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Cisco Jabber vs Skype for Business comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Cisco Jabber
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
Unified Communications (6th)
Skype for Business
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
62
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Meetings (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Jabber and Skype for Business aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Jabber is designed for Unified Communications and holds a mindshare of 8.8%, up 7.8% compared to last year.
Skype for Business, on the other hand, focuses on Virtual Meetings, holds 13.4% mindshare, up 8.7% since last year.
Unified Communications
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

CM
Shows other's availability and status, offers powerful chat features, and integration across platforms is strong
The most valuable feature for me is that it shows who is available and who is not, as well as what their current status is. When I want to check in with someone, I first have a look to see what they're up to and then I can throw in a question or engage in chat with them. The UI is okay and I am quite pleased with it. The options that I have for moving things around the screen during calls are good. It is also modern looking and not clunky at all. The power of the chat function is good in terms of sharing, pasting, and the like, as it is very full-featured. The integration across platforms is really strong. The speed and availability are very good. There is also room for lots of customization built-in, which is a big plus.
Magdalena Teodorczuk - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers great audio and video quality for virtual meetings
I like the instant messaging feature in the product since I prefer to use the chat functionalities provided by the solution. It is easy to integrate the product with some of the other solutions in the market. I rate the integration capabilities of the product a ten out of ten. The product's user interface is user-friendly. I use the product at a personal level, so I can't speak about the support it provides for the maintenance part. I rate the overall tool a ten out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature for me is that it shows who is available and who is not, as well as what their current status is."
"It works fine feature-wise. The Cisco Jabber features that we use work okay."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to talk with people in real-time, instead of sending texts."
"The solution is scalable and is capable of working on every appliance on every operating system."
"It's a good product, we like using it."
"The tool's most valuable features are its audio and chat functions. They help us save time and have good telephone integration."
"It has benefited my organization because I can use it on the phone, I can use it on a laptop, wherever I want. The communication channel is very easy now and I can call and chat. It's experienced. Together, my team manages everything. It's very easy."
"The most valuable feature of Skype for Business is overall it is an okay solution."
"The most valuable features of Skype for Business include its persistent chat, Edge Server, Reverse Proxy, front-end server, back-end server, and business calling capabilities, among others."
"Our employees use this solution for a communal space to collaborate for organizational decision making."
"It's a good and stable product that fits my needs."
 

Cons

"Cisco Jabber is not a collaborative tool."
"There are issues in switching from one type of communication system to another. When I connect my wired earphone or Bluetooth earphone, Cisco Jabber doesn't switch automatically. There are some user experience issues that need to be fixed."
"I presume that very small businesses would have a tough time justifying the investment."
"The stability could be improved."
"Lacks a zoom-in feature for whoever is presenting."
"I feel bored with the look and feel of the tool, so it should be changed."
"I venture to say that 30% of the people using this solution at our company have had issues with stability, due to the volatility and crashes."
"Skype for Business could improve by having a document channel or repository. Microsoft Teams has a better repository place for documents that you can share with your team. You can access it anywhere from any device."
"The ease of configuration or the lack of decent tooling to pinpoint your problems is probably its biggest issue."
"I don't recall coming across any big missing features."
"The solution has been discontinued by Microsoft."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"Previously, I did not use another solution."
"We negotiated a fair price with Microsoft. It is definitely worthwhile to negotiate with them for the best price for your solution."
"The pricing is really good. It is quite affordable because it came with our Office 365. It is on a per-user license, which is nice. I quite like that they have made it very granular with all of their licensing."
"To realize value from the purchase of Skype Business, you need to take advantage of all the important functions of the program."
"We have been able to save money by moving our conferencing solution to Skype for Business Conferencing."
"The licensing is billed on a yearly basis."
"The cost of Skype for Business is incorporated into our Office 365 licenses."
"When it comes to the pricing of the solution, I rate it as a five out of ten. It falls somewhere in the middle between being cheap and expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Healthcare Company
19%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
10%
Educational Organization
93%
Financial Services Firm
1%
Computer Software Company
1%
Government
1%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Skype for Business?
Skype for Business is affordable and has decent pricing. The video quality is a bit lower than Teams or Zoom, but it remains a good solution overall.
What needs improvement with Skype for Business?
The video quality could be improved, possibly due to internet connection issues. However, there is no significant weakness in Skype for Business.
 

Also Known As

Jabber
Skype for Business Plan 1, Skype for Business Plan 2, Lync Server
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Odeabank, Eagle Investment Systems, Pella Corporation, The Republican National Convention, avodaqAG
EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services,LA Fitness, MedcoEnergi International, Tampa General Hospital, and HopewellHoldings Limited.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, 3CX, Kamailio and others in Unified Communications. Updated: March 2025.
844,944 professionals have used our research since 2012.