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Cisco TelePresence vs Skype for Business 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

Cisco TelePresence
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Skype for Business
Ranking in Virtual Meetings
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of Cisco TelePresence is 2.9%, up from 2.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Skype for Business is 3.8%, down from 11.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Meetings Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Skype for Business3.8%
Cisco TelePresence2.9%
Other93.3%
Virtual Meetings
 

Featured Reviews

OSCAR DE LA PENA - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Solution Architect at Ricoh España, S.L.U.
One-click meeting access and seamless integration enhance video conferencing experience
Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow. The end user experiences delays when using WebRTC, sometimes taking one minute or more to receive a connection. This issue is mainly due to Cisco taking a long time to download and start the WebRTC client on their devices. Ensuring it is embedded in the device could help.
MD
Assistant Information Technology Officer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Internal communication has become more efficient while mobile usage still needs improvement
The honest answer is that the product has not really evolved in some time. Microsoft has been pushing everyone towards Teams and Skype for Business has been in maintenance mode for a while. The mobile experience is also not great. Staff who try to use it on their phones find it less reliable than the desktop version, calls drop more, and the interface is clunky. For a modern workforce that expects everything to work on mobile, that is a gap. Despite the initial setup challenges and mobile issues, we have noticed positive outcomes for our organization since adopting Skype for Business. I rate Skype for Business seven out of ten. I think that Skype for Business has served us well for what it is. A government office has different expectations from a fast-moving private company. We value stability and security over the newest features. On those terms, Skype for Business has delivered.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Cisco is a leader in video conferencing solutions because they apply the latest technologies to their devices and services, such as artificial intelligence and versatile functionalities."
"PresenterTrack cameras improve the meeting experience."
"The speaker tracker feature in Cisco Telepresence is highly valuable, especially the ability to track multiple participants and change focus during meetings."
"The SpeakerTrack feature is the most valuable feature."
"The configuration is a valuable."
"Telepresence's most valuable feature is keeping highly paid employees, such as executives, on the ground instead of wasting time flying around the world. So if you have the right telepresence plan and form, it's not just the video cameras and the systems behind them, it's the way you lay out your meeting room.You can have multiple offices interconnecting in a single meeting, and it looks like everybody's in the same big conference room together because the telepresence yields such a fantastic amount of clarity."
"It was stable. So, I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"Superior video and audio experience."
"The initial setup is not overly difficult; it's pretty straightforward in general and the deployment is also quick and only takes a minute or so."
"You can do meetings of up to two hundred people in a single conversation."
"The most valuable feature is how useful it has been for virtual meetings during the pandemic."
"Our employees use this solution for a communal space to collaborate for organizational decision making."
"The pricing is really good, it is quite affordable because it came with our Office 365, and I get a feeling that smaller organizations can interact with bigger organizations in a more global way by using this service as it is leveling the playing field."
"The conversation history feature in Skype for Business is particularly useful because it links with Outlook, and it is beneficial to access conversations with colleagues from six months ago through Skype for Business."
"The simplicity and ease of use are the most valuable features, as it's so much easier and quicker than writing an email to someone and waiting for them to read it."
"The stability was good; there are no bugs or glitches, it doesn't crash or freeze, and it's reliable."
 

Cons

"Cisco TelePresence license is expensive and should be reduced."
"The calling features can be improved."
"The tool is expensive."
"Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow."
"I would rate my experience with the initial setup a three out of ten, with ten being expensive. It was complex with badges and certificates. Too crazy."
"MX800 comes only with one available DVI port. A few more HDMI ports will improve the system's capability."
"I was in touch with one of our clients and they mentioned that they would like to have a holographic video conferencing. It would be great if that feature would be added."
"Cisco TelePresence could improve its integration capabilities."
"Skype for Business is not suitable for giving lectures."
"The cost of Skype for Business has room for improvement."
"The video conferencing quality can be improved."
"The integration with Outlook could be improved."
"Skype for Business could improve by having a document channel or repository. Microsoft Teams has a better repository place for documents that you can share with your team. You can access it anywhere from any device."
"I venture to say that 30% of the people using this solution at our company have had issues with stability, due to the volatility and crashes."
"I believe optimizing the solution for lighter endpoints, particularly for embedded endpoints on mobile devices, would be valuable."
"The user experience during long sessions could be improved to avoid issues like intermittent disconnections or login failures."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Cisco Telepresence is high, especially in Brazil. However, the quality of the product justifies the cost."
"Cisco TelePresence license is expensive and should be reduced. There is only a cost for the license and it is annually."
"We used high definition, 1080p, but again, it required license purchases. For example, with three licenses (TP licenses), each allowing one 1080p screen, if I had six participants, I'd need to lower the resolution to 720p or lower to accommodate more participants. More licenses meant more cost."
"I will rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten."
"The pricing is expensive, therefore I rate it an eight out of ten."
"The licensing is billed on a yearly basis."
"Skype for Business' pricing is reasonable."
"It may be considered costly for certain markets, such as in India."
"We purchased an open license."
"The cost of Skype for Business is incorporated into our Office 365 licenses."
"A license is required to use the solution."
"When it comes to the pricing of the solution, I rate it as a five out of ten. It falls somewhere in the middle between being cheap and expensive."
"Our company pays for a license for us to use the solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Performing Arts
12%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Construction Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Construction Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise28
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Cisco TelePresence?
Cisco TelePresence could improve the WebRTC connections, as they are quite slow. The end user experiences delays when using WebRTC, sometimes taking one minute or more to receive a connection. This...
What advice do you have for others considering Cisco TelePresence?
Cisco is a leader in video conferencing solutions because they apply the latest technologies to their devices and services, such as artificial intelligence and versatile functionalities. Security i...
What is your primary use case for Cisco TelePresence?
My primary use case for Cisco TelePresence ( /products/cisco-telepresence-reviews ) is providing video conferencing solutions for internal and external users, especially for enterprises. I am a par...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Skype for Business?
If I think back, my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing involves accessing it through our Microsoft Enterprise Agreement which covers the whole Office suite including Skype for Busin...
What needs improvement with Skype for Business?
The honest answer is that the product has not really evolved in some time. Microsoft has been pushing everyone towards Teams and Skype for Business has been in maintenance mode for a while. The mob...
What is your primary use case for Skype for Business?
My main use case for Skype for Business is internal communication across departments and between different government offices. We have staff spread across multiple locations in Malacca, and before ...
 

Also Known As

TelePresence
Skype for Business Plan 1, Skype for Business Plan 2, Lync Server
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Afni, AGCO, Bellevue, Came Group, Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC Children's), Del Papa Distributing, Instituto Zaldivar, ING Bank, Moffitt Cancer Center, Park Nicollet, Pentana Solutions Australia, San Jose State University, Sub-Zero Wolf, Transwestern and Metropolis Investment Holdings, Vital Images
EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services,LA Fitness, MedcoEnergi International, Tampa General Hospital, and HopewellHoldings Limited.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco TelePresence vs. Skype for Business and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,858 professionals have used our research since 2012.