Best Slack alternatives in 2026
These are the 6 closest tools to Slack that we track, ordered by what they cost to start. Each entry says how its pricing differs from Slack's — based on the numbers we hold, not on who pays us. We do not publish a quality score, because we do not have one we can stand behind.
Of the 6 alternatives on this page, 3 publish a price we could verify. The cheapest paid step among them is Microsoft Teams at $4/user/mo billed annually, while Slack starts paid at $8.75/user/mo billed monthly.
Why people leave Slack
- Notification Fatigue: Can be highly distracting if not properly configured by the user.
- Free Plan Limits: Access to message history is restricted on the free tier.
- Enterprise Pricing: Per-user licensing costs can add up quickly for large organizations.
These are the drawbacks listed in our own Slack review — not complaints we invented for this page.
- Microsoft Teams
Corporate collaboration.
vs Slack: cheaper to start ($4/user/mo billed annually vs $8.75/user/mo billed monthly).
First paid step: Microsoft Teams Essentials at $4/user/mo billed annually
Why switch to Microsoft Teams
- Office 365 Integration: Edit files collaboratively within the app in real-time.
- Enterprise Security: A world leader in data protection and administrative controls.
What you give up
- Performance Issues: The app can feel heavy and sometimes sluggish on older hardware.
Best for: Large Corporations and IT Managers.
- Mattermost
Self-hostable team messaging.
vs Slack: priced differently (Quote only vs $8.75/user/mo).
Why switch to Mattermost
- Fully self-hostable, including in air-gapped environments
- Familiar channel-based interface
What you give up
- Ecosystem of integrations is smaller than Slack's
Best for: Organisations that cannot put internal conversations on a third-party service.
- Twist
Threaded, asynchronous team messaging.
vs Slack: cheaper to start ($6/user/mo vs $8.75/user/mo billed monthly).
First paid step: Unlimited at $6/user/mo
Why switch to Twist
- Threads keep conversations findable
- Deliberately reduces interruption
What you give up
- Slower rhythm frustrates chat-oriented teams
Best for: Distributed teams that want written, asynchronous communication.
- Zulip
Open source chat and collaboration software.
vs Slack: cheaper to start ($6.67/user/mo billed annually vs $8.75/user/mo billed monthly).
First paid step: Zulip Cloud Standard at $6.67/user/mo billed annually
Why switch to Zulip
- Topic threading makes catching up genuinely possible
- Open source and self-hostable
What you give up
- Topic discipline must be taught to the team
Best for: Distributed teams that lose context in flat chat.
- Discord
Community hub.
vs Slack: priced differently (Free tier vs $8.75/user/mo).
Why switch to Discord
- Best Voice Quality: Latency in voice channels is near-zero for clear communication.
- Bot Ecosystem: Fully customize your server for everything from moderation to games.
What you give up
- Complex UI: It can be easy for new users to get lost among dozens of channels and settings.
Best for: Gamers, Developer Communities, and AI Artists.
- Rocket.Chat
Open-source team chat you can host yourself.
vs Slack: priced differently (Free tier vs $8.75/user/mo).
Why switch to Rocket.Chat
- Fully self-hostable and open source
- Omnichannel customer messaging included
What you give up
- Setup and maintenance are on you
Best for: Organisations that must keep messaging on their own infrastructure.
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