What is the difference between Whereby and Riverside?

Whereby is best for Teams wanting no-download video meetings, while Riverside is best for Podcasters and creators recording high-quality video. Whereby starts at Free and Riverside starts at $15/mo.

Is Whereby or Riverside cheaper?

Whereby starts at Free with a free tier. Riverside starts at $15/mo.

Is there a free alternative to Riverside?

Yes, Whereby offers a free tier (1 free meeting room).

Whereby vs Riverside

Whereby is browser-based video meetings with no downloads required — share a link and people join instantly, while Riverside is studio-quality recording platform for podcasts and video with local recording and AI transcription. The biggest difference up front: Whereby is free, while Riverside starts at $15/mo. Whereby is built for teams wanting no-download video meetings, whereas Riverside targets podcasters and creators recording high-quality video.

At a glance

	Whereby	Riverside
Best for	Teams wanting no-download video meetings	Podcasters and creators recording high-quality video
Starting price	Free	$15/mo
Free tier	✓	—
Open source	—	—
Free tier available	✓	—
Open source	—	—
AI Editing	—	✓
Breakout Groups	✓	—
Embeddable	✓	—
Local Recording	—	✓
No Downloads	✓	—
Recording	✓	—
Screen Recording	—	✓
Transcription	—	✓

Whereby

Strengths

Includes No Downloads as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
Includes Embeddable as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
1 free meeting room — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Established product with 13+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Call quality depends heavily on participants' internet connections
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Whereby → Full review

Riverside

Strengths

Includes Local Recording as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
Includes Transcription as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
Pricing starts at $15/mo, which includes the full video conferencing feature set
Includes screen recording alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed

Weaknesses

Starts at $15/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Call quality depends heavily on participants' internet connections
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Riverside → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Whereby is completely free (1 free meeting room), which makes it the obvious pick if budget is the top concern. Riverside starts at $15/mo. That cost buys you a more polished or feature-rich experience, so it comes down to whether the extras justify the spend.

Feature gaps: Whereby offers Breakout Groups, Embeddable and No Downloads that Riverside lacks. Riverside brings AI Editing, Local Recording and Screen Recording that Whereby does not have.

Team fit: Whereby is geared toward small teams teams, while Riverside is aimed at individual users and small setups. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: Whereby's biggest strengths are: includes no downloads as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows. includes embeddable as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows. Riverside's biggest strengths are: includes local recording as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows. includes transcription as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows.

Watch out for: With Whereby, users commonly note that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade. With Riverside, the main complaint is that starts at $15/mo — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users.

Choose Whereby if...

Your profile matches its sweet spot: teams wanting no-download video meetings
Budget is a hard constraint — Whereby is free, Riverside is not
You specifically need Breakout Groups and Embeddable
You care about includes embeddable as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
Your team size fits the small teams profile Whereby is designed for

Choose Riverside if...

You need a tool built for podcasters and creators recording high-quality video
You specifically need AI Editing and Local Recording
You care about includes transcription as a core feature, purpose-built for video conferencing workflows
Your team size fits the individuals profile Riverside is designed for