Google Chat vs Slack: which team messaging to choose?

Two approaches to team messaging

Google Chat and Slack are the two main team messaging solutions for businesses. Google Chat is natively integrated into Google Workspace. Slack is an independent product with a very rich ecosystem of integrations. The choice depends on your existing environment, your integration needs and your budget.

Google Chat: the simplicity of native integration

Google Chat is integrated with Gmail, Drive, Calendar and Meet. You share a Drive file in a chat with one click. You start a Meet meeting from a conversation. Calendar events appear in team spaces. This native integration eliminates friction between tools.

Chat spaces organize conversations by project, team or topic. Each space has its own discussion thread, shared files and tasks. Threads structure conversations to avoid noise.

Gemini is integrated in Google Chat. You can invoke Gemini in a conversation to summarize a document, draft a message or analyze data. This AI integration is included in Business Standard plans and above.

Slack: the richness of the ecosystem

Slack excels through its integration ecosystem. More than 2,600 apps are available in the Slack App Directory: Jira, Asana, Trello, GitHub, Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk and hundreds of others. Each integration brings notifications and actions directly into Slack.

Slack workflows automate common processes without code. A new message in a channel triggers a series of actions: ticket creation, team notification, spreadsheet update. The Workflow Builder is intuitive and powerful.

Slack Connect allows communication with external partners in shared channels. This feature is valuable for agencies, consultants and companies that collaborate closely with clients or suppliers.

Pricing comparison

Google Chat is included in Google Workspace (starting at 7 €/user/month). No additional cost. Slack Free is limited (90 days of history, 10 integrations). Slack Pro costs $8.75/user/month. Slack Business+ costs $15/user/month.

For an SMB of 20 users already on Google Workspace, adding Slack Pro represents $175 more per month. Google Chat is free and covers most internal communication needs.

Our recommendation

For SMBs on Google Workspace, Google Chat is the natural choice. The native integration with Gmail, Drive and Meet offers a smooth experience at no additional cost. Slack is justified if your team relies heavily on specific third-party integrations or if you collaborate intensively with external partners through Slack Connect.

LCMH, a Google Workspace reseller in Alsace, helps you configure Google Chat for effective team communication.

For advanced Google Meet features, read our article on Google Meet for hybrid work.

Sources

1. Google, Google Chat. workspace.google.com/products/chat
2. Slack, Slack Pricing. slack.com/pricing
3. Slack, Slack App Directory. slack.com/apps