Slack vs Microsoft Teams

Slack

Slack's App Directory has thousands of integrations; a GitHub pull request notification or a Trello card update can land directly in the right channel, which is why it's become the hub for a lot of tech teams.

Microsoft Teams

In Teams you can open and edit an Excel file right from inside the chat, or start a meeting directly from a channel; at a company already on Outlook and Office, account management and authentication run through the same single system.

Which one should you choose?

If your company already runs on Microsoft 365, Teams' direct integration with Office apps makes things easier. Slack's simpler interface and wide range of third-party integrations still make it the preferred choice for a lot of tech and startup teams.

What are Slack and Microsoft Teams?

Slack is a workplace messaging app that splits team conversation into topic-based channels. Channels, threaded replies and quick audio huddles replace long email chains. Its strengths are a clean interface and easy connections to outside services.

Microsoft Teams is the communication hub of Microsoft 365. Chat and channels sit in the same window as video meetings, calendars, file sharing and direct work in Office apps. Files are stored behind the scenes in SharePoint and OneDrive.

Key differences

Ecosystem: Teams is woven into Outlook, Excel, Word and company account management. Slack isn't tied to any office suite and works with both Google and Microsoft tools.
Meetings: scheduled meetings, recordings and large sessions are central to Teams. Slack has quick calls, but many teams use a separate app for bigger meetings.
Feel: messaging in Slack is quicker and smoother. Teams packs in more features, which can make it feel busier.
Free use: Slack's free plan limits access to older message history. Check both products' current plan terms on their sites.

Who should pick which?

If your company already uses Microsoft 365, schedules meetings in Outlook and stores files in SharePoint, Teams is usually the path of least friction. IT teams also value managing users and security settings in one place.

Engineering teams, agencies and groups that constantly talk with people at other companies tend to prefer Slack. Shared channels with outside partners and GitHub or Jira notifications in channels are everyday habits there.

Before you switch

Full message history often can't be moved to the new tool. Archive anything you need to keep before the switch.
Redesign your channel structure for the new tool instead of copying the old one as is, which usually creates clutter.
List the bots and integrations you rely on and check whether each one has an equivalent on the other platform.

Bottom line

If you are a Microsoft 365 company, choose Teams and keep chat, meetings and files in one place without another subscription. If your team has a fast messaging culture and works with many outside services and external people, Slack gives a better day-to-day experience.