Zoomvs
Cisco Webex
Cisco Webex: Enterprise video conferencing platform with comparable features and better security for regulated industries
Zoom
Video conferencing that's easy, reliable, and secure
As of 30 August 2026, Zoom has a free plan and paid plans start at $14.99/month. Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing service you can use to virtually meet with others. Softwr lists it under Communication. Zoom is made by Zoom Video Communications Inc, launched in 2011, available on Web, iOS, Android, Windows.
Overview
What Zoom does
Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing service you can use to virtually meet with others. It offers HD video and audio, collaboration tools, chat, webinars, and supports large meetings with up to 1,000 participants.
What people use it for
- Team meetings
- Webinars
- Virtual events
- Online training
- Telehealth
Related searches
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about Zoom.
- Cost creep from add-ons increases pricing from $14/user to $25+/user when including Phone and advanced features
- Feature set is overwhelming with complex navigation and too many options
- Limited analytics and coaching features compared to dedicated contact center platforms
- Call recording and admin oversight lack strict governance needed for regulated industries
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of Zoom
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
- ZoomvsMicrosoft Teams
Microsoft Teams: Integrated communication platform bundled with Microsoft 365 offering chat, meetings, and file collaboration
- ZoomvsWhereby
Whereby: Video meeting platform with focus on simplicity and direct booking without complex add-ons
Pricing
What Zoom costs
Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.
Basic
Free
- 100 participants
- 40-minute group meetings
- Unlimited 1-on-1 meetings
- Screen sharing
- Virtual backgrounds
Pro
$14.99 /mo
- 100 participants
- 30-hour group meetings
- Cloud recording (5GB)
- Polls & reporting
- User management
Business
$19.99 /mo
- 300 participants
- Single sign-on
- Recording transcripts
- Company branding
- Managed domains
Enterprise
$25 /mo
- 500 participants
- Advanced admin features
- Executive business review
- Webinar 500
- Cloud storage (Unlimited)
Capabilities
Features
HD video & audio
Screen sharing
Recording & transcripts
Virtual backgrounds
Breakout rooms
Polling & Q&A
Chat
Whiteboard
Slack
Integration with Slack
Microsoft Teams
Integration with Microsoft Teams
Google Calendar
Integration with Google Calendar
Outlook
Integration with Outlook
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
What are Zoom's main pricing tiers?
Zoom offers a free Basic plan with 40-minute limits for group meetings, Pro at $14.16/user/month, Business at $15.58/user/month with 300 participant capacity, and Enterprise with custom pricing. Additional costs apply for Phone ($10.50/user/month), Webinars, and Rooms.
SourceWhat integrations does Zoom support?
Zoom integrates with Salesforce, Slack, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, HubSpot, Zendesk, and many other business applications, though integration depth varies by partner.
SourceCan Zoom be used for webinars?
Yes, Zoom Webinars is available as a separate product starting at $66.67 per month, providing larger audience capabilities and specialized webinar features.
SourceBehind it
Who makes Zoom
- Company
- Zoom Video Communications Inc
- Based in
- San Jose, CA
- Founders
- Eric Yuan
Timeline
Zoom over time
Keep looking
Where to go from Zoom
- Zoom alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- Zoom pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- Zoom badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Communication softwareThe full category
- Best Communication softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Communication software for
Compare Zoom with
- Webex by Cisco
- RingCentral Video
- Slack
- Telegram
- Microsoft Teams
- Vowel
- Loom
- Lark
- Twist
- Mattermost
- Chanty
- Novu
- Viber
- Disciple
- Webex by Cisco
- Telegram
- Chanty
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From £599/mo12 researched notesPure instant messaging — simple, fast, secure, and synced across all your devices
Free, then $4.99/mo12 researched notes
Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for Zoom, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
More on Zoom
Zoom alternatives
What people switch to, and what they give up
Zoom pricing
Every tier, and where the cost actually lands
Compare Zoom
Put it head to head with anything we hold
Zoom badge
Its rating, and an embed for your own site
Best Communication software alternatives
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Free to download, paid business messaging and out calls to landlines and mobiles
Meta's standalone messaging app for Facebook, with end to end encryption on by default since 2023
Free, funded by Meta's advertising business
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Free to download, paid stickers and business messaging tiers
The default messaging app in South Korea, bundled with payments, taxi hailing and other Kakao services
Free to download, paid emoticons, gifting and business messaging
Conversational messaging and CPaaS with a flat platform fee stacked on top of Meta per-message rates
Per message sent
Korean business messaging built on the KakaoTalk interface for domestic enterprise teams
Per user per monthWhite-label community apps published under your own brand on iOS, Android and web
Per month, flat fee with no transaction charge