Blog · Comparisons · Updated · By the FitMySaaS team
Slack vs Microsoft Teams cost for 10 and 20 people (2026)
Short answer: Microsoft Teams costs less. For 10 people, Slack Pro is $870 a year and Teams Essentials is $480 (list price, billed yearly, October 2026). If you already pay for Microsoft 365 Business Basic or above, Teams is included, so it adds nothing. Slack only costs more for a reason when your team lives in Slack's apps and integrations, or you don't use Microsoft 365 at all.
What do Slack and Microsoft Teams cost per person?
Slack charges per active member. Slack's pricing page lists Pro at $7.25 a user per month billed yearly ($8.75 monthly) and Business+ at $15 ($18 monthly). Slack bills only members who were active in the last 28 days and credits seats that go quiet.
Microsoft sells Teams two ways. Teams Essentials is Teams on its own at $4.00 a user per month, sold only as a yearly subscription.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic is $7.00 a user per month billed yearly and includes Teams, business email, 1 TB of storage per user and the web and mobile Office apps. Microsoft raised Business Basic from $6.00 to $7.00 on July 1, 2026.
| Plan | Per user / month (billed yearly) | Per user / month (billed monthly) | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slack Pro | $7.25 | $8.75 | No 90-day history or 10-app limit, group huddles |
| Slack Business+ | $15.00 | $18.00 | Adds SAML SSO and data exports for all messages |
| Teams Essentials | $4.00 | Not offered | Teams only, 10 GB storage per user |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | $7.00 | $8.40 | Teams plus email, 1 TB storage, web Office apps |
| Microsoft 365 Business Standard | $14.00 | $16.80 | Adds desktop Office apps |
How much does each cost for 10 and 20 people?
These are list prices, billed yearly, October 2026, before tax. The Microsoft 365 rows are shown so you can see the full bundle cost, not just the Teams part.
| Plan | 10 people / month | 10 people / year | 20 people / month | 20 people / year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slack Pro | $72.50 | $870 | $145 | $1,740 |
| Slack Business+ | $150 | $1,800 | $300 | $3,600 |
| Teams Essentials | $40 | $480 | $80 | $960 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic (includes Teams) | $70 | $840 | $140 | $1,680 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Standard (includes Teams) | $140 | $1,680 | $280 | $3,360 |
On monthly billing, Slack Pro rises to $87.50 a month for 10 people ($1,050 a year) and $175 a month for 20 ($2,100 a year). Teams Essentials has no monthly option.
The real question is what you pay on top of the tools you already have. If you're on Microsoft 365, Teams adds $0, and Slack Pro adds $870 to $1,740 a year for 10 to 20 people. If you're on Google Workspace, Google Chat is already included, so both Slack and Teams are extra spend.
What do the free plans include?
Slack's free plan keeps 90 days of message history, allows up to 10 app integrations and limits huddles to one-to-one calls, per Slack's plan comparison.
Microsoft offers a free version of Teams, but it is aimed at personal use. For a business, the cheapest real option is Teams Essentials, which allows meetings of up to 300 people for up to 30 hours each, with 10 GB of cloud storage per user, per Microsoft's Teams Essentials page.
Where does Slack justify the higher price?
Slack charges more because it is a standalone product, and it has to win on use rather than bundling. On Pro, Slack removes the free plan's 90-day history window and 10-app limit, and opens group huddles. Business+ adds data exports for all messages and SAML-based single sign-on.
Teams that run many integrations, work with outside companies in shared channels, or have built workflows in Slack may find that switching costs more than the subscription gap. For 10 people the gap between Slack Pro and Teams Essentials is $390 a year, so weigh it against the time a move would take.
Which should a small team choose?
| Your situation | Better pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Already on Microsoft 365 Business Basic or higher | Teams | It is already paid for |
| On Google Workspace, want the cheapest add-on | Google Chat, then Teams Essentials | Chat is included; Essentials is $4 a seat |
| Heavy use of integrations and shared channels | Slack Pro | No app limit, and it is built around channels |
| Need SAML SSO and full message exports on Slack | Slack Business+ | Both are listed on that plan |
| Many part-time or seasonal staff | Slack | It credits inactive seats automatically |
| Team mostly on calls, light chat | Teams Essentials | 300-person, 30-hour meetings for $4 a seat |
If your team already pays for Microsoft 365 and also pays for Slack, that overlap is worth a hard look. Our SaaS stack cost guide shows where this kind of double spend usually hides.
When one system makes more sense
Some teams pay for chat on top of separate tools for tasks, docs and a CRM, and people still copy updates between them. If chat is one of four or five subscriptions doing overlapping jobs, the SaaS cost calculator shows what the whole stack costs per person.
FitMySaaS builds teams of 10 to 40 one system with only the features they use, and Slack and Teams are the right answer for many teams that only need chat. Our Slack alternatives page compares the other options honestly.
Questions
Is Microsoft Teams free with Microsoft 365?
Yes. Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard and Premium in the US include Teams. Microsoft also sells versions without Teams, with Business Basic at $5.40 a user per month billed yearly, so check which version is on your invoice.
Is Slack cheaper than Teams for a small team?
No. At list price, Slack Pro is $7.25 a user per month and Teams Essentials is $4.00, both billed yearly. Slack can still end up close if many of your members are inactive, because Slack only bills active members.
Can you use Slack and Teams together?
Many companies do, often because a client or partner uses the other one. It means paying twice for chat, so it only makes sense when the outside collaboration requires it.
Does Slack charge for inactive users?
No. Under its fair billing policy, Slack counts a member as active if they used Slack in the last 28 days. You get a prorated credit for paid seats that go inactive, and new members are billed prorated for the rest of the period.