Managed IT Support Microsoft Teams vs Google Meet vs Zoom: The Definitive Videoconferencing Fight
The COVID-19 pandemic required staff members to work from house, however the show had to go on in some way. Overnight, videoconferencing platforms turned into the lifeline that held companies together. Even as operations return to regular, videoconferencing providers are putting resources into their items.
The two primary cooperation suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace deal videoconferencing abilities, but we would be remiss not to consist of among the most popular videoconferencing apps in the market today-- Zoom.
At this point, your business is almost ensured to have a videoconferencing platform already. If not, or if you are aiming to alter platforms, continue checking out below for a breakdown of functions and alternatives that will help you make your decision.
Are your meetings long or short? Are you primarily satisfying internally or with leads and clients? Will you be hosting webinars?
It goes without stating, if your company is already registered for Microsoft 365 or it services Google Workspace, and you more than happy with the platform, you need to utilize Teams or Meet respectively. If you are not registered for either and just require a standalone videoconferencing app, Zoom has a totally free version that needs to fix the majority of your requirements.
In the sections listed below, we will compare all 3 major videoconferencing platforms based upon various metrics you should think about before choosing the right one for your service.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Integration with your other apps/services
Prior to diving into the complete list of features for each platform, it is important to comprehend just how much you obtain from the entirety of what you are paying for.
Teams and Meet are part of larger efficiency suites, whereas Zoom is a standalone product with all the videoconferencing-specific functions you might need. While Teams and Meet can be procured individually, they are best bundled with their larger suites, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
Case in point, a Zoom Pro membership just provides you videoconferencing abilities. For less than Zoom Pro, the M365 Business Standard and Workspace Business subscriptions consist of a full suite of organization applications.
With Microsoft 365, you get a completely incorporated experience with desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more. The most significant selling point of Microsoft is how quickly the apps work with each other, and the greatest difference in between Teams and its competitors is how centralized the suite is.
Groups jumps seamlessly from immediate messaging to video calls, with the capability to change back and forth in between them.
On The Other Hand, Google Meet is independent of Workspace's chat app, Google Chat. While users can make use of both Workspace apps at the same time, the separation of the two is a bit counterintuitive.
With M365 and Teams, all chats, taped meetings, and files are all housed in the exact same main location, making searchability far much easier.
With Meet and Zoom, you will have to seek out saved chats from old conferences, or when it comes to Meet, head over to Google Chat.
This is likewise the case when dealing with collaborative files. Any files attached in a Teams chat will appear under its files tab at the top of the window, implying you don't need to waste time chasing them down when you require them.
Microsoft provides much more applications in their strategies than Google, however many go undetected.
Microsoft Sway allows you to rapidly grab and trim a tape-recorded Teams satisfying that you can then house in your area within Teams itself.
In the event that someone gets here late to a meeting, or a worker records the very same conference and lets it run for hours after its conclusion, you can rapidly grab the part of the conference you need and save it.
This bypasses the storage that would be consumed by an hours-long video, in addition to the time it would take to submit, cut, and export said video from a video editing platform.
Additionally, all three platforms do have combinations with numerous other organization applications, so make sure to examine compatibility with any apps you already 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 need for specific features on their platforms, therefore most of the same functions overlap throughout plans for all 3 suites. This consists of screen sharing, video recording, live captions, and everyone's favorite: custom-made backgrounds. As for some other functions, they vary throughout each company's offerings.
A table portraying the different strategies and functions of Microsoft Teams vs. Google Meet vs. Zoom Audio Conferencing On-the-Go
While present across the board, dial-in capabilities vary across strategies. Meet provides dial-in free of charge with any of their paid strategies, one of the greatest benefits that the platform has more than its competitors.
Groups uses its dial-in capability for $4 extra per user, monthly; while Zoom's dial-in is toll-based.
Both Teams and Meet offer internet-based PBX options that can change your internal phones, while Zoom's toll-based setup is not practical.
Microsoft 365 Business Voice incorporates flawlessly with Teams, enabling employees to take business on the go, all with complete continuity.
Video Quality-- Who Supports the Best?
Since the time of this post, each platform shows video in HD, however the quality varies. Teams is capable of 1080p video at 30 frames per second if you have 1.5 Mbps of bandwidth.
Zoom also has 1080p video, however it is limited to the platform's service or enterprise strategies. 1080p can also be made it possible for by Zoom assistance in certain cases. Zoom's 1080p performance needs 1.8 Mbps of bandwidth for 1-on-1 calls and 2.5 Mbps on group calls.
Meet will default to 360p video, but it can send out and receive up to 720p video.
Audio quality across platforms depends upon microphone and speaker quality, along with the quality of your internet connection.
Rooms and Workspaces-- Breaking Things Down
Breakout spaces are basically conferences that run simultaneously to the initial videoconference. These were particularly necessary for virtual education, so instructors might break students out into different groups to discover.
There is a clear energy for breakout rooms in professional spaces, too. If a bigger group is fulfilling about a job, breaking down jobs into smaller groups, breakout rooms might be an excellent option.
Both Teams and Zoom have breakout spaces native to their base platforms, throughout all strategies. These spaces are basically conferences that are running concurrently to the initial videoconference.
Meet permits breakout rooms through their basic and plus strategies, but not in the free or basic strategies. Nevertheless, like many Google functions on cheaper strategies, you can add Google Chrome extensions, however this might be more of a headache than it deserves in the end.
Just recently, Microsoft also presented Together Mode, which uses AI to put video participants in numerous digital settings, together. While the energy is light, Together Mode could be a solid morale booster.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: Privacy and Safety
To its credit, Zoom responded swiftly to the "Zoom battle" of the early days of the pandemic, including end-to-end encryption and intensifying their privacy policy. Over 500,000 Zoom accounts were taken and posted for sale online quickly thereafter.
While Meet has not had any famous incidents of privacy breaches, Google has had a lot of personal privacy concerns and a performance history of gathering information for use in marketing.
Microsoft has the very best track record of security and they also have the most transparent personal privacy policy.
All three platforms support two-factor authentication. Considering that 99% of cybersecurity attacks involve a password aspect, two-factor authentication is a must if you desire a genuine defense against cybercriminals.
As a part of the broader M365 suite, all chats, notes, and files are secured and kept within OneNote and SharePoint, respectively.
Additionally, Microsoft Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) is readily available on its Business Premium and E5 strategies, obstructing potentially malicious content from being accessed by those in your company.
Microsoft also uses Data Loss Protection (DLP) to capture delicate data being shared (like social security numbers), and automatically obstruct it from being sent out.
Together with eDiscovery and legal holds within channels, chats, and files, Teams guarantees you remain compliant with all information storage regulations.
A graphic showing the path of info as it is secured from Microsoft Teams through Microsoft 365.
Google does provide eDiscovery in their Business and Enterprise strategies and DLP in their Enterprise plan just, but these are just limited to Drive and Gmail. From what we can see Meet has actually no particularly listed DLP abilities.Zoom does not offer any of these features on its primary platform.
Overall, Zoom has actually responded well to its privacy obstacles, but the modifications are largely cosmetic.
End-to-end file encryption (E2EE) is great to have, however its addition was more of a response to an issue than a total service. It is unlikely that E2EE secures most users from more than encryption in transit and at rest, like with Teams and Meet.
E2EE is most helpful in 1-on-1 discussions where sensitive information might be shared, and it will be available on Teams quickly according to Microsoft.
The videoconferencing company has less to worry about because they are a single-purpose app, dealing exclusively with videoconferencing, and not the storage of files, talks, and other information like Microsoft or Google.
Based on credibility alone, Microsoft stands well above the others in regards to security.
Since your information is all saved in a single space, Teams and its security functions take your performance hub and turns it into your company's own information stronghold. This 2nd level of defense and personal privacy makes it the most safe, in our experience.
Teams vs Meet vs Zoom: The Verdict
A lot of videoconferencing platforms have comparable functions, your business's specific requirements need to figure out whether you select Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or Zoom.
For base-level features at an economical price, it is tough to beat Zoom, who is focused exclusively on videoconferencing. For the most value, Teams ties your whole company together in one space, with the best possible features and security readily available.
If you are looking for an all-in-one partnership hub that keeps all your communication in one space, we extremely advise Microsoft Teams.
IT Support Guys has leveraged the power of Microsoft 365 given that 2008 when it was still called Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), and we have continued our partnership until today day.