Slack: Pricing, Reviews & Alternatives
Team Communication Tools ·Updated for 2026
The work-chat standard — and why teams leave over its free-plan limits and per-seat cost.
Top Slack alternatives
Slack vs …
Slack guides
- Step-by-Step Guide: Migrating from Slack to Microsoft Teams (2026)
- How to Migrate from Slack (and Why You Should Consider It in 2026)
- Slack Pricing 2026: Real Costs, Hidden Gotchas & Cheaper Alternatives
- Is Slack Worth It in 2026? An Honest Review of Pricing, Value & Alternatives
- Slack Review 2026: What's Good, What's Not, and Why Teams Are Leaving
- Best Slack Alternatives for Small Teams, Freelancers & Startups in 2026
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free alternative to Slack?
Discord is free with no message-history limit and excellent voice, ideal for lean teams and communities. Zulip and Mattermost are free and open source (self-hostable), and Microsoft Teams has a free tier too.
Which Slack alternative is open source?
Zulip and Mattermost are both open source and self-hostable, the main draw for teams wanting to own their data and avoid per-seat cloud costs. Zulip also offers a hosted cloud plan.
Is Microsoft Teams cheaper than Slack?
Often effectively free — if your organization already pays for Microsoft 365, Teams is bundled in at no extra cost, versus Slack's $8.75–$18/user/mo. Standalone, Teams Essentials starts at $4/user/mo, still below Slack's Pro tier.
Which Slack alternative keeps full message history for free?
Discord keeps full history on its free plan, unlike Slack which hides messages older than 90 days on free. Self-hosted Zulip and Mattermost also retain all history since you control the data.
Why do teams leave Slack?
The top reasons are the free plan hiding messages older than 90 days, per-seat pricing that scales expensively, no self-hosting or data ownership, and steady price increases with features gated into higher tiers.
Disclosure: some links are affiliate links; QikAlt may earn a commission at no cost to you. Pricing is list price as of 2026 and may change — confirm on each vendor's site.