Microsoft and Google are two of the biggest technology companies around, so it's no surprise that both have entered the video conferencing space. Microsoft Teams is the Redmond-based company's offering, while Google Meet is the solution developed by the company originally known for its search engine services. Not so long ago, the field of communication and collaboration was a more congenial environment, in which many different services could coexist happily. However, as the Covid-19 pandemic made face-to-face interactions difficult, more and more organizations have been forced to rely on digital solutions. Therefore, competition between services has intensified considerably. The good news is that Microsoft Teams and Google Meet are good examples of video conferencing. However, with their respective developers adding new features all the time, it's a vibrant ecosystem. For businesses and individuals looking to weigh the respective merits of each solution, there are many things to consider. In the guide below, we've gathered all the information you need to decide if Microsoft Teams or Google Meet is right for your business, by comparing plans and pricing, features, security, and more.
Packages and prices
Microsoft Teams and Google Meet are pretty generous when it comes to their free plans. Both let you use basic versions of each platform for an unlimited amount of time, and it's probably enough for people who just want to video call friends or family once in a while, or even independent marketers who have infrequent video calls. However, for large companies, the limitations built into the free versions of Teams and Meet can seem a bit restrictive. For example, the free version of both platforms only allows a maximum of 100 meeting participants at a time. While that may sound like a lot, it basically rules out company-wide meetings for midsize and large organizations. Teams The Microsoft Teams pricing structure is tied to the company's Microsoft 365 plans. Microsoft 365 Business Basic, for example, is priced at €5.00 / £3.80 / AU$6.90 per user per month and comes with 1TB of OneDrive storage and access to Teams. Microsoft 365 Business Standard, meanwhile, is priced at $12.50 / £9.40 / AU$17.20 per user per month and also comes with desktop versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. While Microsoft 365 Premium adds additional features for €20.00 / €15.10 / AU €27.50 per user per month. In particular, the ability to add up to 10,000 participants to a meeting with Microsoft 365 Premium is likely to appeal to larger companies. However, even Microsoft 365 Business Basic increases the time frame from 60 minutes to 24 hours, saving businesses the embarrassment of having to end a call abruptly because they use the free version. Google Meet Similar to Microsoft Teams, Google Meet is only offered for free as a standalone version, but users can choose to pay for Google Workspace, which will provide additional Meet features and access to other Google tools. Google Workspace Standard costs €6 per user per month and brings the number of licenses businesses can use to 300. Meanwhile, Google Workspace Standard costs €12 per user per month and increases the allowed number of meeting participants from 100 to 150, while Google Workspace Plus, which costs €18 per user per month, has this figure at 250. The Enterprise version is custom-billed, but adds noise-canceling features and enhanced support.
Features
For any business that chooses to pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace packages, the most useful feature will definitely be the integration with other apps. However, in terms of basic functionality, there isn't much to separate from Meet and Teams. Some of the Google Meet features include an audio and video preview screen, screen sharing, meeting host controls, and live captions during meetings. In addition, users can access customizable backgrounds and connection quality settings that take advantage of AI capabilities. On the other hand, Microsoft Teams features also include screen sharing and customizable backgrounds, but the option of over 250 app integrations probably means most businesses will benefit more from Teams than Google. Meet. It just seems to offer more potential for collaboration.
Security
For paid users, Google Meets offers complex meeting IDs that add additional protection against brute force hacking attempts. Teams, on the other hand, offers fantastic security for companies to use internally. For example, team owners have a granular level of control, where they can act as administrators and restrict the actions of other users. Since most data breaches occur due to the actions of internal staff, this feature is a welcome addition.
Support
While Microsoft Teams and Google Meet offer all the usual customer service channels, there are a few minor differences. Teams certainly has a great support community, mostly made up of other users who are happy to help out whenever you have a problem. Rather, Meet offers video tutorials and a free online course for users. If you prefer self-study, this is a great advantage of Google Meet.
Verdict
Deciding whether Google Meet or Microsoft Teams is your best option will likely depend on the size of your organization. If you are a sole proprietor or a small business, it will be difficult to improve the simplicity of Google Meet. However, if you're a large organization that needs more advanced collaboration features, or you're already using Microsoft 365 a lot, you'd better use Microsoft Teams.