Around
Slides
| Feature | Around | Slides |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $10/mo | Free / from $5/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.3 / 5 | 4.1 / 5 |
| Best For | remote-teams, hybrid-teams, developers, creative-teams | designers, developers, educators, remote-teams |
| Founded | 2019 | 2013 |
| Floating Bubbles | ✓ | ✗ |
| Noise Cancellation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Auto Leveling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Screen Sharing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reactions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Meeting Notes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calendar Integration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Online Editor | ✗ | ✓ |
| Collaboration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom Css | ✗ | ✓ |
| Analytics | ✗ | ✓ |
| Embedding | ✗ | ✓ |
| Version History | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Around Pros
- Minimal screen footprint with floating video bubbles
- Excellent AI noise cancellation
- Auto-equalizes audio levels between participants
- Designed for casual always-on collaboration
✗ Around Cons
- Limited features for formal presentations
- Smaller user base than major platforms
- No recording on free plan
✓ Slides Pros
- Clean minimal interface
- HTML/CSS export for developers
- Real-time collaboration
- Responsive presentations on any device
✗ Slides Cons
- Limited template variety
- No offline editing
- Less feature-rich than PowerPoint
The Verdict
Around is built for remote teams and hybrid teams, with a focus on floating-bubbles and noise-cancellation. Slides targets designers and developers and leads with online-editor and collaboration.
On pricing, Slides is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $5/mo compared to $10/mo for Around. That $5/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Around offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Slides takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for remote teams, developers — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.