Gather vs Topia (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Gather and Topia share a 2.2 GPA, and only Topia has a free plan.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Gather grades higher on value for money. Topia grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Gather
Virtual office with presence, meetings and chat for remote teams
Topia
Virtual worlds with spatial video chat for teams and events
Which one is for you
Pick Gather if
- Fits if your remote team wants the quick chat you'd get by walking to someone's desk
- Works for teams that want meetings, chat and presence in one place, at $12 a member
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need a free plan, because after 30 days only one admin can get in
- Not for you if you join calls from your phone or work on Linux, as 2.0 supports neither
- Tight if you record a lot, with 2 recording hours per member a month on paid plans
- Watch out: Gather suggests 2.0 for offices of up to 100, and its single sign-on is in beta on the Custom Plan
- Too light for linking other tools, with Google Calendar, GitHub and Spotify the only integrations listed
Pick Topia if
- Fits if you run events and want people to walk around and talk
- Works for developers who want embeds and an API in the free plan
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are small, since Pro starts at $100 a month for 25 seats
- Tight if you stay free, with one broadcast or screen share at a time
- Watch out: the pricing page does not say whether $4 is monthly or yearly
- Watch out: SSO, a custom domain and security support are Enterprise only
- Skip it if you want a phone or desktop app, as it is web only
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAGatherFair | 2.2GPATopiaFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | COne plan, $12 a member a month billed yearly or $15 monthly. That's above the $7 team chat typically starts at but short of the dear end, and it does include every feature. Single sign-on for 2.0 is in beta and sits on the Custom Plan. | DPro is $4 a user but starts at $100 a month, so one person or five both pay $100. The billing period is not stated. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan. The 30-day trial is the whole product for up to 50 members and asks for no card, but when it ends only one admin can get into the workspace until somebody subscribes. | BThe Demo plan is $0 for 50 people, with embeds and API access. Broadcasting and screen sharing are limited to one at a time. |
| Features | CPresence, walking over to talk, unlimited meetings with screen sharing, permanent chat with channels and threads, recording and AI notes. The limits are metered, though. Recording, transcription and guest time are monthly allowances per member, and Gather suggests 2.0 for offices up to 100. | CSpatial video, embedded content, custom worlds and an API. Security and compliance support, SSO and a custom domain are Enterprise. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record, and the office is a thing you build: pick a template, choose an open, private or hybrid floor plan, edit rooms, walls and floors and place from more than 200 objects before anyone sits down. | CNo rating on record. You build and arrange a world before it is useful. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus Mac and Windows desktop apps and a browser extension. No phone app for Gather 2.0 and no Linux, so you join from a computer or not at all. Google Calendar, GitHub and Spotify are the integrations listed. | BWeb only, with an open API and SDK. No desktop or phone apps are listed. |
| Best for | a virtual office for a fully remote team | spatial video chat worlds for events and teams |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Gather and Topia. How we grade
Price against what you get
Gather starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Topia starts at $4 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Topia starts $8 a month lower. Of the other team communication apps on the chart, 23 score higher than Gather for less, and 12 score higher than Topia for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Gather also covers meeting notes, transcription and whiteboard.
At a glance
| Gather | Topia | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12 per member / month, billed yearly | $4 per user / month, from $100 a month |
| Free plan | None | Demo plan: $0 a month for individuals, developers and teams, with a 50-person capacity. |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial of every feature for up to 50 members, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Gather Presence Inc. | Topia |
| Price read from | gather.town | topia.io |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Gather
- There is no free plan: after the 30-day trial only one admin can enter the workspace until a subscription starts.
- Gather 2.0 has no mobile app and does not support Linux; its desktop apps are for Mac and Windows.
- Recording, transcription and guest time are monthly allowances tied to member count, with minimums of 20, 30 and 30 hours.
- Gather recommends 2.0 for offices of up to 100 people; single sign-on for 2.0 is in beta and listed under the Custom Plan.
Topia
- The pricing page does not state whether the Pro rate is billed monthly or yearly.
- On the Demo plan, broadcasting and screen sharing are limited to one at a time.
- SSO, security and compliance support and a custom domain are Enterprise features.
- The pricing page footer reads Copyright 2024, so check the figures against the signup flow.
Key features
Gather
- Virtual office and presence
- See who is available, busy or in a meeting, hear nearby conversations if you choose, and wave a teammate over or join a conversation in one click.
- Meetings
- Unlimited scheduled meetings with simultaneous screen sharing, Google Calendar sync, coworking sessions and interactive whiteboards.
- Team chat
- Permanent chat with public and private channels, DMs and group chats, thread replies and file uploads, plus meeting chat and nearby chat.
- Recording and AI meeting notes
- Meetings can be recorded and summarized as AI notes with a transcript. Paid plans include 2 recording hours and 3 transcription hours per member a month.
- Guest hours
- Clients and candidates join as guests after checking in with a member. Paid plans include 3 guest hours per member each month, with a minimum of 30.
- Office customization
- Start from a template, choose open, private or hybrid floor plans, edit rooms, walls and floors, and place more than 200 objects.
Topia
- Spatial video chat
- People move through a world and join video conversations with whoever is near them, instead of scheduled meetings.
- Embedded content
- Worlds can embed live streams, websites, music, collaborative tools and games.
- Persistent custom worlds
- Gathering spaces stay in place and can be customized for a company, campus or community.
- Open API and SDK
- An open API and SDK let developers make worlds interactive; the site also lists a real-time SDK (RTSDK).
- Engagement analytics
- The homepage describes analytics for measuring engagement and retention in a world.
Plans
Gather
Essential Plan$12
per member / month, billed yearly ($15 billed monthly)
Every feature: custom virtual office, unlimited meetings and chat, and monthly recording, transcription and guest hours that grow with team size.
Custom PlanCustom
For large teams: custom pricing and onboarding, larger offices, hybrid solutions, single sign-on and an extended trial.
Topia
Demo$0
per month, 50-person capacity
Standard-quality video; broadcasting and screen sharing limited to one at a time; embeds and API access included.
Pro$4
per user / month, from $100 a month
Includes 50-person capacity, extra capacity at $4 per user a month, all features unlocked, higher-definition video.
EnterpriseCustom
Sold through sales. SSO, security support, custom domain, up to 2,000 users per world and dedicated deployment options.
Ways to pay less
Gather
- Annual discount
20% less with yearly billing
The Essential Plan costs $12 per member / month billed yearly against $15 billed monthly.
- Nonprofit
30% off monthly plans for nonprofits and schools
Gather's Classic (1.0) help center says spaces for nonprofits and educational institutions may be eligible for 30% off a monthly subscription, arranged through its sales team.
- By country
Regional pricing on the Custom Plan
The pricing page lists regional pricing among the Custom Plan's terms, arranged by contacting Gather for a quote. It names no countries or amounts.
Topia
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Gather or Topia?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Topia is cheaper to start with: $4 a month for each person, against $12 a month for each person for Gather. Gather starts at $12 per member / month, billed yearly, and Topia starts at $4 per user / month, from $100 a month.
Which has a free plan, Gather or Topia?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Topia has a free plan. Gather does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Gather and Topia run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Gather lists macOS and Windows apps and a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.