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GoToMeeting vs Google Hangouts [EOL] comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 27, 2025

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

Google Hangouts [EOL]
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
GoToMeeting
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Meetings (8th)
 

Featured Reviews

Mariana-Piñeres - PeerSpot reviewer
Recording and transcription enhance global client meetings
Google Hangouts sometimes consumes significant resources. When comparing it to WhatsApp on desktop for calls, there are instances when Google Hangouts freezes or stops working, but switching to WhatsApp runs smoothly. This might be related to the resources Google Hangouts requires. The service occasionally experiences lag issues where the image gets frozen or the voice transmission becomes interrupted. When these issues occur, possibly due to internet connectivity or other factors, WhatsApp continues to function properly while Google Hangouts does not perform well.
Steve Abshire - PeerSpot reviewer
It features low latency, which is crucial because everybody is using VPN to connect to their PCs at work.
Using GoToMeeting in a meeting-sized conference room is kind of a letdown. The camera is supposed to track the speaker and focus on that person so that they can be on the screen. That feature rarely worked. We tested it thoroughly, so maybe it was an issue with the size of the conference room. It may not be suitable for large conference rooms.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I think that Google Meet allows for easy interaction and has additional features, such as background blurring, among others."
"It is easy to use, and we don't need to make a lot of configurations."
"The solution scales well."
"What I like best about Google Hangouts is its integration with other Google solutions, so scheduling is easy because you have the calendar. It also has a whiteboard feature. I also like its polling feature and that it even has a captioning feature."
"The interface is simple and not complex."
"Google Hangouts is user-friendly. It supports low internet bandwidth."
"I find it valuable that Google Hangouts is a lightweight tool that doesn't take up a lot of memory and doesn't require a lot of resources."
"The solution is easy to use and navigate."
"GoToMeeting's security is very good. I've never known anybody to crash a GoToMeeting."
"The most valuable feature is the dial-in capability."
"It's easy to set up."
"We can record meetings and share the screen with participants."
"Ease of setup and login by attendees. Facilitates sharing visually, and not just via audio."
"GoToMeeting is very handy. It's good software. I would definitely recommend it."
"We like that this solution allows us to assign separate numbers to people without having to have a physical telephone system in place."
"Pricing is reasonable. It's not expensive. The pricing is one of the great selling points for the product."
 

Cons

"Google Hangouts restricts you to those with a Gmail account."
"The improvement needs to be done as per customer requirements."
"The product was quite unstable during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially when we shared our screens, as it often resulted in a black screen."
"The stability of Google Hangouts has had some issues, such as video call delays. The stability could improve."
"It is not as stable. They can improve its stability."
"Google Hangouts should add a feature to show how someone connects, such as via a laptop or phone. If you know if someone is using a laptop you can ask them to share their screen."
"The UI has room for improvement."
"One improvement could be integration with Google Calendar to help find available timeslots when scheduling meetings with many participants."
"The newer user interface takes a bit longer to get used to."
"The solution must include archive options to save the recorded meetings for future reference. The recording functionality can benefit our team by improving how meetings are recorded and shared. Previously, only admins could record meetings, sometimes leading to issues if recordings were missed or not shared properly. The recent update now allows hosting GoToMeeting sessions with the ability to delegate recording rights to other team members."
"Using GoToMeeting in a meeting-sized conference room is kind of a letdown. The camera is supposed to track the speaker and focus on that person so that they can be on the screen. That feature rarely worked. We tested it thoroughly, so maybe it was an issue with the size of the conference room. It may not be suitable for large conference rooms."
"In the next release, I would for it to incorporate files more efficiently from one computer to another when we covert things and send them out. I'm not sure if it's capable of that."
"Poor error recovery, too sensitive to transmission errors. Needs better codecs and more robust system software that can handle network glitches."
"I don't know whether it is an issue or not but my boss was asking me if person one is in one room, and another person wanted to use another room at the same time, I don't know whether it is possible."
"The solution could scale a bit easier if you need to add more people to meetings."
"We would like some improvement in the speed of initiating this solution, as it is currently fairly slow."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is a need to make certain payments towards the licensing costs attached to the product and some other tools that are included in the suite offered by Google. Google Hangouts alone as a product is available for free."
"This solution is available for free with the opening of a Google account."
"I pay $6 per user per month for Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Hangouts."
"There is no license cost."
"Google Hangouts has reasonable pricing, but I don't use the paid version because I only have a small budget, though you get more features from the paid version."
"We are using the free version of Google Hangouts."
"We access the solution through Google Workspace. It is inexpensive to use."
"I don't need to buy Google Hangouts separately because it comes free with Google Workspace, and it is also available for my personal Gmail ID."
"GoToMeeting is a little bit expensive compared to other products."
"It is a little expensive although now, with the competition from Zoom and other products, they have lowered their prices and it is better."
"Negotiate for discounts."
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Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise18
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Google Hangouts?
It's integration with Google is the valuable feature.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Hangouts?
Google Hangouts comes as a package, so it's difficult to say or comment on the price of this particular product.
What needs improvement with Google Hangouts?
Sometimes when we have a call and need to share audio or play a video, we find it challenging to switch from sharing the complete desktop to only a particular Chrome tab, as it doesn't support audi...
What needs improvement with GoToMeeting?
The solution must include archive options to save the recorded meetings for future reference. The recording functionality can benefit our team by improving how meetings are recorded and shared. Pre...
What is your primary use case for GoToMeeting?
I use the solution when someone is comfortable using it, and I recommend using it.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
AAPT, ACD Groupe, Addison Fire, Avigilon Corporation, Basic Industries Ltd., Bitdefender, Branson School Online, Budd Van Lines, Business Fitness, Business Wire
Find out what your peers are saying about Zoom Video Communications, Cisco, Microsoft and others in Virtual Meetings. Updated: August 2025.
867,445 professionals have used our research since 2012.