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Blackboard Collaborate vs Google Hangouts comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 3, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Blackboard Collaborate
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
27th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Google Hangouts
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
57
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of Blackboard Collaborate is 0.9%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Google Hangouts is 0.6%, down from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

YN
Useful in webinars, meetings and online classrooms
One of the features that people enjoy is the whiteboard, providing opportunities for academics to present content and for students to contribute. The platform also allows for the creating of different rooms, enabling large classes to break into smaller groups for discussions. Students can then return to the main classroom to share their opinions. It integrates with LMS.
ANIS QURESHI - PeerSpot reviewer
Quick and seamless meeting setup offers a smooth experience
I sometimes use Google Hangouts for my personal meetings only I find that Google Hangouts is very quick and easy to create a meeting, which is its biggest benefit. It doesn't have a 40-minute limitation unlike Zoom. It is easy to set up as well, taking just a couple of minutes. So far, I think…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution allows me to connect and collaborate with my classes."
"One of the features that people enjoy is the whiteboard, providing opportunities for academics to present content and for students to contribute. The platform also allows for the creating of different rooms, enabling large classes to break into smaller groups for discussions. Students can then return to the main classroom to share their opinions. It integrates with LMS."
"Document loading and annotation."
"Its ease of use is most valuable. It is just a click, and you're in the system."
"The group chat is a very good feature, where you can see all of the participants on cameras."
"Google Hangouts is an excellent tool."
"The most valuable features of the solution are its ability to allow the sharing of screens and the way it allows a user to take control of another system."
"We use transcriptions to document meetings, which is important for productivity."
"The most valuable feature of Google Hangouts is the ability to record the classes that I'm not able to attend. I can use the class recording to view whatever I missed later."
"When you get a meeting invitation, it's very easy to just join and go."
"The most valuable feature has been the ability to present presentations during meetings."
 

Cons

"If there were maybe more tutorials outside of what I'm aware the university is suggesting, I would take more tutorials on effective ways to deliver content. I come from the industry and content was always needed when people that were observing were smart and involved and decision-makers instead of so passively just trying to pass the course. In my imagination, the tutorials would be a tool where the learners themselves can have much more hands-on learning during a Collaborate session."
"We faced outages when the user limit went over a certain number."
"The system can overload when too many try logging in."
"We don’t have any complaints."
"As someone who is not very familiar with technology, I find it acceptable. I prefer to wait and see what they will come up with in the future. However, I notice that they keep introducing new features that are better than the previous ones."
"It would be great if this solution could be added to smart TVs. We would also like the ability to broadcast to a YouTube channel when having a meeting or session using this solution."
"There is no delete option for messages which could be an added feature in a future release."
"The platform's screen-sharing feature and the participant panel could be improved."
"Maybe they should offer more security features."
"The user interface is an area with shortcomings and needs improvement."
"The UI has room for improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"There is a need to make certain payments towards the licensing costs attached to the product and some other tools that are included in the suite offered by Google. Google Hangouts alone as a product is available for free."
"I use the free version of the solution."
"We pay an annual license to use the solution."
"The screen-sharing feature is the most valuable feature."
"We access the solution through Google Workspace. It is inexpensive to use."
"This solution is available for free with the opening of a Google account."
"There is no license cost."
"There is an annual subscription to use this solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Educational Organization
87%
Computer Software Company
3%
Manufacturing Company
2%
Performing Arts
1%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Blackboard Collaborate?
One of the features that people enjoy is the whiteboard, providing opportunities for academics to present content and for students to contribute. The platform also allows for the creating of differ...
What needs improvement with Blackboard Collaborate?
We faced outages when the user limit went over a certain number.
What is your primary use case for Blackboard Collaborate?
We use the solution in web seminars, online classrooms, and meetings.
What do you like most about Google Hangouts?
It's integration with Google is the valuable feature.
What needs improvement with Google Hangouts?
One improvement could be integration with Google Calendar to help find available timeslots when scheduling meetings with many participants.
 

Comparisons

No data available
No data available
 

Also Known As

Blackboard Mobile
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

University of Derby Online, Universty of Warwick, University of Liverpool, City College Norwich, Northumberland College, Mid-Kent College, Watson Pharmaceutials, Capella University, Shore Tel Sky, Lincoln PD, City of Somerville MA, Somerset County Council
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Blackboard Collaborate vs. Google Hangouts and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.