Best remote communication tools for virtual teams

Remote work is here to stay, and with it comes the increasing need for reliable and efficient remote communication tools. When your team is scattered across different cities—or even continents—keeping everyone connected can feel challenging. The good news? Today’s virtual team communication tools make collaboration easier than ever, regardless of location.

From video conferencing to task management to remote work productivity tracking, let’s explore some of the best remote communication software available today. We’ll discuss their features, pros, cons, and practical tips for getting the most out of these platforms.

Looking for project management tools, whiteboards, and other teamwork apps? See our guide to the best collaboration tools for remote teams.

The best remote communication tools at a glance

For most remote teams, the core communication stack is one chat app plus one video tool: Slack or Teams for quick, day-to-day messaging, and Zoom or Google Meet for meetings. According to our study, Teams and Slack were the sixth and ninth most used productive apps by total time tracked in DeskTime, which proves that instant messaging is becoming one of the main ways how colleagues keep in touch.

When it comes to virtual meetings, Teams is one of the market leaders because it combines both chat and video calls, and is easy to adopt if you already use the Microsoft ecosystem. Google Meet is also a popular choice as a part of Google Workspace

An unexpected contender is Discord—while it was originally made for gaming communities, it has become a budget-friendly option for startups and smaller organizations due to its price, slick UI, and many chat and video features. For teams that work across different time zones, an async tool like Loom (where you record a quick video instead of scheduling a call) could be a contender. Here’s how the main options compare.

Tool	Type	Best for	Free plan	Starting paid price
Zoom	Video	Reliable meetings and webinars	Yes (40-min cap)	~$13.33/user/mo
Slack	Team chat	Channel-based messaging hub	Yes	$7.25/user/mo
Microsoft Teams	Chat, video	Companies that use Microsoft 365	Yes	$4/user/mo (Essentials)
Google Meet	Video	Companies that use Google Workspace	Yes	~$7/user/mo
Discord	Voice, video, chat	Casual, community-style teams	Yes	$2.99/mo (Nitro Basic)
Gather	Virtual office	Playful, interactive social environment	No (trial only)	~$12/user/mo
Kunospace	Virtual office	Social presence and team culture	Yes	$16/user/mo (Business)
Loom	Async video	Recorded updates across time zones	Yes	~$15/creator/mo

Remote communication tools for maximizing team productivity

1. Zoom

When it comes to remote communication tools, Zoom is practically a household name. This user-friendly platform is a favorite for virtual meetings, offering reliable videoconferencing features for everything from one-on-ones to large webinars.

Features:

• Videoconferencing with chat
• Screen-sharing for presentations or demos
• Recording options to save and share meetings

Best for: Teams that need a versatile platform for virtual meetings and conferences.

Pros: Breakout rooms for smaller discussions, polls, custom meeting links, and excellent scalability for larger events.

Cons: Some users report occasional glitches during recordings or video/audio quality issues. Frequent unexpected software updates just before your meeting starts can feel stressful.

Cost: Free for basic use; Pro around $13.33/user/mo (annual) or $16.99 monthly, Business around $18.33/user/mo (annual) or $21.99 monthly.

2. Slack

Slack has redefined team communication, offering a dynamic and highly organized way to stay connected. With dedicated channels for projects, direct messaging, and seamless integrations with other remote communication software, it’s an essential tool for virtual teams.

Features:

• Channels for group discussions
• Direct messaging and file-sharing capabilities
• Integrations with tools like Google Drive and DeskTime

Best for: Teams that thrive on quick communication and need a central hub for collaboration.

Pros: Intuitive interface, robust integrations, and customization options for notifications to reduce noise.

Cons: Without clear guidelines, channels can become cluttered.

Cost: Free plan for one workspace; $7.25–$12.50 per user/month for premium features.

3. Microsoft Teams

For teams already using Microsoft 365, Teams is a no-brainer. This platform seamlessly combines chat, video calls, and file-sharing, integrating perfectly with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint to boost productivity.

Features:

• Collaboration with Microsoft 365 tools
• Secure shared workspaces for tasks and files
• Group video meetings

Best for: Teams deeply invested in the Microsoft ecosystem.

Pros: Everything – calls, meetings, chats, calendar, and file sharing – is housed in one app, reducing the need for multiple tools.

Cons: New users might find the interface a bit overwhelming.

Cost: Free for basic features; $4 per user/month for standalone plans, or $7/user/month for Microsoft 365 Business Basic (also includes cloud storage, Office web apps, and other components).

4. Google Meet

Google Meet is the video call component of the Google Workspace bundle, which offers a comprehensive suite of tools tailored for remote work. From Gmail to Google Docs and Google Drive, everything is synced in the cloud, making collaboration simple and accessible.

Features:

• Cloud-based apps for email, file sharing, and video calls
• Real-time collaboration on documents and spreadsheets
• Direct integration with Google Calendar events and Gemini

Best for: Teams working across time zones who need simplicity, flexibility, and real-time collaboration.

Pros: Works across devices, easy to use, and ideal for asynchronous workflows.

Cons: Advanced users may find some features too basic.

Cost: Free (limited meeting lengths and participant counts), Workspace starting from $7–$22 per user/month.

5. Gather

Gather brings a playful twist to virtual team communication tools. It offers a virtual office experience where team members can move around as avatars, engage in proximity-based chats, and collaborate interactively.

Features:

• Customizable virtual spaces
• Interactive tools like whiteboards and shared screens
• Proximity-based audio for organic conversations

Best for: Teams looking to enhance collaboration with a space designed for informal camaraderie in a unique and engaging way.

Pros: Creates a fun and interactive environment for virtual work, making team bonding way easier.

Cons: May feel gimmicky to teams used to more traditional or corporate remote team communication tools. There’s no longer a free plan, which makes it a harder sell for small teams.

Cost: No free plan as of September 2025 (30-day trial only); paid plans from about $12/user/month billed annually.

6. Kumospace

Kumospace brings the same playful, walk-around energy that made virtual offices popular, but in a more polished, business-ready package. Team members join as avatars in a customizable space, and spatial audio means conversations start naturally as people move closer together—a nice antidote to back-to-back scheduled calls and remote isolation.

Features:

• Customizable virtual offices with rooms and branding
• Spatial audio for proximity-based conversations
• Virtual event hosting for all-hands and social gatherings

Best for: Remote teams that still want to have a social experience and a stronger sense of company culture, plus a space for virtual events.

Pros: Recreates in-person interaction better than a standard video grid, works across desktop and mobile, and keeps a free plan for smaller teams.

Cons: The spatial format takes some getting used to, and it’s more about presence and culture than structured, task-focused communication.

Cost: Free for groups under 30; Business $16/user/month; Enterprise with custom pricing.

7. Discord

Originally built for gamers, Discord has found its place among communication tools for remote workers. Its combination of voice, video, and text channels allows for structured yet informal communication, making it a cost-effective choice for both creative and technical teams. Another use for Discord is to build communities—we have seen brands create servers where they can directly interact with their customers, fans, creators, and partners.

Features:

• Voice, video, and text chat
• Screen-sharing and live-streaming
• Custom roles and permissions for team members

Best for: Small businesses, organizations, .

Pros: Free to use, highly customizable, and packed with features like bots for automation.

Cons: The gamer-centric branding might not appeal to every team, and lacks the compliance, admin controls, and customer support usually expected from an enterprise platform.

Cost: Free (max. 720p video call resolution, 10MB file size limit). Servers can be “boosted” with Nitro subscription to unlock additional features for all members like higher video call resolution and file size limits.

8. Loom

Loom is a screen- and video-messaging tool that’s become a staple for async communication. Instead of scheduling a call, you record a quick walk-through — a demo, a piece of feedback, an update — and teammates watch it on their own time. That makes it especially valuable for teams spread across time zones, where a recorded video often beats another live meeting. (Loom is now part of Atlassian, the maker of Jira and Confluence.)

Features / notes:

• Instant shareable links
• Time-stamped comments and reactions
• Automatic transcripts

Best for: Async updates, feedback, and walk-throughs for teams across time zones.

Pros: Cuts down on live meetings; easy to record and share; searchable transcripts.

Cons: Not built for real-time conversation—it complements a chat or video tool rather than replacing one.

Cost: Free for individuals (limited videos); Business around $15/creator/month; Enterprise custom.

Tips for using remote communication tools effectively

The best remote work communication tools are only as efficient as their users. Here are three essential tips to ensure these tools will help your team thrive:

Keep it simple

Avoid overwhelming your team with too many virtual team communication tools. Stick to a few versatile options that meet your needs and streamline collaboration. To pick your unique set of remote work communication tools, audit your existing communication processes and identify key areas of friction and which of the existing tools are used most productively. 

Then, evaluate which software will tackle your main challenges and will allow to build on what is already working. For example, if your team is used to quick chats and can’t be bothered with long emails or meetings, Slack may be your go-to. However, if you rely heavily on video calls and hybrid meetings, Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams may be your best choices. 

Set clear guidelines

Define specific use cases for each platform. For example, use Slack for quick updates (with clearly defined channels for specific topics), Zoom for meetings, and send emails for detailed long-form communication that is more formal than chat.

Make sure to set internal communication guidelines for each remote work software, like which issues should be discussed in which channel, and how exactly to write a concise and structured idea proposal or bug report.

Measure their impact

It’s one thing to adopt a platform that everyone else uses “because you’re supposed to”. However, each organization works differently and your team may have a different style of communication. Maybe, after you invest in a robust video call platform, it turns out that most people prefer chatting to each other in Slack instead of talking face-to-face. Or maybe you notice that there are so many video calls that they impact your team’s productivity.

One way to measure employee productivity trends and software adoption is with an automatic time tracker like DeskTime. It will show the total usage of each app or website for the entire company or per each team or employee, which will reveal if the communication tools are being adopted and are they worth the investment.

Furthermore, it will give you detailed insights about the work day—for example, if you notice that a software developer spends more time in Zoom meetings than in Visual Studio, maybe it would be more efficient to simply send an email rather than organizing a meeting for each decision.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best free communication tools for remote teams?

Several strong options have free plans. Slack (free for one workspace with 90-day history), Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Discord all let small remote teams chat and meet at no cost, and Zoom’s free tier covers 40-minute group calls. Free plans usually cap history, meeting length, or participants, so they’re a good way to test a tool before you pay.

Slack vs Microsoft Teams — which is better for remote teams?

Both are very popular choices; the right pick usually comes down to what software you already have. Slack is the more flexible, integration-friendly messaging hub and is popular with startups and tech teams. Microsoft Teams bundles chat, video, and Office file collaboration in one app, so it’s the natural choice for teams already on Microsoft 365. If you live in Google Workspace instead, video calls are covered by Google Meet. Many startups and SMBs use the very cost-effective pairing of Slack (instant messaging for personal chats and team or project channels) plus Google Workspace (video calls, calendar, email, documents, cloud storage, Gemini).

What are the best tools for async communication across time zones?

For teams spread across time zones, async tools reduce the need for everyone to be online at once. A recorded-video tool like Loom lets you send a walk-through instead of scheduling a call, Slack keeps discussion searchable for whoever logs on next, and Google Workspace supports real-time and async document collaboration. The goal is to make information available without requiring a live meeting.

How many communication tools does a remote team need?

Usually, one team-chat app and one video tool, plus whatever your company already uses for email and documents. If you have too many tools that overlap in their functionality, team members may get confused about what types of conversations are supposed to go where. Start with the essentials, set clear guidelines for what goes where, and add a tool only when there’s a clear gap.

What are the best communication tools for small teams?

Small teams can get a long way on free and low-cost plans: Slack or Discord for chat, Zoom or Google Meet for calls, and Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 for email and documents. Pick tools that integrate with each other and won’t overwhelm a small group, and lean on free tiers until you genuinely outgrow them.

What are some good communication tools for remote teams besides Slack?

Plenty. Microsoft Teams is the closest all-in-one alternative, bundling chat, video, and Office file collaboration; Google Workspace covers chat, video, and email if you already live in Gmail; and Discord is a strong budget option with excellent voice channels. For meetings, Zoom and Google Meet lead, and for recorded, async updates, Loom is the go-to. The best fit depends on your existing stack and whether you mainly need real-time chat, video, or both.

Choose your remote communication tools well and see your team thrive

Remote work doesn’t have to mean disconnected teams. By leveraging the right remote team communication tools—whether it’s Slack, Zoom, or Teams—you can create a collaborative environment where productivity and team spirit thrive. Try a mix of these communication tools for virtual teams to see what works best for your team’s needs. And once your communication stack is set, round it out with the right collaboration tools for remote teams.

Article written by

Zane Skuja

Zane is a freelance writer with an interest in productivity and the modern workplace.