Rocket.Chat
Zoom
| Feature | Rocket.Chat | Zoom |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $4/mo | Free / from $13.33/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.1 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | security-conscious-organizations, government, self-hosters, enterprises | businesses, educators, remote-teams, enterprise |
| Founded | 2015 | 2011 |
| Channels | ✓ | ✗ |
| Direct Messaging | ✓ | ✗ |
| Video Calls | ✓ | ✗ |
| Federation | ✓ | ✗ |
| E2e Encryption | ✓ | ✗ |
| Marketplace | ✓ | ✗ |
| Video Meetings | ✗ | ✓ |
| Screen Sharing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Breakout Rooms | ✗ | ✓ |
| Recording | ✗ | ✓ |
| Whiteboard | ✗ | ✓ |
| Webinars | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Rocket.Chat Pros
- Fully open-source and self-hostable
- End-to-end encryption
- Federation support between instances
- Highly customizable
✗ Rocket.Chat Cons
- Self-hosted requires maintenance
- Mobile apps less polished than Slack
- Smaller app ecosystem
✓ Zoom Pros
- Reliable video quality
- Easy to use
- Large meeting capacity
- Many integrations
✗ Zoom Cons
- Meeting time limits on free
- Security concerns history
- Zoom fatigue
The Verdict
Rocket.Chat is built for security conscious organizations and government, with a focus on channels and direct-messaging. Zoom targets businesses and educators and leads with video-meetings and screen-sharing.
On pricing, Rocket.Chat is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $4/mo compared to $13.33/mo for Zoom. That $9.33/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.
Zoom edges out on user ratings (4.4 vs 4.1). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Bottom line: Zoom has a slight overall edge — but if fully open-source and self-hostable matters most to you, Rocket.Chat may still be the right call.