Does Slack have different pricing plans?

Yes, Slack offers various pricing plans for businesses of all sizes, which can be compared on their official website.

Slack is a cloud-based team communication platform owned by Salesforce that includes messaging, file sharing, and phone calls.

Is Slack a cloud-based tool?

Yes, Slack is a cloud-based communication tool that facilitates team collaboration through messaging and file sharing.

Comparative Analysis: Slack vs. Discord for Small Team Internal Communication

Question: Should a small team use 'Slack' or 'Discord' for internal communication, considering the cost of message history retention and the quality of voice/video integration?

Prepared by the ChoiceScore Research Desk · Editor-approved for the curated library · Reviewed August 4, 2026

It depends Choice Score: 75/100

Direct answer

The choice between Slack and Discord depends on whether a team prioritizes professional-grade workflow integrations and structured communication or seeks to minimize costs associated with message history retention. Slack is designed for business-oriented collaboration, while Discord offers a distinct model for persistent voice and video interaction.

Summary

Selecting a communication platform for a small team requires balancing the need for professional workflow integrations against the costs associated with data retention. Slack is a cloud-based platform owned by Salesforce, designed for business environments, offering structured channels, file sharing, and integrations with productivity tools. Its pricing model includes a free tier and paid tiers that expand capabilities. Discord is a communication platform that provides persistent voice and video channels. When evaluating these tools, teams must weigh Slack's structured, business-oriented feature set against the utility of Discord's persistent voice and video channels. This report provides a framework for evaluating these platforms based on team size, integration requirements, and data retention needs. All financial projections are illustrative and user-adjustable.

Choice Score breakdown

Slack Professionalism 95/100 — High suitability for business workflows and integrations.
Discord Cost-Efficiency 90/100 — High value for voice/video and history retention.

Best for / Not best for

Best for

Slack: Teams needing integration with third-party productivity and CRM tools.
Slack: Organizations requiring structured channel-based communication.
Discord: Teams prioritizing persistent, low-latency voice and video channels.

Not best for

Slack: Teams with no budget for premium subscriptions if history retention is critical.
Discord: Organizations needing native integration with common business productivity suites.

Scenarios

The Professional Startup (0.8% likely)
A team of 10 needing to integrate with CRM tools and maintain searchable records. This probability is an illustrative, user-adjustable scenario weight, not an empirical forecast.
The Bootstrapped Creative Agency (0.7% likely)
A team of 5 working on short-term projects that prioritize real-time brainstorming. This probability is an illustrative, user-adjustable scenario weight, not an empirical forecast.
The Hybrid Model (0.4% likely)
Using Slack for formal communication and Discord for casual voice hangouts. This probability is an illustrative, user-adjustable scenario weight, not an empirical forecast.

Calculations

Metric	Result	Formula
Illustrative Slack Annual Cost	870 USD/year	monthly_price_per_user × 12 × team_size
Illustrative Discord Cost Savings	870 USD/year	slack_annual_cost - discord_annual_cost
Illustrative Productivity Value	2000 USD/year	estimated_hours_saved_per_year × hourly_wage

Pros & cons

Pros

Slack: Offers structured channel organization suitable for complex project management.
Slack: Provides a wide range of third-party integrations with professional productivity tools.
Discord: Features persistent voice and video channels that allow for continuous team presence.
Discord: Standard messaging and voice features are available without a subscription fee.

Cons

Slack: Subscription costs scale linearly with team size for premium features.
Slack: Access to full message and file history is restricted on the free plan.
Discord: Interface is primarily designed for community and gaming, which may feel informal for some corporate environments.
Discord: Lacks the native business-centric workflow integrations found in dedicated productivity platforms.

Assumptions

Slack Pro Pricing: 7.25 USD/user/month — Illustrative figure used for cost modeling; subject to change.
Team Size: 10 users — Baseline assumption for cost calculations.
Discord Cost: 0 USD — Based on Discord's standard free-to-use messaging and voice features.
Illustrative scenario probability — The Professional Startup: 0.8% — A user-adjustable modeling weight used to compare scenarios; it is not a measured probability or forecast.
Illustrative scenario probability — The Bootstrapped Creative Agency: 0.7% — A user-adjustable modeling weight used to compare scenarios; it is not a measured probability or forecast.
Illustrative scenario probability — The Hybrid Model: 0.4% — A user-adjustable modeling weight used to compare scenarios; it is not a measured probability or forecast.

Practical next steps

Audit your team's current reliance on third-party software integrations to determine if Slack's ecosystem is necessary.
Determine if your industry requires specific data retention policies that necessitate paid tiers.
Test the voice and video quality of both platforms during a trial period to assess latency and usability.
Calculate the annual cost impact of Slack Pro versus the zero-cost Discord model based on your specific team size.
Evaluate whether the professional features of Slack outweigh the cost savings of Discord for your specific use case.

Methodology

The decision framework compares the core value propositions of Slack and Discord. Financial calculations are illustrative and based on user-adjustable inputs for team size and pricing. Qualitative analysis focuses on the trade-offs between professional workflow integrations and persistent, cost-effective communication features.

Sources

Sources support specific claims; they do not replace our analysis. Read the research and source standards.

FAQ

Does Slack have different pricing plans?: Yes, Slack offers various pricing plans for businesses of all sizes, which can be compared on their official website.
What is Slack?: Slack is a cloud-based team communication platform owned by Salesforce that includes messaging, file sharing, and phone calls.
Is Slack a cloud-based tool?: Yes, Slack is a cloud-based communication tool that facilitates team collaboration through messaging and file sharing.

Disclaimers

Pricing for Slack is subject to change based on vendor updates.

Security and compliance requirements are specific to your industry; consult with your IT department before handling sensitive data on any communication platform.