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Cisco Unified Communications 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 Unified Communications
Average Rating
8.4
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
Unified Communications (1st), IP Telephony & Unified Communications (1st)
Skype for Business
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
63
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Meetings (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Unified Communications and Skype for Business aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Unified Communications is designed for Unified Communications and holds a mindshare of 10.2%, down 15.6% compared to last year.
Skype for Business, on the other hand, focuses on Virtual Meetings, holds 4.8% mindshare, down 11.8% since last year.
Unified Communications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Unified Communications10.2%
3CX Live Chat7.7%
Digium Asterisk7.0%
Other75.1%
Unified Communications
Virtual Meetings Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Skype for Business4.8%
Zoom Workplace Business8.6%
Webex6.4%
Other80.2%
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1194252 - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of Sales & Solution Sales - MEA at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Has supported collaboration across distributed teams and continues to deliver reliable communication features
Currently, all future propositions for UC are not Cisco-based. Easy integration with Microsoft Windows would be beneficial. It integrates with SharePoint and Outlook, which was not available at one point in Cisco Webex. Regarding improvements, the focus should be on how cloud-friendly Cisco Unified Communications products are and how technically and commercially simple they are compared to competitors such as Genesys. All features are present. The concerns lie in the ease of using features, pricing, and whether it is available directly on the cloud or requires going through a Cisco channel partner. Features themselves are not an issue, and Cisco can develop new ones quickly if needed. If current customers are using Cisco Unified Communications and enjoying its features with devices that are not end of life or end of sale, they will continue using it. However, when moving to the cloud, comparisons become necessary. The simplicity, customer journey, transformation journey, and architecture complexity define whether Cisco Unified Communications is the right product or if third-party solutions are more suitable.
reviewer1854369 - PeerSpot reviewer
Executive at a government with 201-500 employees
Relying on dependable communication features for efficient collaboration
I work with Microsoft Exchange. We use Microsoft Azure, though I am not involved with the back-end operations. I work with Microsoft Exchange and ServiceNow for the service desk. I do not work with Cloud Observability or Automation Engine. We use Microsoft Copilot with Teams. We do not use Microsoft Security Copilot as it is not cloud-based. We have moved from Skype for Business to Teams recently, though some of us still use Skype for Business because it is convenient. Skype for Business is particularly useful for remoting onto people's devices. I prefer Skype for Business over Teams for screen sharing. Sometimes there are compatibility issues when running Microsoft Teams and Skype for Business together. Phone calls in Teams might ring and then go silent, or the microphone might not detect calls from either application. I rate Skype for Business a 9 out of 10 because it works effectively with minimal issues.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I have work on Cisco Unified Communication Manager (Call Manager) for one and a half years and it is a remarkable device which provides fully integrated communications, converging voice, video, and data over a single network infrastructure using standard protocols."
"We use Extension Mobility and Jabber a lot with mobile remote access. In addition to video calls with Jabber, this greatly enriched communications between coworkers."
"Using the Communication Manager, it gave us the possibility to move around the office, and even outside the office, keeping our phone number always accessible using Jabber."
"The Click to dial feature was one of the most important features for the customer."
"Cisco Unified Communications is stable and works well for us."
"It is very reliable, and this is what I appreciated about it when I was working with it because reliability is crucial."
"Having a single system including the routers and switches all from the same system gives ease of use."
"The best feature I would say about Cisco Unified Communications is the Telepresence."
"Our employees use this solution for a communal space to collaborate for organizational decision making."
"It has benefited my organization because I can use it on the phone, I can use it on a laptop, wherever I want."
"The most valuable feature of Skype for Business is that it has many other tools that you can be integrated with it, which makes the meetings more interactive."
"Screen sharing, control in the session, and file sharing are easy."
"The solution appears to be quite stable."
"The solution is easy to use and includes the ability to text message, video and voice chat, and transfer files."
"One of the best features of Skype for Business is that you can set it up on mobile phones, and you can set it up on laptops. You can connect to the tool from anywhere."
"Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten...Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
 

Cons

"Sometimes, minor temporary issues can arise while updating the servers."
"Currently, all future propositions for UC are not Cisco-based."
"Some features take a lot of steps to configure, so having areas where a few clicks can configure a feature for a user would be nice."
"Some features take a lot of steps to configure, so having areas where a few clicks can configure a feature for a user would be nice."
"To have 2 call management server configured as failover would be expensive."
"An improvement option could be to incorporate the Voicea solution with Communication Manager, allowing it to make a translation between different languages automatically in a conversation."
"One of the major flaws in the unified CM is handling the configuration of the Voice mail port."
"An improvement option could be to incorporate the Voicea solution with Communication Manager, allowing it to make a translation between different languages automatically in a conversation."
"Skype for Business is not suitable for giving lectures."
"The group feature of Skype for Business needs improvement. It should also be improved for online lectures."
"Skype for Business is not stable."
"We have found that there is a lag because it cannot integrate with the internal landline."
"The solution lacks to provide reporting functionality, and I would like to see the solution provide that feature."
"The integration with Outlook could be improved."
"We would like to better customize our instructions within the Outlook plugin/invite, but we are unable to do so."
"We need a feature where you can virtually raise your hand to silently let the presenter know that you have a question."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"Skype for Business' pricing is reasonable."
"We purchased an open license."
"I am using a corporate account for which I have not made any payments."
"It may be slightly costly, but the features are awesome."
"We negotiated a fair price with Microsoft. It is definitely worthwhile to negotiate with them for the best price for your solution."
"Previously, I did not use another solution."
"To realize value from the purchase of Skype Business, you need to take advantage of all the important functions of the program."
"We are using the subscription-based version of Skype for Business. There is a free version of the solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
14%
Government
11%
Educational Organization
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Marketing Services Firm
14%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Construction Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise27
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco Unified Communications?
I want to see improvements, especially for the GUI interface, as it should be much easier and user-friendly in Cisco Unified Communications. It would be beneficial if it could be more web interface...
What is your primary use case for Cisco Unified Communications?
We use this only for communication purposes, which includes a few use cases for it. We haven't used the video calls and other features because we based our use on basic communication, so I cannot g...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Unified Communications?
Regarding price and value, it is already expired and has reached end of life.
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?
I cannot think of many ways in which Skype for Business could improve in general. It works fairly efficiently for our purposes with Skype for Business. There is one issue regarding the audio settin...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Skype for Business Plan 1, Skype for Business Plan 2, Lync Server
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Afni, Allied Irish Banks, Bellevue, Came Group, Children's Hospital Colorado, Erickson Living, IDEALondon, Instituto Zaldivar, John Lewis, Linz AG, London Hydro, Lone Star College System, Lone Star College System, Mondi Group, North West Redwater, Park Nicollet, Pentana Solutions Australia, Pilatus, Pirelli, Portugal Ministry, Presidio Inc., Republic Bank & Trust Company, Saipem, SickKids Foundation, Top Right Group, Vital Images
EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services,LA Fitness, MedcoEnergi International, Tampa General Hospital, and HopewellHoldings Limited.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, 3CX, Digium and others in Unified Communications. Updated: March 2026.
885,728 professionals have used our research since 2012.