Zoho Vani vs Google Workspace: The New Visual Collaboration War

In a direct challenge to the dominance of Google Workspace, Zoho Corporation has launched Vani, an all-in-one visual collaboration platform designed to unify brainstorming, project planning, and team execution. The new platform, which went live in the first week of October 2025, aims to replace the fragmented ecosystem of whiteboards, presentation software, and video conferencing tools with a single, intelligent canvas, targeting the needs of small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Vani enters the market at a critical juncture, as Google is set to discontinue its own digital whiteboard application, Jamboard, by the end of 2024, leaving a significant gap in its native visual collaboration offerings. Zoho’s Vani is positioned to capture users seeking an integrated and cost-effective alternative.

Key Facts & Quick Take

• What is Vani: An AI-powered visual collaboration platform by Zoho, launched in early October 2025. It combines an infinite digital whiteboard with tools for mind mapping, flowcharts, presentations, and built-in video meetings.
• Direct Competitor: Vani is squarely aimed at Google Workspace, offering a unified visual-first environment that Google currently lacks without third-party integrations.
• Pricing Model: Vani offers a robust Free Forever plan for small teams, including unlimited users and core features. The Team plan is aggressively priced at $5 per user per month (or $4 when billed annually), unlocking advanced sharing and features.
• Key Differentiator: Its unique “Space and Zone” model allows teams to work on sub-projects within a larger canvas, coupled with native video conferencing (“Catchups”) and AI-driven content creation and summarization.
• Google’s Position: Google is winding down its native Jamboard app and is directing users towards third-party integrations like Miro and Lucidchart, which can introduce significant additional costs for businesses.

The Context: A Shift in Digital Collaboration

The launch of Vani taps into a growing demand for more integrated and visual tools in the hybrid work era. Teams are often forced to switch between multiple applications—a whiteboard for brainstorming, a spreadsheet for data, a slide deck for presentation, and a separate video call app for discussion. This “app-switching” can lead to lost context and reduced productivity.

“For small and medium-sized businesses, the ability to increase ease of collaboration, even a small percentage, can lead to extraordinary gains in productivity,” said Karthikeyan Jambulingam, Head of Product for Vani, in a launch statement.“Vani provides a comprehensive set of tools for all departments within one canvas, eliminating the need for app-switching, process building, or complicated onboarding.”

Vani’s Core Features: An In-Depth Look

Vani is built around three pillars: visualize, collaborate, and execute. Its feature set is designed to support the entire lifecycle of a project, from initial idea to final delivery.

The Infinite Canvas and Organizational Structure

At the heart of Vani is an infinite digital canvas. Unlike the limited frames of a traditional presentation, this boundless workspace allows teams to expand their ideas organically. Vani introduces a novel organizational structure:

• Spaces: The main project folder or overarching canvas for a major initiative.
• Zones: Sub-canvases within a Space. This allows different teams or functions (e.g., marketing, engineering, design) to work on their specific parts of the project in parallel while maintaining a view of the overall picture.

Integrated Tools and AI Capabilities

Vani embeds a suite of powerful tools directly into its canvas:

• Visual Tools: Users can create mind maps, flowcharts, diagrams, sticky notes, and sketches.
• AI-Powered Assistance: Vani’s built-in AI can instantly generate flowcharts and mind maps from text prompts and provide intelligent summaries of discussions within a Zone or across an entire Space.
• Built-in Video Meetings (“Catchups”): Teams can launch video calls directly within the canvas, allowing them to discuss and collaborate on visual elements in real-time without needing to open a separate application like Google Meet or Zoom. These sessions can be recorded for asynchronous viewing.

Free vs. Paid: What Do You Get?

Zoho has structured Vani’s pricing to be highly accessible, particularly for its target SMB market.

The free plan is notably generous, offering unlimited users and spaces, making it a viable option for small teams and startups. The primary limitation is on sharing permissions, which is a key driver for upgrading to the paid “Team” plan.

Vani vs. Google Workspace: A Tale of Two Philosophies

The comparison between Vani and Google Workspace reveals a fundamental difference in approach to visual collaboration.

Vani: The All-in-One Challenger

Vani’s strength lies in its integrated, all-in-one design. A team can manage an entire project lifecycle—from a brainstorming “Catchup” on the infinite canvas to assigning tasks and tracking workflows—without leaving the platform.

Pros of Vani:

• Unified Experience: No need to purchase, integrate, or switch between multiple apps.
• Cost-Effective: A simple, affordable pricing structure with a powerful free tier.
• Innovative Features: The “Space and Zone” model and built-in video are unique differentiators.
• AI Integration: AI is woven into the core functionality to boost productivity.

Cons of Vani:

• New Platform: As a new entrant, it lacks the massive user base and third-party ecosystem of established players.
• Mobile App: A mobile version is on the roadmap but not available at launch (as of October 2025).
• Learning Curve: While designed to be intuitive, the “Space and Zone” concept may require a brief adjustment period for teams accustomed to traditional tools.

Google Workspace: The Fragmented Incumbent

Google Workspace remains a powerhouse for core productivity with Docs, Sheets, Drive, and Meet. However, its native visual collaboration offering is weak, especially with the impending shutdown of Jamboard.

To achieve what Vani offers natively, a Google Workspace user would need to:

1. Use Google Meet for video conferencing.
2. Integrate a third-party whiteboarding app like Miro or Lucidchart.
3. Manage files and data in Google Drive and Sheets.
4. Build presentations in Google Slides.

This approach presents several challenges:

• Increased Cost: Third-party tools come with their own subscription fees. Miro’s paid plans start at $8 per member per month (billed annually), and Lucidchart also requires a paid subscription for full functionality. (Sources: Miro and Lucidchart Pricing Pages, October 2025). This can more than double the monthly cost per user compared to Vani.
• Fragmented Workflow: Information is siloed across different applications, creating friction and the potential for context to be lost.
• Administrative Overhead: Managing licenses, integrations, and permissions for multiple applications can be complex.

Pros of Google Workspace:

• Ubiquity and Familiarity: Most users are already proficient with Google’s core apps.
• Massive Ecosystem: Integrates with thousands of third-party applications.
• Robust Core Productivity: Unmatched for real-time document editing, email, and cloud storage.

Cons of Google Workspace (for Visual Collaboration):

• No Native Infinite Canvas: The discontinuation of Jamboard leaves a major feature gap.
• Reliance on Costly Add-ons: Achieving a Vani-like experience requires expensive third-party subscriptions.
• Disconnected User Experience: App-switching is a necessity, which can hinder fluid brainstorming and project flow.

Who is Vani Best For?

Vani is ideally suited for:

• Small to Medium-Sized Businesses (SMBs): The platform’s affordable pricing and all-in-one nature are perfect for budget-conscious companies looking to streamline their toolset.
• Product, Marketing, and Design Teams: These highly visual and collaborative teams will benefit most from the infinite canvas, mind mapping, and integrated feedback tools.
• Hybrid and Remote Teams: The built-in video “Catchups” and asynchronous collaboration features are designed for distributed workforces.

Google Workspace remains the better choice for:

• Large Enterprises: Companies deeply embedded in the Google ecosystem with complex administrative and security needs may prefer to stick with their existing setup.
• Teams Prioritizing Document Editing: Organizations whose primary collaboration happens within text documents, spreadsheets, and presentations will find Google’s core apps superior.

What to Watch Next

The launch of Vani places significant pressure on Google to clarify its long-term strategy for visual collaboration. The key developments to monitor will be:

• Vani’s Mobile App Launch: The release of a mobile version will be crucial for its adoption among on-the-go teams.
• Adoption Rates: How quickly SMBs, especially those currently on Google Workspace, adopt Vani will indicate its market impact.
• Google’s Response: Whether Google deepens its partnerships with tools like Miro and FigJam or hints at developing a new, more powerful native solution will shape the future of this space.

Zoho’s Vani is more than just a new tool; it’s a well-timed strategic move that exposes a weakness in the Google Workspace suite. By offering a powerful, integrated, and affordable visual collaboration hub, Zoho is making a compelling case for SMBs to rethink their reliance on the tech giant’s fragmented ecosystem.