Video Conference online solutions
Mikogo
Mikogo used to make it WAY more obvious that it was free to use for private individuals. As far as I can tell, it’s still free, to use most features. You’ll have to do a little exploring to see if you can get what you need without paying. On an annual plan, prices start at:
Basic – $13 per organizer/month
3 participants/session
– ALL FEATURES
– UNLIMITED MEETINGS
AnyMeeting – Free
AnyMeeting boasts pretty similar features to Mikogo, but they make it very obvious that it’s free to use. And they say it will be free forever, as it is ad-supported. You can have SIX simultaneous streams with AnyMeeting, which I don’t believe Mikogo will allow.
To go ad-free, they say it starts at $17.99…per month, I assume? That seems a little steep. A one-time fee would make more sense, since the features remain the same.
https://join.me/ Free and Paid – very good – screen sharing only
MeetingBurner
MeetingBurner also has a forever-free plan, but with limited features (you can’t record meetings, get analytics, have meetings on autopilot, or integrate with Paypal). In other words, for most people just looking to share screens and meet with a few people, this will work GREAT!
From another review site.
Alternative #1: WebEx
Another popular piece of meeting software at virtually the same exact price as GoToMeeting, WebEx should definitely make your short list of products to buy. It’s a solid candidate because of its range of features – top notch and comprehensive – as well as a nice two-week free trial that lets you sample the goods before taking the plunge. You can’t really go wrong by checking out WebEx.
But is it really better than GoToMeeting? Well, it’s a good question. Essentially, it’s the same exact thing. The features are close, it’s popular, and the prices don’t vary wildly. We recommend you give WebEx a the old college try with its free trial and see if there’s one feature or two that convinces you it’s the online meeting software you’ve been looking for.
Alternative #2: Fuzemeeting
If there was an “editor’s choice” tag I could apply here, I definitely would: Fuze Meeting is a great overall combination of price, quality, and usability that should make the same short list of candidates that you scribbled WebEx on.
Don’t believe me? Try the thirty-day free trial and get back to me. Or check out the pricing, which is twenty dollars less per month than the “leading” competitors like – you guessed it – GoToMeeting. A GoToMeeting alternative that costs less? Where can I sign up?
Alternative #3: Mikogo
To be fair, if I had two editor’s choice tags to give out, the second would go here, because Mikogo deserves to be highlighted. Why? It’s the freest option for web conferencing I’ve come across.
I know what you’re thinking. Freest? How could one program be more free than another? Simple: meeting attendees. You see, software like GoToMeeting will place pricing restrictions based on how many people you have in your meetings. Some “free” online meeting options only allow a meeting of two or three people – with you included. But Mikogo dials up the volume here – all the way up to ten. (Sorry, no eleven.)
If that’s not reason enough for you to check Mikogo out, you may also want to check your pulse.
Alternative #4: DimDim
Though the name might sound, shall we say, StupidStupid, DimDim (now owned by SalesForce) makes up for it with such quality offerings that you can’t help but wonder – gosh, why did I ever consider GoToMeeting in the first place?
That’s a bit harsh to a quality piece of software, but it’s meant as a compliment to DimDim’s overall usability and generous pricing features – yes, you have to pay more than you would with Mikogo, but you also get a lot of bang for your buck. Some people have small businesses that are ironically big enough to justify that kind of investment, and given DimDim’s generosity with the pricing, it’s actually not much of an investment at all.
In this article, you may find yourself presented with a paradox of choice: now that you have four alternatives to GoToMeeting, it might be hard to choose any particular one. Our advice? Give the free trials on the more expensive programs a shot and if you’re not pleased, use a free service like Mikogo.