Switch from Skype to Google Meet

Want to use Google apps at work or school?  Sign up for a Google Workspace trial

Learn the differences between Microsoft Skype for Business and Google Meet and get best practices for collaboration at work or school.

 On this page

• Comparison at a glance
• Related topics

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What you'll need

 About 15 minutes
 Google Workspaceaccount. Don't have one? Start your 14-day trial today.

Get Meet: Web (meet.google.com), Android, or iPhone & iPad

Note: The instructions in this guide are primarily web only. Get switching information for mobile devices. 

Comparison at a glance

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In Skype for Business...	In Meet...*
Start a meeting	Start a video meeting In your browser, go to Meet. Click New meetingStart an instant meeting. To start a new video meeting from Google Calendar, Gmail, or a mobile device, see Start a new video meeting.
Set up an online meeting in Microsoft Outlook	Schedule a video meeting in Calendar In Calendar, create an event. Click Add guests. Enter the names or email of the people you want to invite. Click Save. To notify guests, click Send. Guests receive an email with the event information and a link to the video meeting. For more details, see Start a new video meeting.
Join a meeting from your computer	Join a video meeting from your computer In your browser, go to Meet. Select the meeting from your list of scheduled events. Click Join now. To join a video meeting from Google Calendar, Gmail, or a mobile device, see Join a video meeting.
Join a meeting while on the go	Join a video meeting while on the go Open the Meet Android or iOS app. Select a meeting and tap Join. Only meetings scheduled through Calendar appear on Meet. If you don’t have a data network, you can call in to the meeting from a phone: You can dial in during the scheduled meeting time in one of the following ways: Enter the phone number that’s in the Calendar event or meeting invitation. Then, enter the PIN and #. From the Meet or Calendar app, tap the phone number. The PIN is automatically entered. For details, visit Join a video meeting.
Invite more people to a meeting	Add guests to a video meeting Open Meet. From a video meeting, at the bottom, click People . Click Add people.  To invite people to join the meeting: Click Invite. Enter the name or email of the guests. Click Send email. Guests get an email with the meeting link to join the meeting. (Optional) To call people directly in to the video meeting: Click Call. Enter a phone number. Click Call . The guest is dialed directly in to the ongoing meeting as an audio participant. For more details, see Add people to a video meeting.
Send IMs during a meeting	Send chat messages during a video meeting Open Meet. From a video meeting, at the bottom, click Chat . Enter a message and click Send . Note: In-meeting chats only last for the duration of the meeting. For persistent chat, in your web browser, go to chat.google.com. For more details, see Send chat messages to video meeting participants.
Share your screen	Present your screen Open Meet and join a video meeting. On the bottom, click Present now  and choose what to share: Your entire screen A window A tab Click Share. When you’re done presenting, click Stop presenting. For more details, see Present during a video meeting.
Record a meeting	Record a video meeting Open Meet. From a video meeting, at the bottom, click Activities RecordingStart recording. For more details, see Record a video meeting.
Q&A session	Audience Q&A Open Meet . From a video meeting, at the bottom, click Activities Q&A. Next to Allow questions, click Turn on . For details, visit Ask questions in a video meeting.
Take a poll	Launch a poll In a meeting, at the bottom right, click Activities   click Polls. Click Start a poll.  Enter a question and add options for the poll. Tip: You can let users respond anonymously to Polls. Before you save or launch your poll, turn on Responses appear without names . Choose one: To post your poll, click Launch. To save your poll so you can launch it later, click Save. Tip: Polls you save remain listed under Polls for the duration of the meeting. After the call ends, all polls are permanently deleted. Meeting moderators are emailed a polling report at the end of the meeting. After a poll is launched, to vote on your own poll, select one of the optionsclick Vote. For details, visit Conduct a poll during a video meeting.
Use a whiteboard	Use a whiteboard Start or Join a meeting. At the bottom right, click Activities   Whiteboarding.  Select an option: To create a new Jamboard: Click Start a new whiteboard. To open an existing Jamboard from your drive, shared drives, or computer: Click Choose from Drive.        Tip: The Jamboard file will open in a new tab and a link is shared automatically via the in-call chat. For details, visit Use a whiteboard in a video meeting.
Raise your hand	Raise your hand Open Meet. From a video meeting, at the bottom, click Raise hand or Lower hand . For details, visit Raise your hand during a video meeting.
Choose your background effect	Change your background Open Meet. Depending on when you want to change your background, choose an option: To change your background before you join a meeting, on the bottom right of your meeting image, click Change background . To change your background after you join a meeting, at the bottom, click MoreChange background. Choose a background option. For details, visit Change your background in a video meeting.

* Note: The instructions in this guide are primarily web only. Get switching information for mobile devices. 

 Related topics

To set up Meet, or get troubleshooting help, try these guides instead:

• Requirements for using Meet
• Get started with Meet
• Fix issues with Meet

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