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HCL Sametime vs Microsoft Teams comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 3, 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

HCL Sametime
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
19th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Teams
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
169
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Social Software (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of HCL Sametime is 0.5%, down from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Teams is 3.3%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

Bogdan Chechlowski - PeerSpot reviewer
Stable product, communicate very fast and allows to see who's online in the office or work environment
It was used for communication through text messages, primarily Being able to see who was online and communicate very fast was a good feature.  The security was quite good. However, when we tried to implement it for email at a high level, we had to use another solution, FortiMail Gateway. I view…
Arun Srivastav - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless presentation and collaboration enhance organizational productivity
There are three main areas for improvement: Firstly, AI capabilities should be integrated into Microsoft Teams to provide better transcript services and offer multiple language support. Secondly, it should allow participants to remain visible during presentations, enhancing interaction. Lastly, it needs broader integration capabilities with other products, like Salesforce ( /vendors/salesforce ), which is currently limited.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The security was quite good."
"I can view the status and availability of colleagues or team members, which makes it easy to approach them when they are available."
"Teams' most valuable feature is the ability to choose from multiple numbers to show when calling."
"Using the solution's screen-sharing feature, we can go through a document together and take control."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Teams are video conferencing, chat function, and the one that shows you that you've got new messages."
"I like the whiteboard feature as well. I'm able to scribble some stuff if I need to explain a couple of items."
"Microsoft Teams is a scalable tool because it integrates with many other tools and different kinds of apps."
"It’s very easy to set up. It doesn't take that long."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Teams is that it is integrated with the Microsoft ecosystem."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Teams for us is the ability to share files from OneDrive seamlessly."
 

Cons

"The webinar should be integrated into Sametime for a larger number of participants."
"It lacks some features compared to modern solutions. For example, it doesn't allow sending screenshots or other files."
"Microsoft Teams could work faster if set up on other devices like cell phones."
"There can be more customization and also the task management tools needs better tools for integration."
"I'd like to see better document-sharing capabilities. Sharing multiple documents during a meeting can take time, especially on Mac. On Windows, you can switch shared content on the fly, but on Mac, I often have to stop sharing and then choose another window to share."
"The application's user interface on Google has shortcomings that need to be improved."
"The tool has two versions: the desktop application installed on the computer and the web-based version. There are some differences between the two. For example, from the browser, you can pin it on the taskbar without installing the application, similar to Google Chat. You can also use the installed desktop application you download from the web."
"The call quality could be better sometimes. Microsoft could improve the quality of the backgrounds. File sharing could also be smoother. It takes a lot of clicks to download and copy the links. It should be only one click."
"Microsoft Teams should include better integration of the multi-viewer webinar-type system."
"I would rate the stability of Microsoft Teams as a six or seven, as there is a lot of audio drop in between, so it's not that stable."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"We are using the free version of the solutions."
"The tool comes as part of the Office 365 bundle and you don't have to pay anything extra."
"The tool is cheaper than Google Meet. I rate it a three out of four."
"Microsoft Teams comes with a yearly subscription, which is not very expensive."
"The solution's pricing is reasonable and I would rate it an eight out of ten."
"Pricing is free to a threshold and then after that you have to license per user."
"We are satisfied with the price of this solution."
"It is affordable because it also includes the licenses on Microsoft Word, Microsoft Office and SharePoint."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Educational Organization
26%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with HCL Sametime?
I view it as part of HCL Notes and Domino, and my opinion is similar to those products. It lacks some features compared to modern solutions. For example, it doesn't allow sending screenshots or oth...
What is your primary use case for HCL Sametime?
It was used for communication through text messages, primarily.
What advice do you have for others considering HCL Sametime?
Overall, it was quite good. I would rate it an eight out of ten. It's a better product than some others from HCL, but overall, I wouldn't recommend it, given the availability of superior alternatives.
What do you like most about Microsoft Teams?
The most valuable feature of Microsoft Teams for us is the ability to share files from OneDrive seamlessly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Teams?
Microsoft Teams comes with Office 365 ( /products/office-365-reviews ) licenses like E3, but there are options for those who prefer not to pay for Teams by using alternative products like Slack ( /...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Teams?
The biggest issue with Microsoft Teams is switching identities, especially when communicating with external organizations. Users often don't know they have messages from another company unless they...
 

Comparisons

No data available
 

Also Known As

Lotus Sametime, IBM Lotus Sametime
MS Teams
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Connect2Cloud, Superior Group, Daifuku Co. Ltd., Seaward, The City of Fort Worth, Christian Brothers Services, Berlitz, Deutsche Notes User Group, Danske Fysioterapeuter, Slumberland, La Vacanza, Rheinmetall AG
Honeywll, AIRFRANCE, AccuWeather, Lilly
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL Sametime vs. Microsoft Teams and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.