# Element Software Pricing, Alternatives & More 2026 | Capterra > With the help of Capterra, learn about Element Software - reviews, pricing plans, popular comparisons to other Collaboration products and more. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/214578/Element --- # Element Software Review 2026: Features, Integrations, Pros & Cons Last updated on March 13, 2026 Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Description](#description)[Use cases](#use-cases)[Alternatives](#alternatives)[Features](#features)[Pricing](#pricing)[Integrations](#integrations)[Support](#support)[Reviews](#reviews) Element ## What is Element? Element is a secure communications platform built on Matrix: a decentralised and end-to-end encrypted protocol. Bring your teams together, boost productivity and workplace satisfaction, while retaining complete ownership of your data. Easily collaborate with your external partners. You can even connect your Slack, MS Teams, WhatsApp accounts. Element can also be restricted for high security environments using secure border and cross domain gateways, and even air-gapped deployments. ## What is Element used for? [Collaboration](https://www.capterra.com/collaboration-software/) Overall rating Based on 10 user reviews Reviews sentiment Positive \- Neutral \- Negative \- Starting price $5 Per User, Per Month Free trial available Capterra Shortlist charts the highest-rated and most popular products... Our "Best of" badge program showcases products with the highest ratings... Our "Best of" badge program showcases products with the highest ratings... Do you work for Element?[Manage this product listing](https://digitalmarkets.gartner.com/get-listed/claim-bx?url=https://element.io&name=Element) ## Compare with a popular alternative Capterra selects software alternatives based on relevant features, verified user reviews and user interactions. Placement may be influenced by client status. ### Element 4.5 (10) VS. [4.7 (24,036)](https://www.capterra.com/p/135003/Slack/reviews/) Starting Price $5 Per User, Per Month Starting Price $8.75 Per User, Per Month Free Trial Free Version Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version Ease Of Use 4.1 (10) Ease Of Use 4.6 (10,908) Value For Money 4.6 (5) Value For Money 4.5 (6,658) Customer Service 4.0 (5) Customer Service 4.4 (6,409) ## Element alternatives [4.6 (14,521)](https://www.capterra.com/p/144037/Zoom-Video-Conferencing/reviews/) Starting price $14.99 Per User, Per Month [4.5 (13,544)](https://www.capterra.com/p/184581/Asana-PM/reviews/) Starting price $10.99 Per User, Per Month [4.5 (3,661)](https://www.capterra.com/p/136446/Confluence/reviews/) Starting price $5.42 Per User, Per Month [Microsoft Teams](https://www.capterra.com/p/168668/Microsoft-Teams/) [4.5 (10,931)](https://www.capterra.com/p/168668/Microsoft-Teams/reviews/) Starting price $4.00 Per User, Per Month [Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/168668/Microsoft-Teams/) [View all alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/214578/Element/alternatives/) ## Features Features with the highest number of reviews are displayed first. Those that have no reviews appear next, sorted alphabetically. Chat/Messaging 5.0 (2) 100.00% of 2 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Communicate using direct chat or messages within the system Collaboration Tools 5.0 (1) 100.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Provides a channel for team members to share media files, communicate, and work together Discussions/Forums 4.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Online forums/groups where users can ask questions, share ideas, best practices, etc. File Sharing 4.0 (1) 100.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Public or private sharing of digital files such as documents, audio/video, images, and more @mentions 5.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important An @mention is a way to tag or notify a specific person about a message/post Mobile Access 5.0 (1) 100.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Access software remotely via mobile devices Element 21 features An @mention is a way to tag or notify a specific person about a message/post Alerts or notifications of various types such as pop-up messages, sounds, banners, or badges Application programming interface that allows for integration with other systems/databases Communicate using direct chat or messages within the system Provides a channel for team members to share media files, communicate, and work together Manage and track all internal and external communication conducted via calls, email, text, or chat Add customized logos and colors to align with company branding Online forums/groups where users can ask questions, share ideas, best practices, etc. Create, save, and store files Public or private sharing of digital files such as documents, audio/video, images, and more Move files across different systems or networks Access software remotely via mobile devices Preview and make real-time changes in the web content Notifications that are delivered to users as soon as an event occurs Digitally share screen view with others Securely stores data to prevent data loss or breaches Allow users to access multiple services after entering their login credentials once Track the status over time for a request, process, asset, or transaction Attach digital tags to documents and assets for identification, search, or monitoring purposes Set up connections to third-party platforms to improve business processes Connect with meeting participants remotely over video Get Advice We can help you find the software with the features you need. Features 4.4 (10) 4.4 Based on 10 reviews ## Pricing Value for money 4.6 (5) Free Trial Free Version Basic $5.00 Per User,Per Month Value for money 4.6 (5) 4.6 Based on 5 reviews ## Integrations [ Slack](https://www.capterra.com/p/135003/Slack/)[ WhatsApp](https://www.capterra.com/p/180345/WhatsApp/)[ Jira](https://www.capterra.com/p/19319/JIRA/)[ Microsoft Teams](https://www.capterra.com/p/168668/Microsoft-Teams/)[ Telegram](https://www.capterra.com/p/180347/Telegram/)[ GitHub](https://www.capterra.com/p/129067/GitHub/)[ Google Calendar](https://www.capterra.com/p/213340/Google-Calendar/)[ GitLab](https://www.capterra.com/p/159806/GitLab/) Connect with a Capterra advisor for a free 15-minute consultation Get a personalized software list aligned to your business needs with guidance from our expert advisors. Our team has helped 1 million+ businesses like yours find options that fit their needs. ## Support, customer service and training options Customer Service 4.0 (5) Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos Deployment - Web - Android - iPhone/iPad Typical users - Freelancers - Small businesses - Mid size businesses - Enterprises Customer Service 4.0 (5) 4.0 Based on 5 reviews ## User reviews Overall rating 4.5 Based on 10 reviews Filter by rating 5(5) 4(5) 3(0) 2(0) 1(0) Mentioned topic Sorted by most recent AU Anonymous User Operational Manager Information Technology and Services ### "Very good value for an open-source product" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 4.0 4.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 January 5, 2024 Overall, we received very good feedback from everyone using it - this is especially important since we migrated to Element from Microsoft Teams. The pricing difference was clearly a plus, when talking 200+ users. Note however that this is just a chat client - setting up the on-premise backing servers (this was in our case Matrix + Jitsi) involved extra technical steps; but the client setup itself is as basic as it can get. Pros It is a feature rich web client for the Matrix server. It's also updated frequently and new features are added all the time. It's easy to setup, this was also one of the reasons we chose it, as we need to be in contact with non-technical users. It has "rooms" functionality for grouping people, and these do support automation via bots. Most importantly, it supports end-to-end encryption, so we did not have to worry about the server used (note however that bots only work if end-to-end encryption is turned off for that specific room) Cons The chat functionality has all the bells and whistles, but the threading is a bit clunky. Sometimes, the messages remain unread, making it hard to keep track of what was read and what wasn't. This has been greatly improved with the latest updates from 2023, but it still happens from time-to-time. Element uses Jitsi for video call integration, meaning that a Jitsi instance should be deployed somewhere before using this feature. Switched from [Microsoft Teams](https://www.capterra.com/p/168668/Microsoft-Teams/) Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. SC Smain C. scientist Health, Wellness and Fitness ### "Secure and easy chat" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 4.0 4.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 8/10 January 14, 2023 Great app so far Pros Easy to open a new room and invite pets to share info. Cons The app in my phone takes a lot of storage space probably due to previous files I've shared with my friends Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. Musliah R. Human Resources Executive Higher Education ### "Musliah's review" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 3.0 3.0 Likelihood to Recommend 8/10 July 6, 2022 Pros Tracking is used to capture all test results and monitor problems for our programs. We keep track of all our pilot projects and trial runs in the testing area. We employ planning to monitor operational requirements and link them with test instances. Cons Reporting could be considerably more effective by adding specific formats to catch errors in the process. For example, comprehensive incident reports screw up using photo formats other than the standard .jpg format. Switched from [HubEngage](https://www.capterra.com/p/153544/hubEngage/) [WEDO](https://www.capterra.com/p/182707/WeDo/) Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. Adam G. Mgr Real Estate ### "Great for Remote Work" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 3.0 3.0 Features 4.0 4.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 7/10 August 11, 2021 Pros I've used Element now for a while and feel like the screen share and mobile upload features are as slick as they get. Cons I think they could improve on the initial set-up and onboarding, but once you're on. Very smooth. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. ZW Zach W. Account executive Financial Services ### "Great team communication for privacy-focused companies" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 3.0 3.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 7/10 June 29, 2021 It's a great chat feature, and I am interested in seeing how companies create federated group chats that often partner together. That could be a neat use-case. Pros Element is a great tool for a company that's focused on privacy and internal controls. It is easy to use and has a nice UI. Cons The key verification is a bit onerous and there are a lot of hoops to jump through to setup. Also, you can not change the color and changing the font style is very unintuitive. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. AU Anonymous User Marketing Manager Insurance ### "Really satisfied!" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 3.0 3.0 Features 4.0 4.0 Customer Service 3.0 3.0 Likelihood to Recommend 8/10 April 17, 2021 Pros It is a very cool messenger and collaboration platform for small or big sized businesses. We use it for communication, managing, and just as a company or team group. Cons No problems or cons. I really like that software. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. AU Anonymous User Business Analyst Internet ### "Secure collaboration for every team" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 4.0 4.0 Likelihood to Recommend 10/10 March 23, 2021 Pros Multi-platform very convenient and secure messenger. Works great for our business needs. Cons Works great, no limitations, reliable and non-expensive solution. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. AU Anonymous User Ad Operations Manager Internet ### "Ensures highly-secure collaboration" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 March 21, 2021 Pros I guess this is the most secure messenger ever. It's open-source and offers a free plan for personal usage. Great for chatting with friends and relatives, as well as for business comunications. Cons I'm fully satisfied with this messaging app. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. BC Brendan C. AV Systems Specialist Non-Profit Organization Management ### "Element bridges our org's internal communication tools" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 March 15, 2021 Pros Element provides our organization with an open source and user-friendly enterprise SaaS solution to bridge our internal communication tools. Additionally, it provides us with a platform for true end-to-end encrypted conversations. Cons Logging in to our SaaS instance through the desktop isn't super intuitive, as it requires the end user to manually input our server hostname. Switched from [IRCCloud](https://www.capterra.com/p/210563/IRCCloud/) We needed a tool that would bridge to our other internal communications tools. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. EH Elliot H. Associate Director Public Relations and Communications ### "In our Element" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 10/10 March 3, 2021 Overall experience is positive. The UX of the app is clean and intuitive, which enables the teams to collaborate well. Pros Element provides our agency with the ability to maintain a truly secure, decentralised communications platform - a vital requirement for the often confidential nature of our work. Element is easy to deploy and use, was up and running in minutes and switching between its desktop application and mobile is seamless. Cons None so far! Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. 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