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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 (4th)
 

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 7.6%, down 8.0% compared to last year.
Skype for Business, on the other hand, focuses on Virtual Meetings, holds 13.1% mindshare, up 8.3% 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.
Markus Schweizer - PeerSpot reviewer
Has good telephone integration but technology is outdated
We use the product for conference calls.  The tool's most valuable features are its audio and chat functions. They help us save time and have good telephone integration.  The solution's functionality needs to be moved to Microsoft Teams. Its technology is outdated.  I have been using the tool…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"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 most valuable feature for me is that it shows who is available and who is not, as well as what their current status is."
"The solution is stable and scalable."
"The integration with Microsoft Outlook for creating and scheduling meetings is nice."
"The calling features are most valuable, especially now as we are working remotely."
"Making calls and having meetings is easy."
"We like the tools our administrator can use to identify which calls had quality issues and why. This makes troubleshooting our user experience somewhat easier."
"A good option for virtual meetings."
"I rate the solution's stability a nine on a scale where one is not stable and ten is very stable...I rate the solution's initial setup a nine on a scale where one is difficult, and ten is easy."
"The most valuable feature is how useful it has been for virtual meetings during the pandemic."
 

Cons

"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."
"Cisco Jabber is not a collaborative tool."
"The cost of Skype for Business has room for improvement."
"The initial setup could be simplified."
"Microsoft Teams, as I see it now, is more useful than Skype for Business."
"I feel that the whole look and feel of Skype should be improved, including its user-friendliness. It should also improve its scalability."
"The video quality could be improved, possibly due to internet connection issues."
"The technical support from Microsoft needs to be improved."
"Skype's overall connectivity functionality or ability is one area with room for improvement."
"I should be able to make a desktop phone call when I click a member of my Lync directory."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"To realize value from the purchase of Skype Business, you need to take advantage of all the important functions of the program."
"I use the product's open-source version."
"I am using a corporate account for which I have not made any payments."
"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."
"A license is required to use the solution."
"The cost of Skype for Business is incorporated into our Office 365 licenses."
"Our company pays for a license for us to use the solution."
"Skype for Business' pricing is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Healthcare Company
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
9%
Educational Organization
82%
Financial Services Firm
4%
Computer Software Company
2%
Government
2%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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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: May 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.