Team Chat and Messaging Software
Google Chat: features, pricing and who it fits
Google Chat is included in every paid Google Workspace plan, so there is no separate chat price. It offers spaces with threads and builds in Google Meet. Starter to Plus plans max out at 300 users. Reviewers say it lacks the app depth of chat-first tools.
Who Google Chat is for
Best for
- Teams already on Google Workspace that want chat without a second license
- Small companies under 300 users that want one bundled bill
Look elsewhere if
- Teams on Microsoft 365 that would run two suites
- Buyers who want a deep app marketplace and advanced workflow tooling comparable to Slack
Fit by company size
| Category | 1-10 people | 11-50 people | 51-500 people | 500+ people |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Chat and Messaging Software | Workable | Strong fit | Strong fit | Workable |
Strong fitWorkablePoor fitNo data from the vendor
Google Chat features
- Channels and threading
- Spaces with threaded replies and direct messages
- Built-in video and huddles
- Google Meet built in; participant cap depends on Workspace plan (100 Starter to 1,000 Enterprise)
- Security and admin controls
- Workspace supports SAML and OIDC SSO; Secure LDAP on Plus; DLP and context-aware access on Enterprise
- Pricing model and transparency
- Bundled per-user Workspace license; no separate Chat price
- Target company size
- Small to enterprise; Starter to Plus limited to 300 users
Google Chat pricing
| Plan | Price | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Starter | $7 | user/month | 100 Meet participants, 30 GB pooled storage |
| Business Standard | $14 | user/month | 150 Meet participants, 2 TB, recording |
| Business Plus | $22 | user/month | 500 Meet participants, Vault, eDiscovery, Secure LDAP |
| Enterprise | Contact sales | user/month | 1,000 Meet participants, DLP, context-aware access, data regions |
Google's pricing page shows EUR when served in Germany (Starter 6.80, Standard 13.60, Plus 21.10). USD figures may reflect promotional variants and are not confirmed against Google's USD price list; Google runs a 12-month introductory discount for new customers on the first 20 users. Starter, Standard and Plus are capped at 300 users. Chat itself has a free consumer version with a personal Google account.
Prices as published by Google Chat on the date above. Quotes for larger teams often differ, which is what a request on SaaSBid surfaces.
Pros and cons
What users like
- Simple and easy to use
- Tight fit with the rest of Google Workspace
Common complaints
- Limited feature depth compared with chat-first tools
- File-sharing size limits and occasional slowness reported
Integrations, security and hosting
- Data residency
- Enterprise data regions listed on the Enterprise plan
Worth knowing before you buy
- Chat is not sold separately: you pay for a Workspace seat starting at the Starter plan
- Starter, Standard and Plus can be bought for at most 300 users; above that you need Enterprise
- Annual commitment saves 16% per Google's pricing page, but billing is still monthly
- Google's data processing terms are public and cover Workspace as a processor
- Meet participant limits, not Chat limits, are what differ across plans (100, 150, 500, 1,000)
