Basecamp Vs Slack: Side By Side Comparison

Basecamp and Slack are two titans of the software world, with huge install bases and just as many active users. Both are immensely useful when it comes to helping in work, with many features. The question then is, when comparing Basecamp vs Slack, which one is your need?

We will show you all their differences and similarities to help you make a quick decision.

Basecamp Vs Slack: What Are The Major Similarities?

1. Notifications For Projects

Both Basecamp and Slack feature notifications for projects and channels. Since the main focus of both applications is to help teams properly communicate while working on projects, this makes a lot of sense.

2. File Sharing Between Users

Basecamp and Slack allow users to share files with each other for projects along with any comments. It’s a common function for most project management tools, but it’s always good and convenient to have on hand.

3. Both Have Mobile Apps

Both Basecamp and Slack offer mobile apps that allow you to manage your work from your smart device. Having a mobile app version of your project management software or communication tool is becoming the norm, and we’re grateful for it. It’s convenient and makes working more efficient.

4. Messaging Channels For Communication

While Slack is much more communication-oriented, Basecamp also offers users the ability to message each other as needed. It is essential to a team’s ability to cooperate, and we’d frankly be surprised if any project management tool didn’t have this.

5. Limited Free Versions For Personal Use

Slack and Basecamp both come with free versions for users who don’t need the power features afforded by higher-priced subscriptions. Most employees just need these tools to get their work done, and nothing more. These free packages are meant to accommodate these kinds of users.

Basecamp Vs. Slack: What Are Major Differences?

As we said earlier, Basecamp and Slack may have some similarities, but they’re also fundamentally different by design. Project management software needs to cover a lot of different niches, and this especially applies to Basecamp and Slack. If you’re confused by all these options, however, worry not. We’ve broken down some of the key differences below.

Differences in Purposes:

Slack is a team management tool based on communication, with its original goal being to replace emails. It does not have any task or project management features whatsoever, instead offering many ways to make communication more intuitive. This includes different chat channels for different projects, the ability to divide users into teams, video calling options, and screen-sharing capabilities.

Basecamp on the other hand is more of a jack-of-all-trades. While it has some tools for communication, it also features a lot of normal projects and task management tools. This includes things like checklists, to-do boards, and a large amount of storage for sending and saving different types of files that are relevant to the project.

Differences in Features:

1. Integration

While both Slack and Basecamp offer integrations, Slack has a ton more options than Basecamp. On top of that, Slack’s integrations tend to be a fair bit more robust, almost making said integrations a functional part of the application itself.

2. Project and Task Management Tools

As previously mentioned, Slack lacks any form of project management tool. It’s purely focused on communication, with any form of project management tool only coming in the form of integrations. Basecamp on the other hand has a lot of basic project management features like team to-do lists, making it a better all-rounder.

3. Automations

Slack allows its users to make small automation within its channels, a feature that’s absent from Basecamp. This means that with Basecamp, everything needs to be done manually, whereas Slack gets to benefit from having some lighter tasks automated for convenience.

Differences in Free Version:

In line with the different purposes we mentioned above, Basecamp and Slack both offer different things in their basic free packages that align with their goals as products.

For Basecamp, things are more focused on projects. With a free account, you get to create 3 projects and assign up to 20 users to your team. You also get 1GB of storage to use, as well as the full slew of Basecamp’s features like messaging, real-time chats, to-do lists, schedules, file storage, and worker clock-ins. It’s an all-in-one package, but with clear caveats that make it more of a trial.

Slack on the other hand grants you the ability to access 10,000 of your team’s most recent messages, as well as 10 integrations with popular applications. You also get to make 1:1 voice and video calls between your teammates, continuing the communication focus Slack is known for. This does however lead to some big differences in pricing.

Differences in Price:

Basecamp by default offers one single pricing plan in Basecamp Business. It costs a flat rate of $99 a month, but in return, you get unlimited access to basically every feature in Basecamp. This includes being able to create unlimited projects and adding unlimited numbers of users to your teams. You also unlock some premium features, including advanced client access, templates, and priority support.

Meanwhile, Slack offers three different pricing plans. Pro costs $6.67 a month when paid annually, and gives users full message history, unlimited integrations, group voice, and video calls, and collaboration tools. The Business+ plan costs $12.50 and features all this along with extra security options and priority support. Finally, the Enterprise plan is configurable to fit the business’s needs.

It’s also important to note that with Basecamp, you can add users for free once you’ve signed up for Basecamp Business. With Slack, every user needs to be paid before they get to access any of the premium features available on higher pricing plans.

Basecamp Vs. Slack: Customer Rating

What Customers Like Most About Basecamp?

1. Convenient For Project Management

Having all project management tools in one single application makes things more convenient, and keeps application clutter to a minimum.

2. Affordable Pricing

At $99 for a complete suite of project management tools, Basecamp provides excellent value for medium-sized organizations that don’t want to pay for a plethora of different services at premium prices.

3. User Interface Is Clean And Easy To Use

Despite having many different functions, most users found Basecamp’s interface easy to use. The design is clean and simple, and all functions can be found and used without much hassle.

4. Project Templates Speed Up Workflow

Project templates in Basecamp are excellent, reducing a lot of the groundwork required to start up a project. It makes workflow for both employees and team leaders much smoother.

What Customers Do Not Like About Basecamp?

1. Not Suitable For Large Scale Enterprises

Basecamp has a lot to offer, but it misses out on a few key extras such as time tracking, macro-level project management tools, and Gantt charts. This means it doesn’t work all too well for larger-scale enterprises that depend on these features.

2. Web Client And Application Performance is Not Good

The Basecamp web client and application both aren’t incredibly optimized too well. On lower-end PCs and laptops, it’s common to find bouts of lag or crashing.

3. Lacking Integrations

Basecamp has some integrations, including the all-important Zapier integration. For the most part, however, it is not as well supported as Slack which has almost every integration under the sun.

What Customers Like Most About Slack?

1. Powerful Search Options

The powerful search function in Slack allows users to highlight anything from usernames to specific words or sentences throughout different channels, even channels that the user isn’t in themselves.

2. Integration With Other Software

Slack’s ability to integrate with other pieces of software like Hubspot allows it to send alerts when different projects have their properties changed.

3. Vast Customization Options

The ability to customize the user interface and communication options, from simple things like the colors of the interface all the way to the layout of the platform.

4. Fast Performance

Users with less powerful computers can run Slack smoothly thanks to its lightweight client, fast performance, and efficient power usage.

What Customers Do Not Like About Slack?

1. Poor Call Quality

Slack provides users with the option to call other members of their team, but the call quality isn’t very impressive. With the introduction of the huddle feature, this has improved slightly, but it’s still a sore point for many Slack users.

2. Notification Options Can Become Confusing To Manage

Slack features an insane number of integrations, but with this comes clutter. As a result, it can often become overwhelming to manage notifications between Slack’s chat-focused interface and various integrations sending notifications regarding many different things all at once.

3. No Pop-up Notifications For Reminders

Slack allows users to make reminders, but it saves them along with all its other bot commands instead of featuring them prominently. Even once the reminder is due, Slack still doesn’t notify the user, or even give them an accessible checklist to check.

Basecamp Vs. Slack: Which One Is Better?

Basecamp vs Slack is an interesting comparison, seeing as how they’re not really focused on the same thing. Slack is communication focused, with a lot more thought going into the way you interact with teammates. This is reinforced in many of its features that enhance the chatting experience like customizable emojis and easily accessible direct messages.

Basecamp on the other hand leans a lot more towards project management as an all-in-one tool. It has everything you could need, all in a convenient package. It doesn’t necessarily excel in any of these categories, but it’s also more than competent and works great for teams that don’t want to use 10 different applications to keep their business running.

If you’re a small to medium-sized team that doesn’t want to invest in too many services, we’d recommend Basecamp. It’s powerful enough to do everything you could need without costing a fortune. But if you’re a big enterprise or already find your business already relies on many different applications, Slack is a robust communication platform that integrates well with other tools.

FAQS About Basecamp and Slack

1. Is Basecamp better than Slack?

Basecamp is better for overall project management, but not nearly as powerful when it comes to communication between team members.

1. Does Basecamp replace Slack?

No, it does not as they both are designed for different purposes.

2. Can you use Slack for project management?

You cannot use Slack by itself for project management because it lacks project management tools. It needs to work alongside other applications to reach its maximum potential.

3. Is Basecamp a SaaS?

Yes, it is.

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