Productivity
Video conferencing apps
Video conferencing apps run online meetings with video, audio and screen sharing, joined from a browser, a desktop app or a phone. Most add recording, chat, breakout rooms and calendar invites; paid plans raise the meeting length and participant limits, and many now transcribe and summarise meetings with AI.
Zoom Workplace
Video meetings with team chat, mail, calendar, docs and an AI companion in one app
Google Meet
Google's browser-based video meetings, free with a Google account and included in Google Workspace
Whereby
Video meetings in the browser with permanent room links; also sold as embeddable video for apps
GoTo Meeting
Business video meetings with dial-in numbers, breakout rooms and cloud recording
RingCentral Video
Video meetings with an AI assistant, free for RingEX phone customers and available as a free plan
Webex
Video meetings, calling and messaging from Cisco
Open source
Jitsi Meet
Free open-source video meetings with no account needed, which you can also host yourself
Side by side
How to choose
- 1
How long can a meeting run on the free plan, and how many people can join?
- 2
Is it priced per host or per user, and do guests need an account or a download to join?
- 3
Do you need recording, transcripts or AI summaries, and which plan includes them?
- 4
Does it come with tools you already pay for, such as Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace?
Also worth a look
Tools listed elsewhere that do this job too.
Microsoft Teams
Chat, meetings and calling, sold alone or inside Microsoft 365
Guides
Questions
What are video conferencing apps?
Video conferencing apps run online meetings with video, audio and screen sharing, joined from a browser, a desktop app or a phone. Most add recording, chat, breakout rooms and calendar invites; paid plans raise the meeting length and participant limits, and many now transcribe and summarise meetings with AI.
Which video conferencing apps have a free plan?
Of the 7 listed here, 7 have a free plan: Zoom Workplace, Google Meet, Whereby, GoTo Meeting, RingCentral Video, Webex and Jitsi Meet. Free plans are limited; each tool's page lists the limits.
Which of these video conferencing apps costs least to start?
Of the tools here with a published price, the lowest entry price is Whereby's Pro plan at $10.99/user/mo, as published on its pricing page on 7 November 2026. The cheapest plan is not always the best value: check what each plan includes.