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Best Zoom alternatives (2026)
Zoom Pro is $15.99/user/mo and Business is $21.99. Free tier caps group meetings at 40 minutes — a real productivity tax for distributed teams.
Below: the five Zoom alternatives worth using in 2026, including self-hosted Jitsi for teams who never want to pay for video again.
No paid rankingsPricing checked June 15, 20266 options
Pricing comparison
| Tool | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Zoom Pro | $15.99/user/mo | 30-hour meetings, cloud recording, AI Companion. |
| Google Meet (Workspace Business Starter) | $7/user/mo | Bundled with Workspace. 60-minute meetings on Business Starter. |
| Microsoft Teams Essentials | $4/user/mo | 30-hour meetings, included if you have Microsoft 365. |
| Jitsi | $0 (self-host or jitsi.org) | Open-source. End-to-end encryption available. |
| Whereby | $8.99/user/mo | No download required, embeddable into your own product. |
| Around | $15/user/mo | Camera-circle UI; great for design teams doing long working sessions. |
Who should switch
- ✓Teams already paying for Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 — you have Zoom-equivalent calls bundled.
- ✓Privacy-conscious teams — self-hosted Jitsi is the cleanest option.
- ✓Founders running customer calls who want a no-install browser experience (Whereby).
- ✓Design teams that hate giant-tile video and want intimate working sessions (Around).
Who should not switch
- ·Companies running large webinars (Zoom Webinars is still the most mature).
- ·Teams that depend on Zoom Rooms hardware.
- ·Companies with thousands of training videos archived in Zoom Cloud Recording.
Savings math
- Zoom Pro for 25 users: $399.75/mo = $4,797/yr.
- Google Meet Business Starter for 25: $175/mo = $2,100/yr. Saving: $2,697/yr (56%).
- Microsoft Teams Essentials for 25: $100/mo = $1,200/yr. Saving: $3,597/yr (75%).
- Jitsi self-hosted: ~$10/mo VPS = $120/yr. Saving: $4,677/yr (97%).
Caveats
- !Jitsi's quality on calls over 12 participants depends heavily on your server sizing.
- !Meet's recording and transcription are great but require a paid Workspace tier.
- !Switching teams off Zoom is mostly a habit problem, not a tech one.
Final verdict
If you already pay for Workspace or 365: stop paying Zoom. For privacy-led teams: Jitsi self-hosted. For customer calls: Whereby.
Pricing checked June 15, 2026. We re-verify every comparison page on a rolling basis.
Sources
Related guides
Prices change often — verify on the vendor's site before switching.