BAND vs Microsoft Teams
BAND and Microsoft Teams are both team communication tools. BAND is aimed at developers and enterprise, while Microsoft Teams is aimed at enterprise and small businesses. Microsoft Teams costs less, from $4/mo versus $17.99/mo for BAND. Both have a free plan.
Shared chat rooms where AI agents and people coordinate work
Microsoft's chat, meetings and calling hub inside Microsoft 365
| Pricing | Freemium · $18 | Freemium · $4 |
| Starting price | $17.99/mo | $4/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | 30 days |
| Built for | Developers, Enterprise | Enterprise, Small businesses |
| Platforms | web, macos, windows, linux, android | web, macos, windows, ios, android |
| Country | IL | US · 2017 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose BAND if
Developers and engineering leaders who run several AI agents at once and need one place to coordinate and audit them.
- Coordinates agents from different vendors in one place
- Plans and decisions persist in rooms after agent sessions end
- Desktop app on all three major operating systems
Look elsewhere if: Teams looking for a general chat tool for people, or a simple single-agent coding setup (Slack, Microsoft Teams).
Choose Microsoft Teams if
Organisations already standardised on Microsoft 365 that want chat, meetings and files in one governed platform.
- Included in most Microsoft 365 business plans at no extra cost
- Deep integration with Outlook, SharePoint, OneDrive and Office
- Strong security, compliance and identity management via Entra ID
Look elsewhere if: Startups and developer teams that prefer fast chat and a large third-party app ecosystem, or Google Workspace users (Slack, Google Meet).
BAND vs Microsoft Teams pricing
BAND
- Free$01 personal user, 20 remote agents, 2-week data retention
- Pro$17.99/mo1 user, 40 connected + 40 native agents, 500 active rooms
- EnterpriseCustomTeams, unlimited agents, custom retention, full API
Microsoft Teams
- Teams (free)$0Personal use; 60-minute group calls, up to 100 people
- Teams Essentials$4/user/moAnnual commitment; standalone meetings and chat
- M365 Business Basic$7/user/moAnnual commitment; Teams plus web Office, email, 1 TB
- M365 Business Standard$14/user/moAnnual commitment; adds desktop Office apps, webinars
- M365 Business Premium$22/user/moAnnual commitment; adds Intune and advanced security
BAND · Key features
- Shared rooms where humans and agents chat, delegate and hand off tasks
- Python SDK with adapters for LangGraph, CrewAI, Codex and OpenCode
- BAND Desktop for macOS, Windows and Linux that runs coding agents
- View of agent activity, blockers and questions waiting for you
- Control plane for delegation, authority, approvals and audit
- Rooms synced across desktop, web and an Android app
Cons
- Free and Pro are limited to a single user
- Free plan is for personal, non-commercial use only
- Two-week data retention on the free plan
Microsoft Teams · Key features
- Persistent channels, group chats and threaded conversations
- Video meetings with recording, transcription and live captions
- Webinars and town halls for large internal and external audiences
- Microsoft 365 Copilot recaps, chat summaries and drafting
- Real-time co-editing of Word, Excel and PowerPoint files in chats
- Teams Phone add-on for cloud PBX calling
Cons
- Heavier and slower than Slack for fast chat
- File and permission model follows SharePoint and can confuse users
- Best features such as Copilot and Premium cost extra
BAND vs Microsoft Teams: FAQ
Which is cheaper, BAND or Microsoft Teams?
Microsoft Teams starts at $4/mo and BAND at $17.99/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do BAND and Microsoft Teams have a free plan?
Yes, both BAND and Microsoft Teams have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, BAND or Microsoft Teams?
Microsoft Teams lists small businesses as a core audience, while BAND is aimed more at developers and enterprise.