Element vs Slack

Why Switch from Slack to Element?

Slack is now owned by Salesforce, a US corporation. Your team’s messages, files, and conversations are stored on US servers subject to the CLOUD Act. Slack has access to all your messages in plain text, and with Salesforce’s data-driven business model, the privacy implications are significant.

Element, built on the open Matrix protocol, offers a fundamentally different approach to team messaging. It provides end-to-end encryption by default, can be fully self-hosted, and is already trusted by the French and German governments for sensitive communications.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Element	Slack
End-to-end encryption	✅ By default	❌ Not available
Self-hostable	✅ Full control	❌ SaaS only
Open source	✅ Matrix protocol	❌ Proprietary
Federation	✅ Cross-server messaging	❌ Closed ecosystem
Threads	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Voice/video calls	✅ Built-in (Element Call)	✅ Huddles
File sharing	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Integrations	⚠️ Growing (bridges)	✅ 2,600+ apps
Message history (free)	✅ Unlimited	❌ 90 days
Data location	Your choice (self-host) 🇪🇺	United States 🇺🇸

Pricing

Element is dramatically more affordable than Slack, especially for organizations that can self-host:

• Element (self-hosted): Free (you run the Matrix server)
• Element Server Suite: From €5/user/month (managed hosting)
• Element on matrix.org: Free (community server, limited features)
• Slack Free: Limited (90-day message history, 1:1 calls only)
• Slack Pro: $8.75/user/month
• Slack Business+: $12.50/user/month
• Slack Enterprise Grid: Custom pricing

With Element, you get unlimited message history and end-to-end encryption on every plan — including the free tier. Slack charges a premium for features that Element includes by default.

Privacy & Data Sovereignty

Element and the Matrix protocol were designed with security and sovereignty at their core:

• End-to-end encryption (E2EE) is enabled by default for all direct messages and can be enabled for rooms
• Self-hosting gives you complete control over your data — it never leaves your infrastructure
• The Matrix protocol is open and federated, meaning no single company controls it
• Element is used by the French government (Tchap), the German military (BwMessenger), and NATO
• No vendor lock-in: your data, your server, your rules
• Full GDPR compliance when self-hosted or using EU-based hosting

Migration Guide

Migrating from Slack to Element can be done incrementally, running both platforms during the transition:

1. Choose your deployment model (30 minutes) — Decide between using matrix.org (free, no setup), Element Cloud (managed hosting), or self-hosting a Synapse server (maximum control). For most organizations, Element Server Suite is the easiest path.
2. Set up your Element workspace (1-2 hours) — Create your organization’s space, set up rooms mirroring your Slack channels, and configure permissions and moderation settings. Enable end-to-end encryption for sensitive rooms.
3. Set up bridges to Slack (30 minutes) — Install the Slack bridge to allow communication between Element and Slack during the transition period. This lets early adopters use Element while others remain on Slack temporarily.
4. Invite your team and onboard (1 week) — Send invitations, share a brief getting-started guide, and run a short demo session. Highlight differences from Slack such as spaces versus channels and the encryption key verification process.
5. Export Slack history (1 hour) — Use Slack’s export tools to download your message history. Community tools can import this archive into your Matrix server to preserve institutional knowledge.
6. Decommission Slack (15 minutes) — Once the team is fully transitioned, cancel your Slack subscription and remove the bridge.

Estimated time: 1-2 weeks for a full team migration. Difficulty: Moderate for managed hosting, advanced for self-hosting.

Real-World Use Cases

Cybersecurity consultancy in Zurich, Switzerland: A 45-person security firm handling confidential client assessments deployed Element on their own servers in a Swiss data center. End-to-end encryption ensures that even if the server were compromised, message content would remain unreadable. The firm previously paid EUR 4,700/year for Slack Business+; their self-hosted Element deployment costs approximately EUR 1,200/year in server infrastructure.

EU-funded research consortium across five countries: A research project involving universities in France, Germany, Spain, Poland, and Sweden needed a communication platform that complied with EU data handling requirements for publicly funded research. Element’s federation feature allowed each university to run its own Matrix server while communicating seamlessly across institutions, satisfying each country’s data residency rules.

Municipal government in Grenoble, France: A city administration with 120 employees migrated from Slack to Element as part of France’s digital sovereignty strategy. The deployment runs on government-certified French hosting infrastructure. Staff adapted within two weeks, and the city now communicates securely with other French government agencies through the Tchap-compatible Matrix network.

Company Background

Element (originally known as Riot.im and then New Vector) was founded in 2017 by Matthew Hodgson and Amandine Le Pape in London, United Kingdom. The company was created to develop a flagship client and hosting platform for the Matrix protocol, an open standard for secure, decentralized communication that Hodgson and Le Pape had co-created in 2014 while working at Amdocs. The Matrix protocol itself was designed from the ground up to enable federated, end-to-end encrypted messaging without relying on any single company or server.

Element has raised over USD 70 million in funding from investors including Protocol Labs, Automattic (the company behind WordPress), Notion Capital, and Metaplanet. The company rebranded from Riot.im to Element in 2020 to create a clearer, more professional identity as it expanded into enterprise and government markets. By 2024, Element employed approximately 200 people across offices in London, Rennes (France), and distributed positions throughout Europe.

Element’s most significant adoption milestone has been its use by European governments and military organizations. The French government built its inter-ministerial messaging platform Tchap on the Matrix protocol, the German military (Bundeswehr) developed BwMessenger using Matrix, and NATO has evaluated Matrix for secure communications. Element also powers gematik’s TI-Messenger, Germany’s healthcare messaging system for secure communication between medical providers. These deployments validate Element’s security model at the highest levels and position it as the most trusted open-source messaging platform for sovereign communications.

Security & Compliance

Element and the Matrix protocol are built with security and sovereignty as foundational principles:

• End-to-end encryption (E2EE): Enabled by default for all direct messages and optionally for group rooms, using the Olm and Megolm cryptographic ratchets (based on Signal’s Double Ratchet algorithm)
• Open-source auditability: Both the Matrix protocol specification and Element’s client/server code are fully open source, enabling independent security audits
• Cross-signed device verification: Cryptographic verification of user devices to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks in encrypted conversations
• Self-hosting capability: Organizations can deploy their own Matrix homeserver (Synapse or Dendrite), retaining complete control over all communications data
• GDPR compliance: When self-hosted within the EU, full compliance is inherent; Element’s managed hosting also operates under GDPR
• Government-grade security: Trusted by the French government (Tchap), German military (BwMessenger), and NATO — validating its security model for classified communications
• NIS2 compatibility: Suitable for organizations subject to the EU Network and Information Security Directive due to self-hosting capability and encryption
• Regular security audits: Independent security assessments of both the Matrix protocol and Element clients, with findings published transparently

Integration Ecosystem

Element leverages the open Matrix protocol to provide a flexible, extensible integration ecosystem:

• Matrix bridges: Connect Element rooms to Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, IRC, Telegram, WhatsApp, and Signal, enabling cross-platform communication during migration periods
• Element Server Suite API: RESTful API for managing users, rooms, spaces, and server configuration programmatically
• Webhooks and bots: Support for incoming and outgoing webhooks, plus a bot framework for building automated workflows within Matrix rooms
• Integration manager: Built-in widget system for embedding Jira, GitHub, RSS feeds, polls, and other tools directly in Element rooms
• SSO and SAML: Enterprise single sign-on support via SAML 2.0, OIDC, and LDAP for centralized identity management
• Element Call: Built-in video conferencing powered by the LiveKit selective forwarding unit (SFU), supporting group calls with screen sharing
• Widgets and embedded apps: Extensible widget framework allowing developers to embed custom web applications directly within Element rooms
• Application Services API: Matrix protocol API for building advanced integrations, bots, and bridges that interact with the communication layer programmatically

Who Should Switch?

Element is ideal for:

• Government agencies and public sector organizations needing sovereign communications
• Defense and security organizations requiring end-to-end encryption
• EU enterprises that must keep communications data within their jurisdiction
• Open source advocates who want to avoid proprietary lock-in
• Technical teams comfortable with self-hosting for maximum control

The Bottom Line

Element is the most secure team messaging platform available, backed by an open protocol trusted by European governments. It offers end-to-end encryption, self-hosting, and federation — features Slack simply cannot match.

The trade-off is real: Slack has a more polished UI and a vastly larger integration ecosystem. For non-technical teams that rely heavily on third-party app integrations, Slack may still be more practical. But for organizations where security, sovereignty, and privacy are non-negotiable, Element is the clear choice.

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Looking for more European alternatives in this category? See also: Threema and Wire.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Element communicate with Slack users?

Yes, through Matrix bridges. Element supports bridging to Slack, Microsoft Teams, and other platforms, allowing your team to communicate with external contacts still using those services. However, bridged messages may not retain end-to-end encryption.

Is Element difficult to set up for a small team?

Not necessarily. You can start immediately by creating free accounts on matrix.org without any server setup. For self-hosting, Docker-based deployments of the Synapse server take about an hour for someone with basic Linux skills.

Does Element support video calls and screen sharing?

Yes. Element Call provides built-in video conferencing with screen sharing, powered by the Matrix protocol. It supports group calls and can be used for team meetings, similar to Slack Huddles.

Will I lose message history if I switch from Slack to Element?

Slack allows you to export your message history, and there are community tools to import Slack archives into Matrix. The process preserves message content and timestamps, though some formatting and file attachments may need manual handling.

Is Element really used by governments for sensitive communications?

Yes. The French government uses a Matrix-based messenger called Tchap for all inter-ministerial communications. The German military (Bundeswehr) uses BwMessenger, also built on Matrix. NATO has also evaluated Matrix for secure communications.