Top 10: Free Group Video Calling services

Updated: July 31, 2023

Free group video calling is a convenient and cost-effective way for individuals and teams to connect and collaborate face-to-face in real-time, regardless of geographical distances. With various platforms and applications offering this service, users can initiate video calls with multiple participants simultaneously, making it ideal for virtual meetings, social gatherings, and remote teamwork. Free group video calling often supports screen sharing, file sharing, and interactive features, fostering seamless communication and teamwork. While these services may have limitations on the number of participants or call duration, they remain a popular choice for businesses and individuals seeking to stay connected and engaged in an increasingly digital and interconnected world. Some of the most popular free group video calling software options are listed below.

See also: Top 10 Video Calling apps

2019. Skype now supports up to 50 group call participants



Skype has increased the capacity for group audio or video calls, now allowing up to 50 participants simultaneously. This expansion doubles the previous limit of 25 participants. With this enhanced support for larger groups, Skype surpasses the capabilities of popular messaging apps like WhatsApp, Google Hangouts, and Instagram. It now competes more directly with enterprise-grade calling solutions such as Zoom, which can accommodate up to 100 or even 1,000 participants, depending on the plan, with up to 49 webcams displayed in its gallery view. Additionally, Skype outperforms Facebook Messenger, where only the speaker is shown on the screen after more than a few participants join a chat with a limit of 50 people. In Skype, participants are displayed in bubbles across the top of the screen, and the end-user can choose whose feed they want to focus on in a multi-paned main window.


2018. Snapchat introduced group video calls for up to 16 people



Snapchat has introduced an exciting new feature allowing users to engage in group video chats with up to 16 participants. Additionally, the platform now supports group voice calls accommodating up to 32 individuals. Utilizing the feature is straightforward: users can initiate the video chat by tapping on the video icon within a group chat or start a call with a few individuals and extend invitations to others. In addition to the introduction of group video calls, Snap has also implemented @mentions on its platform. Users can now tag each other in their snaps and Stories by simply typing '@' followed by the user's name. Individuals who are mentioned will receive a notification when they are featured in Stories.


2017. Facebook Workplace gets standalone mobile apps



The business-oriented version of Facebook, known as Facebook Workplace, has made a significant update by introducing a separate app for desktop and mobile called Workplace Chat, dedicated solely to messaging functionalities. This move allows Workplace users to conveniently access various messaging features, such as screen and file sharing, private and group messages, and video calling, all within a single application. Speaking of video calling, Facebook has plans to incorporate group video calling into Workplace's array of messaging capabilities in the near future. It is worth noting that Facebook Workplace has witnessed considerable growth, with over 30,000 businesses and organizations currently utilizing the platform. This number has more than doubled compared to what Workplace reported six months ago, and prominent names like Starbucks, Spotify, Lyft, and Walmart are among its user base.


2016. Skype adds free group video calls to mobile apps



Skype has made an exciting announcement, introducing free group video calling for Android, iPhone, iPad, and Windows 10 mobile devices. While this feature has been available on desktops for both Mac and PC users for a couple of years, it was not yet accessible on mobile devices. With the latest update, Skype users will be able to engage in video calls with up to 25 participants at no cost. Although group video calls have been supported by Skype previously, the functionality was limited to subscribers of Skype for Business, while the free apps only offered group audio calls.


2010. Google may outgo Skype by means of mobile video



Video chat in GTalk (or more exactly, in GMail) has appeared more than a year ago. And we were confident that Skype will get the very strong competitor. Nevertheless, Skype's market share hasn't suffered at all. Even GMail users mainly continue using Skype for video calls. Probably, it's a question of a habit and Skype's great popularity. And perhaps, when Google adds calls to regular phones with the help of acquired Gizmo5 - this won't also change anything. Without offering some new revolutionary features, pushing Skype from the market will be extremely difficult. Especially now, when Skype introduced group video calling. However, it seems Google has a new idea. Today the company announced the acquisition of Swedish developer of VoIP and videoconferencing solutions - GIPS. GIPS technologies are used in Yahoo Messenger, Cisco WebEx and Lotus Sametime. And in addition, GIPS has created the best engine for video chat on Android. ***