Slack VS Teams: The Battle Continues

Slack & Microsoft Teams are the two most popular collaboration tools.

Both platforms offer various features to help the groups collaborate and communicate more effectively.

Slack is a chat-based collaboration medium, whereas Microsoft Teams is a more comprehensive collaboration tool that offers video conferencing, chat, and integrated document management.

Whether you are looking for only a chat collaborative tool or a more comprehensive office suite, understanding the critical differences between Slack and Teams will help you make the perfect choice.

Also Read X VS Threads – The Battle is more interesting than you think!

Slack

Slack is mainly a chat-based collaboration tool that emphasizes communication.

It features various channels, which are dedicated spaces for conversations about specific topics or projects.

Slack offers various integrations with other popular apps, like Google Drive, Trello, and Salesforce.

What We Like About Slack:

• Slack allows real-time communication between the group members to improve collaboration and productivity.
• Slack is flexible and can be used for various purposes, including customer support, project management, and marketing.
• Slack integrates with various other tools to streamline workflows and improve productivity.
• Slack offers a variety of security features to protect your data from being hacked.
• Slack has a free plan for small groups, and its paid plans are comparatively affordable.

What We Dislike About Slack:

• Slack can be a distraction. Setting boundaries and managing your notifications is essential so you do not get overwhelmed.
• The free plan Slack only offers ten app integrations and 10,000 searchable messages. You need to upgrade to a paid plan for more storage or integrations.
• Slack may not seem user-friendly for newbies. However, several resources are available to help you learn how to use it.
• In Slack, file sharing is limited to 1 GB per file, and Video conferencing is limited to 150 participants.

Subscription Plans For Slack

Slack works on a paid subscription model. You can choose a plan for Slack and pay it monthly or yearly and cancel at any time.

1. The Free plan is the most basic plan and includes unlimited messaging, file sharing, and search. However, it has some limitations, such as

• 90-day message history
• Limited integrations with other tools
• No audio or video calls
• No guest access

2. Pro: The Pro plan is designed for small teams.  It includes all the features of the Free plan, plus:

• Unlimited message history
• Unlimited integrations with other tools
• Audio and video calls
• Guest access
• App Folders
• Custom emojis
• Single sign-on (SSO)

3. Business+: The Business+ plan is designed for medium to large teams. It includes all the features of the Pro plan, plus:

• Data loss prevention (DLP),
• Content search,
• Workflow Builder,
• Enterprise Grid integration,
• Dedicated Slack support

Many users found Slack a good collaboration tool for teams of all sizes.

However, weighing the advantages & disadvantages before deciding if it is the right tool for you is essential.

Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams is a cloud-based collaboration suite that combines meetings, file sharing, group or single chats, joining channels, and calling under a single roof.

It is a powerful tool that can help groups of all sizes communicate more effectively.

Teams make it easy to schedule and join online and offline meetings. The platform allows one to record and share it with others.

Microsoft Teams integrates with other Microsoft apps, like Office 365, Word and Excel.

It also integrates with various third-party apps like Google Drive and Salesforce.

What We Like About Microsoft Teams:

• Microsoft Teams allows real-time communication between team members to improve collaboration.
• Teams offer various collaboration features, like chatting, file sharing, and video conferencing.
• Microsoft Teams integrates with various other tools, like Office 365, that can boost workflows & improve productivity.
• Microsoft Teams offers good security features for the protection of your data.
• Microsoft Teams provides accessibility features for differently-abled people.

What We Dislike About Microsoft Teams:

• Microsoft Teams can seem a tad bit complex to learn and use, especially for larger teams.
• The free plan of Microsoft Teams offers only 10 GB of file storage. If you need more storage, you must upgrade to a paid plan.
• Teams does not offer as many integrations as Slack.

Subscription for Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams offers five different monthly plans:

1. The Free plan is the most basic plan and is free for everyone. It includes unlimited chat, file sharing, and meetings for up to 300 participants. However, it has some limitations, such as:

• No voice or video calls
• No cloud storage
• No admin controls

2. The Essentials plan is designed for small businesses. It includes all the features of the Free plan, plus:

• Voice and video calls
• 10 GB of cloud storage per user
• Basic admin controls
• Business Basic: The Business Basic plan is designed for small to medium businesses. It includes all the features of the Essentials plan, plus:
• Advanced admin controls
• Compliance features

3. The Business Standard plan is designed for medium to large businesses. It includes all the features of the Business Basic plan, plus:

• In-meeting live captions
• Advanced security features

Overall, Microsoft Teams is a versatile communication platform with a variety of features so that the Teams can collaborate and get work done more efficiently.

Slack vs. Teams: Which One To Choose?

Slack focuses more on chats, while Microsoft Teams is on to collaboration.

Slack is flexible, while Microsoft Teams is integrated. Slack can be used for various purposes, and it is not as rigidly integrated with other Microsoft products as Microsoft Teams.

Slack seems to be more affordable, while Microsoft Teams is more powerful.

Before selecting any collaboration tool, compare the two platforms head-to-head comparison.

1)   Interface

Slack has a traditional chat app layout, with messages on the right and channels on the left.

Microsoft Teams offers features for activity, creating community, and initiating chats with teammates and others.

Both have some stylistic differences. Microsoft Teams looks more corporate, which feels more streamlined but generic.

Teams include an activity feed to record everything you and your teammates do in Teams.

The app allows you to turn a file into a tab after uploading it to a chat or uploading it to a channel. This provides easy & quick access to the team members.

There are different ways to join a meeting in Teams. You can also schedule a meeting in Teams using the Calendar tab.

Slack offers more customizable options. You can tweak the look of the sidebar, like how to sort contents, whether to include direct messages, etc.

You can change the overall appearance of the Slack interface by switching to a dark or light theme. Slack also allows you to create custom themes as per your choice and preferences.

Microsoft Teams does not provide any theme customizability. The platform lets you change its layout by switching from light-dark to high-contrast themes.

2)   Messaging & Video Conferencing

Both Teams and Slack offer 1:1 messaging and also offer group chats with threads.

You can edit, pin, delete, or react to the messages and mention another user in Slack and Teams.

But one of the most significant differences between the two platforms is that Teams provides advanced options to format texts sent in the messages that allow you to change font and color and create bullet lists.

Slack allows you to react to the messages in threads using emojis and not just a simple like. You can also mark the messages as reminders and set alarms.

Microsoft Teams and Slack have advanced systems that can be personalized based on your preferences.

Slacks limits its storage to 1 GB, while Microsoft Teams is capped at 15 GB of storage.

When you send or receive a video in Slacks, you can directly see it without downloading it.

When you click on a video message in Microsoft Teams to view it, just click on it, and it will open in a browser. You can also copy the link or download the video.

Regarding meetings or video conferences,  both Slack and Microsoft Teams allow you to make audio and video calls.

The free Microsoft Teams version enables you to blur the background or choose some custom background, raise your hand, react, and screen share.

If you are on the 365 Business Basic plan, you can schedule a meeting, record the meeting, and host a meeting with up to 250 members.

Slack’s free plan allows you to conduct unlimited voice and video meetings and calls.

But Slack does not allow you to record meetings. To do that in Slack, you must integrate with some third-party apps like Zoom or Google Meet.

3)   Team Management and Bots

Slack includes Slackbot in the workspace to streamline tasks like answering questions related to the Slack platform, setting personal reminders, etc. You will find it within the Direct Message tab.

Microsoft Teams users can find various bots in the Microsoft Store to help them with communication and management.

4)   Integrations

An ideal collaborating platform should efficiently integrate with the workflows and the existing tools. Both Microsoft Teams and Slack offer app integrations.

Microsoft Teams, being an Office product, easily integrates with Office 365.

Using Microsoft Teams will be more convenient if you use Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, SharePoint, Planner, or PowerB. You can look into the Teams App Directory to find the app that suits your preferences and needs.

Whereas in Slack, you will get 2000 +  applications available within the Slack Apps Directory, and you can choose as per your preferences. It supports Office 365, Google Workspace, and productivity apps like Trello.

Moreover, you can use Microsoft Teams Calls as the default calling app for Slack.

5)   Security

Security is a prior concern when selecting a collaboration app.

So, regarding security and compliance, Slack experienced a data breach in 2015, after which it tightened up its security rules.

Whereas Microsoft offers strict security features for Microsoft Teams.

Both Slack and Teams comply with the basics of the ISO certification.

Here is a table comparing Slack and Microsoft Teams:

So, Which Platform is Better For You?

The best collaboration tool for you will depend on your specific requirements and preferences.

Slack can be more affordable than Microsoft Teams, especially for small teams.

Slack can be a good option if you are looking for a chat-based collaboration tool with various integrations.

If you need a more comprehensive collaboration suite with video conferencing & other document management features, then Microsoft Teams is a better choice.

If your enterprise already uses Microsoft Office 365, then Microsoft Teams can be a good option since it integrates with those apps.

It is essential to consider what your team prefers. Ultimately, the best way to decide which collaboration tool is right for you is to try both of them out and see which one you prefer.

Wrapping Up

So, you should decide which collaborative tool you should select based on the needs and preferences of our Team.

For any related queries, please inform us in the reply section below, and we shall revert with answers ASAP.