15 Best Online/Virtual Meeting Platforms Software in 2023

List of the best Online/Virtual Meeting Platforms, along with their comparison and detailed reviews to choose the best one for your business.

Collaboration is an integral part of a business. But now that businesses have become multinationals, there is a dire need for ways to collaborate with the teams in a virtual way.

Even when you work in the same office or the same building, an online meeting would always prove to be a feasible way, as it saves much of the time of employees and costs of administration.

Virtual Meeting Platforms – Review

There are a number of online meeting software in the industry that offer you features like easy audio and video conferencing, video recording, analytics, notifications, video encryption, other security features, screen sharing, and more.

The virtual meeting platforms have made the functioning of businesses very smooth as well as productive at the same time. They allow quick and easy collaboration, time-to-time mentoring and training of employees, and much more, at very low costs.

These platforms have proved to be highly beneficial in times of pandemic, when not only businesses, but educational institutions also suffered a big setback. The online meeting platforms made it possible for these organizations to run even in such situations.

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In this article, we will talk about the top best online meeting platforms in the industry. Their features, prices, pros, cons, and comparisons are also provided so that anyone can pick the most suitable one as per their needs.

Important features of virtual meeting platforms to look for:

The top features that you must look for in a virtual meeting platform are:

1. Meeting capacity and the number of hours allowed.
2. Privacy and security features include end-to-end encryption, permission controls, and more.
3. Transcription, recording, and screen-sharing features.
4. Integration with other applications.

Market Trends: According to a report by Markets and Markets, the global Video Conferencing Market had an estimated worth of $9.2 Billion in 2021. The market is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 19.7% over the years 2021 to 2026 and reach a net worth of 22.7 Billion by the year 2026.

Expert Advice: If you want virtual meeting software for your business or organization, you must check out the security and privacy features that it offers, as any sort of information leakage can cost you big trouble.

FAQs on Meeting Software Online

Q #1) What is online meeting software?

Answer: Online meeting software is a platform that allows you to conduct meetings through the internet. We can attend such meetings from anywhere. Plus, this software offers different privacy features so that only authorized participants can sign in to a certain meeting.

Q #2) What is the best free meeting software?

Answer: Zoho Meeting, Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, and BigBlueButton are the best free online meeting platforms. Their free versions are very popular and recommended. One can opt for the paid versions, in order to avail of more advanced features.

Q #3) Is Google Meet better than Zoom?

Answer: Google Meet and Zoom are trusted and popular video conferencing platforms. Both are easy to use and compatible with all devices. But overall, Zoom comes out to be the winner. Its free version is better than Google Meet and the security features are also commendable.

Q #4) What platform is best for virtual meetings?

Answer: Zoho Meeting, Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, BigBlueButton, BlueJeans, Slack, GoTo Meeting, Cisco Webex, and Google Meet are the best virtual meeting software.

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List of the Best Online Meeting Software

Here are some useful platforms for virtual meetings:

1. Zoho Meeting
2. Zoom
3. Skype
4. Microsoft Teams
5. BigBlueButton
6. BlueJeans
7. Slack
8. GoTo Meeting
9. Cisco Webex
10. Google Meet
11. Jitsi Meet
12. Whereby
13. Blackboard Collaborate
14. Dialpad Meetings
15. TrueConf Online

Comparing Some Best Virtual Meeting Software

Tool NameBest forMeeting CapacityTime LimitFree Trial/Free VersionPrice

Zoho MeetingBusinesses of all sizes that want interactive and engaging online meetings250 participants24 hoursA free version is available. A 14-day free trial is also available. Standard: $1 per host/ month, billed annually
Professional: $3 per host/ month, billed annually

ZoomBeing an easy to use platform with a feature-rich free version1000 participants30 hoursA free version is available. Starts at $14 per month per user

SkypeAffordable voice calling and free HD video calling100 participants10 hours per day and 4 hours per individual Video calling is free with Skype. Free

Microsoft TeamsEnterprises that require collaboration of a large number of people. 300 participants30 hoursA free version is available. Starts at $4 per user per month

BigBlueButtonUseful integrations with many LMS software and other beneficial features for virtual classrooms.100 participants1 hourA free version is available. Contact directly to get a price quote.

Detailed Reviews:

Best for businesses of all sizes that want interactive and engaging online meetings.

Zoho is a 25-year-old, highly trusted, and advanced platform that offers a number of business solutions including Remote work management, Identity and access management, Enterprise service management, Unified endpoint management and security, IT operations management, Advanced IT analytics, Security information and event management, and much more.

It is a popular virtual meeting platform that is trusted by more than 280,000 organizations, including Bahrain Airport Services, Certis, HCL, Vizstone, Sony, and L’Oreal Paris.

Zoho Meeting is a secure video conferencing solution that is easy to use and highly powerful.

Features:

• Live audio and video conferencing tools with whiteboard and screen-sharing tools.
• Allows you to record, download, and replay your meeting videos.
• Detailed analysis and reporting tools for the webinars that you conduct.
• Seamless integration with Microsoft Teams, Gmail, Outlook, and many more platforms.

Pros:

• Web-based meetings
• Mobile applications for iOS as well as Android users
• Affordable prices
• The free version as well as the free trial.

Cons:

• Some users have complained that sometimes long video conferences stop in between.

Verdict: Zoho Meeting is one of the top free virtual meeting platforms that allows up to 100 participants at a time. The paid plans allow you to add more participants with more advanced features.

Zoho Meeting offers you a high range of features at absolutely reasonable prices. The features include real-time chat recording, reporting and analytics, Q&A management, screen sharing, file sharing, and more.

Price: There is a free version. A 14-day free trial is also offered.

Meeting:

• Standard: $1 per host/month, billed annually
• Professional: $3 per host/month, billed annually

Webinar:

• Standard: $8 per organizer/month, billed annually
• Professional: $16 per organizer/month, billed annually

#2) Zoom

Best for being easy to use and offering a highly useful free version.

Zoom is a popular and free online meeting software. The application allows you to do face-to-face meetings with anyone, anytime, from any device.

The Basic plan, which allows online meetings with up to 100 attendees, allows individuals as well as small businesses to use the platform for free. The only drawback with this plan is that the meeting is allowed to last for a maximum of 40 minutes. Plus, you get whiteboards and chatting, and file-sharing features with this plan.

The ease of use that Zoom offers makes it a widely accepted and recommended platform. The security and privacy features are also commendable.

Features:

• Easy-to-use tools for starting, joining, collaborating, and scheduling meetings.
• Allows you to join from anywhere, from any device.
• Powerful security features include the 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), suspending any participants, audio signatures, and more.
• Integration with 2000+ applications.
• Mobile applications for Android and iPhone users.
• Meeting recording and transcribing features.

Pros:

• Allows online meetings on all devices.
• Easy to use.
• SOC 2 Type II, SOC 2 + HITRUST, ISO 27001 compliance, CSA STAR Level 2 Attestation.
• A highly useful free version.
• Allows up to 1000 video participants.

Cons:

• The video downloading features need to be improved.

Verdict: Zoom is a highly trusted and renowned platform for online meetings. The customer reviews about the platform are really nice. Zoom is one of the best online meeting platforms for large groups.

The higher plans are a bit costly, but the range of features that they offer is praiseworthy. 95% of the users of Zoom claim that they have achieved an increment in performance and trust, and 93% of them have reported a greater sense of engagement.

Price: Zoom offers a free version.

Paid plans are as follows:

• Pro: $14.99 per month per user
• Business: $19.99 per month per user
• Business Plus: $25 per month per user
• Enterprise: Contact Sales.

Website: Zoom

Further Reading => List of the Top Online Community Platforms of the year

#3) Skype

Best for affordable voice calling and free HD video calling.

Skype, which is built by Microsoft, is one of the best virtual meeting platforms out there. It is an all-in-one solution for instant messaging, video conferencing, calling, and document collaboration.

This free virtual collaboration platform is highly recommended. It allows you to join meetings with just one click. Skype Web allows you to just log in and connect with your friends from anywhere. Even when your friends are not on Skype, you can make local or international voice calls or send text messages on their number, through Skype, at affordable rates.

Screen sharing, smart messaging, call recording, and live subtitles are praiseworthy. The platform offers you standard security through encryption.

Features:

• Allows 1:1 or group audio as well as HD video calling.
• The smart messaging features include @Mention (to refer to someone) and more.
• Integrated screen-sharing tools that allow you to share anything, including photos, presentations, videos, etc.
• Call recording and live subtitles.
• Offers affordable international calling
• Compatible with phones, Web, Desktops, Xbox, Alexa, and Tablets.

Pros:

• Supports all devices.
• End-to-end encryption for your private conversations.
• No need to sign in or download the application to join the call.
• You can get a local phone number, call or send an SMS via Skype.

Cons:

• Users have experienced some sound quality issues as the number of participants increases.
• Do not allow more than 100 participants.

Verdict: Skype is trusted by hundreds of millions of people from all over the world. The platform is recommended for individual as well as professional use.

The platform is free, simple, and can be used by anyone. The online calling feature is commendable. It makes international calling extremely affordable and easy.

Price: Skype to Skype calling is absolutely free. With Skype, you can make free unlimited audio and video calls. You just need to pay for a local number or for making calls.

Some of the plans are as follows:

• Unlimited USA calling: $3.59 per month
• 800 minutes of international calling to India: $9.59 per month

Website: Skype

#4) Microsoft Teams

Best for enterprises that require the collaboration of numerous people.

Microsoft Teams is a highly popular online meeting platform that is used by individuals and businesses of all sizes, from all over the world.

Microsoft is a highly trusted name and works to adopt environment-friendly methods of operation. They offer you 24/7 customer support and administration tools, including analytics and access to on-premise servers, online meetings that allow as many as 10,000 participants at a time, cool chat features, and much more.

Large enterprises and the IT sector contribute to having a large market share of the platform.

Features:

• Tools that allow you to create meetings instantly and invite anyone you want.
• Tools for scheduling and sharing meeting invites, sharing to-do lists, assigning tasks, and more.
• Chat, file sharing, and organizing tools.
• Cool features like emojis, memes, GIFs, and in-chat animations.

Pros:

• Noise suspension tool.
• A number of highly useful integrations.
• Data encryption at rest and in transit.
• 99.9% uptime guarantee.
• Flexible price plans.
• A highly useful free version.

Cons:

• Some users have complained about high data consumption.

Verdict: The free version offered by Microsoft Teams is highly useful. They offer unlimited 1:1 meetings up to 30 hours long! Free group meetings are allowed for 60 minutes and up to 100 participants are allowed. Even live subtitles are offered with the free plan.

The platform is suitable for homes, businesses, enterprises, and for education.

Price: Price plans offered by Microsoft Teams are as follows:

For Business:

• Microsoft Teams (free): $0
• Microsoft Teams Essentials: $4 per user per month
• Microsoft 365 Business Basic: $6 per user per month
• Microsoft 365 Business Standard: $12.50 per user per month

For Home:

• Microsoft Teams (free): $0
• Microsoft 365 Personal: $6.99 per month
• Microsoft 365 Family: $9.99 per month

Website: Microsoft Teams

Further Reading => Simple steps on how to Screen Share on FaceTime

#5) BigBlueButton

Best for useful integrations with many LMS software and other beneficial features for virtual classrooms.

BigBlueButton is an online meeting software, built to provide a feasible solution for setting up virtual classrooms. The software is highly popular in the education section.

It is an open-source platform so it can be customized, as per your needs. The platform makes online learning easy and trouble-free.

The range of features offered by BigBlueButton is highly commendable. The application is powerful and highly useful. It allows the students to raise their hands, save and share videos of the lessons, give feedback through emojis, collaborate with their friends, and much more.

Features:

• A multi-user whiteboard that allows the students to draw and write simultaneously.
• Use polls to get feedback or test the student’s knowledge.
• Create breakout rooms where groups of students can collaborate and learn.
• Manage the layout for yourself or the students.
• Integrations with Canvas, ATutor, Chamilo, and many other useful applications.
• Allows the teachers to teach with the help of documents, which are in the form of PDF, text, images, and Microsoft PowerPoint, Word, and Excel documents.

Pros:

• Available in 65 global languages
• Easy integration with your own products
• Videos can run in low, medium as well as high resolution.
• Easy to use

Cons:

• The system gets down sometimes, as said by some of the users.
• No noise cancellation feature

Verdict: BigBlueButton is a highly recommended platform for online tutors, schools, and colleges. This customizable platform has got some really nice reviews from its users.

A little drawback of the platform is that the instructor and the learners need to be a bit tech-savvy in order to use the platform. Some teachers find it difficult to use some features of the platform.

Price: Contact directly to get a price quote.

Website: BigBlueButton

#6) BlueJeans

Best for being a simple and smart platform, suitable for mid to large-scale businesses.

BlueJeans is an online meeting software, offered by Verizon. The platform is highly useful for businesses and for the healthcare field.

BlueJeans is an advanced online meeting software that offers you real-time intelligence tools including meeting highlights, automated alerts, and more, unparalleled interoperability that includes one-touch access to meetings, and much more.

The platform offers flexible pricing plans. It has received good ratings from its customers and from different software rating platforms.

Features:

• Live meeting controls, alerts, analytics, and meeting highlights.
• Unlimited 1:1 meetings are allowed with each plan.
• Live transcription and unlimited recording features.
• No time limit for meetings.

Pros:

• Highly useful integrations, including Slack, Microsoft Teams, Okta, and more.
• A free trial for 14 days.
• Mobile applications for Android as well as iOS users.

Cons:

• Limited participants are allowed in a group meeting.
• No free version.

Verdict: BlueJeans is a simple platform, and it is the best video conferencing app. Facebook, Adobe, and Pernod Ricard are some of its clients.

The platform is costlier than its alternatives. It is highly suitable for enterprise-scale businesses and for healthcare purposes. We found the customer reviews about BlueJeans to be very nice. We would highly recommend this platform.

Price: BlueJeans offers a trial for 14 days.

Price plans offered by BlueJeans are as follows:

• BlueJeans Standard: $9.99 per host per month
• BlueJeans Pro: $13.99 per host per month
• BlueJeans Enterprise: $16.66 per host per month
• BlueJeans Enterprise Plus: Custom Pricing.

Website: BlueJeans

#7) Slack

Best for being a feature-rich collaboration platform.

Slack is a trusted and very popular platform. Some of the very renowned names like Airbnb, NASA, Uber, and The New York Times are its clients. The platform is ISO 27001 and ISO 27018 certified, thus you can rest assured of the security of your personal information.

The set of features offered by Slack is highly beneficial and can fit into any organization. The only drawback is that they allow you audio and video conversations with up to 50 people only.

The free version is nice. It allows you one-on-one audio and video conversations only. Plus you get useful integrations like Google Drive, Office 365, and more.

Features:

• Connect with your business partners by sending messages, sharing files, and sharing screens in real-time.
• Send immediate or scheduled messages.
• Allows collaboration between as many as 500,000 users.
• Audio and video conversations.

Verdict: Slack claims to deliver 4 times faster deal cycles for a sales team and decreases the number of backlog tickets for the customer support team by 64%.

They offer special discount prices for qualifying charities, not-for-profit organizations, and educational institutions. They guarantee 99.99% uptime and offer 24/7 customer support. We would highly recommend Slack for businesses of all sizes, due to its collaboration capabilities.

Price: The price plan offered by Slack is as follows:

• Free: $0 per month
• Pro: $7.25 per month
• Business: $12.50 per month
• Enterprise Grid: Contact Sales.

Website: Slack

#8) GoTo Meeting

Best for highly secure virtual meetings.

GoTo Meeting is a popular, free online meeting software with 3,500 global employees and over $1.3 billion in annual revenue.

The platform offers you AES 256-bit encrypted video conferencing tools. We would highly suggest this platform for individual use as well as for businesses of all sizes.

The range of features offered by GoTo Meetings is commendable. They offer you meeting reminder alerts, automatic bandwidth adjustments, optional toll-free numbers, highly useful integrations, 24/7 customer support services, and much more.

Features:

• Allows a meeting capacity of up to 250 people.
• Background noise separation tools allow you to hear each word clearly.
• HD video meetings with screen sharing, downloading, in-session chat, and more features.
• Standard security features include encrypted sessions, meeting lock, dismiss attendees, and single sign-on features.
• Seamless integrations, meeting transcriptions, recording, and many more features.

Verdict: GoTo serves in over 190 countries from all over the world and guarantees 99.996% uptime.

The platform is highly suitable for Healthcare, Professional Services, Sales, and Education industries. We found the free version to be cool. It allows up to 4 participants for a video conference.

Price: They offer a free trial.

Price plans offered by GoTo Meeting are as follows:

• Professional: $14 per organizer per month
• Business: $19 per organizer per month
• Enterprise: Custom Pricing.

Website: GoTo Meeting

#9) Cisco Webex

Best for being a feature-rich application, suitable for individuals as well as businesses of all sizes.

Cisco Webex is an all-in-one, flexible and secure application for calling, meetings, messages, and events. The platform is suitable for businesses of all sizes. 95% of Fortune 500 companies rely on Cisco Webex for its collaboration features. The software is suitable for businesses of all sizes.

You also get integrations with over 100 applications, including Slack, Box Salesforce, Twitter, and more.

Features:

• Allows up to 1000 participants in a meeting that can last for a maximum of 24 hours.
• Advanced background noise removal tools.
• Meeting recording tools with cloud storage.
• Allows you to transfer files during a meeting.
• End-to-end encryption of meetings.

Verdict: The free plan offered by Cisco Webex is very nice. It allows you HD video meetings with up to 100 participants. The free meeting can last for up to 40 minutes only. Plus, you get screen sharing, messaging, interactive whiteboarding, and many other beneficial features.

The set of tools offered by Cisco Webex is appreciable. The video quality is also good.

Price: Cisco Webex offers a free version.

Paid plans are as follows:

• Meet: $12 per user per month
• Enterprise: Contact the Sales Team.

Website: Cisco Webex

#10) Google Meet

Best for free, high-quality video conferencing.

Google Meet is a web as well as Android-based application for setting up video meetings. The application runs on Android 6.0 and up.

It is a secure and trustworthy application for video conferencing. The download size of Google Meet for Android is 21.49 MB. The platform is highly recommended for small businesses. Up to 250 people can participate in a video meeting with the free version.

Features:

• Allows HD video meetings with up to 250 people.
• You can use the Q&A, polls, and hand-raise features during the meeting.
• Real-time, live captions.
• Data is encrypted in transit.

Verdict: Google Meet has 50,00,00,000+ downloads on the Google Play Store and has a 4.1/5 star rating. The platform is easy to use and allows you to access the meeting from any device. You can even share your screen and get live captions during a call.

Price: HD video calling is available for free. The paid plans, which include recording and more features, start at $8 per month.

Website: Google Meet

#11) Jitsi Meet

Best for being a free and flexible HD video conferencing solution.

Jitsi Meet is an open-source, free online meeting software that offers easy-to-use tools for video conferencing. That the platform is highly useful, it is available for free and allows you to set HD video calls that are encrypted.

Jitsi Meet has over 20 Million monthly active users, including Comcast, Symphony, 8×8, and many more.

Price: Free

Website: Jitsi Meet

#12) Whereby

Best for being an affordable and easy-to-use online meeting software with some cool features.

Whereby is a simple web-based video meeting software that is trusted by some renowned names like Netflix, Spotify, Ikea, HubSpot, Shopify, and more?

With Whereby, you can easily copy and send meeting links to your team and lock the meeting. Each guest will have to knock if he wants to join the meeting. I found the platform to be highly recommendable, due to the modern and cool features that it offers. Their free version is nice. It allows video conferencing with up to 100 participants.

Price: Whereby offers a free version. Prices start at $6.99 per host per month.

Website: Whereby

#13) Blackboard Collaborate

Best for being an easy-to-use and feature-rich virtual classroom solution.

Blackboard Collaborate is basically a virtual classroom solution. The platform offers solutions to set up an interactive classroom. The features offered by this software are nice.

You get automation features for attendance, recording lectures, and more. Anyone can access the recordings at any time. Plus, you do not need to install the software to use it.

Price: There is a free trial for 30 days. Contact us directly to get a customized price quote.

Website: Blackboard Collaborate

#14) Dialpad Meetings

Best for useful automation.

Dialpad Meetings is a free AI-based Virtual Meeting Platforms. This web-based platform allows you to collaborate through messages, as well as through virtual meetings. There is a free version that allows up to 10 participants and the paid version allows a maximum of 150 participants in a video conference.

Plus, you get automated post-meeting summaries, video recordings, meeting transcripts, and many other useful features.

Price: There is a free version. Paid plan costs $15 per user per month. You will also get a free trial for 14 days.

Website: Dialpad Meetings

#15) TrueConf Online

Best for being a scalable and cost-effective virtual conferencing platform.

TrueConf Online is one of the most trusted, powerful, and scalable virtual meeting platforms with more than 3 million global users. The platform is compatible with Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and Android TVs, and offers advanced collaboration tools at affordable prices.

Price: TrueConf Online offers a free version.

Paid plans are as follows:

• Pro: $12.9 per host per month
• Corporate: $300 per month (There is a free trial for 30 days)
• TrueConf Server for LAN/VPN: Starts at $240 per year

Website: TrueConf Online

Conclusion

Virtual or online meetings not only save the time and costs of the organizations, but also help in improving the performance and engagement of the employees. Virtual meeting platforms are in great demand today, due to their innumerable benefits. They are being used for personal, educational, and business purposes.

The best virtual meeting platforms in the industry are Zoho Meeting, Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, BigBlueButton, BlueJeans, Slack, GoTo Meeting, Cisco Webex, and Google Meet.

Most of them offer free versions that allow video conferences with a limited number of participants. With their paid plans, you can access various useful features like screen sharing, video recording, downloading, live transcription, and more.

Research Process:

• Time Taken to Research this Article: We spent 12 hours researching and writing this article so that you can get a useful summarized list of Virtual Meeting Platforms with their comparison.
• Total Virtual Meeting Platforms Researched: 22
• Top Virtual Meeting Platforms Shortlisted: 15

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