Rocket.Chat: On-prem, open source alternative to Slack

First, we’d like to give a quick nod to the team at Slack.

Undeniably, they’ve also built a great product that people love to use. It does what it’s supposed to do and it does it well.

So why do companies choose Rocket.Chat over Slack?

In short: Because it is more affordable, and it is centered more around legal compliance, scalability, and UX customization.

Rocket.Chat customers believe compromised data protection is a disqualifying factor. These tend to be organizations in highly regulated industries or companies that handle sensitive business or customer information.

While Slack does offer some features around data privacy and security, Rocket.Chat puts it first.

Here are the 6 reasons why companies choose Rocket.Chat over Slack

Self-managed alternative to Slack

Slack is a SaaS solution, only. For many companies, especially those with a focus on data privacy, security and ownership, that’s just not an option. Rocket.Chat allows for self-managed and even air gapped deployments.

More flexible and gives you full access to the code

Unlike Slack, you can actually see what’s going on under the hood. This means additional security assurances, unlimited UX customizations, and the ability to see and contribute to the roadmap. If you are looking for an open source alternative to Slack, Rocket.Chat is built for you!

Connects with other instant messaging platforms

Slack lets you message people in other companies, such as vendors, partners and suppliers - as long as they are also using Slack. Using Federation, Rocket.Chat lets you connect across platforms - so you don’t ever have to ask: Are you on Slack?

Security-centric features available with every plan

E2E encryption, chat history, HIPAA-ready software, role-based access - All the things you need if you care about the privacy and security of your data come with a high barrier to entry with Slack (or don’t exist at all).

Unlimited conversation history for everyone

No matter which Rocket.Chat plan you have, everyone gets access to the full conversation history, no matter when they joined a certain channel. With Slack, on the other hand, you don’t always get access to crucial conversations that happened in the past.

More affordable alternative to Slack

Are you looking for a more affordable alternative to Slack? You have come to the right place! For its basic SaaS version, Slack charges over $6 per user, while you can get Rocket.Chat for half that price.

Ready to try Slack alternative?

Unlimited access to all features for 30 days

Get started — it's free

Talk to an expert

Still not convinced? No problem.

Here’s an in-depth feature comparison of Rocket.Chat vs Slack

Rocket.Chat

Slack

Open Source

Open-source software

Full access to source code, server APIs, libraries, and influence on the roadmap

Team collaboration and productivity

Teams and channels

Discussions

Voice, video, and screen sharing

File, image, and link sharing

Unlimited message history in every plan

High availability

Engagement dashboard and insights

Read receipt

White labeling

High scalability cluster

Data Sovereignty

Private network deployment (SaaS or On-Prem)

No third party monitoring

Verifiable data retention policies in every plan

Full access to source code, server APIs, libraries, and influence on the roadmap

Post incidents reports

Privacy

ISO 27001 (external audit)

End-to-end encryption

Core access control policies

Advanced access control policies

Data loss prevention (DLP)

LDAP-based single sign-on

SAML-based single sign-on

Complete operational auditability

Complete technical auditability

ID-only push notifications

Omnichannel features

Manual & Auto Chat Routing

Queue Management

Agent office hours configuration

Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter Integrations

SMS & CRM Integration

Email Inbox

Analytics and Real-time monitoring dashboards

Chat tagging and forwarding

Support

SLA high availability

24/7 live support

Onboarding call

On-Call Upgrade Assistance

Apps

Native apps for iOS, Android, Windows, Mac and Linux

Community

On GitHub

30.4k

Here’s what customers who picked Rocket.Chat have to say.

Stefan Teubner

IT Project Leader, Audi Business Innovation GmbH

Mike Schwartz

CEO & Founder at Gluu

“Slack wasn’t a real alternative for us at that time, because it was SaaS. ”

“For data privacy concerns, we needed something that we could host ourselves. Rocket.Chat really speeds up the process of collaborating with our external partners, as well as internally. It allows us to share information really fast, very effectively, and in different ways.”