If you’ve been using Slack’s free plan for your team’s communication, you may have already encountered some of its limitations. While Slack is known for being a popular tool to streamline team collaboration, the free version comes with certain restrictions that can impact how efficiently your team can operate, especially as it grows.

In this blog post, we’ll dive into the Slack free plan limits, explain how they might affect your team, and explore whether it’s time to consider alternative options if these restrictions start holding you back.

What Does Slack’s Free Plan Offer?

The Slack free plan offers access to core messaging features that can keep small teams connected. Here’s what’s included:

• Unlimited one-on-one and group messaging

• Up to 10 integrations with apps like Google Drive, Office 365, and others

• Searchable message history (with limits)

• File sharing, including documents, images, and videos

• Slack Connect to communicate with external organizations

• Two-factor authentication for extra security

These features are great for teams that need basic communication and collaboration tools. But as your team grows and the need for more robust functionality increases, the free plan’s limits can start to feel restrictive.

Slack Free Plan Limitations: What You Need to Know

While Slack’s free plan offers decent functionality for small teams or startups, it does come with several limitations that might affect your workflow over time. Let’s take a closer look at some of the key restrictions you’ll face:

1. 90-Day Message History

One of the biggest constraints of Slack’s free plan is the limit on message history. Slack only stores your team’s messages for 90 days, after which older messages are automatically deleted. For teams that rely on their messaging history to track decisions, reference past discussions, or retrieve shared files, this can be a major issue.

Imagine losing important project details or reference points just because they’re older than 90 days. For fast-moving teams, this limit can result in lost knowledge and missed context.

Is this a problem for your team? Think about how often you need to refer to old messages or files. If your team frequently searches for past decisions or important attachments, this could slow down your workflow significantly.

2. File Storage Limitations

Slack’s free plan includes file sharing, but there’s a catch—there’s a 5 GB storage limit for all files shared across your workspace. Once you hit that limit, you either need to delete old files or upgrade to a paid plan.

If your team shares documents, images, or other files regularly, you’ll likely run into this restriction sooner than later. This can be especially frustrating for teams working on content-heavy projects or those that rely on keeping a well-organized record of shared assets.

Does your team need more storage? If your team depends on frequent file sharing or long-term storage of documents, this limit can quickly become a hindrance. Consider whether you’re constantly managing file storage or if the 5 GB cap feels restrictive.

3. Limited Integrations

Slack’s ability to integrate with popular apps and tools like Google Drive, Trello, and Zoom is a huge draw for many teams. However, on the free plan, you’re limited to just 10 app integrations.

While 10 may sound like enough for some teams, it can become limiting as your business scales and needs more integrations to automate workflows, manage tasks, or pull data from various apps.

Is your team missing out on productivity? If you’re relying on more than 10 integrations to manage your team’s projects, files, and communication, you may find yourself constantly deciding which apps to keep connected.

4. No Group Video Calls with Screen Sharing

While Slack’s free plan supports one-on-one video calls, it doesn’t allow group video calls or screen sharing within video calls. This can be a big limitation for teams that collaborate remotely and need to brainstorm, present, or troubleshoot in group meetings.

If you’re used to conducting video meetings with multiple team members or want the flexibility of screen sharing, you’ll need to explore other tools or upgrade to Slack’s paid plan.

Are virtual meetings key to your workflow? If your team frequently relies on video calls and collaboration through screen sharing, this limitation might be a roadblock for efficient communication.

No Employee Profiles on the Free Plan

Another limitation of Slack’s free plan is the absence of employee profiles. Employee profiles provide a way to showcase individual roles, skills, and current projects, which helps teams collaborate more effectively, especially in larger or remote work environments.

Without this feature, it can be harder to find the right person for a task or understand everyone’s responsibilities within the team.While this feature is available on Slack’s Enterprise plan, it’s missing from the free version, which can limit transparency and make it harder to foster collaboration across departments.

Does your team need better visibility? If you rely on employee profiles to understand roles and responsibilities, this might be a significant drawback.

Should You Upgrade or Look for an Alternative?

If you find that Slack’s free plan limits are holding your team back, you have two main options: upgrading to a paid Slack plan or exploring alternative platforms that offer more features without the hefty price tag.

Slack Paid Plan: What You Get

Slack’s paid plans start at $8.75 per user per month and unlock the following:

• Unlimited message history so you can search through all your conversations

• 10 GB storage per user, instead of 5 GB for the whole workspace

• Unlimited app integrations for seamless workflows

• Group video calls with screen sharing

• Enhanced security and compliance features

For many small to mid-sized teams, however, the cost of upgrading may be too high, especially when there are alternatives that offer similar or more comprehensive features for less.

Alternatives to Slack’s Free Plan

If you’re finding Slack’s free plan limits too restrictive but aren’t ready to commit to their paid version, it might be time to consider some alternatives. There are several platforms that offer free plans with fewer limitations, making them a great fit for teams looking for robust features without a high price tag.

One such alternative is Pebb, a platform designed to bring real-time communication, collaboration, and engagement tools into one hub. Here’s why Pebb is worth considering:

• Unlimited message history: Never lose a conversation or important decision with unlimited access to past messages.

• Free plan with ample storage: Pebb’s free plan offers plenty of file storage, eliminating the headache of constantly managing limited storage space.

• More app integrations: Connect all the tools you need without restrictions.

• Affordable paid plan: Pebb’s paid plan starts at $3.50 per user per month, a fraction of Slack’s cost, making it a budget-friendly alternative.

Is Slack’s Free Plan Holding You Back?

Slack’s free plan can be a good starting point for teams, but its limits—particularly around message history, storage, and integrations—can start to slow down productivity as your business grows. If you’re frequently bumping up against these restrictions, it might be time to upgrade to a paid plan or explore other platforms that offer more flexibility without the high costs.

Does your team need more than what Slack’s free plan can offer? Take the time to evaluate how often you’re running into Slack’s limitations and whether a more flexible solution like Pebb could make a difference in your team’s workflow.

Conclusion

The Slack free plan is a solid option for small teams that need basic communication tools, but it comes with limitations that may not be suitable for growing businesses. As we move into 2024, more teams are looking for affordable solutions that offer greater flexibility and less friction.

Whether you decide to upgrade Slack or try an alternative like Pebb, the most important thing is finding a communication platform that meets your team’s needs and helps you stay productive, connected, and engaged.

What do you think? Are you running into Slack’s free plan limits, or is it still meeting your team’s needs? If you’re thinking about making a switch, what features are most important to your workflow? Let’s continue the conversation!