Cisco Webex vs Zoom: Compare Pricing, Features, Pros & Cons

Summary: Cisco WebEx Meetings and Zoom Workplace are both robust, AI-enhanced UCaaS platforms for businesses with different needs. WebEx Meetings is an enterprise-grade solution for businesses looking for reliability and multilingual support. Zoom Workplace is a plug-and-play solution suited for organizations prioritizing simplicity and cost-effectiveness.

Modern businesses rely on their cloud-based phone system for more than just voice calling. Video meetings, calendars, team chat, file co-editing, SMS, and call center monitoring tools are just some of the features that users expect from  UCaaS providers. This article will place Cisco WebEx Meetings and Zoom Workplace head to head, comparing the applications’ features, pricing, user interface, pros, and cons.

• At A Glance
• Voice Calling
• Messaging
• Video Conferencing
• Analytics
• Plans and Pricing
• Pros and Cons
• Which to Choose?
• FAQs

How We Compared WebEx and Zoom

We used the following criteria to compare WebEx and Zoom:

• Voice Calling: We looked at how each of these platforms enable voice calling and how each fared video quality and feature-wise
• Messaging Functionality: We compared the messaging features demonstrated by each provider in both 1:1 and group settings
• Video Conferences: We compared the video conferencing platform experience offered by each provider, including rich features like AI-produced meeting summaries and file sharing
• Analytics: We compared the two platforms’ handling of reporting and analyzing agent KPIs and call center performance data
• Price and Value: We looked at both offering’s pricing tiers, the features included, and optional add-ons
• Integrations: We investigated which third-party applications each provider integrates with and explored available APIs, and the
• Security and Reliability: We explored the security features of both platforms such as end-to-end encryption and password-protected meeting rooms
• Customer Support: We reviewed available customer support hours and channels, and whether priority support packages were available

WebEx vs Zoom: At A Glance

Here, we’ve compared key features within WebEx vs Zoom. Both offer similar feature sets and tools, but WebEx offers a more robust enterprise-grade experience while Zoom is notable for its versatility and simplicity.

WebEx vs Zoom: Voice Calling

Summary: WebEx and Zoom both provide strong voice calling features through their respective collaboration suites. WebEx offers a more conventional call experience with support for WebEx Go, which allows users to securely keep personal devices linked with work communications. Zoom Workplaces offers a Phone Power Pack add-on with AI enhancements.

Users wanting  a more traditional PBX phone system should consider WebEx Calling, which offers advanced call management functionalities like automatic call distribution, call queues, and fluid call flip between devices. On the other hand, Zoom emphasizes a user-friendly experience with a more basic set of features like call forwarding, voicemail, and conferencing. Voice calling is only available to Zoom Workspace users via the Zoom Phone Power Pack add-on, which allows users to choose between metered (pay-as-you-go) or unlimited calling. Zoom’s AI Companion enhances calling through automated post-call summaries with action items and extracting tasks from voicemails.

Both WebEx and Zoom offer cloud-based calling to support just about any device that connects to the web: laptops, desktops, phones, tablets, and more. WebEx features WebEx Go, a distinguishing feature that extends a business line to a user’s personal device while keeping a user’s personal and work communications separate. WebEx Calling also uses AI to help filter out noise during calls, provide real-time translation and transcription via the Real-time translation add-on, and generate summaries with action items for post-call productivity. WebEx is better calibrated for hybrid or remote workplaces seeking enterprise-level reliability and access. Zoom tends to be used by smaller businesses who want a cost-effective, plug-and-play solution that handles video, voice, and messaging within the same app.

WebEx vs Zoom: Messaging

Summary: WebEx messaging offers strong AI-powered communication tools and SMS integration, serving as a smart choice for businesses looking to automate and provide engagement across an omnichannel environment. Zoom looks to focus on seamless collaboration, its AI features streamline transcriptions and post-call work through summaries and suggestions.

WebEx messaging is a very multimedia-focused platform encouraging users to leave audio and video messages in their chats. Enterprises looking to rely on different modes of communication asynchronously should consider this platform, but note that business text messaging is only available through WebEx Calling with Cisco Calling plans. Zoom requires users to have the Power Phone Pack add-on to use SMS.

Zoom’s chat focuses more on usability and user-friendliness. ZoomAI Companion automates real-time message summaries and insights, and can even  create content like text and images via GenAI. Zoom’s AI Companion also offers smart suggestions like file or message reminders. WebEx’s AI Assistant uses a Natural Language Processing engine to improve chat interactions and automate workflows. Webex AI Assistant also provides summaries for longer conversations and supports translation with the Real-time Translation add-on. Both WebEx and Zoom offer end-to-end encryption, though WebEx’s messaging does not require a specific plan to be HIPAA compliant. Zoom for Healthcare offers that functionality.

Both WebEx and Zoom allow for file sharing, quick reactions, and message threading to organize conversations. WebEx integrates messaging with calling and meetings, so users can quickly move between the communication channels in one interface. Zoom’s messaging platform also accommodates channel switching, ensuring users can transition from video meetings to chats or voice calls. A Zoom add-on, Zoom Docs, offers support for business documents, project tracking, and real-time in-meeting document collaboration.

WebEx vs Zoom: Video Conferencing Solution

HD video meetings, waiting rooms, recording with cloud storage, virtual backgrounds, file sharing, built-in chat, and interactive whiteboards during meetings all come standard on both desktop and mobile offerings for both. Both Zoom and WebEx allow screen sharing, breakout rooms, and polling to maximize collaboration and engagement. Zoom offers longer meeting sessions of up to 30 hours, compared to WebEx’s 24-hour maximum. WebEx and Zoom accommodate up to 1000 participants.

Zoom distinguishes itself with its AI Companion, which provides meeting summaries with suggested action items and in-meeting collaborative note-taking to increase productivity and streamline post-call work.. AI-powered question assistance provides on-the-fly answers to questions based on what happened in the meeting. Zoom’s AI companion will even offer short, contextual responses during the meeting, based on the existing conversation thread. WebEx leverages AIto suppress noise, making it ideal for lounder and busier environments looking for high-quality sound and less distractions. WebEx also provides wider language support for live transcripts and enterprise-level security protocols–on top of the standard end-to-end encryption Zoom also has.

WebEx vs Zoom: Analytics

Summary: WebEx analytics focus on real-time performance monitoring while providing detailed insights into call volume, participant engagement, device usage, and call quality metrics during meetings. The WebEx Control Hub allows organizations to see reports on participant interaction levels, session activity logs, and overall network health. It also features template-based reports that can be customized to business-specific call center KPIs like call volume or call quality reporting. In-event engagement tracking and customer support representative activity reports can help large contact centers optimize performance.

Zoom’s analytics are focused on simplicity and ease-of-use. Administrators can see KPIs meeting duration, attendance trends, and even track post-event satisfaction surveys through dashboards. Zoom’s Business and Education plans offer some live metrics, but are less in-depth than WebEx’s offerings. Zoom’s platform is suited for smaller organizations or educational institutions looking for quick insights without needing a deeply technical setup. Both platforms offer Google Workplace and Salesforce integration, though WebEx has richer diagnostics for call quality tracking or hardware monitoring.

In terms of workforce management and contact center analytics, Zoom and WebEx require specialized plans for the more advanced tools. WebEx does offer webinar-specific KPIs and session query tools for enterprise-level IT teams operating complex operations. Zoom’s reliance on streamlined dashboards might seem elementary, but it means a user-friendly experience ideal for the less technically oriented organization.

WebEx vs Zoom: Plans and Pricing

Summary: Webex Meetings has 1 free plan and 3 paid plans from $14.50-$25/user per month and up, while Zoom Workplace offers 1 free plan and two paid plans from $13.32-$18.22 user/month and up. A variety of add-ons are necessary for certain functionalities, like real-time translation on WebEx or SMS messaging on Zoom through its Phone Power Pack.

The WebEx free plan supports 40-minute meetings for up to 100 participants.. A WebEx Meet plan costs $14.50 per host and accommodates up to 200 participants with meetings running up to 24 hours. The Webex Meet plan also includes AI assistant and cloud capabilities. The last set priced tier, WebEx Suite, runs $25 per host and includes a business phone number, unlimited local and domestic phone calling, and device switching. Enterprise plans give unlimited local and cloud recording and raise meeting participants to 1000, but prices vary. Annual plans exist starting at $144 per user per year for the Meet tier and $270 per user per year for the Suite plan. The Real-time Translation add-on which translates English to 100 different closed-captioned languages comes at $30 a month per license.

Zoom offers three main plans, including a free version. The free Basic plan includes team chat and 100-participant meetings with a 40-minute time limit, plus collaborative video features like whiteboards and breakout rooms. The Pro plan at $15.99 monthly expands the video time limit to 30 hours and adds live captions and Zoom’s AI Companion. The Business plan at $21.99 monthly expands video meetings to 300 participants and includes unlimited whiteboards, the scheduler function, and some extras. The  Pro plan is $159.84 per user per year and the Business plan is $219.84 per user per year. A Large Meeting add-on expands Zoom meeting capacity to 1000 for an additional $50 per month. The Zoom Phone Power Pack starts at $25 and offers SMS support, enhanced call queue analytics and more.

WebEx vs Zoom: Pros and Cons

Summary: Webex’s easy-to-use interface and auto-generated meeting reports improve user experience, though some users report that shared meeting links don’t always work for recipients. Zoom outmatches Webex and other top Zoom alternatives when it comes to video conferencing, thanks to features likelive translation and filters. Still, the  quantity of Zoom collaboration features may be overwhelming to new users and risks wasting unused capabilities.

Should You Choose WebEx or Zoom?

When choosing between WebEx and Zoom, the best unified communications platform  for your business lies in the details and the feature sets you need as well as how you envision using AI during and after meetings. Budgets, available hardware,  and ease-of-use also play a big role in your decision.

Cisco WebEx is Best For:

• Organizations with sophisticated security needs, including encrypted meetings and industry-specific compliance regulations and certifications
• Businesses already using Cisco hardware, as WebEx already seamlessly integrates
• Worldwide teams who need multilingual support and real-time translation

Cisco WebEx is Not Right For:

• Smaller businesses with limited budgets as WebEx comes at a higher cost
• Users looking for a plug-and-play simple solution with a simple interface
• Organizations focused on casual meetings who do not need all the bells and whistles

Zoom is Best For:

• Organizations that need quick and easy-to-learn collaboration software
• Businesses that prioritize engagement and interactivity in meetings
• Virtual classrooms and remote training facilities

Zoom is Not Right For:

• Businesses requiring best-in-class security and face strict compliance requirements
• Companies already integrated into the Cisco ecosystem
• Organizations who need wider multilingual support

FAQs

Below, we've answered some of the popular FAQs.