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Which video conferencing vendor is cheapest at 25 seats on annual billing?

Webex Meet and GoToMeeting Professional tie at $3,600 a year: 25 seats times $12.00 per seat per month times 12 months. Zoom Pro is $4,248 a year, $648 more. At the mid tier, GoToMeeting Business is $4,800 a year, Zoom Business is $5,499, and Webex Suite is $6,750.

Why does the billing unit matter more than the per-seat price?

Zoom charges per licensed user, Webex per host licence, and GoToMeeting per organizer. A 25-person company where 5 people host pays $4,248 a year for Zoom Pro but $720 a year for GoToMeeting Professional or Webex Meet — a $3,528 difference that comes from the licensing model, not the price list.

Does GoToMeeting have a free plan?

No. GoToMeeting has no free plan; only a free trial that needs no payment information. Zoom Basic and Webex Free both cost $0, with meetings capped at 40 minutes and 100 participants.

Which tier carries SSO and a HIPAA BAA?

GoToMeeting lists SSO and HIPAA compliance on all three tiers, including Professional at $12. Zoom lists single sign-on via SAML 2.0 on Business and Enterprise. Neither Zoom nor Webex assigns a HIPAA BAA to a tier on its pricing page, so a healthcare team must get the BAA in writing from either of them.

What does ZoomMate cost, and how much does it add?

ZoomMate costs $20 per user per month on corroborated-secondary pricing; the Zoom pricing page shows no ZoomMate price. At 25 seats it adds 25 times $20.00 times 12, which is $6,000 a year, on top of Zoom Pro at $4,248 a year, for a combined $10,248 a year.

Do any of the three vendors publish a transcription accuracy percentage?

No. None of the three publishes a headline transcription accuracy percentage on its pricing page. All three bundle AI summaries and transcription on paid tiers, so the honest tiebreaker is a pilot: record one 60-minute call on the trial, check the transcript, and hand-count errors in a 5-minute sample.

Software Reviews • 12 min read

Zoom vs Webex vs GoToMeeting: Video Conferencing Pricing, Caps and the 5/25/100-Seat Playbook

Zoom charges per licensed user, Webex per host licence, and GoToMeeting per organizer — and that one difference decides the bill more than any headline price. This playbook prices all three from their own pricing pages, works the 5, 25 and 100-seat totals, and names the cap that will bite first.

By Enow A. Jovial • Published 2026-11-14

Zoom, Cisco Webex, and GoToMeeting sell the same meeting — video, screen sharing, recording, captions — but they do not sell it the same way. Zoom charges per licensed user, Webex per host licence, GoToMeeting per organizer. That one difference decides the bill more than any headline price: a 25-person team where five people host pays for five licences on Webex and GoToMeeting, and for 25 on Zoom. Entry paid rates look close — $12.00 to $18.33 per seat per month on annual billing — yet the worked totals at 25 seats run from $3,600 to $6,750 a year. Every price below was read from the vendor's own pricing page on 14 November 2026, except the two Webex annual rates, labelled corroborated-secondary.

On annual billing, the entry paid tier costs $14.16 per user per month at Zoom Pro, $12.00 per host at Webex Meet, and $12.00 per organizer at GoToMeeting Professional. At 25 seats the annual totals are $4,248 for Zoom Pro and $3,600 each for Webex Meet and GoToMeeting Professional. The gap that matters is not the $2.16 per seat — it is the billing unit.

The billing unit is the whole decision

Zoom prices per licensed user: every person who needs a paid account holds a licence. Webex prices per host licence and GoToMeeting per organizer: the host holds the licence, and participants need no account. A company of 100 people where 10 run meetings buys 100 Zoom licences, 10 Webex host licences, or 10 GoToMeeting organizer licences.

Zoom Workplace: priced per user, AI included

Basic is free: 40-minute meetings, 100 participants, local recording, and 3 AI meeting summaries a month. Pro costs $16.99 per user per month billed monthly, or $14.16 billed annually: meetings up to 30 hours, 100 participants, unlimited meeting summaries and in-meeting questions, and local and 10 GB cloud recording per licence. Business costs $21.99 billed monthly, or $18.33 billed annually: 300 participants, single sign-on via SAML 2.0, managed domains, unlimited whiteboards and booking pages, and archival and data loss prevention APIs. Enterprise is a custom quote: 500+ participants, unlimited cloud recording, 500-attendee webinars, a full-featured PBX, and translated captions.

Labelled reproduction of the Zoom Workplace pricing tiers

Zoom's AI is bundled on paid plans — unlimited summaries, questions, and AI queries on Pro and Business. ZoomMate costs $20 per user per month on corroborated-secondary pricing; Zoom's own page shows no ZoomMate price. Recording caps at 10 GB per licence, not a pooled bucket. Support is live chat on Pro and Business; SSO arrives only at Business.

Webex: priced per host, calling sold separately

Free costs $0: unlimited meetings up to 40 minutes, up to 100 attendees, and local recording. Meet costs $14.50 per user per month as displayed, or $12.00 billed annually (corroborated-secondary): meetings up to 24 hours, up to 200 attendees, and the AI Assistant included. Suite, which is Meet plus Call, costs $25.00 per user per month as displayed, or $22.50 billed annually on the same basis. Enterprise is a custom quote: up to 1,000 attendees, FedRAMP security, and unlimited cloud recording.

Labelled reproduction of the Webex pricing tiers

Webex is the only vendor here that separates meetings from calling: a team that only meets buys Meet; a team that also needs a business phone number buys Suite, or the calling-only Call tier at $17 per user per month. Meet at $12.00 looks cheaper than Zoom Pro at $14.16 — until the team needs PSTN calling and pays the Suite rate of $22.50 instead. The AI Assistant is included in the paid plans.

GoToMeeting: priced per organizer, no free plan

Professional costs $12 per organizer per month billed annually ($144 a year): 150 participants. Business costs $16 ($192 a year): 250 participants. Enterprise is a custom quote: up to 250 participants and volume discounts. Meetings over 250 participants belong to GoTo Webinar, priced separately. There is no free plan; the free trial needs no payment information.

Labelled reproduction of the GoToMeeting pricing tiers

Both paid tiers include unlimited meetings with no time limit, unlimited cloud recording, an AI meeting summary, transcription, breakout rooms, closed captioning, and co-organizers. SSO, HIPAA compliance, SOC 2 certified data centres, and AES-256 encryption appear on all three tiers, including Professional at $12. Wrinkle: the vendor's FAQ ties free transcripts to Business, while the comparison table shows transcription on both tiers — confirm in writing before buying Professional for transcription. Add-ons: toll-free numbers (unpublished), Call Me at $5 per organizer per month, GoToWebinar Lite at $20 per month.

Two figures here are corroborated-secondary, not vendor-read: Webex Meet at $12.00 and Webex Suite at $22.50 per user per month on annual billing — the Webex page as rendered on 14 November 2026 shows only the $14.50 and $25.00 monthly figures. The annual figures come from an independent pricing guide checked 4 November 2026. The ZoomMate $20 add-on and the GoToMeeting add-on prices are corroborated-secondary on the same basis.

The decision table

Factor	Zoom Workplace	Cisco Webex	GoToMeeting	Authority
Billing unit	Per licensed user	Per host licence	Per organizer	Vendor pages
Entry price, annual	Pro $14.16 / user / month	Meet $12.00 / user / month*	Professional $12.00 / organizer / month	Vendor pages; *corroborated-secondary
Mid price, annual	Business $18.33 / user / month	Suite $22.50 / user / month*	Business $16.00 / organizer / month	Vendor pages; *corroborated-secondary
Participant cap, entry / mid	100 / 300	200 / 200	150 / 250	Vendor pages
AI summary, transcription	Unlimited on Pro	AI Assistant included	Both paid tiers	Vendor pages
HIPAA	Confirm BAA tier in writing	Confirm BAA tier in writing	All three tiers	Vendor pages

The reproducible math: 5, 25, and 100 seats

Every total below is recomputed from the list price.

\text{Monthly cost} = \text{Seats} \times \text{Price per seat per month}

\text{Annual cost} = \text{Seats} \times \text{Price per seat per month} \times 12

\text{Annual saving} = \text{Seats} \times (\text{Monthly price} - \text{Annual price}) \times 12

\text{Cost per participant slot} = \frac{\text{Price per seat per month}}{\text{Participant cap}}

— Scenario: 5 seats, annual billing. Zoom Pro 5 × $14.16 = $70.80 / month, $849.60 / year; Zoom Business 5 × $18.33 = $91.65 / month, $1,099.80 / year; Webex Meet 5 × $12.00 = $60.00 / month, $720.00 / year; Webex Suite 5 × $22.50 = $112.50 / month, $1,350.00 / year; GoToMeeting Professional 5 × $12.00 = $60.00 / month, $720.00 / year; GoToMeeting Business 5 × $16.00 = $80.00 / month, $960.00 / year.

— Scenario: 25 seats, annual billing. Zoom Pro 25 × $14.16 = $354.00 / month, $4,248.00 / year; Zoom Business 25 × $18.33 = $458.25 / month, $5,499.00 / year; Webex Meet 25 × $12.00 = $300.00 / month, $3,600.00 / year; Webex Suite 25 × $22.50 = $562.50 / month, $6,750.00 / year; GoToMeeting Professional 25 × $12.00 = $300.00 / month, $3,600.00 / year; GoToMeeting Business 25 × $16.00 = $400.00 / month, $4,800.00 / year.

— Scenario: 100 seats, annual billing. Zoom Pro 100 × $14.16 = $1,416.00 / month, $16,992.00 / year; Zoom Business 100 × $18.33 = $1,833.00 / month, $21,996.00 / year; Webex Meet 100 × $12.00 = $1,200.00 / month, $14,400.00 / year; Webex Suite 100 × $22.50 = $2,250.00 / month, $27,000.00 / year; GoToMeeting Professional 100 × $12.00 = $1,200.00 / month, $14,400.00 / year; GoToMeeting Business 100 × $16.00 = $1,600.00 / month, $19,200.00 / year.

At 25 seats, GoToMeeting Business is $699 a year cheaper than Zoom Business and $1,950 cheaper than Webex Suite — but not like for like: Webex Suite includes business calling the other two do not.

Labelled reproduction of the worked 5, 25 and 100-seat cost table

— Scenario: 25 seats, monthly billing. Zoom Pro 25 × $16.99 = $424.75 / month, $5,097.00 / year. Zoom Business 25 × $21.99 = $549.75 / month, $6,597.00 / year. Webex Meet 25 × $14.50 = $362.50 / month, $4,350.00 / year. Webex Suite 25 × $25.00 = $625.00 / month, $7,500.00 / year. GoToMeeting publishes no monthly-billed price, so it is excluded here rather than estimated.

— Scenario: cost per participant slot per month, annual price divided by the participant cap. Zoom Pro: $14.16 ÷ 100 = $0.1416. Zoom Business: $18.33 ÷ 300 = $0.0611. Webex Meet: $12.00 ÷ 200 = $0.0600. Webex Suite: $22.50 ÷ 200 = $0.1125. GoToMeeting Professional: $12.00 ÷ 150 = $0.0800. GoToMeeting Business: $16.00 ÷ 250 = $0.0640. Cheapest per slot is Webex Meet at $0.0600, then Zoom Business at $0.0611.

One paid AI extra: ZoomMate at $20 per user per month on corroborated-secondary pricing — 25 seats add 25 × $20.00 × 12 = $6,000.00 a year to Zoom Pro's $4,248.00, for a combined $10,248.00 a year; at 100 seats the add-on alone is $24,000.00 a year.

The host-count math changes the answer

The totals above assume every seat is a licence. On Webex and GoToMeeting only hosts hold licences. — Scenario: a 25-person company where 5 people host. Zoom Pro, per user: 25 × $14.16 = $354.00 / month, $4,248.00 / year. GoToMeeting Professional, per organizer: 5 × $12.00 = $60.00 / month, $720.00 / year. Webex Meet, per host licence: 5 × $12.00 = $60.00 / month, $720.00 / year. The difference is $4,248.00 − $720.00 = $3,528.00 a year — the per-host model costs 83% less for this team. — Scenario: a 100-person company with 10 hosts. Zoom Pro: 100 × $14.16 × 12 = $16,992.00 / year. GoToMeeting Professional: 10 × $12.00 × 12 = $1,440.00 / year. The difference is $15,552.00 a year. That gap is the licensing model. The counterweight: on Zoom every licensed user can host and record; on the per-host models, unlicensed staff join as guests and depend on a host.

Caps, failure modes, and the lock-in question

The failure mode is buying on the per-seat price and discovering the licensing model mid-quarter: a team that buys 25 Zoom Pro licences, then learns only 5 people host, has spent $3,528 a year on licences nobody needed — and the loss is locked in for the annual term, because annual billing is paid upfront. The reverse failure is worse: a team that buys 5 GoToMeeting organizer licences, then discovers every account manager needs to host, finds its hosts queuing while clients wait. The lock-in is the archive: months of recordings and transcripts live inside one vendor's system, and none of the three prices an export-and-migrate path. Count hosts before buying, and export one recording and one transcript from the trial before the archive grows.

Integrations, security, and compliance

SSO via SAML 2.0 sits on Zoom Business and Enterprise, on all three GoToMeeting tiers, and on Webex at a tier the vendor does not state on the pricing page — confirm it in writing before signing. SCIM provisioning is not stated on any of the three pricing pages — ask for it by name. HIPAA is uneven too: GoToMeeting lists it on all three tiers, while Zoom and Webex do not assign a BAA to a tier on their pricing pages — a healthcare team must get it in writing. GDPR controls appear on every Zoom tier. All three connect to the CRM stack — Salesforce and HubSpot — and all three expose an API, with Zoom publishing REST API rate limits by tier. Support differs too: Zoom gives live chat on Pro and Business and phone support only above $200 a month; GoToMeeting gives 24/7 customer care on both paid tiers; Webex gives basic support on Free and advanced support on paid plans. A named SLA with penalties is an Enterprise negotiation on all three.

The buying protocol

Count hosts before counting dollars. That number, not headcount, is the licence count on Webex and GoToMeeting.
Run the 5, 25, and 100-seat arithmetic above on your own host count, annual and monthly.
Check the participant cap against the largest real meeting. If the all-hands is 150 people, Zoom Pro at 100 is disqualified regardless of price.
Confirm the compliance rung in writing, and test recording on the trial. SSO, SCIM, and the HIPAA BAA: GoToMeeting lists them on every tier; Zoom lists SSO on Business; Webex does not state the tier. Record one 60-minute call, check the transcript, and export it — 10 GB per licence on Zoom, unlimited on GoToMeeting.

Who should not buy which

A team whose largest meeting exceeds 100 people should not buy Zoom Pro — the fix is Business at $18.33, not a setting. A team that needs a business phone number should not buy Webex Meet — the calling tier is Suite at $22.50. A team that needs a free tier should not buy GoToMeeting — there is none. A team that needs SSO or a HIPAA BAA at a published price should not choose Zoom Pro or Webex Meet on the pricing page alone.

Related reading: Zoom vs Google Meet vs Microsoft Teams pricing, Calendly vs Cal.com vs SavvyCal scheduling pricing, and Loom vs Vidyard vs Wistia video messaging pricing. Try the Pricing Calculator before committing to a seat count.

Founder & CEO Insight — Enow A. Jovial

"The vendors want you to compare the per-seat price. That is the wrong comparison. Compare the billing unit first — per user, per host, per organizer — because a team with five hosts and twenty-five people pays five licences on two of these vendors and twenty-five on the third. I have watched teams buy the cheapest seat and pay the real price in the third month. Count your hosts, and never let a vendor hold your company's memory without an exit plan."

— Enow A. Jovial, Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Execution checklist

[x] Count hosts, not headcount, before choosing a vendor.
[x] Price 5, 25, and 100 seats on annual billing.
[x] Check the participant cap against the largest real meeting.
[x] Confirm SSO, SCIM, and the HIPAA BAA tier in writing before signing.
[x] Record one 60-minute call on the trial; export the recording and transcript.
[x] Add ZoomMate at $20 per user per month to the Zoom total if wanted.

Start the pilot on the vendor with the cheapest host-count total: for a team with few hosts, five GoToMeeting Professional licences at $60 a month buy unlimited recording and transcription while the team learns its real volume.