Discourse vs Google Workspace Pricing (2026)
How do these two stack up on price? Here's what each one costs, what you get, and where the value sits.
| Discourse | Google Workspace | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $100/mo | $7/mo |
| Number of plans | 3 | 4 |
| Free plan | — | |
| Free trial | ||
| Pricing model | flat-rate | per-seat |
Pro
- Unlimited members & chat
- Unlimited public & private categories
- Unlimited tags
- Custom groups
- Email support
- Custom & community themes
- Custom domain
- API and Webhook access
- 15+ plugins
- 5 staff seats
Business
- Advanced reporting & analytics
- Automation
- Events
- Gamification
- SSO (Open ID & OAuth2)
- 20+ additional plugins
- 15 staff seats
- Priority support
- Migration services
Enterprise
- Expert design & development services
- 99.9% uptime guarantee
- Migration services
- GDPR & CCPA compliant hosting
- 50+ plugins
- Unlimited staff seats
Starter
- 30 GB pooled storage per person*
- Secure custom business email [email protected]
- Gemini AI assistant in Gmail
- Chat with AI in the Gemini app
- Video meetings, 100 participants
- Google Vids AI-powered video creator and editor
- Security and management controls
Standard
Popular- 2 TB 65x more than Starter*
- Secure custom business email + custom layouts and mail merge
- Gemini AI assistant in Gmail, Docs, Meet, and more
- Gemini Notebook with expanded access to features
- Chat with AI in the Gemini app with expanded access to models and features
- Video meetings with recording, noise cancellation, 150 participants
- Appointment booking pages
- eSignature with Docs and PDFs
- Google Workspace Migrate tool for data migration
Plus
- 5 TB 2.5x more than Standard*
- Secure custom business email + eDiscovery
- Video meetings with attendance tracking, 500 participants
- Vault to retain, archive, and search data
- Secure LDAP
- Advanced endpoint management
- Enhanced security and management controls
Enterprise
- 5 TB or upgrade for more*
- Secure custom business email + S/MIME encryption
- Video meetings with in-domain live streaming, 1000 participants
- Data loss prevention (DLP)
- Context-aware access
- Enterprise data regions
- Cloud Identity Premium
- Enterprise endpoint management
- AI Classification for Google Drive
- Assured Controls & AI Classification available add-on
- Enhanced Support for faster response times for critical issues
Discourse vs Google Workspace FAQ
- Which one is cheaper?
- Google Workspace is the cheaper option, starting at $7/mo vs $100/mo for Discourse.
- Can I use either one for free?
- Discourse has a free plan. Google Workspace doesn't — though they do offer a free trial.
- How do they charge?
- Different approach here. Discourse uses flat-rate pricing, while Google Workspace goes with per-seat. That changes the math depending on your team size and usage.
- Which one is a better deal?
- Depends on what you need. Discourse: At $100 and $500 flat, Discourse sits mid-to-premium compared to lighter forum tools, but it undercuts enterprise community platforms that charge based on MAUs or seats. They're clearly going after teams that want forum ownership without the per-user pricing anxiety that plagues Slack-alikes. Google Workspace: They're squarely mid-market — cheaper than Microsoft 365 Business Premium but not trying to be the budget option. The target is SMBs and mid-market teams already living in Google's ecosystem who want a frictionless, familiar stack without paying Microsoft prices.
Still deciding? See the best Discourse alternatives or the best Google Workspace alternatives, ranked with verified pricing.
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We'll monitor pricing changes for Discourse and Google Workspace and let you know when something moves.