Comparison
Zoom vs Microsoft Teams: which is better for your meetings?
Zoom and Microsoft Teams are the two most common ways people meet online at work. Zoom grew from meetings outward into a full workplace suite; Teams grew from chat and Microsoft 365 into meetings. Which one fits depends mostly on what the rest of your work runs on.
Research-based comparison, checked October 2026. We don't take payment or affiliate fees from anyone we compare. How we review.
The short verdict
- Choose Zoom if meetings are the main event, especially with clients, students or anyone outside your company. It's easy for guests and its paid plans include unlimited AI meeting summaries.
- Choose Teams if your organization uses Microsoft 365. Chat, channels, files and meetings sit next to Outlook, Word and Excel, and Teams Essentials costs just $4 per user a month.
- For free personal calls, Teams gives you 60 minutes per group call; Zoom gives 40.
Zoom vs Teams at a glance
| Zoom Workplace | Microsoft Teams | |
|---|---|---|
| Free meeting length | 40 minutes | 60 minutes (group calls) |
| Free participants | 100 | 100 |
| Cheapest business plan | Pro $14.16/user/mo (annual) | Teams Essentials $4/user/mo (annual) |
| Paid meeting length | 30 hours | 30 hours |
| Paid participants | 100 (Pro), 300 (Business), 1,000 (Enterprise) | 300 |
| Recording | Local on free; plus cloud on paid (10 GB per Pro license) | Recordings with transcripts on Essentials and business plans |
| AI notes | Summaries for 3 meetings a month free; unlimited on Pro | Copilot in Teams with Microsoft 365 Copilot plans |
| Chat | Zoom Team Chat | Chats and channels, the core of Teams |
| Office suite | Zoom Mail, Calendar, Whiteboard, AI docs (Canvas) | Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, Outlook, SharePoint) |
| Apps | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, web | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, web |
Meetings
Both handle the basics well: HD video, screen sharing, breakout rooms, reactions, background effects, captions and scheduling from Outlook or Google Calendar. Widely shared user feedback tends to describe Zoom as the more straightforward meeting app, especially for guests joining from a link, and Teams as more capable but busier, because meetings are one part of a larger app.
The free limits differ. Zoom Basic allows 40-minute meetings with 100 participants. Free Teams allows group calls of up to 60 minutes with 100 participants. On paid plans, both reach 30 hours per meeting. Zoom Pro stays at 100 participants (Business allows 300, Enterprise 1,000, and a Large Meeting add-on goes up to 5,000); Teams Essentials allows 300. If you're scheduling across time zones, our meeting planner helps.
Chat and collaboration
Teams was built around persistent chat and channels, with files stored in SharePoint and OneDrive and co-editing in Word, Excel and PowerPoint right inside Teams. For a company on Microsoft 365, it replaces a separate chat app. Zoom Workplace now includes Team Chat, Mail, Calendar, Whiteboard, Clips and AI document tools (Canvas, Paper, Slides and Sheets), but most companies using Zoom pair it with other tools like Slack or Google Workspace.
Recording, transcripts and AI notes
Zoom's free plan records to your computer; paid plans add cloud recording (10 GB per Pro license, unlimited on Enterprise). Zoom's AI note-taking ("My Notes") and meeting summaries are limited on Basic (3 uses or meetings a month) and unlimited on Pro, and Zoom says the note taker also works for third-party and in-person conversations. A separate ZoomMate AI add-on was $20 a month.
Teams Essentials includes meeting recordings with transcripts and live captions in English. Copilot in Teams, which can summarize meetings and answer questions about them, comes with Microsoft 365 plans that include Copilot, such as Business Standard with Copilot ($23.50 per user a month, annual); see our Microsoft Copilot review. Step-by-step guides: how to record a Zoom meeting and how to record a Teams meeting.
In both apps, recording is controlled by the host or organizer and your company's settings, and built-in AI notes run in the vendor's cloud. If you want your own recording and transcript whichever app the meeting is in, a desktop recorder like Hark (which we make) records your microphone and your computer's audio on your own computer with no bot joining the call, and transcribes it there (English only; on a Mac it records the microphone only). Whatever you use, check recording consent laws and tell people before you record.
Pricing as of October 2026
| Plan | Price (US) | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Zoom Basic | Free | 40 min, 100 people, local recording, limited AI |
| Zoom Workplace Pro | $14.16/user/mo, billed annually | 30 hours, unlimited AI summaries, 10 GB cloud |
| Zoom Workplace Business | $18.33/user/mo, billed annually | 300 people, SSO, branding, Scheduler |
| Teams (free) | Free | 60 min group calls, 100 people, 5 GB |
| Teams Essentials | $4/user/mo, paid yearly | 30 hours, 300 people, recordings and transcripts, 10 GB |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | $7/user/mo, paid yearly | Teams plus business email, web Office apps, 1 TB |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $99.99/yr | Home use: all-day video calling and Copilot in Teams |
From Zoom's pricing page and Microsoft's Teams business plans. Monthly billing costs more on both. Zoom also sells add-ons such as Large Meeting (from $50 a month) and extra cloud storage (from $10 a month).
Security and privacy
Both encrypt meetings and offer admin controls, single sign-on on business tiers, and compliance features for regulated industries. Microsoft says Teams encrypts meetings, chats, calls and files on every plan, including free. Zoom offers end-to-end encryption as an option for meetings, and its Business plan adds SSO, data loss prevention and archiving APIs. For companies already using Microsoft 365, Teams keeps meeting data under the same agreements and admin center as email and files, which IT teams often prefer.
Webinars, large meetings and phones
Zoom sells a wide set of products for bigger events and calling: Zoom Webinars and Events, a Large Meeting add-on for up to 5,000 participants, Zoom Rooms and Zoom Phone (a full-featured PBX is part of Workplace Enterprise). Many schools and event organizers stay with Zoom for that reason. Microsoft offers a Teams Phone add-on and a Teams Rooms add-on for conference rooms alongside its Microsoft 365 plans.
For a small business that mostly needs internal meetings and occasional client calls, either is plenty. For regular public webinars or very large meetings, compare the specific event features and add-on prices of each before deciding.
Platforms and devices
Zoom has desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and a web client. Teams has desktop apps for Windows and macOS, mobile apps, and a web app that Linux users rely on. Both work with common headsets, webcams and dedicated meeting-room hardware. Guests can usually join either from a browser without installing anything, though the full apps give a better experience.
Strengths and weaknesses
Zoom
Strengths
- Simple, familiar meeting experience
- Easy for outside guests
- Unlimited AI summaries on Pro
- Linux desktop app
Weaknesses
- 40-minute free limit
- Pricier per user than Teams Essentials
- Pro capped at 100 participants
Microsoft Teams
Strengths
- Built into Microsoft 365
- Chat, channels and files in one app
- Very cheap Essentials plan
- 60-minute free group calls
Weaknesses
- Busier, heavier app
- Best AI features need Copilot plans
- No Linux desktop app (web only)
Choose Zoom if... choose Teams if...
Choose Zoom if you
- Meet mostly with clients, students or the public
- Use Google Workspace or Slack for everything else
- Want AI summaries without a Copilot license
- Run webinars or very large meetings
Choose Teams if you
- Already pay for Microsoft 365
- Want chat, files and meetings in one place
- Need the cheapest per-user meeting plan
- Work mostly with colleagues inside your company
Frequently asked questions
Is Zoom or Teams better for meetings? +
Zoom is usually the simpler choice for meetings with people outside your organization: guests join easily, and its meeting features are its core product. Teams is better if your company already uses Microsoft 365, because chat, files, calendar and meetings live in one place with Word, Excel and Outlook. For pure video quality and reliability, both are mature and widely used.
Is Microsoft Teams free? +
Yes. The free version of Teams for personal use includes group calls of up to 60 minutes with up to 100 participants, unlimited chat and 5 GB of cloud storage. For business, Teams Essentials was $4 per user a month paid yearly as of October 2026, with meetings of up to 30 hours and 300 participants.
How long can a free Zoom meeting last? +
Zoom's free Basic plan allows meetings of up to 40 minutes with up to 100 participants. Zoom Workplace Pro raises the limit to 30 hours per meeting, at $14.16 per user a month billed annually as of October 2026.
Which is cheaper, Zoom or Teams? +
Teams Essentials, at $4 per user a month paid yearly, is far cheaper than Zoom Workplace Pro at $14.16 per user a month billed annually. Microsoft 365 Business Basic, at $7 per user a month paid yearly, adds business email, web Office apps and 1 TB of storage. Zoom Pro includes more AI note-taking and its own mail, calendar and docs tools.
Can I record Zoom and Teams meetings? +
Yes, with conditions. Zoom's free plan records locally to your computer, and paid plans add cloud recording. Teams Essentials and business plans include meeting recordings with transcripts. Hosts and organizers usually control who can record. Some places require everyone's consent before you record a conversation, so always ask first.
Related
- Best AI note takers for Microsoft Teams Options for Teams meetings, from Copilot to desktop recorders.
- How to record a Teams meeting Recording in Microsoft Teams, licenses, and where files go.
- How to transcribe a Teams meeting Teams transcription and other ways to transcribe a Teams call.
- Recording consent laws by state One-party and all-party consent rules for all 50 states, with citations.
- Copilot vs ChatGPT Microsoft Copilot or ChatGPT: which assistant fits how you work.
- Otter vs Fireflies Otter and Fireflies side by side, and who should pick which.
Record, transcribe and remember every meeting
Hark records your calls on your own computer, transcribes them privately, and learns who is speaking. Free forever, with a 2-day preview of AI meeting notes.