCentral-level spend. The lack of a free trial or free plan signals they're chasing committed business buyers, not self-serve tire-kickers.
Plans: Mobile $19/mo per seat · Premium $29/mo per seat · Advanced $39/mo per seat
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ScreenCloud
Digital signage for any screen.
At $20-30/screen/month, ScreenCloud sits mid-market — pricier than bare-bones signage tools but nowhere near AV-heavy enterprise platforms that require hardware bundles or system integrators. They're clearly courting businesses that want professional signage without an enterprise sales cycle, at least until they hit the Enterprise tier.
Plans: Core $20/mo per seat · Pro $30/mo per seat · Enterprise Contact Sales
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CloudTalk
AI-powered call center software for sales and support teams.
CloudTalk sits in the mid-market lane for call center software — pricier than bare-bones VoIP tools but cheaper than enterprise contact center platforms like Five9 or NICE CXone. They're clearly chasing SMBs and scaling sales/support teams who want call center features without an enterprise price tag or a sales-assisted buying process.
Plans: Starter $25/mo per seat · Essential $29/mo per seat · Expert $49/mo per seat
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JustCall
Cloud phone system for sales and support teams.
JustCall sits mid-market — not the cheapest cloud dialer out there, but cheaper than heavyweight contact center suites like Five9 or Talkdesk. They're clearly chasing sales and support teams who want call center features without paying enterprise-contact-center prices.
Plans: Team $29/mo per seat · Pro $49/mo per seat · Pro Plus $89/mo per seat · Business Contact Sales
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Aircall
Cloud phone system for sales and support.
Sitting mid-market against the likes of RingCentral, Dialpad, and JustCall, Aircall isn't fighting on price — those $30-50 per-seat rates land squarely in the middle of the pack. They're going after growing sales and support teams who want something more polished than a budget VoIP tool but aren't ready for enterprise contact-center pricing.
Plans: Essentials $30/mo per seat · Professional $50/mo per seat · Custom Contact Sales
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RingCentral
Business phone, message, and video platform.
Plans: Core $30/mo per seat · Advanced $35/mo per seat · Ultra $45/mo per seat · Customer Engagement Bundle Contact Sales
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Riverside
Remote podcast and video studio.
Riverside sits mid-market — pricier than bare-bones recording tools but way cheaper than full production suites with dedicated infrastructure. They're clearly chasing serious podcasters and content teams who've outgrown Zoom recordings but aren't ready for enterprise broadcast tools.
Plans: Free $0/mo · Pro $35/mo · Grow $45/mo · Webinar $99/mo · Business Contact Sales
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WebinarJam
Live webinar broadcasting.
Sitting mid-to-premium in the webinar software space — pricier than lightweight tools like Zoom Webinar add-ons but cheaper than full-blown virtual event platforms. The 22% annual discount signals they're nudging price-sensitive buyers toward yearly commitment rather than competing purely on sticker price.
Plans: Starter $49/mo · Basic $99/mo · Professional $299/mo · Enterprise $499/mo
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Luma
Delightful event pages and invites.
At $59/mo, Luma sits mid-market — pricier than bare-bones RSVP tools like Eventbrite's free tier, but way cheaper than heavyweight event platforms like Cvent or Bizzabo. They're clearly chasing the indie creator and community-host crowd who want a polished product without enterprise-grade pricing.
Plans: Luma $0/mo · Luma Plus $59/mo · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Demio
Webinars built for marketing.
Demio sits mid-to-upper market in the webinar software space — pricier than bare-bones tools like StreamYard but not as enterprise-heavy as ON24. They're clearly courting marketing teams who want a polished, no-download webinar experience and are willing to pay a premium over generic streaming tools for that.
Plans: Starter $63/mo · Growth $117/mo · Premium $196/mo
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Mighty Networks
Communities with courses and events.
Sitting well above community platforms like Circle or Discord's paid tiers, Mighty Networks positions itself as the premium option for people building a monetizable community business, not just a chat space. They're chasing creators and coaches who see community as a revenue engine, not a nice-to-have engagement tool.
Plans: Launch Plan $79/mo · Scale Plan $179/mo · Growth Plan $354/mo · Mighty Pro Contact Sales
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Circle
Community platform for creators.
Circle sits mid-to-premium compared to bare-bones forum tools like Discourse or Discord, but it's cheaper than bundling a separate course platform, CRM, and community tool together. They're courting creators and course businesses who've outgrown Facebook Groups or Discord but aren't ready for a full-blown custom-built platform.
Plans: Professional $89/mo · Business $199/mo · Circle Plus Contact Sales
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Discourse
Civilized discussion platform.
At $100-500/mo flat, Discourse undercuts enterprise community platforms like Khoros or Vanilla that price on usage or seats and can run into five figures monthly, but it's pricier than free/open-source alternatives since you're paying for hosting and support rather than the software itself. They're clearly courting mid-market teams who want a polished, maintained forum without either the DIY hosting hassle or enterprise-tier contracts.
Plans: Pro $100/mo · Business $500/mo · Enterprise Contact Sales
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Airmeet
Virtual events and webinars.
At $199/mo, Airmeet undercuts premium webinar tools like ON24 but sits above bare-bones options like Livestorm or StreamYard, positioning itself as the mid-market pick for teams that want polish without enterprise pricing. The custom tiers above that are clearly aimed at competing for large virtual conference and agency business where they're pricing against Bizzabo and Hopin rather than simple webinar software.
Plans: Premium Webinars $199/mo · Events Contact Sales · Managed Events Contact Sales · Agency Plan Contact Sales
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Podium
Lead management and messaging platform with an AI employee for local businesses.
At $399-599/mo before add-ons, Podium sits firmly in the premium tier compared to scrappier review/messaging tools that start under $200/mo. They're clearly chasing established local businesses and multi-location franchises with real budget, not solopreneurs testing the waters.
Plans: Core $399/mo · Pro $599/mo · Signature Contact Sales
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Bettermode
Customer community platform.
Starting at $499/mo, this is not a budget tool — it's positioned mid-to-premium in the community platform space, well above lightweight forum tools but below the ultra-custom enterprise builds. They're chasing mid-market and up: companies serious enough about community to skip cheaper self-serve options but not yet ready for a fully bespoke enterprise contract.
Plans: Starter $499/mo · Growth $1750/mo · Premium Contact Sales
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Mattermost
Secure collaboration for technical teams.
Mattermost plays in the on-prem/self-hosted-friendly corner of team chat, going after Slack and Microsoft Teams refugees who need data sovereignty — government, defense, and regulated industries. Hiding all pricing behind a sales call signals they're positioning as a premium, high-touch enterprise sell rather than competing on transparent self-serve pricing.
Plans: Professional Contact Sales · Enterprise Contact Sales · Enterprise Advanced Contact Sales
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Rocket.Chat
Open-source team chat you can self-host.
Plans: Commercial Contact Sales · Government Contact Sales · Defense Contact Sales
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Weave
All-in-one patient communication and payments platform for healthcare practices.
Hiding every price point behind 'Get Pricing' buttons signals they're playing in the mid-to-upper market, not competing on transparency or self-serve simplicity. This is a classic enterprise-sales playbook move — they're chasing bigger accounts willing to negotiate, not price-sensitive teams comparing tools on a pricing page.
Plans: Ultimate Contact Sales · Elite Contact Sales · Pro Contact Sales
Communication Software Pricing FAQ
- How much does communication software cost?
- Entry prices run from $1/mo (Zoho Mail) to $499/mo (Bettermode), with a median entry price of $15/mo across the 40 priced products we track.
- What is the cheapest communication software?
- Zoho Mail has the lowest entry price of the communication software we track, at $1/mo. Zoho Meeting ($1/mo) and Zoho Cliq ($1/mo) are next. Zoho Mail and Zoho Meeting are free to start on.
- Is there free communication software?
- Yes — Zoho Mail, Zoho Meeting, Zoho Cliq and 15 more offer a free plan.
- How is communication software usually priced?
- 25 of the 43 communication tools we track use per seat pricing, against 7 on flat rate and 6 on hybrid.