We’ve Tried 5 Skype Alternatives and Here’s Our Honest Team’s Feedback

Chanty vs Skype

Many companies use Skype to chat at work. If you are one of them, it’s time to take a look at team messengers as they are just way more convenient when it comes to work communication.

Chanty is an AI-powered messenger for business. It’s also a single notification center. It means that (unlike Skype) you will be able to receive notifications from different apps you are using directly to Chanty.

How about bringing all your notifications into one place?

E.g. your team might be using MailChimp, Xero, Salesforce or Zendesk software during the day. Chanty lets you stay informed of everything that happens there by integrating with those apps and delivering notifications right to the specific conversation in Chanty.

Chanty is designed for team communication

I have to highlight again that Chanty is a communication tool for teams. Unlike Skype where everyone can get in touch with you – your auntie, colleague and your ex, Chanty closed team space environment is designed for you and your colleagues. You won’t get distracted by a great grandmother’s dog walker best friend’s roommate anymore.

Company-wide, private or one to one discussions

You can communicate one on one or team up in groups in Chanty. Group chats are available in a form of public and private conversations. This way you can have open company-wide discussions or share sensitive information in private, invite only chats.

Chanty is at its beta stage now, therefore some of the features are to be added soon. Let’s take a look at Chanty vs Skype in this table.

Chanty vs Skype

Features	Chanty	Skype
Interface and design	Simple and clean	More complicated and less intuitive
Instant chat	Yes	Yes
Audio and video calls with screen sharing	Yes*	Yes
Integrations with third party software	Yes*	No
Search	Searchable messages, files and links	Searchable messages
Message history limit	No limit	No limit
One to one, Public, Private conversations	Yes	One to ones and group chats
File sharing	Files you share are stored at Chanty cloud and could be easily forwarded to anyone Each file receives a unique link You can also view images in the chat feed	You can share all kinds of files, but you need to download them to get a full screen view
SMS, landline and mobile calls	No	Yes
AI-powered	Chanty AI lets you focus on what’s important delivering the key takeaways of every conversation*	No
Supported platforms	Android, iOS, web, Windows, macOS	Android, iOS, web, Windows, macOS, Linux
Price	Freemium up to 10 people Premium starts at $3 per user per month	It’s free until you want to send SMS or call mobile/landline numbers
Task manager	Easy-to-use task manager	No
In-app ads	No ads	Yes
*Coming soon

Chanty vs Skype summary

Choose Chanty if your are looking for a team communication tool and Skype if you need an app for personal communication. Here are some takeaways:

🤖You will soon be able to integrate Chanty with your favorite software and view all notifications directly in your team chat. Skype doesn’t let you do this.
✅Chanty has a built-in and easy-to-use task manager. Skype doesn’t support task management features.
🔐Chanty lets you and your colleagues create a closed team space. In Skype you can communicate with anyone who has a Skype account.
📞Skype is famous for its video and audio calls. Same features are coming soon in Chanty.
📩You can’t send SMS or make landline calls in Chanty unlike Skype.
🚫Chanty won’t disturb you with a single ad. Ever.

And last, but not least – we are working hard and designing Chanty with love and passion so it becomes the communication app of tomorrow. Our goal is to save time, improve communication and foster collaboration in your team. Join our community of early adopters and be the first to give Chanty a try 😉

Google Hangouts vs Skype

The tools are quite similar when it comes to communication features. Both apps let you chat, make audio and video conferences, call mobile and landline.

We have written an extremely in-depth comparison on Hangouts vs Skype in another article so take a look if you need additional details on these two apps. Meanwhile, let’s see who’s the winner when it comes to features:

Google Hangouts vs Skype

Google Hangouts vs Skype
Features	Google Hangouts	Skype
Instant chat	Up to 150 people	Doesn’t specify
Audio and video group calls	Up to 25 people	Up to 25 people
Screen sharing	Yes	Yes
Chat extras	Maps, emojis, stickers, and GIFs	Smileys, mojis Send contacts, location, video messages
File sharing	Images only	300 MB (larger files could be sent via OneDrive, their cloud storage). Files are available for 30 days on all devices
Supported platforms	Android, iOS and the web	Android, iOS, web, Windows, macOS and Linux
SMS	No	Yes, paid option
Landline and mobile calls	Yes, paid option	Yes, paid option
Price	It’s free on your gmail account and $5 for G Suite package with Hangouts included into it	It’s free until you want to send SMS or call mobile/landline numbers
In-app ads	Ads Free	Annoying ads

Google Hangouts unfamiliar interface vs Skype radical redesign

Hangouts looks different. It’s NOT like the chat app you are used to. Every new chat opens up in a new window and when you have more than ten chats on the screen it becomes an issue. Overall, it’s hard to agree that Google Hangouts interface is user-friendly.

However, I can’t fail to mention the eye pleasing professional photos on the app background. There’s only one downside – if you want to change the background image, there’s absolutely no way to do it.

Although Skype has kept its interface layout for years, its Snapchat-like radical redesign came as a surprise in 2017. According to a number of comments like “This latest update is the most thrown-together looking thing I’ve seen in a long time” people don’t seem to be thrilled with it.

Looks like Microsoft is making a strategic move putting Skype and Skype for Business apart. From a business-oriented app which Skype initially was, it has turned into a Snapchat-like, millennials-oriented tool to hang out with your pals.

Oops, you can’t turn Hangouts notifications on

There’s obviously an issue with notifications in Google Hangouts. Guess what happens when there’s an incoming Hangouts call and your computer sound is turned off? You’ll miss it unless you don’t have Gmail or Hangouts browser tabs opened.

Unlike Skype where video/audio call push notification pops up right in front of you, Hangouts doesn’t inform you about the call. But wait, there’s a nice email waiting at your Gmail Inbox informing that someone’s calling you right now. Don’t want to miss a call? Better check your email more often.

Unfortunately, chat notifications don’t seem to work in Hangouts either. When you turn on the notifications in settings, nothing happens.

@Chanty is great for saving time, organizing your workflow and collaborating with other software.

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No, you can’t attach a .zip file in Hangouts

Images only. At the same time you can send all kinds of files in Skype. The moment I’ve tried to send a .zip archive, I’ve realized it’s not an option. Google is obviously encouraging the use of Google Drive to exchange links rather than attaching files.

Hm… Is it Hangouts that limits my options or is it files exchange that’s outdated? If you are used to sending files back and forth, Hangouts isn’t the best choice for you.

Hangouts wasn’t designed for text messages. Here’s why:

🗿You can’t edit/delete/pin/forward messages in Google Hangouts.
🔕You don’t receive chat notifications.
📑Every new chat is a new window, when you talk to more than 5 people it gets confusing.
🏞You can’t send any files in Google Hangouts other than images.
🖇You can’t search for messages, not speaking of files or links.

Integration with Google – the great thing about Hangouts

It’s time to be nice to Google. Integration with other Google services helps you stay connected with your friends or colleagues. There’s a Hangouts chat waiting for you at the left-bottom in Gmail which is quite handy. If you hang out at Gmail a lot, you can instantly reach all of your Hangouts contacts as they are right at your fingertips.

Video/audio calls + screen sharing feature work pretty well

The truth is, the #1 reason people use Google Hangouts is the video calling feature. We’ve decided to give it a check both in Hangouts and Skype and detect a winner. The team video call went fine on both apps. We haven’t spotted any issues with the screen sharing either (unless you experience issues with the internet connection). Therefore, when you need to hold a video conference, feel free to trust both Hangouts and Skype.

Google Hangouts vs Skype summary

👥Video/audio calls and screen sharing are great both in Hangouts and Skype.
📞Google Hangouts isn’t designed for text communication and lacks many useful chat features (editing, deleting, pinning, forwarding messages, messages search, etc.)
🏞File sharing is limited in Hangouts as you can only send images.
🔕You can easily miss a call in Hangouts due to their tricky notification system.
💰When combined with other Google apps (e.g. Gmail), Hangouts gives you more benefits.
🖥There’s no desktop app for Hangouts.
📟Although Skype was redesigned, they’ve kept the familiar and chat interface.
📦Skype lets you send all kinds of files, edit, delete, quote your messages, favorite conversations and search message history.
☎️Landline/mobile calls are more affordable in Hangouts.

appear.in vs Skype

The guys from Appear.in went every extra mile to get users on the video call quite easy and fast. When you head over to their website, there is a simple process of signing up. Within a couple of clicks, you’ll create your own room for conversations and have your video conference up and running.

appear.in is free for up to 4 people

You can also have a conference with up to 12 people for an extra charge – $9.99 per month. The premium plan enables some advanced screen sharing options. Moreover, you can brand the screen with a custom logo and a background image.

appear.in vs Skype

appear.in vs Skype
Features	appear.in	Skype
Video/audio call quality	Excellent	Excellent
In-video options	Augmented reality, stickers and smileys	Smileys, mojis Send contacts, location, video messages
Screen sharing	Requires web extension installation	Built-in screen sharing option
Text messages options	Simple chat with no additional options	Copy, quote, edit, remove
Landline/mobile calls	No	Yes, paid option
Supported platforms	Android, iOS, web	Android, iOS, web, Windows, macOS, Linux
Starting a video call process	One-click, no signup required	You need to sign up and add contacts before starting a video call
Video conference limits	4 people in a free plan Up to 12 people in a premium plan for $9.99 per month	Up to 25 people
SMS	No	Yes, paid option
File sharing	No	Yes
In-app ads	Ads Free	Annoying ads

appear.in won’t let you exchange files, search or edit messages

Since people often compare Skype and appear.in, it should be highlighted that chat functionality is quite limited at appear.in. Just like with Hangouts, you can’t edit, delete, pin or forward messages. All you have is a simple chat.

Moreover, there’s no way to exchange any files in appear.in (if your remember, Hangouts lets you send images only). If you need a powerful chat app to go with your video conferencing tool, you have to look for other tools like our Chanty team chat, as appear.in wasn’t designed for effective text communication.

Give @Chanty a try if you are looking for a team communication tool.

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Have some fun with appear.in augmented reality

It was cool playing with various video add-ons like stickers and augmented reality in appear.in. Although it’s not the #1 feature you need at work, it definitely gives your mood a boost.

appear.in vs Skype summary

💡It’s extremely easy to start a video conference in a clean and slick appear.in app. Our team liked it a lot – it’s free for up to 4 people, audio and video quality is great, the augmented reality is fun. It turned out appear.in is more likely to be a direct competitor to Google Hangouts rather than Skype. Video communication is their main purpose while chat functionality is a less important side feature.
💪On the other hand there’s Skype designed for both video and text conversations with its powerful chat functionality and high quality video calls. Is there a real Skype alternative out there? Let’s find out.

Facetime vs Skype

Introduced in 2010, FaceTime lets you make audio and video calls on your Apple devices – MacBook, iPhone, iPod, iPad, iWatch. It means you won’t be able to reach your Android friends or colleagues. There is no way to use FaceTime on Windows either. Another huge disadvantage is you can’t make a group call. Only one to one calls are available. Needless to say, FaceTime doesn’t support an instant text chat. If you are an Apple fan, you know there’s iMessage app for this purpose.

Let’s take a closer look at FaceTime and Skype features in this table.

FaceTime vs Skype

FaceTime vs Skype
Features	FaceTime	Skype
Instant chat	No	Yes
Audio and video group calls	No group calls, one on one only	Group calls with up to 25 people
Screen sharing	No	Yes
Chat extras	No	Smileys, mojis Send contacts, location, video messages
File sharing	No	300 MB (larger files could be sent via OneDrive, their cloud storage). Files are available for 30 days on all devices
Supported platforms	iOS, macOS	Android, iOS, web, macOS, Windows, Linux
SMS	No	Yes, paid option
Landline and mobile calls	No	Yes, paid option
Price	Free	It’s free until you want to send SMS or call mobile/landline numbers
In-app ads	No	Yes

FaceTime vs Skype summary

🤔It’s hard to say FaceTime and Skype are competitors. Video calls is the only feature FaceTime and Skype have in common. Just like every other Apple app, FaceTime requires iOS, macOS or watchOS and it’s only good for a direct one on one call.*
It doesn’t associate with a tool you’d use for work. The bottom line is, it’s good for a personal use to make a quick call to a friend or relative with an Apple device.

* Update as of September 2018: Apple has recently introduced the group calls for FaceTime (up to 32 people) as a part of their yearly update (will be available in late 2018).