LINE WORKS vs Microsoft Teams (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Microsoft Teams: it is second in our ranking of team communication apps, and it grades higher too, 3.0 against 2.2.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Microsoft Teams grades higher on value for money, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
LINE WORKS
Business chat and groupware that connects with the LINE app
Microsoft Teams
Chat, video meetings and calling tied into Microsoft 365
Which one is for you
Pick LINE WORKS if
- Fits if your customers or partners are on LINE
- Makes sense if you want chat and groupware in one app for a team in Japan
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you add Drive at ¥100 or archiving at ¥300 per person a month on top of the plan
- Tight if you stay free, with 30 members, 5 GB and 4-person group calls
- Watch out: prices are in yen, exclude tax and the paid plans are bought through a contact step
- Watch out: the pricing page mentions plans applying from April 2022, so check the current figures
- Skip it if you want third-party integrations, as none are listed
Pick Microsoft Teams if
- Fits if your company already pays for Microsoft 365, because Teams usually comes with it
- Works for teams who want chat and meetings at $4.00 a person and edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint files together
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if your team runs Linux, because Microsoft says Teams is no longer supported there
- Tight if you're hoping for a free team chat, since the free version is for one person and group calls stop at 60 minutes
- Pricey if you need webinars, which start on Business Standard with Copilot at $23.50, or Phone and Premium at $10.00 each
- Not for you if a slow, busy app drives you mad, going by Hacker News and App Store reviews
- Watch out: the one-month trial needs a card and turns into a paid plan, and the lower-priced plans stop at 300 users
How we grade them
| 2.2GPALINE WORKSFair | 3.0GPAMicrosoft TeamsVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CStandard is ¥450 per user a month billed yearly, about $3 at today's rates, so it sits at the edge of the cheaper quarter. Drive, mail and archiving cost more on top. | BTeams Essentials is $4.00 a user a month paid yearly, the low end of the category: 300-person meetings of up to 30 hours, recordings with transcripts, 10 GB each. Business Basic at $7.00 adds Office and business email. Webinars, Phone and Copilot cost extra. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe free plan covers up to 30 members and 5 GB, with group calls capped at 4 people for 60 minutes. A small team will hit those. | CMicrosoft's own page says the free version is for one person, so it won't run a team. Chat is unlimited, but group calls stop at 60 minutes and 100 people with 5 GB of storage. The one-month trial of the paid plans wants a card and turns into a subscription on its own. |
| Features | CChat, board, calendar, tasks, forms and calls. Drive is a paid option, Mail is Advanced only and archiving is extra. | BIn one window: chat and channels, 300-person meetings with breakout rooms and noise suppression, recordings with transcripts, shared Word, Excel and PowerPoint files, and Teams Phone if you want the office line in here too. Webinars, Phone, Premium and Copilot are all priced separately. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. An admin has to set up the company, members and groups first. | A4.8 on the App Store from about 3.4 million ratings, and for most people it's already installed and signed in by work. Chat, meetings, calls and files are in one window, so there's no second app to learn. Hacker News regulars still call it slow and bloated. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. No API or integrations are listed on the pages read. | BWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. No Linux desktop app: Microsoft says the Linux client is no longer supported and points you at a web app. The integrations on record are all Microsoft's own, Loop, OneNote, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Whiteboard, Exchange and Copilot. |
| Best for | business chat that reaches customers on LINE | offices that already pay for Microsoft 365 |
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: LINE WORKS and Microsoft Teams. How we grade
Where they differ
- LINE WORKS also covers tasks, calendar and forms.
- Microsoft Teams also covers transcription, noise cancellation and whiteboard.
At a glance
| LINE WORKS | Microsoft Teams | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | ¥450 per user / month, billed annually (¥540 billed monthly) | $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly |
| Free plan | Up to 30 members, 5 GB of shared storage, basic business features and group calls for up to 4 people, 60 minutes. | Microsoft Teams (free) is for one person: unlimited chat, group calls of up to 60 minutes and 100 participants, and 5 GB of cloud storage. |
| Free trial | None listed | One-month free trial of the paid plans; a credit card is required and it converts to a paid subscription. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | LINE WORKS Corp. | Microsoft |
| Price read from | line-works.com | microsoft.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Worth knowing
LINE WORKS
- Prices are listed in Japanese yen and exclude tax; the pricing page notes the Standard and Advanced plans are bought through a contact-us step.
- Drive is a paid option on the Standard plan at ¥100 per person a month billed annually; Mail is only on Advanced.
- Message archiving costs ¥300 per person a month billed annually, and email archiving needs Advanced.
- The pricing page carries a notice about plans applying from April 2022, so confirm current prices with the vendor.
Microsoft Teams
- The free version is built for one person: group calls stop at 60 minutes and 100 participants, with 5 GB of cloud storage.
- Teams Essentials and the Microsoft 365 Business plans stop at 300 users; larger organizations need Teams Enterprise or Microsoft 365 E3 or E5.
- There is no Linux desktop app: Microsoft points Linux users to a progressive web app and says the Linux client is no longer supported.
- Webinar hosting is left out of Teams Essentials and Business Basic, and phone service, Teams Premium and Copilot are separately priced add-ons.
Key features
LINE WORKS
- Chat with LINE users
- Messaging works like the LINE app, with stickers, and members can exchange messages with people on LINE outside the company.
- Groupware in one app
- Message, Board for notices, Calendar, Task, Form for surveys, and Contacts are included, with Drive and Mail on higher plans.
- Video calls and screen sharing
- Free plan calls hold up to 4 people for 60 minutes; Standard and Advanced allow up to 200 people.
- Admin and security controls
- A central admin console manages permissions and usage. The vendor lists SOC 2 and 3 and ISO/IEC 27001, 27017 and 27018 certifications.
- Archiving options
- Paid add-ons store message data or email data for up to 10 years.
Microsoft Teams
- Chat and channels
- Chats and channels hold conversations, shared files, Loop and OneNote pages and third-party apps. Paid plans include unlimited chat messages, file attachments and search.
- Video meetings
- Business plans allow meetings of up to 300 participants and 30 hours, with screen sharing, breakout rooms, custom backgrounds, Together mode and noise suppression.
- Recordings, transcripts and captions
- Paid plans record meetings with transcripts. Live captions cover more than 30 languages on the Microsoft 365 business plans and English only on Teams Essentials.
- Webinars
- Webinar hosting with attendee registration and reporting comes with Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot and the enterprise suites, not with Business Basic or Essentials.
- Teams Phone
- A cloud phone system added to a Teams license. Teams Phone Standard is $10.00 per user / month paid yearly, and US bundles that add a calling plan start at $13.00.
- Copilot and Teams Premium
- Microsoft 365 Copilot and Teams Premium are add-ons. Teams Premium costs $10.00 per user / month paid yearly and needs a plan with a Teams Enterprise license.
Plans
LINE WORKS
Free¥0
Up to 30 members, 5 GB shared storage, messaging, board, calendar, task, form and contacts, limited admin features.
Standard¥450
per user / month, billed annually (Â¥540 billed monthly)
Unlimited members, 1 TB shared storage, calls and screen sharing for up to 200 people, full admin features and SLA support.
Advanced¥800
per user / month, billed annually (Â¥960 billed monthly)
Standard plus Drive and Mail, with 100 TB of shared storage and unlimited members.
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams (free)$0
For one person: unlimited chat, group calls of up to 60 minutes and 100 participants, tasks and polling, and 5 GB of cloud storage.
Microsoft Teams Essentials$4.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Teams on its own for up to 300 users: meetings of up to 300 people and 30 hours, recordings with transcripts, and 10 GB of storage per user.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic$7.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Suite plan that includes Teams, plus web and mobile Office apps, custom business email and 1 TB of cloud storage per user. Up to 300 users.
Microsoft Teams Enterprise$8.55
per user / month, paid yearly
Teams on its own for organizations of more than 300 people, with recordings, transcripts and 10 GB of cloud storage per user.
M365 Business Standard with Copilot$23.50
per user / month, paid yearly
Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot: Teams with webinar hosting, desktop Office apps and Copilot in the apps. Up to 300 users.
Microsoft 365 E3$39.00
per user / month, paid yearly (annual commitment)
Enterprise suite for any size that includes Teams with webinars, desktop Office apps and added security. Microsoft 365 E5 is $60.00.
Ways to pay less
LINE WORKS
- Annual discount
20% off with annual contract
The pricing page shows an annual contract at ¥450 versus ¥540 monthly for Standard, and ¥800 versus ¥960 for Advanced, per person per month.
Microsoft Teams
- Nonprofit
75% off Microsoft 365 Business Premium for nonprofits
Eligible nonprofits can get Microsoft 365 Business Premium, a suite that includes Microsoft Teams, at a 75% discount after registering and confirming eligibility.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, LINE WORKS or Microsoft Teams?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LINE WORKS starts at ¥450 per user / month, billed annually (¥540 billed monthly), and Microsoft Teams starts at $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly.
Which has a free plan, LINE WORKS or Microsoft Teams?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both LINE WORKS and Microsoft Teams have a free plan.
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.