Team communication apps make communicating with your team easy and effective, no matter where you’re working from. In this article, I’ve laid out the 12 best apps on the market so you can find the one that best suits your business.
Team communication isn’t easy, especially if you have field workers in multiple locations.
Thankfully, team communication apps completely streamline team communication, enabling you to communicate with your employees efficiently and easily while everything stays under your control.
I’ve done extensive market research on the team communication apps on the market today and lined up my top 12 picks. Check out the list below and find your perfect fit for your business.
If you don’t have the time to read through our research, jump down to our quick comparison table.
Our Top Picks
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Best all-in-one team communication app.
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Best for secure communication.
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Best for project and task management.
How I Chose the Best Team Communication Apps
To give you a more specific look into how I narrowed down my list, these are the key functions and features I looked for when reviewing team communication apps:
Important core features:
- Multiple modes of communication: There are many kinds of workplace communication, such as instant messaging, video conferencing, employee alerts, and intranets. The more communication modes your team communication app includes, the easier it is for everyone to collaborate.
- Group capabilities: You need a solution that makes it easy to organize conversations into groups. This feature allows teams to break discussions down by topic, event, project, and more.
- Administrative features: Group communication apps should allow managers to easily manage teams, control data, and remove users from the app (including their data) if necessary.
I looked for usability features, like:
- Mobile access: A mobile version or app ensures team members can communicate and stay updated even when they’re on the go.
- Ease of use: Employees need an app that doesn’t waste their time, isn’t too complicated, and has a visually pleasing user interface.
I checked for other important features, such is:
- Reaction emojis: Emojis are a quick way to acknowledge or respond to messages without typing a full response. It makes the chat more casual and allows for team bonding and engagement.
- Workflow integrations: Instead of switching from one platform to the next – integrations to content management apps, payroll systems, and field management systems make workflows more streamlined.
- File sharing and storage: The best team communication apps allow you to easily share, preview, and store documents and other files.
The 12 Best Team Communication Apps of 2023
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Connecteam — Best all-in-one team communication app
At the very top of my list is Connecteam’s all-in-one team communication app.
Why I chose Connecteam: This software gives you all the tools to easily and efficiently communicate with your non-desk and frontline team, keep everyone engaged and informed, and stay on top of who reads your messages – all from one place.
Let’s dive deeper into Connecteam’s communication features and how they help optimize team communication.
In-app chat
Connecteam’s online team chat lets you instantly communicate with your employees in secure 1:1, group, and company-wide chats. This allows your entire team to stay connected wherever you’re working from and to remain productive and focused on the job with work-dedicated messaging.
Admins can monitor and remove inappropriate messages from group chats and set what employees can download, share, and forward.
Company-wide updates and announcements
Share company updates, announcements, and shout-outs with your team through your social feed and allow users to comment and react – just like on social media. This is a great way to keep your entire team in the loop and engaged.
As an admin, you maintain a clear overview of who viewed and read your updates. You can easily ensure your message gets across with notifications, pop-up updates, and reading confirmations.
Employee directory
With Connecteam’s company employee directory, you and your team can quickly look up and contact coworkers and external work contacts through the app without having to save the contact information on your mobile phones. You can search contacts by name, job title, department, location, or custom field and add notes with additional details, such as preferred call hours.
Admins can control which contact information users can see, such as the CEO’s phone number, and know contact information stays safe within the company with access only to current employees.
Knowledge base
Create, organize, and share documents, policies, and training materials with Connecteam’s knowledge base. This way, your employees know exactly where they can quickly find and access any information they need to do their jobs. It automatically updates content across everyone’s devices, so everyone has all the latest information at their fingertips.
As an admin, you can monitor and keep a record of which users viewed each relevant document and when.
Surveys & live polls
You can create customizable live polls and surveys on any topic and share these with your employees to compete right on their mobile phones. Boost response rates with an easy and engaging user experience, an auto-save functionality, notifications, and an anonymity option.
Receive and access responses in real-time from your admin dashboard. This feedback enables you to gain valuable insights, make informed decisions, and ensure your team feels heard.
And so much more…
In addition to powerful communication features, Connecteam offers exceptional customer support, an intuitive user experience, excellent employee management system, and customizability, which allows you to adjust the platform to suit your exact business needs.
When we implemented Connecteam, the biggest thing for me as a company owner was actually taking back control of my own company.
Connecteam also offers a free for life plan – Get Started Now!
Key Features
Pros
Intuitive and easy to use
All-in-one solution
Great customer support
Budget-friendly
Cons
Integrations in development
Pricing
Free-for-life plan availablePremium plans start at $29/month for 30 users
Improve your internal communication with Connecteam secured chat
Let’s Get Started -
Troop Messenger — Good for secure communication
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
- Windows
- Mac
Troop Messenger brings your team together to collaborate and interact using a single interface.
Why I chose Troop Messenger: Whether you want to send a 1:1 message, create group chats, or message to your entire team, this app allows for secure team collaboration in all forms.
The main features of this solution include one-on-one conversations, voice-video calls, screen sharing, audio messaging, and group conversations.
Additionally, your employees can use Troop Messenger to share files, filter content, or bookmark their favorite messages and files. Intra-corporate or government teams rely on Troop Messenger because of this app’s impressive security features and large storage size.
Learn more about Troop MessengerKey Features
- One-on-one or group conversations
- Screen-sharing
- Voice and video calls
- Desktop app
Pros
- Audio messaging
- Company directory
Cons
- Very pricey
- Chat filters are hidden
Pricing
Starts at $2.5/user/month Trial: Yes Free Plan: No
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Chanty — Good for project and task management
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Chanty, an AI-based team chat app, provides in-app chat, video calls, and screen sharing.
Why I chose Chanty: This app provides light project management capabilities and can turn messages into tasks. It’s simple, quick, and easy! You can create kanban views of tasks and project, discuss tasks around a specific workflow, and set due dates. Employees are notified immediately when they’re tagged in a new task.
Chanty integrates with Google Drive, Trello, Dropbox, and GitHub. It holds everything in one place, including organized tasks, conversations, pinned messages, and other shared content types. You might prefer that your group communication apps do a little more than what Chanty offers.
Chanty is available on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and the Web.
Learn more about ChantyKey Features
- Chat
- Audio and video calls
- Screen sharing
- Pinned content
Pros
- In-app chat
- Video calls included
Cons
- Lacking important features
- Poor customer support
Pricing
Starts at $2.55/user/month Trial: No Free Plan: Yes — Up to 10 team members
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Slack — Good for large teams
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Slack is one of the world’s best team chat apps, used and loved by many companies worldwide.
Why I chose Slack: It has an intuitive interface and loads of solid integration capabilities. For instance, the Slack App Directory features over 1,500 apps Slack can integrate with, including other employee communication apps and project management tools.
Sounds good? It is…with a catch! The catch is that employees must have their own email addresses to invite other employees to join group communication apps like Slack.
Learn more about SlackKey Features
- One-on-one and group chat
- Individual and team audio calls
- Video conferencing
- Drag-and-drop PDFs, images, videos
Pros
- Loads of integrations
- Intuitive interface
Cons
- Need a work email address
- Can be easy to miss messages depending on your settings
Pricing
Starts at $7.25/user/month Trial: Yes Free Plan: Yes
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Microsoft Teams — Good for healthcare teams
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Microsoft Teams is one of our favorite employee communication apps that allows you to chat in groups, meet, call, video conference, and collaborate with your team, regardless of everyone’s location.
Why I chose Microsoft Teams: A solid example of team communication apps done right, Teams allows you to access, share, and edit Word docs, PowerPoint, and Excel files. You can also easily use Teams on desktop or mobile devices.
What we like less about Microsoft Teams is its clunky interface. And, for the price, we expect more from a group communication app.
Learn more about Microsoft TeamsKey Features
- Online meetings
- Individual and team audio calls
- Video conferencing
- Screen sharing
Pros
- Microsoft Teams is widely popular
- Excellent video quality
Cons
- Users need an activated Microsoft subscription
- Lack of notifications
Pricing
Starts at $4/user/month Trial: Yes — Up to 25 users Free Plan: No
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Rocket.Chat — Good for teams with developers on staff
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
- Windows
- Mac
Rocket.Chat is another one of many great apps to communicate with employees.
Why I chose Rocket Chat: You can also refer to this solution as a “communication hub,” as Rocket.Chat calls it. This team collaboration tool lets you chat and share files with your team in real time with video and audio conferencing.
This is one of several employee communication apps that offers complete access to the source code. With this feature, developers can fully customize, extend, or add new functionalities to meet your requirements.
Learn more about Rocket.ChatKey Features
- Real-time or asynchronous team chat
- Audio and video calls
- Screen sharing
- Share files
Pros
- Fast file sharing
- Source code accessible
Cons
- Lacks a few important features
- No voice calls
Pricing
Starts at $7/user/month, minimum of 25 users Trial: Yes — 30-day Free Plan: Yes
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Google Meet — Good for virtual meetings
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Formerly called Hangouts, Google Meet began as one of the original team collaboration apps.
Why I chose Google Meet: This app lets team members initiate and engage in different communication channels with minimal effort.
This team chat app offers direct messaging, group messaging, HD group conferencing, voice calls, and screen-sharing. It also supports multiple computing devices and includes custom administrative control options.
As group communication tools go, Google Meet is a little flat. But, we also recognize this team communication software as a good start for simple, quick, on-the-go messaging.
Learn more about Google MeetKey Features
- Part of Google G Suite
- Google Chrome desktop extension
- Messaging, Voice and Video Calls
- Virtual rooms
Pros
- Pricing per user
- Excellent G-Suite integration
Cons
- No free option
- Difficult to use for presentations
Pricing
Starts at $12/user/month Trial: Yes — 14-day Free Plan: Yes
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Workplace from Meta — Good for employee engagement
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Meta’s answer to the “team communication apps” market. Like Slack, this service charges on a monthly, per-user basis.
Why I chose Meta: It offers everything from video conferencing to workflow structuring. This tool works best for remote and global teams that consist of professional, managerial, or technical occupations like software developers or data journalists.
While Meta is best known for social media, its Workplace tool is one of the most effective employee communication apps.
Learn more about Workplace from MetaKey Features
- Familiar Facebook interface
- Easy for new members to join
- Groups, chat, rooms, and live video
- Third-party storage services integrations
Pros
- Allows for informal communication with emojis and images
- Range of communication options
Cons
- No dedicated enterprise features
- Intimidating layout for new users
Pricing
Starts at $4/person/month Trial: Yes Free Plan: No
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CA Flowdock by Broadcom — Good for team collaboration
Available on
- Web
- Windows
- Mac
Flowdock by CA Technologies is one of several team chat apps connecting teammates through remote chats categorized and sorted by topics, locations, and time zones.
Why I chose Flowdock by CA Technologies: The Flowdock app stores all your conversations, work items, and tools in one place. This tool also helps you prioritize work, and solve communication problems.
Learn more about CA Flowdock by BroadcomKey Features
- File sharing
- Discussion threads
- Real-time chat
- Search
Pros
- Includes instant notifications
- Highly customizable
Cons
- Not so user-friendly
- The mobile app can be slow
Pricing
Starts at $3/user/month Trial: Yes — 30-day Free Plan: Yes — Up to 5 users
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Flock — Good for file sharing
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Flock is popular as it allows for team messaging, project management, and more.
Why I chose Flock: Flock organizes all your conversations, creates discussion channels, and integrates with over 30 third-party apps.
This tool is a good team messaging app for discussing projects, sharing ideas, and completing work in real time. You can also add vendors as guests on Flock and specify the chats and channels they can access.
Learn more about FlockKey Features
- File sharing
- Discussion threads
- Chat
- Video conferencing
Pros
- Great for sharing visual insights
- Attractive user interface
Cons
- Web version needs work
- No voice message feature
Pricing
Starts at $4.5/user/month Trial: Yes — 30-day Free Plan: Yes — For teams with 1-20 members
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Proofhub — Good for marketing initiatives
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
As employee communication apps go, ProofHub makes direct messaging and meaningful conversations with teams or clients easy.
Why I chose ProofHub: Although ProofHub offers communication features, it began as an online project management app to help teams organize projects and get work done.
With an orderly interface and emphasis on simplicity, ProofHub delivers all the basic tools you need to manage a project. This tool’s homepage for admins gives you an overview of the work you need to track. It also shows a summary of tasks and events assigned to you and lists all active projects in your account.
Learn more about ProofhubKey Features
- Group chat
- Project-based discussion
- Workflows
- Project reports
Pros
- Includes a wide range of features
- Integrates with many apps
Cons
- Not the best user interface
- Managing notifications can be difficult
Pricing
Starts at $45/month Trial: Yes — 14-day Free Plan: No
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Convo — Good for retail businesses
Available on
- Web
- iOS
- Android
- Windows
- Mac
Convo is one of those apps to communicate with employees that enables secure, easy conversations between desk and non-desk workers.
Why I chose Convo: This app distills the most effective parts of enterprise social networks, task managers, and productivity apps to become one of the best communication apps for large and agile teams. Convo is available on web, desktop, iOS, and Android.
Learn more about ConvoKey Features
- Brainstorming
- Calendar management
- Discussion boards
- Task management
Pros
- Good for file sharing
- Simple and easy to use
Cons
- Desktop version is better than mobile
- No CRM integrations
Pricing
Starts at $6.67/user/month Trial: No Free Plan: Yes — Up to 20 users
Compare the Best Team Communication Apps
| Topic |
Start for free
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| Reviews |
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| Pricing |
Starts at just $29/month for the first 30 users
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Starts at $2.5/user/month
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Starts at $2.55/user/month
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Starts at $7.25/user/month
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Starts at $4/user/month
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Starts at $7/user/month, minimum of 25 users
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Starts at $12/user/month
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Starts at $4/person/month
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Starts at $3/user/month
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Starts at $4.5/user/month
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Starts at $45/month
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Starts at $6.67/user/month
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| Free Trial |
yes
14-day
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yes
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no
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yes
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yes
Up to 25 users
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yes
30-day
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yes
14-day
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yes
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yes
30-day
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yes
30-day
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yes
14-day
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no
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| Free Plan |
yes
Free Up to 10 users
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no
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yes
Up to 10 team members
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yes
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no
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yes
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yes
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no
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yes
Up to 5 users
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yes
For teams with 1-20 members
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no
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yes
Up to 20 users
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What are Team Communication Apps?
Team chat apps are software solutions that make it easier for team members to communicate and collaborate. This software allows multiple people to communicate in a variety of ways, including one-on-one chats, group messages, or online meetings.
These apps also centralize information, giving users a shared platform to share files and work with each other. Team communication solutions also let users work on projects together.
How Do Team Communication Apps Work?
The best team chat apps include features like the ability to send group messages or audio clips and video conferencing capabilities. The most prevalent of these features is undoubtedly team chat. Some apps might even integrate with an online time clock so employees can clock in and out of work from their phones, and managers can keep in contact no matter where they are.
The ability to message any other user in your shared network is integral to the team communication app experience. More often than not, users can also share different kinds of media via a chat feature. This media can include videos, GIFs, images, files, audio recordings, and emojis, among other things. Another common feature in team communication apps is the ability to search for any other user via an employee directory.
What are the Benefits of Team Communication Apps?
There are many reasons why using a team communication app is incredibly beneficial for your business, including:
Centralized team communication
These apps provide a central platform where all team members can communicate, ensuring that everyone is on the same page. This reduces the chances of miscommunication.
Real-time collaboration
Team members can collaborate in real-time, sharing files, discussing ideas, and making decisions quickly.
Documented conversations:
Unlike verbal communication, everything discussed in team communication apps is documented. This makes it easy to refer back to previous conversations, decisions, or shared files.
Integration with other tools
Many team communication apps integrate with other productivity tools, such as project management software, file storage solutions, and calendars. This seamless integration can enhance productivity.
Mobile team chat on-the-go
Mobile apps allow team members to communicate and collaborate from anywhere, anytime.
Structured sonversations
Features like channels, threads, and direct messages allow for organized and structured conversations. This ensures that discussions remain on-topic and are easy to follow.
Enhanced productivity
By streamlining communication, reducing email clutter, and providing instant access to team members, these apps can significantly boost team productivity.
Customization and ccalability
Many apps allow for customization to fit the specific needs of a team or company. As the company grows, the app can scale to accommodate more users.
Improved team engagement
Features like video calls, images, emojis, and GIFs can make communication more personal and fun, leading to better team bonding and engagement.
Task management
Some apps come with built-in task management features, allowing teams to assign, track, and manage tasks within the same platform.
Notifications and alerts
Team members can receive instant notifications about important updates, ensuring that they don’t miss out on crucial information.
How Much Do Team Communication Apps Cost?
Depending on their features and capabilities, the best team communication apps can vary drastically in price. For example, some solutions like Flowdock and Workplace each start at $3 per user/month. However, other options like Convo are more expensive, starting at $6.67 per user/month.
Remember that most of the apps on this list include free trials of varying time periods. These trials allow you to figure out which solutions best suit your company’s needs.
Connecteam’s free trial lets up to 50 employees do the following from their smartphones:
- Receive company updates and engaging posts
- Communicate via team chats
- Find contacts using the directory
- Give feedback via surveys
- Access knowledge bases
If you upgrade to Connecteam’s Basic plan ($39/month), you’ll receive a much more advanced range of sub-features and add-ons. Otherwise, you can simply stick to the free plan.
FAQs
Why are apps good for team communication?
Mobile apps streamline workplace communication and provide employees with quick access to important information or digital work-based tools. The features that group communication apps possess eliminate needless back and forth between employees and managers while keeping all employees aligned and engaged.
Why is team communication important?
When teams communicate effectively, they can collaborate while wasting less time. Other benefits of effective team communication include:
- Better project execution
- A boost in team morale
- Better employee engagement
- Less confusion amongst team members
- Clear schedules
What are the best team communication apps?
All the communication apps are the best on the market. However, Connecteam is the best team communication app because of its incredibly simple user interface and excellent features, like in-app, team updates, and an employee directory. It makes workplace communication easier and much more engaging.
The Bottom Line On Team Communication App
Team communication apps are the go-to solution for improving employee communication from small businesses to massive enterprises in every industry. Not only do these apps create a well-organized workflow, but they also keep employees engaged and loyal. And when you’re dealing with remote employees and field workers, there’s no other way to effectively manage the entire team than without an app.