Last checked October 2026 · 10 alternatives to Slack in our catalog
Slack paid plans start at $7.25/user/mo, which is why people look for a free alternative. Below are 10 options with a free plan or no price at all - 3 are completely free, 4 are open source, 6 run on Linux and 9 work in the browser.
Picked from listing data (price model, license, platforms, community votes), not hands-on testing.
| Alternative | Price | Open source | Platforms | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discord | Freemium | No | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux | Voice, video, and text chat for communities. |
| Microsoft Teams | Freemium | No | Web, Mac, Windows, iOS | Chat, meetings, and file collaboration built into Microsoft 365. |
| Telegram | Freemium | No | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux | Fast, cloud-based messaging with big groups and channels. |
| Zulip | Free | Yes | Web, Android, iOS | Open-source team chat organized around topic threads |
| Mattermost | Contact for Pricing | Yes | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux | Secure, self-hosted team messaging and collaboration. |
| Rocket.Chat | Freemium | Yes (Other) | Web, Windows, Mac, Linux | Secure CommsOS for mission-critical operations |
| Zoom | Freemium | No | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux | Reliable video conferencing for meetings, webinars, and rooms. |
| Signal | Free | Yes (AGPL-3.0) | Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS | Private, end-to-end encrypted messaging. |
| Google Meet | Freemium | No | Web, iOS, Android | Video meetings built into Google Workspace. |
| Free | No | Web, Windows, Mac, iOS | The world’s most popular messaging app. |
Voice, video, and text chat for communities.
Free plan includes: Custom emoji · Stickers · Soundboard effects · Text chat
Chat, meetings, and file collaboration built into Microsoft 365.
Free plan includes: 60-minute group meetings · 5GB cloud storage · Chat with anyone
Fast, cloud-based messaging with big groups and channels.
Free plan includes: Simple · Private · Synced · Fast
Open-source team chat organized around topic threads
Secure, self-hosted team messaging and collaboration.
Secure CommsOS for mission-critical operations
Free plan includes: Unlimited users · Self‑hosted deployment · Basic chat and collaboration tools · Community support
Reliable video conferencing for meetings, webinars, and rooms.
Free plan includes: Up to 100 participants · 1:1 unlimited time · Whiteboard
Private, end-to-end encrypted messaging.
Video meetings built into Google Workspace.
Free plan includes: 60-minute group meetings · Up to 100 participants · Screen sharing
The world’s most popular messaging app.
Discord is the first free alternative we list for Slack. Others worth a look: Microsoft Teams, Telegram and Zulip. Which one fits depends on what you use Slack for, so check the platform and free-plan details for each.
Yes. Zulip, Signal and WhatsApp have no paid tier. The rest of the list are freemium: a free plan with paid upgrades.
Yes: Zulip, Mattermost, Rocket.Chat and Signal. Open-source options can usually be inspected, modified and self-hosted.
Yes. The free plan includes 1:1 huddles, Limited app integrations and 10 integrations. Paid plans start at $7.25/user/mo.
How this list is built: alternatives come from our catalog's curated alternative relationships; price model, license and platforms come from each product's listing; order is fully-free first, then community votes.
