Meet KC Chambers

Frontline employee engagement is no easy task. Your frontline employees work varying shift patterns and spend limited time at head office. They don’t tend to get much downtime during their working hours. And they aren’t always kept in the loop when it comes to company comms.  

These obstacles get in the way when you’re trying to connect frontline workers to company culture — and each other. And it’s why standard team-building activities usually fall short.

To make a success of your employee engagement strategy, you have to tailor activities to your deskless workforce. Otherwise, you risk disengagement, plus the productivity and retention issues that go with it. 

That’s why we’ve created this list of 18 employee engagement activities. These ideas are suited to busy frontline workers and their schedules. They’re designed to boost engagement and offer meaningful benefits to your employees.

Why you should care about employee engagement

Employee engagement is particularly important for frontline teams. That’s because deskless employees are less engaged and trusting of leadership than their desk-based peers. They’re also more likely to experience burnout.

This can lead to lower levels of productivity. It can also cause increased staff turnover rates, which already tend to be pretty high in frontline organizations. 

Employee engagement activities, like the ones we’ve included below, help frontline employees feel more connected to their company, role, and co-workers.

And, according to Gallup, improving your employee engagement rates can lead to a range of business benefits. Besides increased productivity and employee retention, these benefits include: 

• A reduction in safety incidents
• A decrease in absenteeism
• An increase in customer loyalty
• An increase in profitability

Employee engagement is good for employees — and it’s good for business. So let’s take a look at the activities that will help make it happen.

18 employee engagement activities (that work for a frontline workforce)

To engage your frontline workforce, you can incorporate any of the following employee engagement activities into your work days:

1. Engage with employees from day one

2. Celebrate employee milestones and contributions

3. Incentivize goals

4. Create a mentorship program

5. Offer perks that boost employee wellbeing

6. Give regular feedback

7. Encourage group chat

8. Provide shift swap tools

9. Plan a money management month

10. Launch a poll

11. Create online communities

12. Offer professional development opportunities

13. Launch a competition

14. Use video tools

15. Organize a volunteering day

16. Hand the mic to your leaders

17. Run Lunch and Learn sessions

18. Measure employee engagement

Team engagement ideas for frontline workers are different than for other workers. With their variable schedules, you can’t arrange lunch dates or after-work get-togethers. 

Here are a few employee engagement initiatives your frontline workers can benefit from.  

1. Engage with employees from day one

Start strong with comprehensive onboarding for new employees. 30% of new employees leave a job within the first 90 days of being hired.  So the onboarding experience is a key driver of employee engagement.

You can start with employee engagement activities like:

• Introducing new co-workers (digitally if it’s not possible to introduce everyone in person)
• Supporting new hires to login and familiarize themselves with your engagement tech tools
• Sharing a library of online resources that explain the company, their role, and company culture
• Assigning them a buddy or mentor

New hires need regular guidance, especially from managers. So don’t assume your workers are done onboarding after a few days or weeks. Instead, design a process that lasts for at least 90 days.

2. Celebrate employee milestones and contributions

Employee recognition improves engagement. Everyone likes to feel appreciated and valued by their employer.

So make recognition a regular feature on your company intranet or newsletter. Celebrate birthdays, volunteer work, and project milestones. Recognize the hard work and successes of employees.

You can also encourage peer-to-peer recognition. 75% of employees say that giving recognition makes them want to stay at their current organization longer.

Get co-workers to nominate each other for awards, then hold an award ceremony. Or simply get them to appreciate each other by sending a message on the company news feed.

3. Incentivize goals

Gamify the work environment by offering rewards in return for meeting goals. When employees perform well and meet targets, give them a gift you know they’ll like. Company rewards can include gift cards, discounts, cash prizes, an extra day of paid vacation, or the option to give a charitable donation.

But don’t dive right in. Before you announce your reward program, it’s a good idea to survey employees. Ask them which rewards they’d prefer so you can be sure that workers will be motivated by the prizes on offer.

4. Create a mentorship program

Do you want your employees to engage with each other, learn valuable skills, and help each other at the same time? Try rolling out a mentorship program.

Assign frontline workers a mentor within your organization. You can pair people from different departments and different levels of the company.

Then, set a regular schedule of mentor meet-ups. Mentors and mentees might like to conduct meetings online to better suit their work schedules.  

Also, offer guidance on how constructive meetings should be run. The aim is for mentees to set workplace goals and come up with a plan for achieving them.

5. Offer perks that boost employee wellbeing

A healthy worker is a productive worker. So encourage fun runs, offer free healthy snacks, and provide discount gym memberships.

Also, try to provide flexible scheduling when possible to give employees a better work-life balance. You’ll reduce employee stress and their risk of burnout.

To ensure frontline employees can access wellbeing activities, you can use a wellbeing app. Via this type of tool, you can provide employee engagement activities. Things like mindfulness and meditation sessions, nutrition planning, and health tracking, all via an employee’s mobile device.  

6. Give regular feedback

Gallup research shows that 80% of employees who say they’ve received meaningful feedback in the past week are fully engaged in their work.

So schedule activities where employees receive regular feedback from managers. Make it constructive and useful for employees, so it’s not an appointment they dread.  

Also, take a few hours each week to run an online open-door session. This is a time when employees can meet with managers digitally to ask questions and express any concerns.

7. Use the company news feed

A user-friendly employee app with a company news feed acts as a virtual water cooler. It’s a place where frontline workers, who may spend little time with co-workers, get to build stronger workplace relationships.

The comms team can support engagement by using the news feed to share a mix of essential and informal posts. They can announce news, celebrate birthdays, and share tips — encouraging workers to comment, like, and post.

Also, consider these engagement-boosting ideas:

• A weekly challenge — a photo contest, a trivia quiz, or a step-count competition
• Employee spotlight — highlight a different employee each week, describing their achievements, personal stories, and contributions
• A survey — whether the topic is something fun or something more serious, surveys are a great way to engage your workforce‍
• Health and wellness tips — share tips and articles related to physical and mental health, all suited to the demands of frontline roles

8. Provide shift swap tools

Frontline employees want greater levels of flexibility. It’s not always easy for frontline organizations to provide this when there are fixed shifts to fill.

But with shift swap tools, you make it easy for workers to achieve a little more work-life balance. They can swap shifts with co-workers without HR or managers having to get involved.

You can provide other self-serve tools, too. For example, via the Blink interface, employees can access their pay stubs, request time off, and view their shift schedules.

Automating HR tasks like this gives more control to your frontline workers and lightens the load for your HR team.

9. Plan a money management month

Money worries can affect an employee’s wellbeing and their engagement with work. And employee engagement activities are most effective when they provide real value for your workers.

So plan a money management month to help employees make informed financial decisions. Use quizzes and polls to engage employees in the conversation. Challenge employees to a low or no spend day. Provide money advice over 1:1 chats or via your company resource center.

This is exactly what they’ve done at supermarket chain, Tesco, where they recognized the strain that the cost of living crisis has put on employees. In response, they introduced a range of new initiatives:

• Skills training activities so employees develop store-wide skills and can pick up extra shifts
• A Pay Advance scheme that allows workers to access earned pay ahead of payday
• Personalized videos explaining to every worker how much their pension will be worth

10. Launch a poll

Polls give employees a chance to share their ideas and opinions. It’s a way to make their voices heard.

You can launch polls online, with the help of a tool like Blink Surveys. This allows you to quickly and easily find out what frontline employees are thinking about your chosen topic.

You might like to ask questions related to internal communications, company change, employee engagement, or simply the layout of the break room. Using this insight, you can make changes that make a real difference to your employees.

Just be sure to keep them updated with poll findings and your plan of action so they know that you’re really listening to what they have to say.

11. Create online communities

It’s easier to build connections with co-workers when you have something in common with one another. Online communities — based around shared interests — make it easy for frontline workers to find like-minded work friends.

So create space on your intranet for these types of communities. Perhaps you have a group that loves to run in their spare time. A gaggle of gamers. Or a bunch of bookworms. An online community helps bring these co-workers together.

12. Offer professional development opportunities

Training is a great way to improve workplace engagement. 71% of frontline workers have a strong desire for more learning opportunities at work. But a third of workers say that employers don’t invest enough in their growth.

Try to make training more accessible to your frontline workforce. Remember that it doesn’t have to take place in a classroom. You can put training resources into the palm of frontline workers’ hands with the help of the right technology.

You can offer micro-learning modules that workers can complete on mobile devices during a break. And provide fun online courses, with competitive and gamified features.

Also, remember that a lot of worker engagement can be tracked back to your managers. So ensure that managers get the employee engagement training they need, too.  

13. Launch a competition

Pit teams of employees against each other with a fun company-wide competition. For an engagement boost, link your competition to company goals and values.

For example, if you’re championing employee wellbeing, set workers a steps or fitness challenge.

If you’re focused on employee development, encourage workers to complete training modules by setting them a training challenge.

To highlight your commitment to a chosen charity, set a fundraising contest.

Alternatively, improve engagement on the company app with a quick photo caption competition.

Pick challenges that can be completed remotely, without teams having to meet up in person. Also, plan rewards for the winners and give regular updates via your comms channels to keep competitors engaged.

14. Use video tools

When you can’t meet face to face, video is the next best thing. You can film leadership updates, company events, and new product demos to give employees more insight into the organization and their roles.

Videos are a great option for town hall meetings. Post the video on your employee news feed and employees who can’t attend in person can watch the video back later.

Similarly, get new hires to film a video to introduce themselves and post it to the news feed. Their co-workers can comment on the post to say hello and help their new co-worker feel more at home.

15. Organize a volunteering day

Offering employees opportunities to volunteer is good for their wellbeing and engagement levels. You can make this activity more appealing to frontline workers by giving them paid time off to volunteer and by giving them flexibility over the days they choose.

Salesforce leads the way on this. They give employees seven business days every year to volunteer for one of the non-profit organizations that Salesforce formally supports — or one of their own choosing.

Jamie Olsen, senior director of Citizen Philanthropy at Salesforce says:

“These are the types of programs that people want and that are attracting them to companies right now. They better the community. They improve people’s happiness.”

16. Hand the mic to your leaders

According to Axios 2023 State of Workplace Communications report, 77% of leaders think the communications they share have the context employees need to do their jobs well. But only 46% of employees agree.

You can ensure everyone is on the same page by conducting a virtual Q&A session with one of your leadership team.

This type of event gives employees direct access to leadership. It bridges the gap between the frontline and head office. It also helps employees make their voices heard, which makes them feel valued and motivated.

The prospect of a Q&A can be a little daunting for leaders. But remember, a moderator can facilitate the session, reading out pre-submitted questions and managing live questions.

Also bear in mind that there are huge benefits to be gained. These include frontline insights, improved communication, and a stronger workplace culture.  

17. Run lunch and learn sessions

When employees have all the information they need to do their jobs well, they feel more engaged. So give employees access to an online library of resources, transferring any old paper documents to a digital format.

With this library, you can then run virtual Lunch and Learn sessions. This is where a group of employees watches or reads a selected resource. Afterwards, they discuss their reflections either over video call or via group messaging.

18. Measure employee engagement

The last on our list of employee engagement activities is one for your people team, not your frontline employees. And it’s a really important part of any employee engagement strategy.

Find out how you’re doing by tracking employee engagement KPIs. Track your employee net promoter score (eNPS), engagement with your intranet platform, or employee survey results.

You can then set goals and — by drilling down into the data provided by your platform analytics — find actionable areas for improvement.

Final thoughts: employee engagement activities and ideas

To make a success of frontline employee engagement, you need to:

• Provide employee engagement activities that offer real benefits for frontline employees
• Make these activities accessible to the frontline with the help of flexible, digital solutions
• Combine these activities with employee engagement best practices

You then create a culture that employees can play an active part in, no matter their schedule or location. You also motivate frontline workers to engage with company culture out of choice, making time for it in their busy days.

Incorporating the activities above into your frontline workplace is much easier when you have the right technology. And an employee engagement app comes in very useful. It’s a way to put all content and communication into the palm of every employee.

By creating online spaces where employees can gather, chat, share knowledge, and connect with company culture, you extend employee engagement to your hardest-to-reach employees — those on the frontline.

An app like Blink provides features including:

• Surveys and polls
• A news feed and group messaging
• An online library of resources
• Self-service functions

Take a look at Blink’s full range of features here.

Blink and Workvivo have a lot of similar features. So how do these employee communication platforms stack up against each other? And which is the best choice for your organization?

With so many employee communications platforms out there, finding the right fit for your team can be a daunting task.

Today, we’ll take a closer look at two industry frontrunners: Blink and Workvivo. Both of these platforms are designed to enhance collaboration, streamline communication, and foster a sense of community within organizations. They also act as a digital hub, giving employees access to all of the tools and resources they need to do their jobs well.

But which of these modern intranet solutions best supports your business to meet its needs and goals? Let’s take a closer look at key features, functionalities, and more to help you make an informed decision.

What is Blink?

Blink is the leading mobile-first employee experience platform, designed for frontline organizations. It’s a modern intranet, where employees can access company comms and essential workplace resources from their smartphones.

Chatting with colleagues. Signing up for shifts. Responding to the latest poll. Viewing pay stubs. Celebrating a coworker’s company anniversary. Employees can do all this and more with Blink’s comprehensive employee app.

With a range of communication, recognition, engagement, and social features — all available via a user-friendly interface — Blink helps employees feel closer to company culture and one another.

What is Workvivo?

Like Blink, Workvivo is an employee communications app. The company was established in 2017 and was acquired by Zoom in 2023.

Workvivo is an all-in-one tool for workplace communication and collaboration. Social media-style functionalities, such as podcasting, keeps employees engaged.

Blink vs. Workvivo: What are the similarities?

Internal communications

Communication channels

Both Blink and Workvivo help to streamline company communications. Messages from management. Co-worker conversations. Leadership updates. All types of communication are supported thanks to a variety of channels, including a newsfeed, mobile notifications, videos, and livestreams. Workvivo customers can also create articles, newsletters, and podcasts from within the platform.

News feed

A news feed is another thing these platforms have in common. Admins can personalize Blink’s News Feed, which serves as users’ homepage, based on each employee’s team, interests, and role. This ensures employees only see relevant comms. Because employees can also filter the news feed, it’s easy for them to find the information they’re looking for.

Chat functions

Both platforms have similar chat features that are useful for teamwork and project management. Employees can chat and share files, GIFs, images, and videos. In Blink, chat functions are a core pillar of the platform. Workvivo, on the other hand, relies on integrations with Microsoft Teams and Slack. A chat add-on is available but this comes at an additional cost.

Video conferencing

When only face-to-face communication will do, Blink and Workvivo both provide useful video conferencing tools. Teams working on either platform can start a video call right from their chat group. Workvivo does this through its Zoom video app. Blink integrates with Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, giving customers the option to use their preferred video conferencing software.

AI comms support

With Blink Assist, users get AI support when creating and sharing content. Your AI assistant can automatically generate and improve posts, helping you to better connect with your audience. Users can also use AI to summarize posts that have appeared in the news feed. This means you can stay up to date without having to read every single post. Workvivo, working with Zoom, is beginning to introduce generative AI features.

Read more: 10 best internal communication tools for 2024

Employee engagement

Blink and Workvivo both support employee engagement. They provide two-way communication tools and support employee recognition with milestone celebrations and appreciation shout-outs. Both platforms also aid the onboarding process, with employee directories, a resource hub, and new starter video introductions.

These solutions provide tools for feedback collection, like pulse survey check-ins and employee NPS (net promoter score) surveys. Blink, in particular, provides rich survey functionality. Compared to Workvivo, Blink provides a greater variety of surveys and question types. This allows you to collect in-depth data and then use feedback analysis tools to examine that data on a granular level. 

When it comes to encouraging employee engagement on the Blink platform, Blink’s customer success managers (CSMs) are on hand. Clients work with a dedicated CSM to optimize adoption and engagement.

A digital hub

Workvivo serves as a digital hub where companies can store and share documents and resources. This hub integrates with other tools in an organization’s tech stack. It’s possible to create wiki pages for collaboration and to launch other apps from within the platform.

Similarly, Blink offers a modern intranet, accessible on both desktop and mobile. Users can access important tools, documents, forms, and information, directly from the app. They can also launch other apps from within the platform thanks to a secure single sign-on. This encourages user adoption of existing software and streamlines the employee experience (EX).

Read more: Alternatives to Workplace from Meta

Blink vs. Workvivo: A closer look at key features

Blink vs. Workvivo: What are the differences?

Core product offering

Blink was purpose-built from the ground up to enhance internal communications and improve the employee experience, and that has always been our sole mission.

For companies impacted by Meta’s recent decision to sunset Workplace, this is a crucial distinction. Meta’s shift in focus away from Workplace to other business areas highlights the risk of relying on platforms that are not core to a company’s strategic direction.

Organizations partnering with Blink are choosing a vendor whose entire focus is dedicated to success in employee engagement and communication. We continuously invest in our platform, ensuring that it remains a leading solution for internal comms and employee experience.

Unlike Workvivo, which — like Workplace — is just one part of a much larger parent company’s diverse offerings, Blink’s platform isn’t just a feature among many — it’s the heartbeat of our business.

Frontline-first

Both Blink and Workvivo have a mobile app that employees can access from their smartphones. These are user-friendly spaces that employees find easy to navigate. And these apps are comprehensive, offering many of the same features on desktop and mobile versions of the platform.

However, Blink offers some features and services that particularly benefit a frontline workforce. These frontline-focused features and services include the following:  

• Feeds and chats are cached for offline reading so a poor or non-existent internet connection doesn’t prevent employees from engaging with the app
• Workers can select a “do not disturb” setting so they’re not bothered by notifications when they’re at home or trying to rest after a night shift
• Blink’s Open Shifts micro-app allows managers to advertise empty shifts and employees to volunteer for them
• Blink’s rollout team offers unparalleled support during the launch period, providing branded materials and visiting sites to help people gain access to the app

While Workvivo may be a better fit for a desk-based organization, Blink’s deep understanding of frontline teams and their needs makes this platform an excellent choice for frontline businesses.

Analytics

Workvivo offers robust analytics capabilities to track and measure employee usage data. Organizations can gain insight into platform usage and then make data-driven decisions to manage platform performance. This functionality is available for an additional fee.

Like Workvivo, Blink’s enhanced workforce analytics feature provides comprehensive usage data. But Blink goes beyond usage.

Blink analytics collate and correlate from multiple data points to provide a breadth of insight into your workforce. You can drill down into the data, examining results by department, manager, and location to get deeper, actionable insight.

Your dedicated CSM can then help you turn actionable insights into action plans. These can be distributed automatically via Blink comms channels, helping you to implement your plan and track results.

Customization

Both Blink and Workvivo allow you to add your own branding to the platform. But Blink offers more in terms of customization.

Blink provides a white-label app for full brand personalization. For larger, multinational organizations, you can also create a federated platform, with personalized branding for each region. You can compartmentalize other features, like the news feed and user directory, too. In Workvivo, colors, icons, and logos are set globally.

While the offering of out-of-the-box integrations is comparable across both products, Blink also provides deeper integrations through customized micro-apps scoped and built for each customer.

These micro-apps allow you to add functionality to the platform as you need it. You can use Blink’s pre-built digital forms to digitize and streamline processes for employees. For example, employees can use the app to request leave, view their pay stubs, or report an incident. And if you don’t see a form that quite fits your needs, you can count on the Blink team to custom-make one.

Content management

Both Workvivo and Blink offer useful content management features. It’s easy for admins to set permissions and for content creators to create and publish new content. On Blink’s app, creators can protect sensitive content so readers have to authenticate before accessing it. Blink can also integrate with design tools like Canva, which helps users create effective page layouts.

In comparison, Workvivo offers a variety of content management tools. For example, users can auto-archive content by setting an expiration date for each type of content. Publishers can also opt to receive notifications when content has expired.

Translation capabilities are also a little more robust on Workvivo. In Blink, users can set their language and choose to auto-translate comments, posts, and pages so that other users can read them in their native language. In Workvivo, content creators can take this a step further by writing content in their own language and then select the languages it should be automatically translated into. This can come in particularly handy for large, multilingual teams.

Read more: Choosing the right technology for frontline employees

Blink vs. Workvivo: Our final thoughts

Blink and Workvivo both support organizations in their internal communication and employee engagement efforts. They act as a modern intranet, with both desktop and mobile app versions that help companies reach all members of the workforce, no matter where they’re based.

Workvivo has the edge when it comes to certain capabilities, like translation. But Blink makes a great Workvivo alternative, particularly when it comes to personalization, analytics, and custom functionality.

Blink is also the go-to platform for frontline organizations. Built specifically to improve the work lives of deskless employees, Blink makes it easy for companies to encourage app adoption and engagement. It helps frontline workers feel more connected to their coworkers and company culture. It also puts all essential tools at their fingertips, improving efficiency and safety.

‍Want to find out what Blink could do for your frontline organization? Book your free demo today to see for yourself.

‍What to look for in a Slack alternative

Choosing the right Slack alternative in 2026 requires understanding how workplace communication has evolved. Today’s teams are distributed, hybrid, and increasingly mobile — so the right platform must go beyond simple chat.

Key things to look for:

1. An all-in-one experience: The best Slack alternatives combine chat, announcements, and engagement tools. Platforms like Blink bring communication, collaboration, and employee experience together, creating a single digital front door for every employee.
2. Support for small and frontline teams: Many businesses now rely on hybrid or deskless workers and need a mobile-first communication tool that employees can use without a company email.
3. Integration with everyday tools: Slack alternatives such as Blink and Microsoft Teams integrate with core systems like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and HR software, ensuring one-click access to essential apps.
4. Ease of onboarding and adoption: Tools with a familiar consumer app UX drive faster adoption across all roles and departments.
5. Customization and security: Look for flexible access controls, branded interfaces, and enterprise-grade data protection.

In short, the best Slack alternatives for small businesses and frontline workforces are those that make communication effortless, keep employees connected wherever they work, and simplify tech stacks — with Blink standing out as a leading choice in this new category of employee experience platforms.

10 Slack alternatives

Slack alternatives include:

• Blink
• Workvivo
• Google Chat
• Microsoft Teams
• WhatsApp
• Staffbase
• Unily
• Mango Apps
• Chanty
• Zoho Cliq

Let’s take a closer look with an in-depth comparison of each of these team communication tools to help you find the right fit.

#1. Blink 

Best for: Organizations with desk-based and frontline employees looking to elevate internal communication and employee experience.

Looking for a Slack alternative that actually works for your entire workforce, including frontline teams? Blink has you covered. With real-time, peer-to-peer chat at its core, Blink makes communication effortless, regardless of role or location.

But Blink isn’t just another messaging app. It’s an all-in-one employee experience platform, packed with seamless communication, collaboration, and engagement features that help connect everyone — from corporate offices to the frontline.

As a mobile-first solution, Blink works on smartphones and desktop computers with equal functionality. Every employee gets easy access to modern intranet features, including real-time conversations, surveys, a content hub, recognition tools, and social networking capabilities.

With deep third-party integrations, Blink becomes the ideal digital front door for your organization. A personalized dashboard provides employees with one-click access to all the workplace software they use, including scheduling, HRIS, project management tools, and other essential applications. 

Benefits

• Real-time chat, for any organization: With peer-to-peer messaging, group chats, and team channels, Blink makes it easy for employees to connect instantly, whether they’re at their desk, on the shop floor, or in the field.
  
  
• Mobile-first: The platform has the same features and functionality on both mobile and desktop devices, and you don`t need a company email address to use it. Enabling all workers to access communication and collaboration tools on the go.
  
  
• Personalized comms: With audience segmentation and a mix of public and private channels, employees only receive communications relevant to their team, role, location, or interests.
  
  
• Multiple communication channels: Blink offers a news feed, content hub, chat, surveys, and recognition tools, making it a complete solution for internal communication.
  
  
• Super-app integrations: Blink integrates with other workplace tools, giving employees access to communications, documents, training, and HR essentials in one place.
  
  
• Dedicated support: Blink pairs you with a customer success manager to maximize adoption and impact.
• In-built AI: Blink’s AI features help employees write, improve, and summarize content, making it faster and easier to share ideas and information.

Considerations

• An all-in-one employee experience platform: Blink includes the tools you need for communication, collaboration, and engagement in a single solution. It may exceed your requirements if you only want to replicate Slack’s messaging functionality.

#2. Workvivo

Best for: Large companies seeking a culture-led comms experience with native Zoom integration.

Workvivo is a product that’s risen to prominence in recent years due to its acquisition by Zoom. Seamless integration with Zoom’s video conferencing software is a major platform selling point. Workvivo also provides a mobile app and a variety of communication channels.

Benefits

• Culture-building communication tools: Workvivo’s channels include a news feed, live streams, and podcasts.  
• A centralized hub: Workvivo can simplify communication and collaboration by cutting down the number of tools you need.
• Translation capabilities: Break down language barriers in multilingual teams by allowing employees to publish and read content in their chosen language.
• Personalized content: A tailored activity feed ensures users only see messages that are relevant to them.

Considerations

• Chat functionality: For instant messaging, Workvivo relies on integration with Zoom Team Chat, MS Teams, or Slack. Because of this, Workvivo might not be the right choice for businesses who want to move away from Slack.
• Cost: Workvivo is one of the more expensive platforms on this list, with additional costs for some features — including Workvivo TV and advanced analytics.
• Overwhelming notifications: Some Workvivo users say that excessive notifications disrupt their work day.

Read also: Top Workvivo alternatives

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Ratings

• Capterra: 4.7/5
• G2: 4.8/5

#3. Google Chat

Best for: Google Workspace users looking for quick, lightweight team messaging.

Google Chat is an instant messaging tool that offers seamless integration with Gmail, Drive, and Meet. It’s perfect for small to mid-sized teams looking for one-to-one and group messaging software. And it’s a good Slack alternative for those keen to stay working within the Google ecosystem.

Benefits

• Google integration: You can jump from Google Chat, to Google Docs, to Google Meet, to Gmail in a click. Google Chat offers easy and extensive Google integration.
• File sharing and spaces: Users can securely share files and create dedicated spaces for specific teams or projects.
• Make announcements: For company-wide announcements, you can create threads that support up to 500,000 members.
• AI functionality: Employees can use Gemini within Google Chat. They can find answers and files, brainstorm ideas, and summarize conversations with ease.

Considerations

• Poor mobile experience: Google Chat offers a better experience on desktops than it does on mobile devices, with users mentioning unreliable notifications and tricky navigation.
• Employee engagement: The user experience offered by Google Chat pales in comparison to leaders in the field. The interface is unlikely to engage employees.
• Functionality and integrations: Users complain that Google Chat lacks the advanced features and third-party integrations provided by other chat tools.

Pricing

Free for Workspace users. Google Workspace plans start at $7 per user per month.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.5/5
• G2: 4.6/5

#4. Microsoft Teams

Best for: Formal organizations already using Microsoft 365 software.

Microsoft Teams is a popular team collaboration software. It allows desk-based, remote teams to collaborate in real-time — and it integrates with Office 365 to provide team chat, meeting, and document-sharing tools. It’s worth noting that, in contrast to Slack’s informal threads, MS Teams has a more corporate and structured feel. 

Benefits

• Office 365 integration: If you already use Office 365 software, it’s easy to add Teams into the mix.
• Video calls: Teams has in-built video conferencing tools. You can launch one-click video meetings, with breakout rooms, recordings, and transcripts.
• Advanced security: Microsoft prides itself on enterprise-level security so it’s a good option if you’re working in a highly regulated industry.
• Easy navigation: Each chat channel comes with file storage. So it’s easy to find documents that relate to each conversation.

Considerations

• Clunky interface: Teams can feel unintuitive for new users. There are lots of tabs, menus, and nested options to get used to.
• Poor mobile experience: If you want to make comms and collaboration available on smartphones, Teams isn’t the best choice.
• Lacks company-wide comms tools: MS Teams isn’t great for culture-building employee communications. You may find it hard to get critical messages to cut through.

Read more: Best Microsoft Teams alternatives

Pricing

Microsoft Teams is free for the first month. The cheapest plan starts from $4 per user per month.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.5/5
• G2: 4.4/5

#5. WhatsApp

Best for: Small teams or informal communication where compliance isn’t a concern.

Let’s start this section with a disclaimer. WhatsApp isn’t designed as an internal business communication tool. But many organizations use it as an unofficial Slack alternative, particularly if their existing comms tech doesn’t fulfill their needs. 

Frontline employees may end up using WhatsApp because the software used by their organizations is only available on desktop and with a company email address — neither of which deskless workers have easy access to.

Benefits

• Simple UX: WhatsApp offers a consumer-grade messaging experience. The app is easy and enjoyable to use — and most employees are already very familiar with it.
• Message, call, and video functions: You can use WhatsApp to speak one-to-one or to the whole team using instant messaging, audio calls, and video chats.
• Engaging functionality: WhatsApp offers a social-media-style experience. Users can leave reactions on posts, send multimedia content, and launch polls.

Considerations

• Security: WhatsApp is associated with data privacy and security concerns. The platform has been vulnerable to hacking, malware attacks, and scams in the past.
• Lack of oversight: Internal comms and IT don’t have access to admin controls or analytics.
• Blurring boundaries: Personal and work messages compete with one another. Mixing personal and work comms can blur boundaries and harm productivity.

Read more: Whatsapp alternatives

Pricing

WhatsApp is free to use.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.7/5
• G2: 4.7/5

#6. Staffbase

Best for: Large enterprises looking to centralize employee communications.

As a Slack alternative, Staffbase provides everything you need and more. It’s an intranet that works well for large organizations with both dispersed and desk-based staff. Via the app, employees can use one-to-one and group messaging functions, with the option to attach files to messages and enable and disable push notifications.

Benefits

• Great user experience: Staffbase provides an intuitive interface and clear page layouts that are easy for users to navigate.
• An all-round communication tool: With Staffbase, you get tools for top-down, bottom-up, and peer-to-peer communication.
• A content management system: A full CMS makes life easy for your internal communications team.
• Customization options: You can tailor the Staffbase interface so it matches the branding of your organization.  

Considerations

• Cost: Staffbase is at the more expensive end of the scale. You also have to pay more for advanced add-ons. So it doesn’t tend to make sense for small and medium-sized businesses.
• Limited mobile functionality: The Staffbase mobile app doesn’t provide many out-of-the-box tools for frontline workers.
• Limited integrations: Staffbase integrates well with Microsoft 365 software. But for a wide range of integrations and to give employees access to niche industry tools, you may have to look elsewhere.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.7/5
• G2: 4.6/5

Read more: Staffbase alternatives

#7. Unily

Best for: Global enterprises focused on top-down communication and intranet-style knowledge sharing.

Unily is another all-round employee experience platform. It goes beyond chat functions to connect, inform, and engage employees across your organization. You can launch polls, update the social feed, and send mandatory content, making everything available on both mobile and desktop apps. But while it excels at broadcasting information, it’s not built for real-time, peer-to-peer conversation.

Benefits

• Strong top-down communication tools: Unily lets you create and distribute targeted content via news articles, social feeds, and mandatory reads.
• An integrated people directory: It’s easy for employees to find co-workers and start conversations with them.  
• Read receipts and notifications: Read receipts tell you when a recipient has seen your message — and notifications ensure that critical comms are never missed.
• Personalization: Unily helps you segment your audience and tailor content so employees only receive relevant information.

Considerations

• Lack of instant messaging: Unlike Slack, Unily doesn’t support real-time chat between employees — limiting peer-to-peer collaboration.
• Complexity: Unily is a comprehensive comms tool. But setup and management will take up a lot of your time.
• Cost: Unily customers say they get a lot for their money. But this is one of the priciest Slack alternatives out there.
• A second-tier mobile experience: Because the desktop version of Unily is so complex, it can be tricky for admins to translate the experience to a small smartphone screen.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.6/5
• G2: 4.5/5

#8. MangoApps

Best for: Organizations who want to create a unified digital workplace.

MangoApps is an employee experience platform that combines document management, project collaboration, and a news feed. It provides audience-targeting tools and some good configuration options.

Benefits

• Easy to use: Both employees and admins will find it easy to use MangoApps and there’s a minimal learning curve.
• A one-stop shop: MangoApps provides many of the tools you need for internal comms, recognition, and employee engagement.
• Comprehensive search: It’s easy for users to find what they’re looking for within the platform thanks to a good search function.
• Built-in knowledge management: MangoApps offers easy document management and knowledge base features.

Considerations

• User experience: UX and the visual appeal of the platform lag behind that of other platforms on this list.
• A poor mobile experience: The mobile app experience is also not up to scratch, with core features for frontline workers relying on integrations.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.4/5
• G2: 4.2/5

9. Chanty

Best for: Budget-conscious companies looking for a Slack-lite tool.

Taking things back to basics, Chanty is an internal communication app designed to connect office-based and frontline employees in small to mid-sized teams. It provides a centralized hub for messages, contacts, and tasks and an intuitive interface that allows teams to access information and collaborate.

Benefits

• Intuitive messaging: Chanty supports one-to-one and group conversations across a clearly organized interface.
• Create tasks and Kanban boards: You can start task discussions with a click and manage tasks, due dates, and status with collaborative boards.
• File sharing capabilities: Users can share files, uploading and accessing documents and images within the direct messages.

Considerations

• Limited features: Chanty won’t work as an all-in-one internal communication and real-time collaboration solution. You’ll need other tools in the mix.
• Lack of integrations: Chanty doesn’t provide easy integration with many popular software solutions.
• Scalability issues: This platform is designed for businesses at the smaller end of the scale so if you’re likely to grow quickly, you’ll need a new solution before too long.  
• Limited customization: The platform is simple to use but it doesn’t offer advanced customization options.

Pricing

Chanty offers a free plan with paid plans starting at $3 per month per user.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.7/5
• G2: 4.5/5

10. Zoho Cliq

Best for: Businesses already using the Zoho software suite.

Zoho Cliq is another Slack alternative to consider in 2025. It provides a secure chat platform for communication within teams and with external stakeholders. You can use video calls, real-time messaging, and file-sharing tools.

Benefits

• Simple UI: Users say that Zoho Cliq is easy and intuitive to use.
• Comprehensive internal team communication: Teams have all the tools they need to communicate effectively, even when working in different locations.
• A good mobile experience: Users are positive about Zoho Cliq’s mobile app, particularly in comparison to Slack’s mobile experience.

Considerations

• Limited functionality: Zoho Cliq works best as part of the Zoho ecosystem, which includes CRM and project management software. Alone, it has limited functionality.  
• Lack of customization: You have limited control over notifications, status settings, and the Zoho Cliq interface.
• Lack of integrations: Zoho Cliq doesn’t offer the same range of third-party integrations as Slack.

Pricing

Zoho Cliq customers can start with a free trial. Plans start from $2 per user per month.

Reviews

• Capterra: 4.6/5
• G2: 4.4/5

What to look for in a Slack alternative

The best alternatives to Slack provide all the communication tools you currently rely on. They also fill the gaps — fixing some of the issues your team experiences with Slack to create a more effective and engaging employee experience.

Beyond the best possible real-time chat and collaboration features, here’s what you should be looking for when choosing an alternative to Slack.

A consumer-grade user experience

A user-friendly interface, simple navigation, and clear communication channels make life easy for employees — and ensure high levels of software adoption.

Easy onboarding

The best Slack alternatives have a minimal learning curve — for both employees and admins. They’re easy and enjoyable to use from day one.

Extensive integrations

To avoid app overload, your communication tech should integrate with the other tools you use, putting everything employees need in one easy-access location.

Customization and personalization

The best internal communication tools are customizable solutions that allow you to put your stamp on them with company branding. They allow you to tailor notification settings and segment audiences so they receive only relevant comms.

Cost-effectiveness

Pick a platform that gets good adoption rates. Also, choose tools that reach all employees — including hard-to-reach frontline workers — so you don’t have to pay for multiple software subscriptions.

Security

The best Slack alternatives keep your data safe and secure. Look for tools that prioritize security with key features like end-to-end encryption (in transit and at rest) and multi-factor authentication.

Find the right alternative to Slack and supercharge workplace communication

So which solution is best for your organization? 

It depends on whether you need a like-for-like Slack replacement or a complete internal communication platform upgrade.

A simple team chat app makes it easy for desk-based teams to message and collaborate. But an employee experience platform takes communication to the next level. 

With built-in surveys, recognition tools, deep integrations, and a social news feed, an employee communication platform connects your team to your organization’s culture and purpose while reducing time spent switching between apps.

When you choose the right Slack alternative, you can create a more engaged, connected, and loyal workforce — something Slack was not designed to deliver.

‍Blink brings this vision to life by turning everyday conversations into real connections through a single, mobile-first employee experience app and platform — software that unites communication, collaboration, and culture across every team.

Blink. And turn conversations into real connection with an employee experience app.
‍

MangoApps is a well-known name in the internal communication and collaboration space, offering an all-in-one platform for employee intranets, communication, and task management. But for many organizations—especially those with deskless or distributed teams—it’s not always the best fit. Whether you're looking for a more intuitive interface, stronger mobile capabilities, or better support for real-time communication, you're not alone in your search.

In this guide, we break down the top 12 MangoApps alternatives to consider in 2025, based on usability, features, employee engagement, and scalability.

What to look for in a MangoApps alternative

Before diving into the list, here are the key factors to consider when evaluating alternatives:

• Mobile-first experience: If your workforce includes frontline or non-desk employees, you’ll need a platform that works seamlessly on mobile devices.
• Ease of use: Platforms with clean interfaces and intuitive navigation drive higher adoption across all levels of the organization.
• Real-time communication: Look for tools that enable instant updates, alerts, and chat, not just static content.‍
• Integration flexibility: Your platform should connect easily with tools like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Workday, and HRIS systems.
  
• Employee engagement tools: Polls, surveys, recognition features, and content targeting help drive connection and culture.
  
• Scalability and support: Whether you’re a company of 500 or 50,000, ensure the platform can scale with you—and that help is readily available.
  

Here are the best alternatives to MangoApps in 2025

#1. Blink – The all-in-one employee experience app

Best for: Enterprise organizations that want to streamline communication, drive engagement, and boost productivity.

Blink stands out as the most powerful MangoApps alternative — especially for organizations looking for a modern, mobile-first platform that actually gets used. Unlike traditional intranet tools that sit in the background, Blink puts everything your employees need into one intuitive app: communications, schedules, forms, HR systems, and more. With real-time chat, content targeting, newsfeeds, surveys, and recognition features, Blink doesn’t just inform employees — it activates them.

The platform is designed for engagement, boasting adoption rates of over 80% across industries like retail, healthcare, logistics, and manufacturing. It also integrates effortlessly with tools like Microsoft 365, Workday, UKG, and ADP, making it a true hub for the digital employee experience. Plus, Blink’s admin tools give Internal Comms, HR, and IT full control over what content is delivered to whom — so you’re always reaching the right people with the right message.

For companies tired of legacy platforms that don’t connect with modern workforces, Blink is a clear upgrade.

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#2. Staffbase

Best for: Large enterprises that want to build branded employee apps.

Staffbase specializes in custom-branded employee communication apps, with a strong focus on top-down messaging and internal news delivery. It’s a good fit for enterprises with a strong emphasis on company-wide updates, although some users find its collaboration features limited compared to more integrated platforms.

#3. Unily

Best for: Enterprises seeking a polished intranet with strong SharePoint integration.

Unily delivers a sleek and customizable intranet experience, particularly suited to companies already using Microsoft tools. It shines in content publishing and brand personalization, but may require a significant implementation timeline and budget.

#4. Simpplr

Best for: Companies looking for an intranet focused on content discovery and employee engagement.

Simpplr offers a modern, AI-powered intranet designed to help employees find the information and people they need quickly. Its strengths lie in personalization, integrations, and employee feedback tools, though smaller teams might find it more than they need.

#5. Haiilo

Best for: Social-first communication and employee advocacy.

Haiilo blends internal communication with social sharing, making it a great option for organizations that want to empower employees to become brand ambassadors. It supports news distribution, surveys, and analytics, but collaboration tools are more limited.

#6. LumApps

Best for: Organizations embedded in the Google Workspace ecosystem.

LumApps integrates deeply with Google tools and offers features like personalized news feeds, social communities, and knowledge management. It’s well-suited for content-heavy communication but may not be ideal for frontline teams.

#7. Jive

Best for: Enterprises looking for a community-driven intranet.

Jive is a mature platform known for its collaboration and knowledge-sharing capabilities. It supports employee communities and forums but may feel outdated compared to newer, more agile platforms.

#8. Igloo Software

Best for: Mid-size businesses seeking a flexible digital workplace solution.

Igloo offers pre-built templates, collaboration tools, and strong document management. It’s a solid choice for knowledge workers but lacks the modern mobile experience many organizations now require.

#9. Workvivo

Best for: Organizations prioritizing culture, recognition, and employee social engagement.

Workvivo turns your intranet into a social space where employees feel more connected to their company. Its strength lies in fostering real-time interaction and transparency. Many teams choose it to reinforce culture and encourage engagement beyond standard top-down messaging. It’s engaging and user-friendly, though companies may need to pair it with additional tools for workflows, operations, or integrations.

#10. Happeo

Best for: Google Workspace-centric companies wanting a fast, social intranet.

Happeo blends social features with knowledge sharing and is known for its fast deployment and Google integration. It’s ideal for remote or hybrid teams who need an intranet without the complexity.

#11. Speakap

Best for: Deskless workforce communication, especially in retail and hospitality.

Speakap is built for frontline teams and focuses on secure, real-time updates. It’s easy to use and offers role-based content delivery, though it lacks the depth of features found in all-in-one platforms like Blink.

#12. Interact Software

Best for: Enterprises wanting a structured, content-rich intranet.

Interact offers strong content management, personalization, and search capabilities. It’s geared toward knowledge sharing and compliance-driven industries but may not offer as fluid a mobile experience.

Final thoughts on choosing a MangoApps alternative

If you're searching for a MangoApps alternative that delivers better engagement, faster communication, and a user experience your employees will love, Blink should be at the top of your list. While other platforms have their strengths, Blink combines everything you need — mobile access, real-time updates, integrations, and workforce-wide engagement — into a single platform that scales with your business.

In today’s modern workplace, finding the right internal communication and employee engagement platform is key to your organization's success. The right software can boost connection, collaboration, and productivity. That translates to better staff retention and better business results. 

Of course, the wrong software can get in the way of company communication and engagement. Some platforms exclude the members of your workforce who don’t sit at a desk. Some complicate comms to the point that employees stop engaging. So finding a platform that meets the unique needs of your organization takes time and research. 

Workvivo has long been a popular internet option. But there’s lots of other software available, each with its advantages and disadvantages — and at a variety of different price points. Here, we take a look at ten Workvivo alternatives to help you find a solution with all the features and functionality your organization needs. 

What to look for in a Workvivo replacement

So what makes a good Workvivo replacement? What should you be looking for? Here are a couple of factors to consider.

Ease of use and accessibility. A user-friendly interface ensures that all employees, regardless of technical ability, can navigate and engage with the platform easily. 

Integration capabilities. Look for a platform that seamlessly integrates with your existing tools and systems, such as HR software or project management platforms, to streamline workflows and enhance efficiency.

Communication channels. The best communication tools provide a variety of communication channels. Look for two-way communication, a social-media-style news feed, polls, 1:1 chats, video conferencing, and a hub of company resources.  

Customization and personalization options. Customization options allow you to tailor the platform to match your technical requirements and branding. Personalization allows you to adapt interfaces and content so they’re relevant to each individual employee. 

Scalability. Your chosen solution needs to grow with you. So choose a platform that can accommodate your organization's expansion without sacrificing performance or user experience.

Analytics. To learn more about employee engagement and platform usage, you need robust analytics and reporting functions. Data should be relevant, easy to understand, and easy to act upon. 

Adoption and engagement. Look at user adoption and engagement figures. If lots of other organizations (like yours) have had a successful experience with a particular software, you can be much more confident that you will too.

Top Workvivo alternatives in 2025

1. Blink

Blink is a mobile-first, modern intranet that supports employee communication and engagement across both desktop and mobile devices.

This platform facilitates two-way communication, surveys, employee recognition, and content sharing. With robust analytics, managers get to know how employees are engaging with the intranet and the organization. And with excellent integrations, you can create a digital hub where both desk-based and frontline employees can access essential workplace tools.

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Benefits

Mobile-first: The Blink platform offers exactly the same features and functionality on mobile as it does on desktop and it doesn’t require a company email address. So all workers get a comprehensive and user-friendly experience.

Personalized internal communications: A tailored news feed ensures employees receive relevant information based on their teams, interests, and roles.

Advanced analytics: Robust analytics capabilities provide actionable employee engagement insights, enabling data-driven decision-making.

Deep integrations: Blink's super-app acts as the digital front door for your organization, so employees can access comms, documents, training, and HR essentials, all in the same place.  

Customer support: Blink customers work with a dedicated customer success manager who helps to optimize the app for the organization and ensure worker adoption.

Challenges

Frontline-first: Blink was primarily designed for frontline workers, though there is a best-in-class desktop application so that all employees can utilize.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.6/5

G2: 4.7/5

2. Slack

Slack is one of the most popular workplace communication apps, especially for organizations that have employees working from home. It’s known for its intuitive interface and a variety of third-party integrations. Slack’s supported platforms include web, iOS, and Android.

Benefits

Real-time messaging: Instant messaging fosters seamless communication and collaboration among team members, while separate ‘channels’ help to keep topics separate and organized.

Integration capabilities: Integrates with over 2,500 third-party tools and services, so you can incorporate the intranet and productivity features that Slack lacks. 

Customization: Offers a range of customization options to tailor the platform to organizational and individual needs.

Challenges

Email addresses required: Employees who don’t have access to an email address will not be able to join Slack.

Limited file storage: Free plans only allow you to access messages and documents for up to 90 days. This may not be enough for organizations with extensive data needs.

Navigation: You can view conversations in the left sidebar but if you have multiple conversations on the go, it can be hard to find the chat you’re looking for.

Notifications: Slack’s constant notifications can be distracting for workers.

Pricing

A free version supports 1:1 meetings and messages. Paid plans start from $7.25 USD per user per month, paid annually.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.7/5

G2: 4.5/5

3. Jostle 

Jostle is a cloud-based intranet software provider for companies looking to streamline their internal communication. It helps organizations align teams, share news, and recognize employee contributions.

Benefits

Easy onboarding: Jostle is a simple platform. Many customers say Jostle is easy to learn and use.

Employee engagement tools: Customers enjoy the ability to share news, documents, and recognition with their team.

Content filtering: You can segment your audience by department, location, and more when sharing content.

Jostle TV: Jostle has a cool feature that allows you to transfer content to TV screens in your workspace.

Challenges

Limited analytics: Jostle's analytics capabilities are less robust compared to other platforms, limiting insights into employee engagement and performance.

Requires a work email: Customers mention difficulty with frontline employee adoption as workers don’t want to use their personal email address to access work platforms.

Lack of customization: You can’t remove features that aren’t relevant to your business, which can make for a confusing and cluttered user interface (UI).

Pricing

Monthly pricing starts at $2.77 USD per user, based on a team of 500 people.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.4/5

G2: 4.5/5

4. Interact 

Interact is one of the top intranet platforms for those looking for something fun and interactive, rather than something corporate. It combines a social feed, internal communication software, and a collaboration tool.

Benefits

Intranet solutions: Interact offers intranet solutions designed to drive employee engagement and collaboration across the organization.

Employee feedback: This platform supports polls and surveys, so you’ll find it easy to get feedback from your workforce.

Customization: Interact has flexibility in how your interface looks and feels, allowing customization for what you are looking for.

User support: Interact provides dedicated customer support and resources to assist organizations in maximizing platform usage and effectiveness.

Challenges

Limited scalability: Interact's capabilities may be limited in scalability and customers don't often have much input into product development or feedback. For this reason, Interact can feel outdated.

Analytics limitations: Interact has limited analytics functions for customers to engage and learn from.

Time-intensive: For SMEs, Interact can prove difficult. You may need a dedicated team to manage this platform effectively.

Cost: Some Interact features — like pulse surveys and advanced analytics — come at an additional cost.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.6/5

G2: 4.6/5

5. Microsoft Teams 

Microsoft Teams is a team collaboration app. It integrates with Office 365 to provide chat, meeting, and document-sharing tools. And it allows remote workers to collaborate in real-time.

Benefits

Office 365 integration: Seamless integration with Office 365 tools enhances productivity and collaboration within teams.

Collaboration features: Features such as chat, video conferencing, and document sharing facilitate real-time collaboration and communication.

Security and compliance: Microsoft Teams prioritizes security and compliance, providing peace of mind for organizations handling sensitive information.

Navigation: Each channel comes with file storage so it’s easy to find the documents related to the conversations you’re part of. 

Challenges

Complexity: Microsoft Teams' extensive feature set may lead to complexity, requiring users to invest a lot of time in learning the platform.

Pricing structure: While basic features are included in Office 365 subscriptions, additional functionalities incur extra costs.

Resource intensiveness: Microsoft Teams may require significant resources for implementation, customization, and ongoing maintenance, particularly for large organizations.

Poor internal communication: You only get a limited number of channels and may find it difficult to get critical messages to cut through. 

Pricing

You can try Microsoft Teams for free for a month. After that, the cheapest plan (the Essentials plan) costs $4.00 USD per user per month, paid annually.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.5/5

G2: 4.3/5

6. Igloo Software

Igloo is a digital workplace experience software that offers a community, recognition, resources, and more to employees.

Benefits

Digital workplace solutions: Igloo Software offers comprehensive solutions for creating digital workplaces, including intranet, collaboration, and knowledge management tools.

Collaboration features: Igloo provides a range of collaboration features such as document sharing, project management, and task tracking to enhance teamwork and productivity.

Powerful analytics: This platform provides excellent analytics that help you to optimize content, find key creators, and understand user flow.

Challenges

Integration challenges: Integrating Igloo software with other systems or tools isn’t straightforward and may require additional development resources.

Learning curve: There’s a learning curve with Igloo that can impact initial usability and adoption.

Lack of customization: Customers sometimes face challenges with customizing pages and a lack of flexibility within the product.

Pricing

Pricing is available upon request. Although Igloo does say that pricing typically starts at around $20,000 USD per year for an organization.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.5/5

G2: 4.2/5

7. Simpplr:

Simpplr is a modern, social-media-style intranet with an attractive interface. It was designed for enterprise and medium-sized organizations and it provides a digital hub where employees can share information.

Benefits

Great customer support: Users appreciate the hands-on support from the Simpplr team, which continues post-launch with training resources and ongoing updates.

A modern, minimal interface: Simpplr looks great but keeps visuals simple, which encourages adoption, reduces the learning curve, and makes it easy for users to find what they’re looking for.

AI assistance: Simpplr is an ‘AI-powered’ intranet. You can use AI to provide employee guidance, automate HR processes, produce content, and summarize conversations.

Personalization: The platform’s personalization features allow you to target information to specific employees, based on their activity, roles, locations, and interests.

Challenges

Lack of customization: Simpplr doesn’t have as much design flexibility and doesn’t provide as many templates as other software on this list.

Integrations: Some users say they struggled to integrate the intranet with some of their third-party apps.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.8/5

G2: 4.7/5

8. Staffbase

The Staffbase intranet works well for big corporations with both dispersed and desk-based employees. It helps teams communicate more effectively, with the help of content distribution, instant notification, and integrated third-party tools.

Benefits

Easy-access resources: Staffbase makes it easy for employees to publish and access documents, videos, and images via a single portal.

Reporting: The platform has in-built reporting features so you can easily see how many employees use the platform and interact with your posts.

Customization: You can customize the Staffbase interface to match the branding of your organization.

HR functionality: With communication tools, surveys, and employee self-service tools, Staffbase makes life easier for your HR team.

Challenges

Limited analytics: Staffbase analytics isn’t comprehensive enough to tell you how users are searching the intranet.

Cost: Some small and medium-sized business users say that Staffbase is expensive. You also need to pay more if you want to add Content Review and Approval Workflow modules.

Limited mobile functionality: Staffbase does provide a mobile app but there aren’t many out-of-the-box functions for frontline workers.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.8/5

G2: 4.6/5

9. LumApps

LumApps provides intranet software for desk-based organizations. It’s a type of social intranet that promotes effective employee communication, document sharing, and employee engagement.

Benefits

Google and Microsoft integrations: LumApps integrates well with Google Workspace and Microsoft 365.

Translation capabilities: LumApps makes it easy to translate content into 30+ languages, which is great for multilingual teams.

Customization: This platform offers good customization options, allowing you to tailor UX and content to each region and market within your company.

Employee journeys: You can segment your audience and create a personalized employee journey with automated campaigns.

Challenges

Integrations: While integration with Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace is excellent, other integrations are sometimes not as effective.

Slow updates: Users complain that the LumApps team is slow at implementing essential updates and improvements.

Admin user experience: The end-user experience is good. But some admins say that the platform clunky and slow to use.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.1/5

G2: 4.2/5

10. Unily

Unily is an employee experience platform, designed to connect, inform, and engage employees. Aimed at large and more complex organizations, it provides a range of internal communication and intranet features.

Benefits

Good UX: End-users find the user interface (UI) attractive and easy to use. Strong UX aids platform adoption and engagement.

Personalization: Unily makes it easy to target the right information at the right employees, so everyone can enjoy timely, relevant content.

Flexibility: Integrations and customizations mean platform managers have a lot of flexibility to create the design and functionality they need.

Broadcast emails: Unily’s email newsletter feature allows you to create, schedule, and send emails to in-house staff and non-platform users, too. 

Challenges

Complexity: Unily is a comprehensive tool but this means it takes a lot of time to set up. It also requires a lot of management to ensure the front-end experience doesn’t become overwhelming.  

Cost: Unily customers get a lot for their money but it’s one of the priciest platforms on the market.

Learning curve: For admins, the content management system can feel complicated and training is required to get the most out of it.

Pricing

Pricing is available on request.

Reviews

Capterra: 4.6/5

G2: 4.5/5

In summary

Workvivo may be a popular choice for employee communication and engagement. But it’s not the only platform out there. There are lots of Workvivo alternatives, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.

For frontline organizations, Blink makes an unbeatable alternative to Workvivo. With Blink, you get a user-friendly, mobile-first app that gives every employee access to company comms, connection, and culture.

You put a news feed, group messaging, employee recognition, company resources, and survey functions at the fingertips of your workforce. You also give workers easy access (via single sign-on) to the digital hub and all your workplace tools.  

The Blink app creates a sense of belonging for frontline employees, bringing them closer to your organization while improving collaboration and productivity, too. It also supports high levels of user adoption and platform engagement.

Take a look at our Customer Stories to find out how other organizations have benefitted from using Blink.

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3. Is Blink a good fit for enterprise and hybrid workforces?

Yes. Blink is built for scalability and flexibility, making it ideal for enterprises, hybrid teams, and multi-location organizations. With powerful targeting, analytics, and role-based access, it supports both corporate and distributed teams equally well.

4. Why choose Blink over other Workvivo competitors?

Blink brings communications, resources, and tools into a single hub — improving productivity, reducing app sprawl, and increasing employee engagement. It's intuitive to use, quick to deploy, and trusted by organizations across industries like healthcare, tech, retail, and logistics.

5. How does Blink pricing compare to Workvivo?

Blink offers transparent, scalable pricing based on your organization's needs — often delivering better value than Workvivo, especially at scale. There’s also a free plan for eligible nonprofits and an affordable upgrade path to enterprise-grade features.

Hi I am Fabien, I moved to London in 2012 from my home country France. I studied Business Management and prior to joining Blink in June 2021, I spent 8 years at Estée Lauder Companies as a Business Analyst.

In 2020, I took on a Software Engineering Bootcamp at General Assembly to start a new career as a Developer. 🚀

At Blink, I am a Full Stack Developer within the Solutions Engineering Team. Day to day, my job is to help our customers getting extra value out of Blink. ⭐️

Some of the projects I work on include building integrations with third party systems our customers use or creating digital forms within the app to replace existing paper processes our customers might have. ✅

I love working at Blink because we enable frontline workers from key sectors, such as healthcare or transport, to feel better connected to their organisation and we help them streamline some of the tasks they have to do on a day to day basis so they can focus on making the world a better a place.

If you want to make a difference, if you like to be challenged, if you are eager to learn and want to be part of an awesome team, Blink is the right place for you! 💙