Team chat for agencies (2026)

• A clean line between clients. Each client sees its own channels or projects and nothing else.
• A way to bring clients in. Shared channels with the client's own workspace, or guest accounts in yours.
• Room for contractors. Freelancers come and go, so adding and removing people should be quick.
• A record of decisions. Sign-offs and change requests should be findable months later, not lost in a 90-day window.
• Cost that tracks headcount. Per-seat prices add up when clients and contractors count as users.

Best for: agencies whose clients already use Slack.

Where it wins: Slack Connect puts a channel between your workspace and a client’s own Slack, so neither side changes tools. Guest accounts, Huddles and 2,600+ apps (including most project and design tools) make it the default many clients expect.

Watch-outs: on the free plan Slack Connect is 1:1 only and history is 90 days, so client work needs a paid plan, and agents arrive as apps and assistants rather than members.

Price: Free (90 days of history, 1:1 huddles); Pro $7.25 per user per month billed annually ($8.75 monthly); Business+ $15 billed annually (slack.com/pricing).

See Ando vs Slack.

Best for: agencies whose clients run on Microsoft 365.

Where it wins: guest access and shared channels with client tenants, plus meetings and calling in the same app.

Watch-outs: it is built around meetings and the Microsoft 365 suite, and agents arrive as Copilot agents and apps.

Price: Teams Essentials is $4.00 per user per month, paid yearly (Teams Essentials).

See Microsoft Teams alternatives.

Best for: agencies already on Google Workspace.

Where it wins: Spaces sit next to the Docs, Sheets and Drive folders you already share with clients, and admins can allow people outside the organization into a space.

Watch-outs: chat is one app inside a suite, there is no standalone free plan, and Gemini in Chat is not in Business Starter.

Price: Business Starter is $7 and Business Standard $14 per user per month at list price; Google is advertising introductory discounts for new customers (workspace.google.com/pricing).

See Google Chat alternatives.

Best for: agencies that want client work organized by project rather than by channel.

Where it wins: each project holds its own message board, to-dos, files, schedule and chat, so a client sees one project and nothing else. Pro Unlimited is one flat price for unlimited users. If projects and client sign-offs are the job, Basecamp fits better than any chat app here, Ando included.

Watch-outs: every person you add counts toward the plan’s user limit below Pro Unlimited, and it is a project tool first, so fast back-and-forth chat is lighter than in Slack.

Price: Free (1 project, up to 3 users); Pro $79 per month (up to 10 users); Pro Unlimited $199 per month billed annually or $329 monthly, for unlimited users (basecamp.com/pricing).

Best for: small agencies that want Slack-style chat for less.

Where it wins: unlimited users and message history on the free plan, with guest access on paid plans.

Watch-outs: the free plan has 10 GB per workspace, 3 apps and 1:1 meetings, and there are no guests on Free.

Price: Free for unlimited users; Pro is $2.49 per seat per month billed annually ($2.99 monthly) (pumble.com/pricing).

Best for: agencies where AI agents already draft, research or report for client work.

Where it wins: agents are workspace members with their own identity and inbox, and only see the chats they are in (FAQ). Bring Claude, Codex, Grok Bot or any MCP agent as an external agent, or use an Ando agent (bring your own agent). A Bridge shares a channel between two organizations, a little like a shared channel elsewhere, and the other side's agents count as context, not as triggers for yours (what is a Bridge). A channel can have its own email address, so client emails and reports land in the thread (email to channel). If clients stay on Slack, Slack sync can bring in the Slack Connect channels you're in (what comes over from Slack). Jams are audio-first calls you start from any channel, DM or group DM; video and screen sharing work on the web and desktop apps (Jams).

Watch-outs: a Bridge needs both organizations on Ando, so a client on Slack either joins you as a guest or stays in Slack Connect. Ando isn't free, its integration set is smaller than Slack's, and access is by request.

Price: per human seat; rates aren't published yet (pricing philosophy). Starting a new company and moving off iMessage? We'll onboard you in under 24 hours (FAQ).

Shared channels (Slack Connect, Teams shared channels, an Ando Bridge) keep replies quick, but each side keeps its own workspace and its own history. A project tool like Basecamp gives the client one place to read updates and sign off, with less chat. Many agencies use both: chat for the team, and a project or portal for the client. Pick the one that matches how your clients want to be updated.

• Your clients already live in Slack → Slack, with Slack Connect.
• Your clients run on Microsoft 365 → Teams.
• You already share Google Docs and Drive with clients → Google Chat.
• You run client work by project and want sign-offs in one place → Basecamp.
• Price is the main constraint → Pumble.
• AI agents already draft, research or report for clients, and people keep relaying context to them → Ando. Starting a new company and moving off iMessage? We'll onboard you in under 24 hours (FAQ).