Slack Pro slack.comFree alternatives to Slack Pro
Slack Pro costs $8.75/mo on the Pro plan, or $105 a year. Here are 6 free and open-source options, what each one does, and what you give up compared with paying.
01At a glance
| Alternative | Type | Where it runs | Works on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chanty Free | Free | Hosted for you | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android |
| Element | Open source | Hosted or self-hosted | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android, Your server |
| Mattermost Team Edition | Open source | You host it | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android, Your server |
| Pumble Free | Free | Hosted for you | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android |
| Rocket.Chat Community | Open source | You host it | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android, Your server |
| Zulip | Open source | You host it | Web, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, Android, Your server |
02Each alternative, in detail
Five users get unlimited history, files, tasks and one-to-one calls; larger teams meet the paywall.
Versus paying: Chanty Free offers unlimited history and useful tasks, but five-member capacity, no free data export, and a far smaller integration ecosystem make it a narrow Slack Pro substitute.
Setup: Hosted signup; use Chanty's web, desktop, or mobile clients
Watch for: There is no technical setup blocker, but the free workspace is limited to five members, so the sixth teammate forces a migration or payment.
chanty.com →Rooms, threads, files and encrypted calls on Matrix; the free public service avoids server duty.
Versus paying: Element provides rooms, threads, files, calls, and encryption, but Matrix is less familiar and its workplace app and integration ecosystem is much smaller than Slack's.
Setup: Use a free Matrix account in Element Web/mobile/desktop, or deploy Element Server Suite on your own infrastructure
Watch for: The clean hosted path is easy, but self-hosting the current Element Server Suite means operating a Matrix homeserver and its Kubernetes/Helm-based stack.
13,300 GitHub stars (checked Aug 6, 2026)
element.io →Slack-shaped chat below 250 users, self-hosted; the subscription disappears and the pager appears.
Versus paying: Mattermost Team Edition closely resembles Slack, but self-hosting adds database, email, storage, backup, upgrade, and uptime work while enterprise identity and compliance remain paid.
Setup: Install the official Linux binary with PostgreSQL, then configure systemd, TLS/reverse proxy, SMTP, and file storage
Watch for: The first obstacle is a real Linux service deployment, PostgreSQL, SMTP, DNS/TLS, storage, backups, and upgrades, not an app-store install.
38,700 GitHub stars (checked Aug 6, 2026)
mattermost.com →Unlimited users, channels and history with ten gigabytes total; group meetings and serious integrations still cost money.
Versus paying: Pumble Free keeps unlimited users and history, but group meetings, screen sharing, integration breadth, storage, and Slack's huge app ecosystem are materially weaker.
Setup: Hosted signup; use the browser or Pumble's desktop/mobile apps
Watch for: There is no installation hurdle, but migration still requires inviting everyone and rebuilding channels and integrations; free exports exclude private channels and direct messages.
pumble.com →Channels, threads, files and integrations for up to a hundred concurrent users; MongoDB is the hidden teammate.
Versus paying: Rocket.Chat Community covers channels, threads, files, and integrations, but it adds MongoDB operations, a 100-concurrent-user limit, and a much smaller ecosystem than Slack.
Setup: Deploy the Community workspace with Docker Compose, Podman, or Kubernetes
Watch for: A production installation requires MongoDB, DNS/TLS, email, backups, upgrades, and enough capacity planning to stay within the Community plan's 100-concurrent-user limit.
45,900 GitHub stars (checked Aug 6, 2026)
rocket.chat →Topic-first team chat with full history and excellent search; fewer drive-by messages survive.
25,600 GitHub stars (checked Aug 6, 2026)
zulip.com →03What you give up by leaving Slack Pro
- existing team network, integrations, push delivery, enterprise controls, and global reliability
- network effects
- native mobile apps
- video and voice infrastructure
- enterprise moderation and discovery
People still pay for Slack Pro because community software is valuable when members are already there and the operator does not have to own realtime reliability and abuse response. The recurring cost buys realtime delivery, notifications, abuse handling, search, media, permissions, mobile clients, backups, and community operations, not just the visible interface.
04Questions
Is there a free alternative to Slack Pro?
Yes. This page compares 6: Chanty Free, Element, Mattermost Team Edition, Pumble Free, Rocket.Chat Community and Zulip. 4 of them are open source, so you can run them yourself.
How much does Slack Pro cost?
$8.75/mo on the Pro plan (monthly per user), which is $105 a year. Prices checked Aug 12, 2026.
What do you give up with a free alternative to Slack Pro?
Most often: existing team network, integrations, push delivery, enterprise controls, and global reliability, network effects, native mobile apps and video and voice infrastructure. Each alternative on this page lists its own gap under “Versus paying.”
Can AI build me my own version of Slack Pro?
Nah. A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Slack Pro, run a small private team chat with channels, threads, files, and search. The hard boundary is existing team network, integrations, push delivery, enterprise controls, and global reliability, plus network, moderation, and communication infrastructure.
Prices change; confirm on the vendor's site before you decide.
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