ChantyCommunication for small business — Chanty is a strong fit for small service businesses, creative agencies,…
Team messaging, video calls, and built-in task tracking for small teams at $3 per user per month.
Pricing
Priced per user per month. Free tier available for unlimited users with limited message history. Business plan at $3/user/month includes unlimited message history, screen sharing, and priority support.
Overview
Picture a 12-person marketing agency where half the team is remote: designers are DMing file links via email, the project manager is chasing status updates in three different apps, and nobody can find last week's client feedback. Chanty was built specifically to collapse that kind of scattered communication into a single, affordable workspace—without the sticker shock that comes with enterprise-grade platforms. At its core, Chanty is a team messaging app that layers in audio and video calling, threaded conversations, and a lightweight task board so teams can communicate and execute without switching tools. Messages are organized into topic-based channels or direct threads, and every message can be converted into a task with a single click—assigning it, setting a due date, and surfacing it in Chanty's built-in Teambook view. That Teambook acts as a command center, aggregating tasks, pinned links, shared files, and contacts in one sidebar panel. For a small business owner, the free plan is a genuine starting point: up to five users get unlimited messaging history (a direct shot at Slack's 90-day free-tier limit), voice messages, one-on-one video calls, and 20 GB of file storage. A freelance operations lead running a small crew can stay entirely on the free tier while coordinating daily stand-ups via audio message and tracking deliverables on the task board. When headcount grows, the $3-per-user Business plan unlocks group video calls, unlimited integrations, and guest access—useful for a sales team that needs to loop in clients or contractors without giving them full workspace access. Onboarding is low-friction by design. Teams typically migrate from Slack or email within a day; there's no complex admin configuration required, and the mobile apps mirror the desktop experience cleanly. Importing history from other platforms is limited, so expect a clean-break migration rather than a seamless archive transfer. Who should look elsewhere? Teams that live inside Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 and need deep native integration—Chanty's ecosystem of third-party connectors is narrower than Slack's. Similarly, if your workflow depends heavily on developer tools like GitHub, Jira, or CI/CD pipeline notifications, the integration library may feel thin. Larger organizations needing enterprise SSO, advanced compliance logging, or granular admin controls will outgrow Chanty quickly.
Features
- Unlimited message history on all plans, including the free tier
- One-click task creation from any message with assignee and due date
- Teambook sidebar consolidates tasks, files, contacts, and pinned links
- Built-in one-on-one and group audio and video calling
- Voice messages for async communication without scheduling a call
- Guest access for external collaborators on the Business plan
- 20 GB file storage on free plan; increased on Business tier
- Mobile apps for iOS and Android with feature parity to desktop
Best for
Chanty is a strong fit for small service businesses, creative agencies, and remote-first startups with teams of 2–25 people who need a single tool to cover daily messaging, quick video huddles, and basic project tracking. It's particularly well-suited to teams migrating off Slack primarily to escape the message-history paywall or cut communication costs without sacrificing core functionality. Operations-heavy small businesses—think boutique logistics firms, small HR teams, or content studios—benefit most from the task-from-message workflow, which reduces the need for a separate lightweight project management tool. The free plan makes it an easy entry point for bootstrapped teams, while the predictable $3/user Business pricing removes budget anxiety as headcount scales.
Limitations
Chanty's third-party integration library is significantly smaller than Slack's or Microsoft Teams', which can be a real constraint for tech-forward teams relying on developer tools, CRMs, or marketing automation platforms. Group video calls are capped in participant count on some plans—verify current limits on the vendor site before committing. The task management feature covers basic assignment and due dates but lacks the depth of dedicated tools like Asana or ClickUp; no subtasks, dependencies, or Gantt views. Migrating message history from another platform is not straightforward, so teams with compliance needs or a strong preference for preserving chat archives should plan for a clean-slate transition.
Why this SMB score
Chanty scores well on the four SMB criteria that matter most. Time-to-value is high: most small teams are up and running in under an hour, with no IT department required. Cost predictability is excellent—$3/user/month billed annually is one of the most transparent pricing structures in the category, with no per-feature add-ons cluttering the bill. The free plan's unlimited message history removes the most common frustration small teams cite when outgrowing free Slack, giving Chanty a genuine on-ramp rather than a gimped trial. Admin overhead is minimal; the interface is clean enough that non-technical owners can manage the workspace without documentation. The score stops at 8 rather than 9 or 10 because the integration ecosystem is limited compared to incumbents, and the task management layer, while useful, won't replace a dedicated PM tool for teams with complex project needs. Those two gaps mean some SMBs will still need a second tool, partially undercutting the all-in-one value proposition.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Chanty?
- Team messaging, video calls, and built-in task tracking for small teams at $3 per user per month. Picture a 12-person marketing agency where half the team is remote: designers are DMing file links via email, the project manager is chasing status updates in three different apps, and nobody can find last week's client feedback. Chanty was built specifically to collapse that kind of scattered communication into a single, affordable workspace—without the sticker shock that comes with…
- Who is Chanty best for?
- Chanty is a strong fit for small service businesses, creative agencies, and remote-first startups with teams of 2–25 people who need a single tool to cover daily messaging, quick video huddles, and basic project tracking. It's particularly well-suited to teams migrating off Slack primarily to escape the message-history paywall or cut communication costs without sacrificing core functionality. Operations-heavy small businesses—think boutique logistics firms, small HR teams, or content studios—benefit most from the task-from-message workflow, which reduces the need for a separate lightweight project management tool. The free plan makes it an easy entry point for bootstrapped teams, while the predictable $3/user Business pricing removes budget anxiety as headcount scales.
- What are the main limitations of Chanty?
- Chanty's third-party integration library is significantly smaller than Slack's or Microsoft Teams', which can be a real constraint for tech-forward teams relying on developer tools, CRMs, or marketing automation platforms. Group video calls are capped in participant count on some plans—verify current limits on the vendor site before committing. The task management feature covers basic assignment and due dates but lacks the depth of dedicated tools like Asana or ClickUp; no subtasks, dependencies, or Gantt views. Migrating message history from another platform is not straightforward, so teams with compliance needs or a strong preference for preserving chat archives should plan for a clean-slate transition.
- Why does AIStackForSMB rate Chanty 8/10 for SMBs?
- Chanty scores well on the four SMB criteria that matter most. Time-to-value is high: most small teams are up and running in under an hour, with no IT department required. Cost predictability is excellent—$3/user/month billed annually is one of the most transparent pricing structures in the category, with no per-feature add-ons cluttering the bill. The free plan's unlimited message history removes the most common frustration small teams cite when outgrowing free Slack, giving Chanty a genuine on-ramp rather than a gimped trial. Admin overhead is minimal; the interface is clean enough that non-technical owners can manage the workspace without documentation. The score stops at 8 rather than 9 or 10 because the integration ecosystem is limited compared to incumbents, and the task management layer, while useful, won't replace a dedicated PM tool for teams with complex project needs. Those two gaps mean some SMBs will still need a second tool, partially undercutting the all-in-one value proposition.
- How does pricing work for Chanty?
- Offers a free tier or free trial. Paid plans from about $3/mo (verify on the vendor site). Priced per user per month. Free tier available for unlimited users with limited message history. Business plan at $3/user/month includes unlimited message history, screen sharing, and priority support.
- What category is Chanty in?
- Chanty is grouped under Communication on AIStackForSMB. Browse more tools in that category on our site under /categories/communication.
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