6 Best GoToMeeting Alternatives for 2021

GoToMeeting is a popular video conferencing and screen share tool that launched in 1997. It’s since been surpassed by other similar tools, but its brand name still resonates with consumers. Unexpectedly, GoToMeeting announced it would shut down on August 31st of this year after failing to find another buyer for the company. 6 Alternative alternatives are listed below – each new service has notable features that make them stand out from the competition!

GoToMeeting has a lot going for it as part of LogMeIn’s portfolio of voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) and unified communications as a service (UCaaS) products. It not only works well for budget-conscious companies, but it also offers HD video and a high degree of protection. Other alternatives with higher-quality audio and more comprehensive features are available, and they aren’t restricted to higher-tiered subscriptions. We explain the top GoToMeeting alternatives in this article to help you discover a better match for your company:

• Zoom: Thanks to a good free plan, HD audio and video, and a large variety of backdrop effects, Zoom is the finest overall option for corporate video conferencing.
• RingCentral is the best option for companies that need not just video conferencing but also VoIP telephony and unified communications solutions.
• BlueJeans: This video conferencing provider’s sound and high definition (HD) footage are excellent for companies seeking a more immersive experience.
• Microsoft Teams is a collaboration tool developed by Microsoft: Best suited for businesses that currently use Office 365.
• 8×8: This option is best for companies who wish to reach a wider, possibly company-wide audience with their meetings. Users may broadcast meetings on YouTube using the app.
• GoogleMeet: This handy, streamlined video conferencing option won’t break the bank for budget-conscious companies utilizing Google Workspace.

How We Decided on the Best GoToMeeting Substitutes

We chose a few GoToMeeting rivals that provide a variety of tools for teams to effortlessly interact and exchange data. Each provider was assessed based on its total cost, the availability of basic and advanced features that would allow it to replace your small business VoIP service, our knowledge of the product, and its popularity and simplicity of use.

We found Zoom to be the most feature-rich GoToMeeting replacement among the solutions we tested. It offers a fantastic free plan that allows you to have meetings for up to 40 minutes, which is ideal for small companies on a budget. It also includes telehealth add-on packages as well as a range of touch-up effects that you can employ for both backdrops and individual speakers during meetings.

The following is a breakdown of how we assessed each provider:

25% of the overall score

When it comes to choosing which video conferencing solution is ideal for a small company, price is usually a decisive factor. We looked at the cost of subscription options for each provider and saw whether they offered a demo or a free trial for customers to check out the service before committing.

30% of the overall score

We looked at features like meeting recording, sound and video quality, security features like encryption, and whether the software can be used via a browser or a desktop program, as well as whether the product can be run through a browser or a desktop app.

25% of the overall score

While specialized and sophisticated features aren’t absolutely necessary, they do improve the user experience. We looked at whether the solution had a mobile app, support for features like breakout rooms, and file sharing for these kinds of options. We also looked at the meeting capacity (the number of people that can attend) in each tier.

20% of the overall score

We looked at the unique characteristics that each solution offers, the value you receive from it, how popular it is, and how simple it is to use while putting this section together.

Percentages based on the total score

Zoom

4.41 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• Small companies may utilize a free video-conferencing service.
• To minimize bad lighting and distractions, blur backgrounds and utilize the “Touch Up My Appearance” option.
• The UI is really simple to use.

What Isn’t There

• Unless you subscribe to the Enterprise tier, you can only record up to 1GB in the cloud per license.
• Users dialing in from phones do not have access to end-to-end encryption.
• Video conferencing may be “Zoombombed” if appropriate security precautions are not taken.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• Attendees with multi-monitor setups may share apps on any of their screens.
• Zoom has more calendar compatibility than GoToMeeting; for example, you can send invitations via Yahoo Calendar.
• HIPAA, PHIPA, and PIPEDA-compliant Zoom for Telehealth ensure that electronic healthcare information is secured.
• Zoom offers video correction capabilities that GoToMeeting doesn’t have, such as picture softening and gamma adjustment.

Given how popular Zoom has grown for both professional and personal video conferencing, it’s hard to overlook it. In reality, Zoom claimed that in 2020, its platform had an average of 300 million daily meeting attendees. This is a significant increase over the previous year, when 200 million people attended meetings every day, according to reports.

Zoom is a fantastic GoToMeeting competitor because of its robust encryption, simple design, and highly flexible desktop and mobile applications, and there’s a reason for its popularity. In terms of high-definition video, Zoom easily outperforms GoToMeeting. It not only has the same high-definition video as GoToMeeting, but it also includes high-definition audio. This means Zoom is better at simulating the sensation of being in the same room with your guests.

Zoom offers the added advantage of a free tier. While meeting length and features are restricted, having a free video-conferencing alternative allows your small company to connect. In the free edition, each meeting is restricted to 40 minutes, but there is no restriction to the number of meetings that may be held at the same time.

Zoom is, in general, a pretty well-rounded choice for small companies and solopreneurs, which is why we dubbed it our top overall selection among our GoToMeeting alternatives.

Pricing

• Free: Meetings with up to 100 people and a duration of up to 40 minutes are completely free.
• Pro: $12.49 per license, per month; hosts meetings for up to 100 people, but not for 40 minutes, and includes a Large Meeting add-on option, which increases the maximum number of attendees to 1,000.
• Business: $16.66 per month per license. Increases the maximum number of participants to 300.
• Enterprise: $20 per month per license. Increases the maximum number of participants to 500.

Features

(Image credit: Zoom)

• Zoom features high-definition audio and video.
• You may easily set aside up to 50 separate sessions for a more private conversation in breakout rooms.
• Not only can you share your screen, but you can also share your applications so that guests only see what you want them to see.

RingCentral

4.34 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• Guaranteed uptime of 99.999 percent
• The bulk of meeting room gear is natively compatible.
• There are no missing functionalities in either browser-based or app-based video conferencing.

What Isn’t There

• The maximum number of people that may attend a video conference is 200.
• The subscription plan is reasonably priced.
• For most consumers, an in-depth analytics dashboard may be too comprehensive.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• RingCentral is more costly than GoToMeeting, but you also receive UCaaS and VoIP telephony capabilities with your membership.
• While GoToMeeting has “clear audio,” RingCentral offers HD audio that adds to the in-person experience.
• While RingCentral MVP includes video conferencing, the company now provides a separate RingCentral Video subscription with a free Pro tier for 100 and 200 people.

RingCentral makes it simple to set up your complete corporate communications stack. It includes specialized call features such as interactive voice response (IVR) menus, team communication with presence, and video conferencing, to name a few. It’s also one of the most effective business phone systems available. RingCentral, like Zoom, includes HD audio and video, and encryption is performed both in-transit as data is transmitted and at rest while data is stored on the servers.

If there is a disadvantage to utilizing RingCentral for video conferencing, it is the 200-person video conference limit; several providers, such as Zoom, 88, and Google Meet, surpass this limit. In reality, the primary service for which we’re recommending RingCentral, GoToMeeting, has 150-person meeting limitations on its first tier and 250-person meeting limits on its second.

RingCentral, on the other hand, ticks a lot of other boxes for companies if you don’t plan on having big video conferences. Breakout rooms are accessible, there are softphone PC and smartphone applications, and the Premium tier includes automated call recording, which isn’t available with GoToMeeting.

Pricing

• Essentials are $29.99 per month per user. Video conferences are restricted to 100 people and have a duration restriction of 40 minutes.
• Standard: $34.99 per month for each user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 100.
• Premium: $44.99 per month for each user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 200.
• Ultimate: $59.99 per month for each user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 200.

Features

(Image courtesy of RingCentral)

• Unlimited domestic calling and texting are also included in the plans.
• There are four different options to choose from, making it simple to expand your communication capabilities.
• Both HD video and audio are available during conferences.
• There is an analytics dashboard for evaluating video call performance and use.

BlueJeans

4.34 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• Sound quality Dolby Voice
• During meetings, real-time closed captioning is very accurate.
• Customer support is accessible through chat and phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What Isn’t There

• Even at the Enterprise tier, only 200 people may attend a meeting.
• The base tier has a restricted number of integrations.
• Latency problems have been observed by certain users.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• In terms of audio quality, GoToMeeting’s standard definition sound is much less immersive than BlueJean’s Dolby Voice sound.
• GoToMeeting’s backdrop blur is only accessible via the third-party software ChromaCam, while BlueJeans’ virtual backgrounds and background blur are native.
• Attendees may use the Reactions button to provide nonverbal feedback to speakers.

BlueJeans, like GoToMeeting and Zoom, is a video conferencing service that lacks the bundled calling and unified communications (UC) capabilities that RingCentral offers. BlueJeans is distinguished by its use of Dolby Voice.

While other providers like Zoom and RingCentral provide HD voice, none of them quite equal the sound quality of a Voice-compatible configuration for video conferencing. Because GoToMeeting lacks HD audio, this is an especially strong GoToMeeting alternative. If you require high-fidelity sound during your meetings, BlueJeans is the way to go.

What benefits does this technology provide to meetings? Video conferencing is intended to simulate a face-to-face conference. Each attendee’s voice is broadcast from a separate place using Voice, creating a spatial sense and giving the impression that everyone is in the same workspace. Even when discussions overlap, the technology automatically isolates voices so that everyone is heard properly.

BlueJeans offers all of the capabilities that make it a formidable GoToMeeting rival, in addition to its outstanding audio features. Breakout rooms, an improved gallery view, HD video, virtual backdrops, and the option to connect from any device, for example, are all included. BlueJeans offers a free trial as well. Pricing is also extremely cheap; if you pay yearly, you’ll just spend $119.88 for a 100-person conference.

Pricing

• Standard: $9.99 per month for each user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 100.
• Pro: $13.99 per month, per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 150.
• Enterprise: $16.99 per month for each user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 200.
• Enterprise Plus: No pricing information is available. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 200.

Features

(Photo courtesy of BlueJeans)

• Smart Meetings, which are driven by artificial intelligence (AI), automatically collect conversation topics and action items, as well as meeting highlight reels.
• BlueJeans includes a Command Center that offers a comprehensive overview of your company’s meetings.
• Users may utilize the Join from Any Device feature to connect not just via softphone and smartphone applications, but also through browser windows without compromising security.

Microsoft Teams

Overall Score: 4.01 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• Apps may be accessed from one central place.
• For day-to-day requirements, seamless connections are essential.
• Even at the lowest rung, there is a high level of security.

What Isn’t There

• It’s a little difficult to figure out how to use the UI.
• Recordings aren’t always easy to find.
• When sharing a screen, it’s tough to see the edges.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• Overall, Microsoft Teams offers more integrations than GoToMeeting; furthermore, it is built for Office, so Office 365 customers will quickly embrace it.
• Microsoft Teams’ free tier allows for 60-minute meetings, which is longer than GoToMeeting Free’s 40-minute sessions.
• In Microsoft Teams, conversation search is automatic; in GoToMeeting, you must manually search through logs to find discussions.

Microsoft Teams is one of the market leaders in team collaboration, owing to a significant promotional push by the firm over the past year or two. Microsoft Teams offers a powerful video conferencing capability that is inherently extremely secure and supports meetings with up to 1,000 participants.

Microsoft Teams may record any meeting and share it afterward, which is useful for people who need to share sessions with other team members. Microsoft Teams, like Zoom and BlueJeans, allow you to choose your background picture. You may also blur your backdrop to reduce distractions, much like those services.

Microsoft Teams, unlike many other providers, including GoToMeeting, enables you to download participant lists so that you may follow up by email, text, or voice after the meeting is over. This creates a webinar-like experience that may be beneficial to certain companies. Microsoft Teams also readily transitions into webinar territory, since the platform can conduct webinars with up to 10,000 participants.

Pricing

• Microsoft Teams (free) costs $0 per month per user. Meetings and phone calls are restricted to a maximum of 100 people and 60 minutes. This plan does not contain the desktop version.
• Microsoft 365 Business Basic costs $5.00 per month for each user. Meetings and phone conversations are restricted to 300 people. This plan does not contain the desktop version.
• Microsoft 365 Business Standard costs $12.50 per month for each user. Meetings and phone conversations are restricted to 300 people.

Features

(Image courtesy of Microsoft Teams)

• During meetings, live captioning is provided so that attendees may read along with what is being said.
• To minimize distractions, Microsoft Teams offers a wide range of backdrop options.
• There is a free option that enables you to have unlimited 60-minute sessions.
• A terabyte of file storage is included in every Microsoft Teams subscription.

8×8

3.94 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• Even on the free plan, video meetings are limitless.
• The user interface is simple and straightforward.
• It is compatible with mobile devices.

What Isn’t There

• The quality of transcription services may be improved.
• More than 24 hours in advance, the calendar will not sync.
• Technical assistance is limited.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• Even with a free membership, native capabilities to broadcast live meetings to YouTube are accessible; this functionality is not available on GoToMeeting.
• Both HD audio and video are available on 8*8.
• There are no restrictions on how many simultaneous meetings may be held or attended for free, and there is no time limit on how long sessions can go.

Small businesses that only want to record meetings for short-term future reference will find 8*8 to be a good option. While those who need to store medical records indefinitely will need a stronger recording option, those who just want to record meetings for short-term future reference will find 8*8 to be a good option. These recordings are unlimited in length and stored for three days with the basic subscription.

This storage time is extended to two months for Pro users, which is extremely appealing for people who wish to preserve and share meetings with coworkers. When you compare this to Microsoft Teams, which only records meetings for 21 days, you can see the difference.

8*8 video conferencing also integrates with a variety of calendar apps. You may issue a calendar invite using the following methods:

• Google Calendar is a free service that allows you to
• Microsoft Exchange is a program that allows you to send
• Apple Calendar is a calendar created by Apple.
• Office 365
• Outlook.com

This is a lot more comprehensive than GoToMeeting, which only supports calendar invites via Outlook and Google Calendar.

Meeting plugins are also available for download, which extend functionality and enable you to plan meetings from start to completion. 8*8, like a number of the GoToMeeting competitors on our list, offers both HD audio and video, which helps to simulate face-to-face meetings.

Pricing

• Meetings are free: $0 per month, per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 50.
• Meetings Pro costs $9 per month per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 100.
• 8*8 Express costs $12 per month per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 500.
• X2: $24 per month per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 500.
• X4 costs $44 per month per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 500.

Features

(Reference: 88)

• Due to the availability of numbers in over 50 countries, 8×8 allows participants to dial in both locally and internationally.
• Participants may be invited at any moment, even while the meeting is in progress.
• Its sophisticated statistics show video conferencing use and service quality.
• Video conferences may now be broadcast to authenticated YouTube accounts in an amount equivalent to webinars.

Google Meet

3.54 OUT OF 5

What We Enjoy

• There is no need to install the app.
• Provides possibilities for document collaboration.
• Google Drive has been used to store recordings.

What Isn’t There

• There isn’t a transcribing option.
• There is no digital whiteboard accessible.
• For conferences, free users are given a time restriction.

What Does It Have in Common With GoToMeeting?

• GoToMeeting’s pricing levels are considerably more expensive than Google Meet’s.
• The free tier’s one-hour meeting time restriction is 20 minutes longer than GoToMeeting’s very restricted free plan.
• This video conferencing option is excellent for companies who use Gmail, Google Calendar, Drive, and other Google Workspace applications.

Google Meet, our last GoToMeeting alternative, is an excellent choice for small companies that must prioritize cost and simplicity of use. Their video conferencing technology, which is part of the Google Workspace, integrates seamlessly with professional versions of Gmail, GDocs, Sheets, and Calendar.

Google Meet offers a free tier, as many of the finest video conferencing solutions for small companies. The main distinction between Meet and rivals like GoToMeeting and Zoom is that Meet offers one-hour sessions rather than the 40-minute ones that competitors like GoToMeeting and Zoom provide.

Anyone with a Google account may utilize the free plan, which is especially helpful for solopreneurs seeking a simple video conferencing option. Upgrading from the free tier is similarly affordable; the Essentials Plan is just $8 per month and enables meetings with up to 150 participants. When you compare this to RingCentral Standard, which costs about $35 per month, you’ll see how affordable Google Meet is.

There’s no need to download any additional software with Google Meet; video conferencing may simply be held in a web browser window. It’s also extremely simple to use from other connected apps, such as Gmail or Calendar since it’s part of Google Workspace.

Unfortunately, video conferences on Google Meet are restricted to a maximum quality of 720p. Video conferencing solutions like Zoom and RingCentral may be more suited to your requirements if you want full HD video.

Pricing

• Google Meet is free to use for one month. The number of people who may attend a video conference is restricted to 100 and the duration is one hour.
• Individual Google Workspace costs $7.99 per month per user. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 150.
• For pricing on Google Workspace Enterprise, please contact sales. The number of people that may attend a video conference is restricted to 250.

Features

(Image courtesy of Google Meet)

• Intelligent noise cancellation capabilities for video meetings are offered at the Workplace Enterprise tier. While this isn’t really HD audio, it does substantially enhance call quality.
• Even though the data is transmitted through the web browser, all data transferred and at rest during a video chat is highly secured.
• Because Meet is part of the broader Google Workspace suite of products, it comes with Google Drive storage.
• Google Meet Free enables you to have one-on-one meetings for up to 24 hours.

Conclusion

In this era of remote work, video conferencing is inevitable, and although GoToMeeting may be a good option for some, it isn’t for everyone. Each of the options we presented has its own set of advantages, so it’s a good idea to start by determining your video conferencing requirements. This will help you determine if you should use GoToMeeting or another video conferencing service.