Is Chatwork or Line better?

Neither clearly leads. Chatwork starts at Free and Line at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Chatwork or Line?

Chatwork starts at Free and Line at Free.

Does Chatwork or Line run on more platforms?

Chatwork runs on Web. Line runs on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web.

Can I use Chatwork for free?

Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.

What is Chatwork best used for?

Chatwork is most often used for team communication and collaboration. Of those, team communication and collaboration is not what Line is typically brought in for.

What can Chatwork do that Line cannot?

Line covers Line Pay, Official Accounts, Stickers and themes, Line News.

Communication · head to head

Chatwork vs Line

Chatwork

Communication

Group chat for global teams, built to replace email with real-time communication

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Line

Communication

Messaging app that dominates Japan, Taiwan and Thailand, now run by LY Corporation under joint SoftBank and Naver ownership

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: Chatwork free plan limited to 100 users; Line line has negligible market share outside Japan, Taiwan and Thailand, so it is the wrong choice for reaching contacts in most other regions.
Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chatwork and Line actually diverge.

Attributes where Chatwork and Line differ
Attribute	Chatwork	Line
Pricing model	freemium	Free to download, paid stickers and business messaging tiers
Platforms	Web	iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Communication).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Chatwork

Nothing recorded that Line does not also cover.

Only in Line

Line Pay
Official Accounts
Stickers and themes
Line News
Group and open chat
Timeline

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Chatwork

Team communication and collaborationnot Line

Line

A business selling to consumers in Japan that needs an Official Account rather than email or SMS to reach customersnot Chatwork
An individual keeping in touch with contacts in Japan, Taiwan or Thailand where Line, not WhatsApp, is the defaultnot Chatwork
A brand running promotions through Line stickers or Timeline content aimed at a Japanese audiencenot Chatwork
A company processing consumer payments in Japan through Line Pay integrationnot Chatwork

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Chatwork

Free plan limited to 100 users
Free plan message history limited to last 40 days
Standard plan pricing: $7/month annual or $8.40/month monthly

Line

Line has negligible market share outside Japan, Taiwan and Thailand, so it is the wrong choice for reaching contacts in most other regions.
A 2021 incident exposed that some user data had been accessible from servers operated in China, which led to a formal restructuring of data governance and remains a reference point for privacy sensitive users.
Standard chats are not end to end encrypted by default in the way Signal is; Letter Sealing, an opt-in encryption feature, has to be manually enabled per chat.
Business messaging through Official Accounts becomes expensive quickly once a company exceeds the free monthly message allowance and moves to a metered plan.
Ownership sits inside a SoftBank and Naver joint venture with a history of governance disputes between the two partners, which creates strategic uncertainty for enterprise customers relying on the platform long term.

Pricing, plan by plan

Chatwork

Free

FreeFree
- Secure messaging
- Unlimited group chats
- 1:1 video calls
Standard$7/month
- All Free features
- Unlimited message history
- Group video calls

Line

Free

LineFree
- Free messaging, voice and video calling
- Individual sticker sets typically cost a few hundred yen each
- Line Official Account has a free tier with message volume limits, then paid tiers by monthly message count

Which should you pick?

Choose Chatwork if

You want to start without paying.

Chatwork review

Choose Line if

You need line pay.
You want to start without paying.
You work on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web.
You also want official accounts.

Line review

Questions people ask

Is Chatwork or Line better?: Neither clearly leads. Chatwork starts at Free and Line at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chatwork or Line?: Chatwork starts at Free and Line at Free.
Does Chatwork or Line run on more platforms?: Chatwork runs on Web. Line runs on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Web.
Can I use Chatwork for free?: Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Chatwork best used for?: Chatwork is most often used for team communication and collaboration. Of those, team communication and collaboration is not what Line is typically brought in for.
What can Chatwork do that Line cannot?: Line covers Line Pay, Official Accounts, Stickers and themes, Line News.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Chatwork: How much does Chatwork cost?

Chatwork is free for up to 100 users. The Standard plan costs $7 per month with annual subscription or $8.40 per month with monthly subscription for unlimited users.

Source

Line: Is Line encrypted by default?

Chats use standard transport encryption, but full end to end Letter Sealing encryption must be turned on manually per conversation, it is not the default.

Chatwork: What is the limit on the Chatwork free plan?

The free plan supports up to 100 users and limits message history to the last 40 days. It includes secure messaging, unlimited group chats, 1:1 video calls, 10GB storage per organization, and task management.

Source

Line: Does Line work well outside Japan, Taiwan and Thailand?

Technically yes, but almost nobody uses it as their primary messenger outside those markets, so it is the wrong choice to reach most other audiences.

Chatwork: What does the Chatwork Standard plan add?

The Standard plan ($7-8.40/month) adds unlimited message history, group video calls, 10GB storage per user instead of per organization, advanced search, dedicated support, user management controls, and CSV contact import.

Source

Line: Who owns Line now?

LY Corporation, formed from a merger of Line and Yahoo Japan businesses, controlled by A Holdings, a joint venture between SoftBank and Naver.

Chatwork vs Line

Chatwork

Line

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Chatwork

Only in Line

What people use each for

Chatwork

Line

Where each one falls short

Chatwork

Line

Pricing, plan by plan

Chatwork

Line

Which should you pick?

Choose Chatwork if

Choose Line if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Chatwork

More on Line

Keep looking

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