Slack alternatives for small teams: how to choose
Seven kinds of Slack alternative, what each is good at, and a simple way to pick one for a team of 5 to 50.
The short answer
There is no single best Slack alternative. The right one depends on why you are leaving. If it is cost, look at tools without a per-seat meter. If it is data control, look at self-hosted options. If it is tool sprawl, look at all-in-one workspaces that bundle meetings, docs and tasks.
Below are the main categories, what each is good at, and a short way to decide. Prices and features change often, so confirm details on each vendor's site.
The options by category
| Option | Good at | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Teams | Teams already on Microsoft 365 | Heavy; best inside the Microsoft ecosystem |
| Lark | Chat, meetings, docs and tasks in one hosted suite | Hosted only; per-seat on paid plans |
| Discord | Informal communities and voice rooms | Not built for work docs and tasks |
| Mattermost | Chat-first teams wanting self-hosting | Some features in paid editions |
| Rocket.Chat | Many channels, self-hosting | More to operate |
| Zulip | Long discussions organised by topic | Topics are a different habit from channels |
| Dock | Small teams wanting chat, meetings, docs, tasks and AI agents in one self-hosted app | Younger; smaller integration list |
Four questions that decide it
How many seats?
Per-seat costs matter most as the team grows past about ten.
Who runs the server?
If nobody wants to, choose hosted.
What else do you pay for?
Meetings, docs and tasks add up. A bundle can remove several lines.
What must integrate?
List your three must-have integrations and check each tool.
Where Dock fits
Dock is a self-hosted team workspace for small teams. It has channels and DMs with threads and search, video meetings in the same app (with recording, transcripts and AI summaries), real-time docs, tables, calendar, tasks and a drive. An MCP server lets AI agents such as Claude Code read and post in your channels, and there is a Lark history import.
It runs as one Node process with one SQLite file, so backups and moves are copying a file. There is no per-seat licence; your cost is your own server. You run the server yourself, and the integration list is smaller than the big hosted tools. See Dock vs Slack and the Slack alternative page.
A one-week test
Pick two
Use the table to shortlist two tools.
Use them for real
One project, one meeting, one doc.
Compare the bill
Count seats, add-ons and upkeep time.
Questions
What is the cheapest Slack alternative?
A self-hosted tool has no per-seat fee, so cost follows your server. Whether that is cheaper depends on your team size and what you pay now.
Is there a free Slack alternative?
Several have free tiers or free self-hosted editions. Check limits on each vendor's site.
Can I import Slack history?
Dock has a Lark import today. A Slack import is not built.
Is self-hosting hard?
It needs basic server skills: updates, HTTPS and backups.