Webex and Zoom are great conference call services offering a range of useful features for businesses.
Zoom is the best video conferencing solution available for hosting calls if you favor ease of use and reliability.
For more advanced security features, such as password-enforced meeting connections and encrypted cloud recordings, Webex is likely the better choice.
If you’re in any doubt, opt for Zoom.
Webex Compared to Zoom
Zoom is the best service for hosting video conference calls. The tool supports up to 1,000 video participants and 10,000 viewers, and it’s affordable, not to mention easy to use. What’s more, you don’t have to install software to get started. If you’re ready to check out Zoom, you can save 40% off your first year of Pro Annual today.
Webex is a more suitable choice for those that need state-of-the-art security. It offers locked personal room meetings, password-enforced meeting connections, and encrypted cloud recordings. You can also control who enters a meeting and when. If you’re ready to check out Webex, you can save 10% off your first plan by paying annually.
More Top Conference Call Services
We reviewed countless conference call services and narrowed it down to the eight best choices. See all of our top picks and get a detailed look at where each product stacks up. You’ll find out who the conference call services are best for overall.
Zoom made our top list and was the best for hosting video conference calls. Webex didn’t make our list.
Where Webex Shines
Unique Features: Webex offers some special features. For example, there’s the on-premise bridging of video traffic via the “Video Mesh” solution—in other words, meetings overflow to the cloud as directed. Other advanced features include webinar administration for attendance and an attention indicator tool. A “People Insights” feature also enables detailed attendee profiles so you can see what type of people make up your audience. All of these features are worthwhile.
Top Security: Webex has a strong reputation for its excellent security—mainly due to its history as a business platform—and we’re pleased to say that holds up today. You get locked personal room meetings, password-enforced meeting connections, and even encrypted cloud recordings. There’s also a Webex lobby feature that allows the meeting host to control who can enter a meeting or not; meeting hosts and admins can grant or revoke participant access to sessions in a few clicks.
Simple User Interface: Webex has an uncomplicated UI that’s relatively intuitive. You can quickly share your desktop with others, as well as documents or other apps. It’s easy to change presenters when needed, create whiteboards for virtual notes, and pass keyboard and mouse control over to someone else in a group. While Zoom is easier to use overall, Webex is far from challenging to use, and you can get a lot done in a short amount of time. There’s little in the way of lag while navigating the platform too.
Easy Video Sharing: Webex automatically detects if a meeting participant has a webcam up and running, so if an attendee wants to be on camera, all they have to do is click the camera button, and the rest loads on command—once done, their image will appear whenever they speak. There’s a live collaboration feature too that allows participants to feel like they are all working in the same room; great for when a virtual team needs to come together or create the feeling of collaboration in the office.
Straightforward Note-Taking: Webex has a convenient feature that allows the meeting manager to designate a dedicated note-taker or even let all participants take notes directly inside the software—a note-taking application helps achieve this. Once a meeting ends, the messages get saved on each note taker’s computer so that users can follow up after each session with ease. That’s not to mention that notes are shareable with other participants during the meeting, allowing you to revisit points and go over any questions.
Fast Meetings: Creating and joining meetings with Webex is painless—once the initial setup process is complete, you can join meetings from the “Meeting Center” in a few clicks. It’s worth noting that Webex is an online meeting tool, so no downloads are needed, and it works on key web browsers, including Firefox and Chrome. Hosts invite attendees by email, Instant Message, or in a live chat itself. The invitation to a meeting includes a link that takes participants straight to it, instructing them to connect via their phone line or VoIP.
Where Webex Falls Short
Small Attendee Numbers: The standard paid plans on Webex have a small video meeting attendee number—most users will need to upgrade to a higher meeting capacity. Even then, only 200 participants can join a meeting on the top paid plan. While that may sound large depending on your circumstances, Zoom supports up to 1,000 video participants with its “Large Meetings” add-on. Other competitors quite comfortably top the limit as well. Webex allows you to increase your participants on the custom Enterprise plan, but this can be very expensive.
High Memory Usage: Lightweight applications are always preferable, especially those that don’t require a lot of memory to function on your computer or laptop. Unfortunately, Webex’s meetings take up a good deal of memory without first converting them to a smaller video format. For example, you’re looking at 1 GB to 1.5 GB of storage on average to save a single 1-hour meeting, even if you adjust the video quality to lessen the requirements. These storage amounts can quickly add up for those with modest hard drives or no backup options.
Where Zoom Shines
Unique Features: Zoom has a few unique features itself. For a start, it performs better overall in low bandwidth situations, which is good news for those that may suffer from varying internet speeds. There’s a virtual background feature, which you can customize in multiple ways, and the ability for simultaneous screen sharing for attendees in a group too. Lastly, you can split a single meeting into what’s known as “Breakout Rooms”—these rooms allow you to divide your Zoom meeting into up to 50 separate sessions.
Intuitive Interface: Zoom’s interface is highly intuitive, and users who aren’t familiar with video conferencing tech tend to find it easier to use from the beginning. Zoom has fewer enterprise features, but that equates to an easier learning curve for many people. If instant ease-of-use is critical, Zoom will be the right choice for you. Zoom Phone itself is comparable to Webex in almost all standard features and functionality, so you aren’t missing out on any essential capabilities.
Webinar Recording: Zoom is the platform of choice for webinar fans. While other competitors let you invite attendees to your webinar, Zoom also offers a recording feature on top. If you need to save your webinar to check back on later, you can do that quickly and without fuss. Zoom allows you to invite up to 10,000 participants for a webinar and has automatic mute features, so the days of reminding participants to mute themselves are a thing of the past. The “Zoom Panelist Green Room” allows panelists to practice as they wait to make their announcements.
Smooth Device Compatibility: Zoom is compatible with many devices, from desktops, smartphones, and iPads to almost all browsing devices. It easily connects with dedicated room systems, allowing workers in different departments and geographical locations to work together. Participants can join Zoom rooms and share their screens, chat, and more from all devices. The Zoom Cloud Meetings Android app allows you to share your mobile screen, co-annotate shared content, and use real-time whiteboard collaboration on the go.
Robust Integrations: Zoom integrates with Zapier, Pardot, and Marketo and these apps give you access to powerful automation, top-notch functionality, and detailed reporting to take things to the next level. While Webex offers similar apps, most tend to find the integrations easier to manage on Zoom. Generally speaking, you need more technical knowledge to install and use Webex’s integrations. Lastly, if you’re looking for apps to generate leads or increase your conversions, many are available to help you do this.
Solid Customer Support: You’ll have access to a ticket system when using the free Zoom plan, but the paid plans give you quite a few options. You’ll get live chat on the Pro plan and full phone support on the Business and Enterprise plans. Webex offers decent support, including live chat and call-in capabilities, but Zoom tends to resolve problems more quickly. The “Learning Centre” to become a Zoom expert provides on-demand and live training options, which are more than welcome to those just getting started.
Where Zoom Falls Short
Security Issues: Zoom has experienced problems with its security in the past. There have been events where hackers have successfully broken into private meetings. Typically, these issues have improved, although the protection on offer still isn’t as advanced as others on the market. For instance, compared to Webex, Zoom lacks many advanced features like locked personal room meetings, password-enforced meeting connections, and encrypted cloud recordings. Zoom does, however, issue frequent security updates.
The Final Verdict on Webex Compared to Zoom
We need to briefly compare the pricing of each platform before our final verdict.
Zoom begins at $14.99 per month per license on the Pro plan and allows you to host 100 participants with a group meeting duration limit of 30 hours. A $19.99 Business tier is available and boosts that to 300 participants, letting you record transcripts and more. The Enterprise plan is also $19.99 per license per month and can accommodate 500 participants. It’s a fair set of prices in general.
On the other hand, Webex starts at $15 per license per month and allows up to 200 participants to join meetings. The second plan costs $17 per license per month and includes a cloud-based phone number and additional extensions. A $25 per month per license Business plan accommodates up to 200 participants and offers more premium features.
We’re looking at similar prices for the off-the-shelf packages with solid free plans for each platform. That said, Zoom gets ahead because it charges $19.99 per month per user for its dedicated business plan compared to the pricier $25 that Webex asks. That’s a decent saving when you consider it’s per license.
Pricing aside, Zoom and Webex are great conference call services, but Webex is for those that especially need top-notch security. Zoom is primarily one of the most dependable conference call services out there, and it’s hard to beat if you want to get up and running without hassle.
Security issues are perhaps the biggest concern for Zoom users, undoubtedly so compared to the advanced Webex security on offer. However, we don’t believe most users will experience serious security issues as we’ve seen previously—Zoom gets continually updated and is keen to put the past behind them.
Webex delivers less value when you consider pricing, and the user interface isn’t quite as friendly as the one Zoom offers, even if most users find it acceptable most of the time. Overall, Webex is better for larger businesses and is a more specialized product; Zoom is the better mainstream option.
We spent many nights comparing the best conference call services to help you decide the right one for you. Check out our full buyer’s guide.
- Nextiva – Best conference call service for most
- RingCentral – Best standalone conferencing solution
- GoToMeeting – Best for keeping your remote team cohesive
- Grasshopper – Best mobile virtual phone system
- ClickMeeting – Best for webinars and conference calls
- Zoom – Best for hosting video conference calls
- Vast Conference – Best for instant conference calls
- FreeConferenceCall.com – Best free conference call service
Our number one pick was Nextiva which we said was the best conference call service for most. You get unlimited 1:1 voice and video calling, toll-free numbers, text messaging, and more for between $11.95 and $26.95 per user per month.
