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Last checked October 15, 2026

Best Free Alternatives to Microsoft Teams (2026)

Teams is persistent chat plus meetings: channels, calls, screen sharing, and files, usually attached to a Microsoft 365 tenant. Replacing it means deciding whether you need the chat model, the meeting, or both. None of the tools below import a Teams tenant as a working copy of huddles, whiteboards, and Loop components.

Small teamsEnterprisesStartupsPrice checked

What Microsoft Teams costs

Teams Essentials is $4.00 per user per month, paid yearly, on Microsoft's Teams Essentials page.

That page describes Essentials as a small-business meetings plan with an annual subscription. Microsoft 365 suites also include Teams at other prices. Those suite prices are not copied here.

Microsoft Teams website·Pricing source

Ranked by Drop-in score

How we rank

#1 is the highest-scoring alternative that is not sponsored. A featured listing, when one is sold, is labeled and sits after #1.

  1. #1 · Best drop-inOpen source

    Mattermost

    Self-hosted team chat that follows the Slack model.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · MIT for Team Edition binaries; see Mattermost's license FAQ for source terms

    MacWindowsLinuxiOSAndroidWebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsMigration guideWebsite
  2. #2Open source

    Rocket.Chat

    MIT-licensed team chat with a free community server.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · MIT (Community)

    MacWindowsLinuxiOSAndroidWebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsWebsite
  3. #3Open source

    Element

    A Matrix client for encrypted, federated chat.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · Apache-2.0

    MacWindowsLinuxiOSAndroidWebSelf-host
    Cost and detailsWebsite
  4. #4Open source

    Nextcloud Talk

    Chat and calls inside a Nextcloud server.

    Last checked October 15, 2026 · AGPL-3.0

    WebiOSAndroidSelf-host
    Cost and detailsWebsite

Feature by feature

Full is the whole job. Partial is a real version with a gap. Missing means it does not do this. Not checked counts as zero in the score.

Scroll sideways to compare every alternative.

Feature comparison. Full, partial, missing, or not checked.
FeatureMattermost#1 · 87Rocket.Chat#2 · 87Element#3 · 78Nextcloud Talk#4 · 74
Channels for a teamWeight 10FullFullFullRooms and spaces, not a Teams channel tree.PartialTalk is conversations, not a team with a channel list.
Threaded conversationsWeight 6FullFullPartialMatrix threads exist. Clients differ in how completely they show them.Missing
Direct messagesWeight 6FullFullFullFull
Video meetingsWeight 10PartialCalls exist inside a channel. They are not a scheduled Teams meeting with a lobby and a recording policy.PartialBuilt-in calls exist. They are not a Teams meeting.PartialElement Call is the video app. Large meetings and recording are not solved.PartialSmall calls work in the box. Larger rooms need the High Performance Backend.
Screen sharingWeight 6PartialScreen share is part of Calls, not a separate meeting product.PartialTreat screen share as part of the call feature, with the same deployment caveats.PartialFull
File sharingWeight 5FullFullFullFiles can be sent in a room. This is not a document library.FullFiles are Nextcloud files, which is stronger than a chat attachment and a different product shape.
Guest accessWeight 5FullFullPartialFull
Mobile appsWeight 6FullFullFullFull
Self-hostingWeight 8FullFullFullFull

Real cost

Mattermost

Free tier
Team Edition is free to self-host. Mattermost also sells cloud and Enterprise subscriptions.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Moderate. A single-server Docker or tarball install is documented. Preview and push notifications need extra setup. Approximate server cost: $10–25/mo for a small team server. Unverified estimate.

Rocket.Chat

Free tier
Community is free to self-host. A hosted Starter plan for up to 50 users is also free.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Moderate. Docker Compose is documented. Snapshots, push, and federation add moving parts. Approximate server cost: $10–25/mo for a small server. Unverified estimate.

Element

Free tier
You can use the public matrix.org homeserver or host your own. Element also sells hosted and enterprise Matrix.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Hard. A Synapse or Dendrite homeserver plus Element Web is a real ops project. Federation and push are the parts that take time.

Nextcloud Talk

Free tier
Free as part of a self-hosted Nextcloud. Nextcloud GmbH sells enterprise subscriptions separately.
Hosted plan
No hosted price recorded.
Self-hosting
Moderate. Install Nextcloud, enable Talk, and add the High Performance Backend only if you need bigger calls. Approximate server cost: $10–30/mo. Unverified estimate.

Did you switch?

If you left Microsoft Teams, tell us whether it worked and how long it took. Notes stay private until we approve them, and nothing is shown until at least five are approved.

How did it go?

Top pair

Migrate from Microsoft Teams to Mattermost

There is no Teams importer to rely on. Recreate the channels that people actually use, and move the files by hand.

Read the migration guide

Questions