Skip to main content

Google Meet vs. Zoom

With working from home more popular than ever, videoconferencing services like Google Meet and Zoom are proving to be invaluable resources for small businesses, major corporations, and everyday netizens alike. Google Meet has only been on the market since 2017, but Google released a free version of Meet in late April 2020 in response to gaining 100 million daily users due to global restrictions on working at the office.

Zoom remains the king of the heap, with over 200 million daily users and a bevy of sophisticated features. Still, the free version of Google Meet offers users a web-based videoconferencing service that doesn’t require downloading a desktop version to use and is accessible for anyone who has a Google account. Each service has its pros and cons, but both are excellent at connecting people face-to-face across the internet at no cost. Read on to learn more about how Google Meet compares to Zoom and to determine which is best for you.

Recommended Videos

Since the vast majority of daily users of both Google Meet and Zoom use the free version of both services, we compare them both side-by-side to showcase their unique features and advantages. Whether you want a quick video chat with friends and family or need to host 50 or more participants in a multi-meeting conference, both options will serve you well.

Availability and accessibility

While Zoom is the most popular free videoconferencing software, one notable advantage that Google Meet has is the ability to host a meeting via your web browser of choice. Participants can join a Zoom call using their browsers but must currently open the Zoom web client through your browser or the Windows 10/MacOS client. As far as mobile clients are concerned, both Zoom and Google Meet have free apps for Android and iOS devices, so you can video conference from anywhere as needed.

Zoom desktop app screenshot showing the Schedule Meeting screen and its options.
Daniel Martin/Screenshot

Another area where Google Meet has the upper hand is that you can access it through Google Chrome and other browsers directly without the need for plugins or additional downloads by visiting meet.google.com. It’s worth noting that Zoom does offer plugins for both Firefox and Chrome for scheduling meetings, but currently lacks the ability to schedule meetings natively without opening some client or app. Anyone with a Google login can schedule and join conferences without needing to create a separate account.

Number of participants and time limits

Both Zoom and Google Meet currently offer free meetings of up to 100 participants, but using the free version of either service comes with sharp limitations on time limits. As of September 30, Google Meets free version limits users to 60 minutes, while Zoom has consistently offered 40-minute sessions. However, Google Meet has dropped its time limits on free meetings until March 2021.

Main page of Google Meet website where people can start a new meeting.

Features and functions

Both Zoom and Google Meet offer users free videoconferencing services along with a host of functions to control meetings of varying sizes. Still, Zoom clearly comes out on top in terms of the abilities and control offered to free account users. Google Meet offers features including an audio/video preview screen to prepare for meetings, controls for meeting hosts, screen-sharing, excellent cross-platform compatibility, and seamless integration with apps from Microsoft Office and Google. However, Zoom offers every single feature mentioned above and, in many cases, provides a significant upgrade from Google Meet’s current capabilities, though Google is swiftly gaining ground.

For starters, while both services offer chat functions to accompany your videoconference, only Zoom allowed you to raise your hand or make use of Emoji Responses, at least until Google Meet’s December 15 update. Google Meet’s preview screen only lets you check your own audio/video connections, whereas Zoom’s Meeting Rooms allow hosts to pre-screen participants, grant them entry to the meeting or boot them as needed. Zoom offers a suite of virtual backgrounds and lets you record meetings on your physical computer for free — Google Meet only recently started offering background blurring and allowing uploaded image backgrounds, and recording meetings requires a paid G Suite subscription.

Zoom meetings can view up to 49 participants, and as of September 15, 2020, so can Google Meet users (but only on the web version). To use a whiteboard or conduct participant polls in Google Meet, you’ll have to open a separate application like Chrome Canvas or Jamboard to collaborate. In contrast, Zoom has an integrated whiteboard and polling capabilities.

Premium versions — compare and contrast

Google Meet’s Workplace Essentials plan costs $8 per month per user and comes with a variety of upgrades. These upgrades include meetings up to 300 hours in length, a max of 150 participants, 24/7 customer support, the ability to record meetings to Google Drive, U.S. and international dial-in phone numbers, while the Enterprise version offers all that up to 250 participants plus live domain streaming for up to 100,000, and intelligent noise cancellation.

Zoom desktop app screenshot showing a meeting in progress on a MacOS device.
Zoom

Zoom Pro costs $15 per month per user and improves upon the basic account by eliminating the 40-minute time limit on meetings, lets you record meetings on Zoom’s cloud service with 1GB of storage, live-stream Zoom meetings directly to social media, increased user management and admin options, and access to Zoom’s Reports section for detailed data on meeting lengths, participants and times. Additionally, Pro account holders gain access to Zoom Video Webinars, Zoom Room, access to Zoom’s API, and licenses and audio plans for large meetings.

One area where Google Meet is the clear winner would be security — over the past year, instances of people “Zoombombing,” or disrupting Zoom meetings with offensive content, have made the news several times. While Zoom has made considerable efforts to prevent this from occurring in the future, Google Meet has yet to report any such breaches due to their superior level of encryption. However, while the paid version of Google Meet only grants access to relatively basic improvements, Zoom provides more value by giving users developer access and access to other Zoom functions for $15 per month, whereas Google Meet plus G Suite is $20 per month for both programs.

Which is best for you?

Whether you prefer Zoom or Google Meet will largely come down to whether you need specific features like easy integration with other software or needing to record a meeting for free. While Google Meet is great for those looking to integrate their video chats with G Suite’s capabilities and more intimate video chats, Zoom’s sole dedication to video conferencing provides a more robust experience for larger conferences and corporate clients. In our current estimation, we give Zoom a narrow lead for features and its interface, but Google Meet proves that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and remains hot on Zoom’s heels.

Daniel Martin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Daniel Martin is a technology expert, freelance writer, and researcher with more than a decade of experience. After earning a…
Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs
A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.

Read more
Google Chrome has its own version of Window’s troubled Recall feature
google chrome version of recall blog header

Google has announced a number of AI features for the Chrome web browser, one of which can search through your browsing history using plain language. It's a bit like a toned-down version of Microsoft's Recall feature, which did this on the level of the entire operating system.

The example given entails typing the following question into your search history: "What was that ice cream shop I looked at last week?" Chrome will then dig through and pull up sites relevant to your question. It'll then suggest a website as the "AI Best Match."

Read more
Google just gave up on its proposed makeover of the internet
Google Chrome browser running on Android Automotive in a car.

Google announced on Monday that it will pull the brakes on phasing out the use of third-party cookies on its Chrome browser because of concerns from regulators, competitors, and privacy advocates, the tech giant said in a Privacy Sandbox post. Instead, Google will be going in a different direction that will let users choose how they interact with third-party cookies.

Blocking third-party cookies would have presented a hurdle for remarketing, which lets companies serve you ads based on your previous activity around the web.

Read more