Around
Whereby
| Feature | Around | Whereby |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $10/mo | Free / from $8.99/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.3 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 |
| Best For | remote-teams, hybrid-teams, developers, creative-teams | small-teams, consultants, telehealth-providers, embedded-video-apps |
| Founded | 2019 | 2013 |
| Floating Bubbles | ✓ | ✗ |
| Noise Cancellation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Auto Leveling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Screen Sharing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reactions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Meeting Notes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calendar Integration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Browser Based | ✗ | ✓ |
| Permanent Rooms | ✗ | ✓ |
| Recording | ✗ | ✓ |
| Breakout Groups | ✗ | ✓ |
| Embeddable Api | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom Branding | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ 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
✓ Whereby Pros
- No downloads or plugins required for anyone
- Permanent meeting room URLs
- Embeddable video API for custom integrations
- Clean and minimal interface
✗ Whereby Cons
- Limited to 200 participants on highest plan
- Fewer features than Zoom or Teams
- Recording only available on paid plans
The Verdict
Around is built for remote teams and hybrid teams, with a focus on floating-bubbles and noise-cancellation. Whereby targets small teams and consultants and leads with browser-based and permanent-rooms.
Pricing is close: Whereby starts at $8.99/mo versus $10/mo for Around — not a deciding factor on its own.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
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.