Managed IT Support Microsoft Teams vs Google Meet vs Zoom: The Definitive Videoconferencing Battle
The COVID-19 pandemic forced workers to work from home, but the show had to go on somehow. Overnight, videoconferencing platforms turned into the lifeline that held organizations together. Even as operations go back to normal, videoconferencing providers are pouring resources into their items.
The two primary partnership suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace deal videoconferencing capabilities, however we would be remiss not to include one of the most popular videoconferencing apps in the market today-- Zoom.
At this business it services moment, your business is almost guaranteed to have a videoconferencing platform currently. If not, or if you are wanting to change platforms, continue reading below for a breakdown of functions and alternatives that will help you make your choice.
Are your conferences long or short? Are you mostly meeting internally or with leads and clients? Will you be hosting webinars?
It goes without stating, if your company is currently subscribed to Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, and you more than happy with the platform, you should utilize Teams or Meet respectively. If you are not subscribed to either and simply need a standalone videoconferencing app, Zoom has a totally free variation that should solve the majority of your needs.
In the sections listed below, we will compare all three major videoconferencing platforms based on various metrics you need to think about prior to selecting the right one for your company.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Integration with your other apps/services
Before diving into the complete list of features for each platform, it is important to comprehend how much you get from the whole of what you are spending for.
Teams and Meet are part of larger performance suites, whereas Zoom is a standalone item with all the videoconferencing-specific features you might need. While Teams and Meet can be acquired individually, they are best bundled with their larger suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
Case in point, a Zoom Pro membership just gives you videoconferencing abilities. For less than Zoom Pro, the M365 Business Standard and Workspace Business memberships consist of a complete suite of service applications.
With Microsoft 365, you get a totally incorporated experience with desktop variations of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more. The greatest selling point of Microsoft is how easily the apps work with each other, and the biggest distinction between Teams and its rivals is how centralized the suite is.
Groups leaps perfectly from instantaneous messaging to video calls, with the ability to switch back and forth in between them.
Google Meet is independent of Workspace's chat app, Google Chat. While users can make use of both Workspace apps all at once, the separation of the two is a bit counterproductive.
With M365 and Teams, all chats, tape-recorded meetings, and files are all housed in the exact same central place, making searchability far simpler.
With Meet and Zoom, you will have to look for conserved chats from old meetings, or when it comes to Meet, head over to Google Chat.
This is also the case when working on collaborative files. Any files attached in a Teams chat will appear under its files tab at the top of the window, suggesting you do not have to lose time chasing them down when you require them.
Microsoft provides even more applications in their strategies than Google, however numerous go undetected.
Microsoft Sway enables you to quickly get and cut a recorded Teams fulfilling that you can then house locally within Teams itself.
In the event that someone arrives late to a meeting, or an employee records the same conference and lets it run for hours after its conclusion, you can quickly get the part of the meeting you need and save it.
This bypasses the storage that would be eaten up by an hours-long video clip, in addition to the time it would take to publish, cut, and export stated video from a video editing platform.
Furthermore, all 3 platforms do have combinations with various other organization applications, so be sure to look at compatibility with any apps you currently use, and these platforms.
Groups vs Meet vs Zoom: Features
Comparing Free Versions vs. Paid
Microsoft, Google, and Zoom have all adjusted well to the demand for particular features on their platforms, hence the majority of the same functions overlap throughout plans for all three suites. This includes screen sharing, video recording, live captions, and everyone's favorite: custom backgrounds. When it comes to some other functions, they vary throughout each company's offerings.
A table illustrating the different plans and features of Microsoft Teams vs. Google Meet vs. Zoom Audio Conferencing On-the-Go
While present across the board, dial-in capabilities vary throughout plans. Meet uses dial-in free of charge with any of their paid strategies, one of the biggest advantages that the platform has more than its rivals.
Groups uses its dial-in ability for $4 additional per user, monthly; while Zoom's dial-in is toll-based.
Both Teams and Meet offer internet-based PBX options that can change your in-house phones, while Zoom's toll-based setup is not useful.
Microsoft 365 Business Voice integrates effortlessly with Teams, permitting employees to take company on the go, all with full continuity.
Video Quality-- Who Supports the very best?
Since the time of this post, each platform displays video in HD, but the quality varies. Teams is capable of 1080p video at 30 frames per 2nd if you have 1.5 Mbps of bandwidth.
Zoom likewise has 1080p video, however it is limited to the platform's company or business strategies. 1080p can also be allowed by Zoom assistance in certain cases. Zoom's 1080p functionality requires 1.8 Mbps of bandwidth for 1-on-1 calls and 2.5 Mbps on group calls.
Meet will default to 360p video, however it can send and receive up to 720p video.
Audio quality across platforms depends upon microphone and speaker quality, as well as the quality of your web connection.
Rooms and Workspaces-- Breaking Things Down
Breakout spaces are essentially meetings that run all at once to the original videoconference. These were especially needed for virtual education, so teachers might break students out into separate groups to learn.
There is a clear energy for breakout spaces in professional areas, too. If a bigger team is fulfilling about a job, breaking down tasks into smaller sized groups, breakout rooms might be an excellent service.
Both Teams and Zoom have actually breakout rooms native to their base platforms, throughout all plans. These rooms are essentially conferences that are running at the same time to the original videoconference.
Meet allows breakout spaces through their basic and plus strategies, but not in the free or basic plans. Like many Google functions on less expensive plans, you can include Google Chrome extensions, but this could be more of a headache than it is worth in the end.
Just recently, Microsoft also rolled out Together Mode, which uses AI to place video individuals in different digital settings, together. While the energy is light, Together Mode could be a solid spirits booster.
Groups vs Meet vs Zoom: Privacy and Safety
To its credit, Zoom reacted quickly to the "Zoom bombing" of the early days of the pandemic, including end-to-end encryption and boosting their privacy policy. Over 500,000 Zoom accounts were taken and published for sale online quickly afterwards.
While Meet has actually not had any popular occurrences of personal privacy breaches, Google has actually had plenty of privacy concerns and a performance history of gathering data for usage in advertising.
Microsoft has the very best track record of security and they also have the most transparent personal privacy policy.
All 3 platforms support two-factor authentication. Considering that 99% of cybersecurity attacks involve a password component, two-factor authentication is a must if you desire a legitimate defense against cybercriminals.
As a part of the wider M365 suite, all chats, notes, and files are secured and stored within OneNote and SharePoint, respectively.
Furthermore, Microsoft Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) is offered on its Business Premium and E5 plans, blocking possibly destructive material from being accessed by those in your business.
Microsoft likewise utilizes Data Loss Protection (DLP) to catch sensitive information being shared (like social security numbers), and immediately block it from being sent out.
In addition to eDiscovery and legal holds within channels, chats, and files, Teams guarantees you stay compliant with all data storage regulations.
A graphic showing the course of info as it is encrypted from Microsoft Teams through Microsoft 365.
Google does provide eDiscovery in their Business and Enterprise strategies and DLP in their Enterprise strategy just, however these are only limited to Drive and Gmail. From what we can see Meet has actually no particularly noted DLP capabilities.
Zoom does not offer any of these features on its primary platform.
Overall, Zoom has reacted well to its personal privacy obstacles, but the changes are mainly cosmetic.
End-to-end encryption (E2EE) is terrific to have, however its addition was more of a response to an issue than a total service. It is unlikely that E2EE protects most users from more than file encryption in transit and at rest, like with Teams and Meet.
E2EE is most beneficial in 1-on-1 discussions where sensitive details may be shared, and it will be available on Teams quickly according to Microsoft.
The videoconferencing business has less to stress over due to the fact that they are a single-purpose app, dealing entirely with videoconferencing, and not the storage of files, talks, and other details like Microsoft or Google.
Based on credibility alone, Microsoft stands well above the others in terms of security.
Because your data is all kept in a single area, Teams and its security functions take your productivity center and turns it into your company's own information fortress. This second level of security and personal privacy makes it the best, in our experience.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: The Verdict
The majority of videoconferencing platforms have similar functions, your company's precise needs need to identify whether you pick Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or Zoom.
For base-level functions at an inexpensive rate, it is difficult to beat Zoom, who is focused exclusively on videoconferencing. For the most value, Teams ties your entire business together in one space, with the best possible features and security available.
If you are looking for an all-in-one collaboration hub that keeps all your communication in one space, we highly recommend Microsoft Teams.
IT Support Guys has leveraged the power of Microsoft 365 since 2008 when it was still called Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), and we have actually continued our partnership till today day.