Microsoft Teams vs Troop Messenger
We give Microsoft Teams and Troop Messenger the same GPA: 3.4 out of 4.0. Microsoft Teams grades higher on the free plan. Troop Messenger grades higher on platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Microsoft Teams
Chat, video meetings and calling tied into Microsoft 365
Troop Messenger
Secure business messenger with calls, sold as SaaS or on-premise
How we grade them
| 3.4GPAMicrosoft TeamsVery good | 3.4GPATroop MessengerVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | ATeams Essentials is $4.00 a person a month, paid yearly, with meetings for 300 and recordings with transcripts. Slack Pro is $7.25. And if your company's on Microsoft 365, you probably have it already. | APremium is $2.50 a user a month, and Enterprise is $5. Both are under the going rate for team chat. Premium comes with 150 GB of storage and Enterprise with 1 TB, so you're not paying extra for space either. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe free version covers one person: unlimited chat, group calls of 60 minutes with up to 100 people and 5 GB of storage. That's for family, not for a team. The one-month trial of the paid plans needs a card. | CNo free plan is shown. The pricing page offers a 7-day free trial of the Enterprise plan, and the listing doesn't say whether it asks for a card. A week isn't long to try a chat app with a whole team. |
| Features | AChat, channels, meetings for 300, breakout rooms, recordings with transcripts, a whiteboard and shared Office files. Phone lines, webinars and Copilot are there too, if you pay more. | AOne-to-one and group chat with message recall, voice and video messages, calls with screen sharing, and guest access for customers. Burnout wipes a private chat when its timer runs out, and Forkout sends one message to many people at once. The FAQ says video calls don't work in the UAE. |
| Ease of use | B4.8 from about 3.4 million App Store ratings, which is hard to argue with. But the written reviews grumble about clutter and phone bugs, and Hacker News regulars call the desktop app slow. | BNo App Store rating is on record, so a B is as high as we go. On the hosted service it's an app you install and sign in to. Hosting it on your own servers is a choice here, not a must. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, iPhone, Android and four browsers, and Microsoft's pricing page counts over 250 business apps that plug in. But there's no Linux app. Microsoft says Teams is no longer supported there. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. The integrations list is short, just Google Drive and Dropbox. LDAP, Active Directory and SSO hook in on the Enterprise plan. |
| Best for | offices that already pay for Microsoft 365 | cheap, security-minded chat you can host yourself |
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: Microsoft Teams and Troop Messenger. How we grade
Where they differ
- Microsoft Teams starts at $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly. Troop Messenger starts at $2.50 per user / month.
- Microsoft Teams has a free plan. Troop Messenger does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Troop Messenger lists a Linux app.
- Troop Messenger is self-hostable and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Microsoft Teams also covers transcription, noise cancellation and whiteboard.
At a glance
| Microsoft Teams | Troop Messenger | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly | $2.50 per user / month |
| Free plan | 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. | None |
| Free trial | One-month free trial of the paid plans; a credit card is required and it converts to a paid subscription. | 7-day free trial of the Enterprise plan |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Microsoft | Tvisha Communications Pvt Ltd |
| Price read from | microsoft.com | troopmessenger.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Microsoft Teams
- Organizations that already pay for Microsoft 365
- Small businesses that want meetings and chat without the full suite
- Companies that want phone calling inside their chat app
- Teams that co-edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint files
Troop Messenger
- Organizations that want to host their chat on their own servers
- Government and defense organizations, a segment the vendor targets directly
- Teams looking for chat and calls at a low per-user price
Worth knowing
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.
Troop Messenger
- No free plan is shown: the pricing page offers a 7-day trial of the Enterprise plan.
- Screen sharing, group calling, Burnout and LDAP/SSO need the Enterprise plan; Premium has audio calls and 1:1 video calls only.
- A Superior tier for 500+ users is marked as coming soon on the pricing page, and the vendor's own pages disagree on its price.
- The vendor's FAQ says video calling and screen sharing do not work in the UAE.
Key features
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.
Troop Messenger
- Messaging and groups
- One-to-one and group chats with replies, forwarding, message edit and recall, and voice and video messages. Airtime groups let only admins and moderators post.
- Audio and video calls
- 1:1 and group audio-video calls with screen sharing, plus Join Now for entering a group call already in progress. Group calling and screen sharing are Enterprise features.
- Burnout
- A one-to-one private chat window for confidential exchanges. Its messages vanish when a preset timer runs out and no chat backup is kept.
- Forkout and Orange Member
- Forkout sends one message or attachment to many users and groups in a single step. Orange Member invites customers and other non-employees as guest users.
- AI features
- AI File Summary gives in-chat summaries of shared files and AI Smart Suggestions proposes replies to incoming messages. The homepage also promotes translation and an AI Buddy assistant.
- SaaS or on-premise hosting
- Use the hosted service or run Troop Messenger on your own servers. LDAP, Active Directory and SSO integration is part of the Enterprise plan.
Plans
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.
Troop Messenger
Premium$2.50
per user / month
One-to-one and group messaging, file sharing, audio calls and 1:1 video calls, guest users (Orange Member), Forkout and 150 GB of storage.
Enterprise$5
per user / month
Premium plus screen sharing, group calling and video conferencing, Burnout chats, read receipts, LDAP/Active Directory/SSO and 1 TB of storage.
Ways to pay less
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.
Troop Messenger
- Education
70% off Enterprise for education
The education pricing page invites schools, universities and training institutes to apply for 70% off the Enterprise subscription, with a 15-day free trial.
- Nonprofit
70% off Enterprise for NGOs
The NGO pricing page invites nonprofits and foundations to apply for 70% off the Enterprise subscription, with a 15-day free trial.
