Slack Vs WhatsApp: What Suits You Better?

Slack and WhatsApp are two applications centered around communication, and they’re both prevalent throughout the world today. For many users, it begets the question, which one is better? Well, today we’re breaking down Slack Vs WhatsApp in order to find out which one offers you the best experience and features in direct comparison, so keep reading on!

Slack Vs WhatsApp: What Are They?

What is Slack?

Slack is a piece of software designed to help make workplace communication smoother. Initially released in 2013, Slack has since grown from a simple chatting client into a hub for messages, tools, and file sharing. Back when it was released it was a fresh new concept, and with time Slack has established itself as the go-to workspace communication tool for most businesses out there.

Nowadays, Slack is an industry standard and thus comes with many essential business-related features. We’ve already mentioned things like file sharing, but more importantly, Slack has integrations. These are what keep Slack as one of the most popular chat clients around, thanks to just how well it plays along with other essential business programs. So, the question now is, how does it stack next to WhatsApp?

What is WhatsApp?

Released in 2009, WhatsApp began its life as an internationally available mobile chatting client. It was free, offering text chats with people you had in your contacts. WhatsApp would slowly add features like voice messages and image sharing, but development sped up when the client application was acquired by social media juggernaut Facebook in 2014.

From then on, WhatsApp would begin adding plenty of new features. Some of these were fairly basic, like sticker support and group chats. Others were more substantial, like the ability to make group video calls, a desktop client, and a more business-oriented version named WhatsApp Business. However, is it really enough to match up to Slack, or is WhatsApp still too lacking in certain areas?

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Which One is Easier to Use

When it comes to ease of use, Slack and WhatsApp are both quite simple to use. Neither application is particularly complicated with its functions, and both are quite intuitive to use. Both are based around the basic idea of communicating with others, and though they achieve this in different ways, they’re still relatively easy to pick up and start using productively.

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Which One is More Powerful?

While both of these messaging clients have their time and place, it’s undeniable that Slack is simply the more powerful of the two. Slack gives users more options, more features, and more tools, whereas WhatsApp, despite improving a lot, still lags behind in most regards. Below, we’ll break down both applications’ key features, as well as explain why one may be better than the other.

1. Messages

In regards to messaging, WhatsApp isn’t too far behind. Messaging is, after all, WhatsApp’s strongest suit. While there aren’t channels for you to find people, you can add team members to your smartphone contacts and then message them through the app. From here, you once again get options like file sharing, voice calls, video calls, and voice messages.

With Slack, messaging other people is kept simple. You can DM anyone in your channels just by clicking on their name and selecting the direct message option. From inside the direct messaging channel, you get the normal slew of options like file sharing, voice calls, video calls, and the like. There’s also a search option to help browse through older messages.

Unfortunately for WhatsApp, Slack is still ahead of the pack. Slack allows users to edit their messages after posting while keeping a record of edits that have been done. On top of that, you can also unsend messages in Slack if you notice a mistake within 15 seconds. These are options that WhatsApp simply does not have to offer, and thus Slack takes the point.

2. Video Call

Video calls work similarly on both platforms, but once again, Slack pulls ahead. Slack gives users one-to-one video calls in its free version, but once you opt into the paid packages, you can add up to 15 people to your group voice calls. On top of that, with integrations, you can even use third-party apps like Zoom as your video calling client if you so choose.

WhatsApp does have free video call chats, but the limit only goes up to 8 participants at any given time. Of course, this isn’t too bad, but the accessibility of the feature takes a hit since there are more steps to adding participants compared to Slack’s simpler one-click video call joining. On top of that, WhatsApp doesn’t have third-party options, which brings us to our next point.

3. Integrations

Simply put, WhatsApp does not feature integrations. This means that if your business uses other pieces of software, then it’s not going to work seamlessly with WhatsApp in any capacity. While it’s fine up to a point, for those trying to maximize efficiency, WhatsApp is more of a hurdle than it is help here.

Slack meanwhile has over 2400 application integrations, putting it easily in the higher echelons of workplace communication apps. No matter what other third-party programs you use, there’s a high chance it integrates with Slack. Therefore, if you’re running a business and are looking to expand larger at any point in the future, then Slack’s the way to go.

4. File Sharing

While both applications have file sharing, WhatsApp lags behind once again. The biggest issue with WhatsApp’s file sharing is that it can only send certain types of files. There’s a 100MB file size limit on files sent through WhatsApp. On top of that, file sharing can get buggy, and it’s hard to track what files have been sent.

Slack meanwhile allows users to send any type of file of any size they’d like. Sending and receiving large amounts of files is a lot less buggy compared to WhatsApp, and it’s also much easier to track what files have been sent in Slack. So yeah, once again, Slack is the winner here.

5. Platforms

In theory, WhatsApp seems like it should at least match Slack here, but again, WhatsApp falls short. The application supports Android, iOS, KaiOS, macOS, Windows, and a web client, but there’s a catch. With WhatsApp’s desktop clients, they’re not actually standalone launchers. They just sync up and act as a front-end for the mobile versions, which are still the main versions.

Slack supports Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and Linux and there’s also a web client. Unlike WhatsApp, Slack’s various versions are all standalone applications. On top of that, every single version of Slack is quite well optimized, performing like a charm. It goes without saying that Slack takes it once more.

6. Notifications

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, Slack simply outdoes WhatsApp once again. Slack gives you fairly deep notification options, being able to periodically mute threads and channels, turn off specific types of notifications, and give priority to other messages or channels.

With WhatsApp, you get a regular set of notification settings. You can mute group chats and other chats, and that’s really about it. WhatsApp loses out once more.

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Which One is Cheaper

When it comes to pricing, WhatsApp manages to take win over Slack. WhatsApp is, after all, completely free. Slack on the other hand has a free version along with some paid packages. Slack’s Pro package starts at $6.67 a month and gives you most of the features you’d need. Then there’s the Business+ package, which includes 24/7 customer support and advanced security features.

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Which One is Safer

When it comes to security features, Slack has more to offer, though they’re both fairly solid. Both have 2FA protection and put multiple safety measures in place. WhatsApp also locks an account to a phone number, though more expensive packages of Slack offer some advanced security features like Active Directory sync via OneLogin, Okta, and PingIdentity.

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Which One has Higher Customer Ratings

Slack Vs WhatsApp: Final Thought

When it comes to Slack Vs WhatsApp, Slack is just plainly the better product. It offers a lot more in the way of features, it gives a greater degree of control to how communications are carried out, and it has integrations with other third-party programs. WhatsApp is still a good piece of software for basic communication, but any serious business should consider switching to Slack, even if it costs more.

FAQS About WhatsApp and Slack

1. Is Slack better than WhatsApp?

Yes, Slack is better than WhatsApp.

• What are the advantages of Slack?

Slack has more features, integrations, and proper platform support.

• Does Slack work with WhatsApp?

There is no integration between Slack and WhatsApp as WhatsApp doesn’t support integrations.

• Why you should not use Slack?

If you have no need for any of the advanced features Slack offers and only want a way to contact friends, then WhatsApp is still good and convenient.

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