Is Flock still being actively developed?

Flock still operates, but its pace of updates and new integrations has visibly slowed compared with rivals like Slack and Microsoft Teams, which is a common reason teams evaluate alternatives.

What is the best cheap alternative to Flock?

Pumble starts lower than Flock at around $2.49 per user a month and includes unlimited free history, while Zoho Cliq starts near $3 with a broad feature set.

Which Flock alternative is best for Microsoft users?

Microsoft Teams, since it is bundled with Microsoft 365 subscriptions most businesses already own and integrates natively with Outlook and Office.

Can I self-host a Flock alternative?

Yes. Mattermost and Rocket.Chat are both open-source and can be self-hosted for full data control, which Flock does not offer.

Does Flock include task management?

Flock includes lightweight to-dos, polls, and reminders. If you need deeper task and project management alongside chat, Basecamp or Ryver combine both more fully.

Flock Alternatives (2026): 8 Additional Options for Small-Team Messaging

Flock is a team messenger aimed at small businesses, pairing channels with built-in to-dos, polls, reminders, shared notes, and video calls. At around $4.50 per user a month it once positioned itself as a friendlier, cheaper Slack for growing teams.

The concern for many buyers today is momentum: Flock's pace of updates and ecosystem growth has slowed, and its integration library and platform depth trail the leaders. If you want a tool with active development, a bigger app ecosystem, lower cost, or self-hosting, the alternatives below are stronger long-term bets.

TL;DR

Flock is a capable small-team messenger, but its development pace and integration ecosystem have lagged.
Slack and Microsoft Teams offer far deeper, more actively maintained platforms.
Pumble and Zoho Cliq beat Flock on price with more generous free and feature tiers.
Choose Mattermost or Rocket.Chat if data ownership and self-hosting matter.

Why look for a Flock alternative?

Flock's product updates and roadmap have slowed, leaving buyers uncertain about its long-term investment.
Its native integration catalog is smaller than Slack's or Teams', limiting connections to modern SaaS tools.
Video calling capacity and quality lag behind dedicated meeting tools like Zoom and Google Meet.
There is no self-hosted option for teams with strict data-residency or compliance needs.
Per-user pricing is higher than newer budget competitors that offer more on their free tiers.

Flock alternatives at a glance

Tool	Starting price	Rating	Best for
Slack	$7.25/mo	★ 4.7	Teams that rely on a broad stack of integrated SaaS tools.
Microsoft Teams	$4/mo	★ 4.5	Organizations already paying for Microsoft 365.
Pumble	$2.49/mo	★ 4.7	Budget teams that want a well-maintained free tier with full history.
Zoho Cliq	$3/mo	★ 4.6	Teams already running the Zoho suite.
Mattermost	$10/mo	★ 4.4	Technical and regulated teams needing on-prem chat.
Rocket.Chat	$8/mo	★ 4.3	Organizations that need customer-facing chat plus internal messaging on their own terms.

1. Slack

Best for integration-heavy software teams

★ 4.7· Capterra$7.25/mo

What it does better than Flock

Slack is far more actively developed than Flock and offers the largest app directory in team chat, plus mature huddles, Workflow Builder automation, and best-in-class search. Nearly every SaaS vendor ships a Slack integration.

Where Flock still wins

Slack costs more per user than Flock and its free plan caps message history at 90 days.

Best for: Teams that rely on a broad stack of integrated SaaS tools.

Visit Slack Full review

2. Microsoft Teams

Best for Microsoft 365 organizations

★ 4.5· Capterra$4/mo

What it does better than Flock

Teams comes bundled with Microsoft 365, so most businesses already have it, and it handles large meetings and calling far better than Flock while integrating natively with Office documents.

Where Flock still wins

Teams is heavier and more complex than Flock's lightweight messenger, with a steeper learning curve for small teams.

Best for: Organizations already paying for Microsoft 365.

Visit Microsoft Teams Full review

3. Pumble

Best for cost-sensitive teams

★ 4.7· Capterra$2.49/mo

What it does better than Flock

Pumble is cheaper than Flock and offers unlimited free message history for unlimited users, with steady active development from the Clockify team. Its channel-based UI is clean and familiar.

Where Flock still wins

Flock still bundles more built-in productivity extras out of the box, such as polls and shared notes, on its lower tiers.

Best for: Budget teams that want a well-maintained free tier with full history.

Visit Pumble Full review

4. Zoho Cliq

Best for existing Zoho customers

★ 4.6· Capterra$3/mo

What it does better than Flock

Zoho Cliq is lower cost than Flock and backed by Zoho's large, actively developed ecosystem, with strong bots, multi-channel views, and native ties to CRM, Mail, and Projects.

Where Flock still wins

Its interface is more utilitarian than Flock's, and its best value only appears if you use other Zoho products.

Best for: Teams already running the Zoho suite.

Visit Zoho Cliq Full review

5. Mattermost

Best for self-hosted data control

★ 4.4· Capterra$10/mo

What it does better than Flock

Mattermost is open-source and self-hostable, giving full data ownership Flock cannot match, and it is actively developed with strong DevOps and security tooling.

Where Flock still wins

It needs infrastructure to deploy and maintain, and its setup is more involved than Flock's plug-and-play cloud app.

Best for: Technical and regulated teams needing on-prem chat.

Visit Mattermost Full review

6. Rocket.Chat

Best for data-sovereignty requirements

★ 4.3· Capterra$8/mo

What it does better than Flock

Rocket.Chat is open-source with full data ownership and adds omnichannel customer messaging that Flock lacks, making it a broader communications platform.

Where Flock still wins

Its self-hosted setup and administration are more demanding, and its polish trails Flock's simpler consumer feel.

Best for: Organizations that need customer-facing chat plus internal messaging on their own terms.

Visit Rocket.Chat Full review

How to choose the right Flock alternative

Choose Slack if you want the most actively developed platform with the deepest integration library.
Choose Microsoft Teams if you already pay for Microsoft 365 and want chat and meetings included.
Choose Pumble if you want a lower price with a well-maintained free tier and unlimited history.
Choose Zoho Cliq if you use other Zoho products and want chat in the same ecosystem.
Choose Mattermost if you must self-host chat for compliance or data control.
Choose Rocket.Chat if you need internal chat plus omnichannel customer messaging with data ownership.

How we evaluated

Feature mapping — we compare each alternative's capabilities against the tool it's replacing, job for job.
Real pricing — starting prices come from each vendor's public pricing page, labeled by tier.
User sentiment — ratings and review counts are aggregated from third-party platforms (Capterra, G2) and shown with their source.
Right-sizing — we weigh which team size, budget, and technical comfort each option actually fits.
Independence — we don't sell a competing product, and affiliate relationships never change our picks.

Frequently asked questions

Is Flock still being actively developed?: Flock still operates, but its pace of updates and new integrations has visibly slowed compared with rivals like Slack and Microsoft Teams, which is a common reason teams evaluate alternatives.
What is the best cheap alternative to Flock?: Pumble starts lower than Flock at around $2.49 per user a month and includes unlimited free history, while Zoho Cliq starts near $3 with a broad feature set.
Which Flock alternative is best for Microsoft users?: Microsoft Teams, since it is bundled with Microsoft 365 subscriptions most businesses already own and integrates natively with Outlook and Office.
Can I self-host a Flock alternative?: Yes. Mattermost and Rocket.Chat are both open-source and can be self-hosted for full data control, which Flock does not offer.
Does Flock include task management?: Flock includes lightweight to-dos, polls, and reminders. If you need deeper task and project management alongside chat, Basecamp or Ryver combine both more fully.

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