About Webex
Webex is a leading video conferencing, team collaboration, and cloud calling platform developed by Cisco, serving enterprise and SMB customers who need reliable, security-focused virtual meeting and communication tools. Originally launched as WebEx in the late 1990s (and acquired by Cisco in 2007), Webex was a pioneer in browser-based web conferencing before video calling became ubiquitous, and the platform has since evolved into a comprehensive unified communications suite.
Their platform encompasses HD video meetings with up to thousands of participants, team messaging and file sharing (Webex Teams), cloud phone service (Webex Calling), event and webinar hosting (Webex Events), and hardware devices (desk cameras, room systems) designed for the Webex ecosystem. Enterprise security features—end-to-end encryption, compliance recording, and advanced authentication—differentiate Webex from consumer-grade video tools for regulated industries and security-conscious organizations.
Webex competes primarily with Zoom and Microsoft Teams for the enterprise collaboration market. Annual subscription pricing provides meaningful savings over monthly billing. The free plan (up to 100-participant meetings with limited features) enables evaluation before subscription commitment. For organizations already in the Microsoft 365 ecosystem, Teams often provides equivalent functionality at no additional cost—a key comparison for budget-conscious SMBs.
Quick Savings Tips
- Annual subscription saves approximately 25% vs. month-to-month billing for all paid plan tiers
- Free Webex plan supports up to 100-participant meetings—evaluate before committing to a paid subscription
- Microsoft Teams (included in M365 Business subscriptions) may eliminate the need for a separate video platform
- Webex's security certifications (FedRAMP, HIPAA) are genuine differentiators for regulated industry buyers
- Compare against Zoom's equivalent plan tier for pricing, feature parity, and hardware ecosystem compatibility