Webex vs GoToMeeting: A Real-World Comparison

Unarguably two giants of the online meeting world, Webex vs GoToMeeting is now a battle of full collaboration suites.

We’re talking about messaging, calling, and meetings—rather than just which meeting platform is better?

As your business evolves into a digital-first environment, choosing the right collaboration platform is a huge decision for the next decade.

In this guide, we’ve outlined the following elements to compare Webex vs GoToMeeting:

1. Webex vs GoToMeeting features
2. Webex vs GoToMeeting pricing
3. Webex vs GoToMeeting integrations
4. Webex vs GoToMeeting interoperability

1 – Webex vs GoToMeeting features

Let’s put Webex vs GoToMeeting features head to head.

Feature	Webex	GoToMeeting
Platform support	Mobile (Android & iOS) Web Application Desktop app (Windows, Mac, & Linux)	Mobile (Android & iOS) Web Application Desktop app (Windows & Mac)
Meeting format	Audio and Video	Audio and Video
File, screen, and app sharing	App sharing Desktop sharing Give/take control when sharing Share system audio Document co-authoring Virtual whiteboarding	App sharing Desktop sharing On-screen annotations sharing Notes sharing Keyboard and mouse sharing Give/take controls when sharing
Video conferencing features	One-click meeting Background blur Virtual background replacement Virtual hand-raising	One-click meeting Smart Meeting Assistant Virtual background replacement Virtual hand-raising
Meeting controls	Lobby (waiting room) Mute other participants or self Dial in or out from telephony network Integrate with calendar	Mute participants audio Promote participants to Presenter or Co-organizer Lock meeting (waiting room) Share keyboard and mouse control Mute participants audio Promote participants to Presenter or Co-organizer Lock meeting (waiting room) Share keyboard and mouse control
Security, administration, and reporting	Encryption options for all collaborations Reporting and analytics tools Monitoring and alerting features Admin controls Device management portal	Encryption options for all collaborations Admin controls Reporting and analytics tools Device management portal
Customer support	Live chat Email support	CallChat bot Email (some countries)
Telephony	Cloud calling through Webex and UCM BroadCloud calling via third parties Native endpoints and hardware	Cloud PBX Dial plan editor Unlimited call queues
External contacts	Can meet with Skype for Business users, Jabber, and other Webex users through guest accounts. Send channel and direct messages to Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom users via Mio.	Connect external contacts using the Outlook integration
Integrations	270+ integrations	20+ integrations
Free version	Yes	Yes (free trial)

Outside of Webex features and GoToMeeting features, it’s important to address common FAQs. We run through some below.

How many attendees can join a GoToMeeting?

This varies depending on the subscription plan of the account hosting a GoToMeeting. 

You can have meetings with up to 250 participants on the Enterprise plan, the highest of the GoToMeeting pricing options.

If you wish to host up to 3,000 participants, then such meetings are better suited to webinars. GoToWebinar works just fine for that.

How many attendees can join a Webex meeting?

You can get up to 1,000 participants in a Webex meeting. 

However, for other spaces like Webex Events (Classic), Webex Webinars, and Webex Events (Webcast Mode), you can host spaces for 3,000, 10,000, and 100,000 participants respectively.

The number of people that can join your meeting, beyond what your license allows, depends on

• how you created the meeting, and
• how people joined that meeting.

For example, a maximum of 200 people can join from a video device or the Webex App app. 

One easy way to know how many can join your meeting is by clicking “Schedule” in the space to see the meeting information.

Can I use GoToMeeting for free?

You can access GoToMeeting for free with their 14-day free trial. There are limitations to the features you can access on the free trial. 

For example, meetings in the GoToMeeting free trial have a 40-minute time and 3-attendee limit.

You don’t need to fill in any credit card details when signing up for the GoToMeeting free trial.

Can I use Webex for free?

Yes, Webex has a free plan in its pricing options called the “Basic” plan. With this plan, you can hold 50-minute long meetings with up to 100 attendees.

You’ll need to confirm that you live in a region where Webex is available for free.

Let’s check out the pricing options for both Webex and GoToMeeting.

2 – Webex vs GoToMeeting pricing

Webex has five different plans while GoToMeeting has three plans you can choose from.

Features	Webex Basic	Webex Meet	Webex Call	Webex Meet + Call	Webex Enterprise	GoToMeeting Professional	GoToMeeting Business	GoToMeeting Enterprise
Price	$0/user/month	$15/user/month$13.5/user/month	$17/user/month	$25/user/month	Custom pricing	$14/organizer/month$12/organizer/month	$19/organizer/month$16/organizer/month	Custom Pricing
Maximum Capacity	100	200	100	200	Customizable	150	250	250
Content Sharing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Breakout Rooms	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Meeting Length	50 minutes	24 hours	50 minutes	24 hours	24 hours	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Cloud Storage		10GB		10GB	Customizable		Unlimited	Unlimited
Post-Meeting Transcript		Yes		Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes
Cloud VoIP Calling			Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

The GoToMeeting free trial isn’t included in this comparison because it is a one-off plan, unlike Webex Basic which lasts for as long as you want it to.

3 – Webex vs GoToMeeting integrations

Whether you choose Webex or GoToMeeting, you’ll have other apps you need to use.

Rather than adding another task for people to complete, think about your integration and interoperability options.

Webex integrations

Webex has integrations for over 270 line of business apps. These enable you to link activities in Webex to your other apps without having to constantly switch between apps.

One example is the Google Calendar integration for Webex. 

This simple integration helps you and your team with features like:

• Custom reminders and notifications
• Reminders
• Automated invites sharing
• Event creation

GoToMeeting integrations

On its GoTo Marketplace page, the company says that “GoTo is integrated into the apps teams already use so you’ll have everything you need to collaborate and win together.”

This makes it possible so that, for example, you can switch from messaging directly to video calls on Slack.

4 – Webex vs GoToMeeting interoperability 

Webex interoperability options

Webex GM, Abhay Kulkarni, describes Webex as open and interoperable. And he says it has to be that way so the end user wins. 

“From a competition perspective, if you make the end user’s life easier, competition takes care of itself.” 

This is demonstrated in the way Webex now interoperates with the following solutions:

Webex video conferencing integrations

• Microsoft Teams
• Zoom
• Google Meet

Webex messaging integrations

• Microsoft Teams
• Zoom Team Chat
• Slack

To enable message interoperability between Webex and apps like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Slack, you can install Mio in the background. 

Once done, you can send cross-platform messages between Webex and your other collaboration apps.

GoToMeeting interoperability options

GoToMeeting doesn’t have a particularly robust interop portfolio. 

As of July 2022, only the Microsoft Teams integration across the GoTo Unified communications suite stands out as an interoperability option.

Microsoft Teams meeting integration with GoToMeeting

With the GoToMeeting integration, you can start and join meetings via GoToMeeting from Teams. Get the GoToMeeting add-in from the Teams “Apps” or from the Microsoft Appsource.

You can join or start a GoToMeeting via three different methods:

1. Click the “daisy” icon below the message tray.

Join or start a meeting.

2. Use chat bot commands.

3. Start or join a meeting straight from the dashboard on Teams.

Microsoft Teams calling integration with GoToConnect

Teams also has an add-in for GoTo Connect, the product under the GoTo unified communications suite for VoIP phone systems and services.

This GoTo Connect add-in means that you’ll be able to make calls, listen and delete voicemails, and get voicemail notifications from Teams without disrupting your regular workflow on the platform.

Conclusion

While each platform has unique features, and you should always opt for the one that best suits your needs, Webex has a clear advantage when it comes to interoperability with other apps.

It’s this important aspect that shows that it’s a user-centric product. With interoperability, Webex is more likely to fit into a larger team better than GoToMeeting since interoperability caters to the needs of users in other teams.

GoToMeeting is perfect if it hits the pain points of a smaller business. For those more interested in meetings, GoToMeeting remains a top player in that specific niche.

If choosing between the two:

• Small businesses and those looking for meetings-centric platforms: GoToMeeting.
• Enterprises and businesses looking for full collaboration stacks: Webex.