Let’s compare Zoom vs Google Meet.
Zoom and Google Meet have emerged as the two top video conferencing platforms. Businesses can use either to host meetings and webinars, hold conferences, and live stream events. Both virtual meeting platforms provide the features necessary for a business to communicate while working remotely. Yet, there are some differences between Zoom vs Google Meet.
Read on to compare the features that Google Meet vs Zoom offers for hosting meetings. We’ll let you know whether Zoom or Google Meet is better for video conferencing based on your needs.
Features of Zoom vs Google Meet
Zoom
What is Zoom?
Zoom is a video conferencing platform for businesses founded in 2011. It boasts HD video, conference rooms, and voice and text chat available under a number of pricing packages. Zoom is also used by educational institutions, governments, and non-profit organizations to conduct meetings.
Zoom Features
- HD Video and Audio with support for up to 1000 video participants.
- Text Chat: Message team members before, during, and after meetings.
- Unique Video Call Features: Add a custom Zoom video background, conduct polls and Q&A in-call, and enable virtual hand-raising.
- Dial-In Options: Participants can dial-in to meetings. Option to automatically call any participant’s phone when the meeting starts.
- Breakout Rooms: Split your Zoom video meeting into up to 50 different sessions for group discussion.
- Meeting Recording: Record your meetings and store them locally or on the cloud.
- Screen Sharing: Multiple callers can share their screens at the same time. Team members can also annotate each others’ screens.
- GCM Encryption: Zoom has received numerous complaints of outsiders hacking into meetings and sharing sensitive content. As such, Zoom has made it a priority to strengthen its security system. The result is new AES 256-bit GCM Encryption that will protect meetings from interference and secure meeting data.
- Conference Rooms: Host or join Zoom meetings directly from existing conference room systems. They can also be optimized to the size of your conference room.
- Integrations: Connect Zoom with hundreds of other apps such as Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Calendar. Invite team members through other apps and add your meetings to your calendar.
How Much Does Zoom Cost?
So, how much is Zoom? Zoom offers a number of pricing plans depending on your business’ needs. With the free service, you can host meetings with up to 100 participants for up to 40 minutes, as well as unlimited 1-on-1 meetings. Zoom’s free plan includes HD video and audio, screen sharing with annotating, virtual backgrounds, hand raising, text chat, breakout rooms, integrations with other apps, and secure encryption.
Zoom’s paid plans, which charge per meeting host per month, add in more participants, 24-hour long meetings, reporting, admin controls, cloud recording and storage, recording transcripts, SSO, and custom branding. If you need extra cloud storage, you can upgrade starting at $40/mo. You can also add Zoom Rooms for conference room support starting at $49/mo, and Audio Options to let participants dial-in to call at $100/mo.
Google Meet
What is Google Meet?
Google Meet is the successor to Google Hangouts. It is the premier Google video chat and video call app. It can be accessed by individuals for free and as part of Google’s G Suite collection for businesses that includes access to Google Drive, Docs, and a custom domain Gmail. Google Meet offers video, audio, and text chat for anyone with a Google account.
Google Meet Features
- Unlimited Meetings with up to 100 participants for free or 250 for businesses using G Suite.
- Text Chat: Message team members during meetings.
- Live Captioning: Add live closed captions to video calls (English only).
- Screen Sharing: Present your entire screen or a single application window to other meeting participants.
- Noise Cancellation: This feature cancels most extraneous noise in meetings. For a preview of this exciting feature, check out this video.
- Dial-In Options: Both US and International numbers can dial-in to meetings.
- Cloud Recording and Storage: Record and store your calls on Google Drive.
- Security: Google Meet includes numerous security features such as encryption both in transit and at rest, 2FA, Advanced Protection Program Enrollment, and DLP for Google Drive storage.
- Integrations: Google Meet integrates with Google products such as Gmail, Google Drive, Google Calendar, and Google Classroom. G Suite includes additional integrations with work productivity apps like Slack, Freshdesk, and Trello.
How Much Does Google Meet Cost?
Google Meet lets you have unlimited meetings for 1 hour with up to 100 participants for free. Closed captions, 2FA, encryption, and Advanced Protection Program Enrollment are also included in Google Meet’s free plan.
Paid Google Meet plans with additional features are included with either G Suite Essentials or G Suite Enterprise Essentials. The former costs $8/user/month, while for the pricing of the latter you need to contact sales. G Suite Essentials adds dial-in. Enterprise is necessary for saving meeting records in Google Drive, DLP, and the upcoming intelligent noise cancellation feature. Both plans also increase the number of meeting participants to 150 and 250 respectively as well as the meeting length to a maximum of 300 hours.
Google Meet vs Zoom: Which is better for hosting meetings?
To decide whether Google Meet or Zoom is better for your team, first consider which video conferencing features to prioritize. While both Zoom and Google Meet include video, audio, text chat, enterprise-level security, dial-in options, screen sharing, and integrations with the best work apps, there are significant unique features found in each.
Zoom’s screen sharing annotations, breakout rooms, custom backgrounds, hand raising, and conference room support are all excellent features for business meetings, especially those composed of multiple teams. On the other hand, Google Meet’s live captioning and noise cancellation are both important features that make meetings more accessible to people with auditory processing issues. Ask your team which set of unique features matters most to them.
Google Meet is more straightforward in terms of pricing, with a flat monthly fee per user for all features, while Zoom’s dial-in and conference room features come with a significant additional monthly cost. On the other hand, G Suite charges per active user, while Zoom only charges per host, so if you limit the number of users who can host meetings, Zoom could turn out costing less than Google Meet even with expensive add-ons.
Conclusion: Is Google Meet or Zoom best for my team?
Google Meet vs Zoom: which is best for your team? If your business frequently uses other Google products, includes members who dial-in to meetings, stores meeting records on the cloud, and hosts meetings that last longer than 24 hours, then you should also go for Google Meet. However, if you need access to Zoom-specific features like conference room support, screen annotation, and breakout rooms, then Zoom is certainly worth the investment. Overall, Google Meet is among the best of Zoom competitors, but Zoom still holds it own against the up-and-coming app.