3CX is opening the PBX to agents while its feed fills with awards and academy news
Slack (Huddles) alternatives
The best Slack (Huddles) alternatives in video conferencing tools, ranked by Sparkpulse's velocity_score.
Updated Sep 25, 2026
Looking for the best alternatives to Slack (Huddles)? Sparkpulse tracks and ranks 12 alternatives in video conferencing tools by shipping velocity — how frequently each ships meaningful updates, verified from official changelogs. For reference, Slack (Huddles) shipped 0 meaningful updates in the last 30 days and carries a velocity score of 0.0 out of 10 in 2026. The alternatives below are ranked the same way, so you're comparing real release momentum, not marketing claims.
About Slack (Huddles)
This feed is an archive of old Slack desktop releases, not current product news.
The window covers Slack desktop app versions 2.6.3 through 2.8.2 — keychain credential storage, resumable file downloads, keyboard navigation, French, Spanish and German localization, and a run of Electron security updates and input-method fixes. These are historical client releases, captured with version-only titles.
Velocity 0.0 · Last update 1mo ago
Top 12 alternatives to Slack (Huddles)
Ranked by recent ship velocity. Tap any card for the full editorial breakdown, or pivot to a head-to-head.
Element Call drops MatrixRTC legacy mode entirely, betting the entire call stack on the multi-SFU protocol.
Fourwaves replaces per-event pricing with an annual submission model and lets organizers connect custom domains to event websites.
BigBlueButton 4.0 enters release candidate with LiveKit fully replacing the legacy audio stack.
Nextcloud Talk v25 adds classified conversations and an owner role, targeting regulated enterprise deployments.
Switcher Studio adds Instant Replay — a live broadcasting capability that finally closes the gap with dedicated sports streaming rigs.
Wowza is rebuilding around one idea: run computer vision inside the streaming pipeline.
HOMER 11.0.x fixes a critical S3/DuckDB contention bug and adds call-level fields to MCP NL search
Restream deepening X integration and adding Slack as a live streaming destination
JW Player expands ad analytics and vertical video while hardening mobile SDKs
Nextcloud Talk Desktop 2.3.2 ships Talk v25 stable with E2EE call audio fix
Greenlight 3.9 makes URL_HOST mandatory, forcing admin action on every self-hosted deployment.
Slack (Huddles) vs alternatives — shipping velocity at a glance
Velocity score (0–10) and meaningful releases shipped in the last 30 days, from official changelogs. Higher = shipping faster.
| Product | Velocity | Sparks · 30d | Focus areas | Latest release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slack (Huddles) (baseline) | 0.0 | 0 | desktop-clientelectronlocalization | — |
| 3CX | 7.5 | 0 | voipself-hostedmcp | 3CX MCP Server: Manage Your PBX With AI |
| Element Call | 6.3 | 1 | matrixwebrtcdecentralized | MatrixRTC legacy mode removed — all calls now run on the new protocol |
| Fourwaves | 6.3 | 1 | event-managementpricing-modelacademic | New pricing: annual submission limit replaces per-event fees |
| BigBlueButton | 6.3 | 1 | video-conferencingopen-sourcelivekit-migration | BigBlueButton 4.0-rc.1: LiveKit becomes sole audio source, multi-room sessions land |
| Nextcloud Talk | 6.3 | 0 | collaborationenterprise-messagingcompliance | Nextcloud Talk v25 alpha: classified conversations, owner role, global search |
| Switcher Studio | 6.3 | 0 | live-streamingsports-broadcastinginstant-replay | Your Best Play, Twice: Instant Replay for Switcher Is Live |
| Wowza | 6.3 | 0 | video-intelligencecomputer-visionsynthetic-media | How NVIDIA And Wowza Are Detecting Synthetic Video In Live Streams |
| HOMER | 5.0 | 0 | voip-monitoringmcp-integrations3-tiering | — |
| Restream | 5.0 | 0 | live-streamingstudio-productionx-integration | — |
| JW Player | 5.0 | 0 | video-deliverymobile-videoad-analytics | — |
| Nextcloud Talk Desktop | 5.0 | 0 | video-callsopen-sourcedesktop-app | — |
| Greenlight | 5.0 | 0 | video-conferencingbigbluebuttonself-hosted | — |
The 12 best Slack (Huddles) alternatives, in depth
1. 3CX · velocity 7.5
3CX is opening the PBX to agents while its feed fills with awards and academy news.
Its velocity score of 7.5/10 reflects longer-term release cadence; its most recent meaningful update was “3CX MCP Server: Manage Your PBX With AI”.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, 3CX focuses on voip, self hosted and mcp.
3CX and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
2. Element Call · velocity 6.3
Element Call drops MatrixRTC legacy mode entirely, betting the entire call stack on the multi-SFU protocol.
Over the last 30 days Element Call shipped 1 meaningful update vs Slack (Huddles)'s 0, most recently “MatrixRTC legacy mode removed — all calls now run on the new protocol”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Element Call focuses on matrix, webrtc and decentralized.
Over the last 30 days Element Call has been shipping faster than Slack (Huddles) — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
Full Element Call trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Element Call →
3. Fourwaves · velocity 6.3
Fourwaves replaces per-event pricing with an annual submission model and lets organizers connect custom domains to event websites.
Over the last 30 days Fourwaves shipped 1 meaningful update vs Slack (Huddles)'s 0, most recently “New pricing: annual submission limit replaces per-event fees”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Fourwaves focuses on event management, pricing model and academic.
Over the last 30 days Fourwaves has been shipping faster than Slack (Huddles) — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
Full Fourwaves trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Fourwaves →
4. BigBlueButton · velocity 6.3
BigBlueButton 4.0 enters release candidate with LiveKit fully replacing the legacy audio stack.
Over the last 30 days BigBlueButton shipped 1 meaningful update vs Slack (Huddles)'s 0, most recently “BigBlueButton 4.0-rc.1: LiveKit becomes sole audio source, multi-room sessions land”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, BigBlueButton focuses on video conferencing, open source and livekit migration.
Over the last 30 days BigBlueButton has been shipping faster than Slack (Huddles) — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
Full BigBlueButton trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs BigBlueButton →
5. Nextcloud Talk · velocity 6.3
Nextcloud Talk v25 adds classified conversations and an owner role, targeting regulated enterprise deployments.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence; its most recent meaningful update was “Nextcloud Talk v25 alpha: classified conversations, owner role, global search”.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Nextcloud Talk focuses on collaboration, enterprise messaging and compliance.
Nextcloud Talk and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Nextcloud Talk trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Nextcloud Talk →
6. Switcher Studio · velocity 6.3
Switcher Studio adds Instant Replay — a live broadcasting capability that finally closes the gap with dedicated sports streaming rigs.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence; its most recent meaningful update was “Your Best Play, Twice: Instant Replay for Switcher Is Live”.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Switcher Studio focuses on live streaming, sports broadcasting and instant replay.
Switcher Studio and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Switcher Studio trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Switcher Studio →
7. Wowza · velocity 6.3
Wowza is rebuilding around one idea: run computer vision inside the streaming pipeline.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence; its most recent meaningful update was “How NVIDIA And Wowza Are Detecting Synthetic Video In Live Streams”.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Wowza focuses on video intelligence, computer vision and synthetic media.
Wowza and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Wowza trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Wowza →
8. HOMER · velocity 5.0
HOMER 11.0.x fixes a critical S3/DuckDB contention bug and adds call-level fields to MCP NL search.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, HOMER focuses on voip monitoring, mcp integration and s3 tiering.
HOMER and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full HOMER trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs HOMER →
9. Restream · velocity 5.0
Restream deepening X integration and adding Slack as a live streaming destination.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Restream focuses on live streaming, studio production and x integration.
Restream and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Restream trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Restream →
10. JW Player · velocity 5.0
JW Player expands ad analytics and vertical video while hardening mobile SDKs.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, JW Player focuses on video delivery, mobile video and ad analytics.
JW Player and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full JW Player trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs JW Player →
11. Nextcloud Talk Desktop · velocity 5.0
Nextcloud Talk Desktop 2.3.2 ships Talk v25 stable with E2EE call audio fix.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Nextcloud Talk Desktop focuses on video calls, open source and desktop app.
Nextcloud Talk Desktop and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Nextcloud Talk Desktop trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Nextcloud Talk Desktop →
12. Greenlight · velocity 5.0
Greenlight 3.9 makes URL_HOST mandatory, forcing admin action on every self-hosted deployment.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where Slack (Huddles) leans on desktop client, electron and localization, Greenlight focuses on video conferencing, bigbluebutton and self hosted.
Greenlight and Slack (Huddles) have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Greenlight trajectory → · Compare Slack (Huddles) vs Greenlight →
Frequently asked questions
What are the best alternatives to Slack (Huddles)?
The top Slack (Huddles) alternatives we currently track in video conferencing tools are 3CX, Element Call, Fourwaves, BigBlueButton, Nextcloud Talk, ranked by recent ship velocity.
How is this list of Slack (Huddles) alternatives ranked?
Alternatives are ranked by Sparkpulse's velocity_score — release cadence + 30-day spark count + sector-relative ship rate.
Can I compare Slack (Huddles) directly with one of these alternatives?
Yes — every card has a "Compare with Slack (Huddles)" link to a side-by-side /compare page.