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Google Chat

Communication tool for businesses and non-profits

Last updated: March 2025

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Table of Contents

Google Chat - 2025 Pricing, Features, Reviews & Alternatives

What is Google Chat?

Google Chat is a communication software that helps businesses of all sizes and non-profit organizations collaborate on projects and tasks. It lets users set up virtual chat rooms and chat threads, track task progress, and create follow-up tasks on a centralized platform.

Google Chat enables professionals to automatically receive notifications when users share files and post comments on Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides. Teams can connect the system with Google Calendar to schedule meetings based on staff members’ availability. It also utilizes single sign-on and two-factor authentication methodologies to provide secure user experience whilst maintaining compliance with GDPR, HIPAA, ISO, and AICPA regulations and guidelines.

Google Chat comes with an API, which enables businesses to integrate the system with GSuite applications and several third-party solutions. It provides a search functionality, which allows staff members to filter through previous conversations and shared files.

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Google Chat’s pros and cons based on 2,366 verified reviews

To identify what users like and dislike about Google Chat, our data scientists apply advanced modeling techniques to our proprietary reviews data. We've sorted the resulting list of pros and cons based on the percentage of users who expressed positive sentiment toward the given topic in their reviews.

To determine these pros and cons insights, we analyzed responses from 2,366 verified reviews

Efficient colleague communication

96% of reviewers feel positive about colleague communication. Reviewers appreciate the ability to quickly see if a colleague is available and send instant messages, making communication seamless. They find it useful for quick questions, feedback, and real-time collaboration without clogging up email inboxes. Users also value the integration with other Google services, which enhances their workflow.

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“G Chat allows you to quickly see if a co-worker is available, and instantly send them a quick message, making communication a breeze.”

Daniel Burkett

Graduate Assistant

“The Google Chat gives my coworkers and I the chance to "text" one another from our computers through Google and it saves a lot of time if needing an immediate answer.”

Tiffany White

3rd Key Manager

Effective student communication

95% of reviewers feel positive about student communication. Users say it helps maintain daily face-to-face contact with students, making distance learning more engaging. They find it beneficial for presenting content, interacting during lessons, and managing communication without sharing personal phone numbers. The tool is praised for its ease of use and effectiveness in educational settings.

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“Students were able to "meet" or hangout virtually, work on projects collaboratively, and made distance learning a little bit more fun when you can connect outside of school.”

Kenneth Lim

Teacher / Admin

“I like that I can present content to my students while in a Chat session and students can interact with what I'm presenting.”

Lauren Lukowski

Teacher

Integrated team meetings

93% of reviewers feel positive about team meetings. Reviewers appreciate the integration with Google Calendar, Drive, and Meet, which simplifies scheduling and conducting meetings. They find it useful for coordinating with team members, sharing files, and organizing conferences. Users also value the ability to create meeting rooms and the overall ease of use for virtual collaboration.

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“I use Chat for the Video Conferencing functionality. Because it is baked in with Google's Calendar Application, I can invite team-members to a video chat and a calendar event in one go.”

Greg Garnhart

Co-Founder and CTO

“This mean from Google chat, you are able to share files from G-Drive, schedule appointments from calendar, access contacts, set a video meeting with Google Meet or have one-on-one chats with colleagues and get feedback in real time. ”

Astridah Mulenga

Administrative Officer

Streamlined team communication

92% of reviewers feel positive about team communication. Reviewers indicate that it facilitates organized, reliable, and fast interactions among team members. They appreciate the integration with other Google Workspace tools, which supports real-time collaboration and efficient communication. Users also value the ability to create specific rooms for different topics and projects.

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“I like to have multiple options for communication and collaboration, and this tool is one of the ones that allows me to interact with teams in an organized, reliable and fast way, with any device.”

Arthur Graves

Senior Human Resources Assistant

“I find Google Chat's seamless integration with other Google Workspace tools, real-time collaboration features, and intuitive interface particularly beneficial for efficient communication and teamwork.”

Aaraj Akmal

Sales

Seamless client communication

92% of reviewers feel positive about client communication. Users find it useful for providing technical support and managing client interactions across different locations. They appreciate the real-time messaging, secure communication, and integration with other Google services. The tool is seen as a cost-effective solution for maintaining client relationships and collaborating remotely.

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“In the company where I work we have clients from different countries so communication is a key factor and this program allows me to provide technical support to clients despite the distance and schedule events, tests, in addition to satisfying their concerns.”

Stiffani Rodríguez Malaver

Consultor de Servicio y Soporte

“communication with your clients and suppliers becomes simple using Google Chat functionality and features such as Groups, Broadcast Messages, Status Updates, and so on, regardless of how many people are involved as long as they all have it in their phone.”

Aatif Aatif

SE Student

Frequent connection lag

68% of reviewers feel negative about connection lag. Users report issues with the app freezing, slow loading times, and messages failing to send. They find that internet connection quality significantly impacts performance, leading to delays and interruptions during communication. Reviewers mention that the web application can be slow and clunky, affecting overall usability.

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“The only thing that might be noted as a con or a down side is the way that the mobile App acts sometimes, as it does not load that easily from time to time and sometimes it opens, freezes and closes again so it has to be re-started in order for it to work smoothly.”

Edin Ušto

Guest Services

“They killed the Google Visit work area application, and the web application has a propensity for being slow and inconvenient.”

Emmanuel kipserem

IT support

Inconsistent notifications

60% of reviewers feel negative about notifications. Users find the notification system disruptive and confusing, with issues such as missed messages, delayed alerts, and duplicate notifications across devices. They also mention the lack of customization options and the difficulty in managing notifications effectively, which can interfere with their workflow.

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“As for now, the new version, lacks the ability to notify new messages as it wont run automatically in background, you need to execute it and leave it minimized to get notified when a new message comes in, this is a huge tumb down, as if you close the app then you will get disconnected....”

Miguel De La Garza Rodriguez

IT Manager

“There is little to no customization for notifications. When you get a desktop notification, you cannot click on it to take you to the app. ”

Ken Wildermuth

Ecommerce Business Analyst

Limited file sending capabilities

42% of reviewers feel negative about sending files. Users criticize the limitations on file size and the inability to send multiple files at once. They find it inconvenient to share images and documents, often experiencing slow uploads and timeouts. Reviewers also mention the lack of support for certain file formats and the absence of features like drag-and-drop for file sharing.

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“I can only sent and attach a maximum of 200MB file size, and need to switch to other file transfer software to sent a file that sized more than 200MB.”

Aminuddin Bakri

Information Technology Manager

“It is not possible to reply to individual messages in a group chat, it is not possible to upload more than one file at the same time (not even images).”

Joshua D Antonio

Web Designer

Inefficient chat search

36% of reviewers feel negative about chat search. Users find it difficult to locate past messages and photos due to the lack of a dedicated search feature within the app. They report that the search functionality is not intuitive and often fails to capture relevant keywords. Reviewers also mention that searching for specific conversations can be tedious and time-consuming.

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“The searching functionality is also baked into email search which makes it hard to find things that were in chat but not email without looking up specific search filters you wouldn't use elsewhere.”

Amine Boudalia

Senior Software Engineer

“I did not like that it can be hard to find messages and photos that you sent some time ago as there is no easy search bar to search for past messages.”

Kene Ochuba

Team Lead

Google Chat's key features

GetApp's analysis of 304 verified user reviews collected between July 2021 and November 2024 identified Google Chat's most critical features and how it performs according to users.

Real-Time Chat

4.7

Reviewers appreciate Google Chat's real-time chat feature for its instant communication, enhancing collaboration and productivity. They find it user-friendly and effective for quick decision-making and seamless teamwork. Users report the ability to send private or group messages, with notifications indicating when someone is typing. They also value the integration with Gmail for searchable conversations. Some mention occasional delays or lag, but overall, they find it valuable for maintaining timely communication. Of the 156 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of Real-Time Chat, 98% rated this feature as important or highly important.

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“Real-time chat enhances Google Chat by enabling instant communication, fostering collaboration, and increasing productivity. It allows users to exchange messages in real-time, facilitating quick decision-making and seamless teamwork.”

Aaraj Akmal

Sales

“We started using Google Chat as our main messaging platform at work. We can send real time message to anyone on the team and even send private messages or group messages”

Bryan John De Torres

Quality Assurance Supervisor

Mobile Access

4.6

Users report that Google Chat's mobile access is highly convenient, allowing them to stay connected and collaborate on-the-go. They appreciate that the mobile app is available on both Android and iOS devices, and that it syncs well with the desktop version. Reviewers indicate that mobile access helps them manage work from anywhere, receive timely notifications, and maintain productivity even when away from their desks. They find it essential for remote work and traveling. Of the 196 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of Mobile Access, 94% rated this feature as important or highly important.

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“Since this is for real time communications, the ability to use it seamlessly on mobile IOS or Android is crucial. You can even attend meetings through mobile.”

Iyer Amruthur

National Sales Manager

“I always have my phone with me, so the ability to chat and receive notifications when I am mobile is critical to ensure I receive important communications.”

Chris Corrente

Manager, Apps Development

Alerts/Notifications

4.5

Reviewers highlight the effectiveness of Google Chat's alerts and notifications in keeping them informed about new messages, mentions, and updates. They appreciate the ability to customize notifications for different channels or chats, ensuring they only receive relevant alerts. Users report that notifications are timely and help them respond quickly to important messages. Some mention the need for improved options to mute conversations more easily, but overall, they find the notification system reliable and helpful. Of the 150 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of Alerts/Notifications, 93% rated this feature as important or highly important.

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“It helps us to always updated whenever any messages and calls come through their alert and notifications features. It helps us always updated when any new activity happens.”

Vivek Yadav

DevOp Enginner

“Alerts and notifications work well. You can customize them based on channels or chats, ensuring you're notified only about relevant messages without being overwhelmed.”

Matteo Peluzzi

Graphic Designer

Single Sign On

4.6

Users appreciate Google Chat's Single Sign-On (SSO) for simplifying access and enhancing security. They find it convenient to log in with existing Google credentials, reducing password fatigue and streamlining the authentication process. Reviewers indicate that SSO saves time by allowing seamless switching between Google programs and maintaining a single login across devices. They also value the added layer of security provided by two-factor authentication. Of the 82 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of Single Sign On, 83% rated this feature as important or highly important.

See related user reviews

“Single Sign-On in Google Chat can be a powerful tool for organizations looking to improve productivity, simplify access to tools, and enhance security.”

Ouali Azedine

Freelancer

“I like that when you sign into google chat it signs you into all your google accounts. This saves time and makes it easy to switch between google programs. This is very helpful when working on a project that involves multiple google programs. ”

Laura Bergman

student

Search/Filter

4.3

Reviewers find Google Chat's search and filter capabilities valuable for quickly locating specific messages, files, or keywords within chat history. They appreciate the integration of Gmail-like search functions, allowing for refined searches by sender, date, or attachment. Users report that this capability enhances productivity by making it easier to reference past discussions and content. Some mention that the search function could be more robust, but overall, they find it helpful for managing large volumes of communication. Of the 100 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of Search/Filter, 82% rated this feature as important or highly important.

See related user reviews

“You can search for specific messages, files, or keywords within your chat history, helping you find and reference past discussions and content quickly.”

Alex Mungai

Software Engineer

“Google chat have implemented their gmail search or filter feature in this app also which will help us to search things by giving specific conditions such as "from" , "said in" , "attachment" ,"Has link" etc , which very much helpful and I haven't find such filter feature in any other chatting application.”

Ananthu Krishnan s

Senior Automation Engineer

File Sharing

4.4

Users report that Google Chat's file sharing feature streamlines collaboration by allowing easy exchange of documents, images, and other files within the chat interface. They appreciate the integration with Google Drive for seamless access to shared files. Reviewers indicate that file sharing supports various formats and enhances productivity by reducing the need for emails. Some find the process slightly cumbersome compared to other platforms, but overall, they value the convenience and efficiency it provides. Of the 116 Google Chat users who gave detailed accounts of their use of File Sharing, 82% rated this feature as important or highly important.

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“The file sharing feature on Google Chat is an incredibly useful tool that makes it easy to share files with team members. With this feature, you can quickly upload files, such as documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and images, and share them with individual team members or entire chat rooms.”

Tommy Dalen

Consultant

“Filing Sharing is an important feature of real chat so documents are be sent and seen immediately. This assists in reducing the large amount of unneeded email.”

Carolyn Stevenson

Faculty

All Google Chat features

Features rating:

4.3

(2.3K)

Calendar Sync

4.7

(77)

Collaboration Tools

4.4

(328)

Data Import/Export

4.3

(247)

Progress Tracking

4.5

(50)

Third-Party Integrations

4.2

(144)

API

4.4

(66)

Google Chat awards

Team Communication

83/100

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Google Chat integrations (66)

Integrations rated by users

We looked through 2,366 user reviews, to identify which products are mentioned as Google Chat integrations, and what is the users perception.

Google Calendar

Integration rating: 4.7 (17)

“Setting up meeting through Google chats is extremely helpful. One click meeting invite created & integration with Google calendar is a huge productivity gain and time saver. ”

“Google Calendar overall is superior to other calendar applications. And it's great that a Google Hangouts link could be generated immediately within a calendar invite. ”

“This integration allows for all the teammates to share a calendar to ensure we are on the same page and meet our deadlines. ”

“GMail and Google Calendar are used simultaneously to program reunions and comunicate betwen one person to another”

“Another very important integration to help schedule reminders for future events.”

“I use Google calendar to set reminders while checking emails & chat messages.”

naveen Reddy

Technical Manager

1/6

Google Meet

Integration rating: 4.6 (14)

“Being able to switch between the two (keep up in chat, clarify things over a quick call) has been integral to efficiency in projects I've used Chat on.”

“I cannot make direct calls to colleagues. I have to wait until they get into the google meet. Sometimes this is unpractical. ”

“To have videoconference, in this days it is very important, because pandemic.”

Rebekah Mullins

CMO

1/3

Google Docs

Integration rating: 4.8 (9)

“This integration is important because when suing google docs all the teammates can work in the same document at the same time. we can all see what the other teammates are adding to the document the moment they add it. We can also use google chat to communicate while we work on the google doc. ”

“We use these two products a lot in accordance with data entry and record keeping. It ties in well with chat as we can simply drag and drop the document!”

“Easy to use application or on my computer. Everything all connected which makes it simple and user friendly. ”

Laura Bergman

student

1/3

Gmail

Integration rating: 4.9 (26)

“Gives you a brief on what you missed while out of the office, aside from every other benefit that comes with Gmail.”

“Because I need my coaching clients to have a simple way to get to the sessions.”

David Hernandez

Customer Care Supervisor

1/2

Google Drive

Integration rating: 4.6 (14)

“We use these two products a lot in accordance with data entry and record keeping. It ties in well with chat as we can simply drag and drop the document!”

“We can all add our files to a shared google drive to have everything in one place where we can all access it. This makes for easy access. ”

Tyler Hall

Estimator

1/2

Integration rating: 5.0 (1)

“Emojis in whatsapp are revealing. Whatsapp is more widely spread and most commonly used”

Tarek Amin

Psychologist

Google Workspace

Integration rating: 4.9 (7)

Zoom Workplace

Integration rating: 4.0 (1)

NetSuite

Integration rating: 5.0 (1)

Windows 10

Integration rating: 5.0 (1)

Google Slides

Integration rating: 5.0 (1)

Google Keep

Integration rating: 5.0 (1)

Azure Active Directory

Integration rating: 4.0 (1)

Google Chat support options

Typical customers

Freelancers

Small businesses

Mid size businesses

Large enterprises

Platforms supported

Web

Android

iPhone/iPad

Support options

FAQs/Forum

Knowledge Base

Email/Help Desk

Google Chat reviews

Overall rating

4.5

2.3K

Positive reviews

Rating breakdown

Value for money
Ease of use
Features
Customer support
Likelihood to recommend8.53/10

Rating distribution

1.5K

623

174

Pros

“I like how it integrates seamlessly with other google products like google drive and google documents. I also feel like it’s a very stable product.”

Micah M.

Graphic Designer

“It's nice to have such convenient access to chat within Gmail but that's all the positive praise I can give it.”

Luke A.

Head of Client Services

“This is another fantastic tool provided by Google for the workplace. Internal coordination is a must for all businesses and Google Chat helps in that really effectively.”

Mayank K.

Assistant Manager - Digital Marketing

Cons

“The search engine for previous issues is bad. You cannot search for one person only (filters) the room system is a bit confusing with the various conversations created.”