In short: a small team leaving Slack for a European tool usually ends up choosing between Element, Wire, Nextcloud Talk, Stackfield, Threema Work and Devana. They differ mainly in three ways: where your data is stored, whether you pay for each person, and whether you have to run your own server. The comparison below is based on each vendor's own documentation.
Why do small teams leave Slack?
Usually for one of three reasons. The free plan hides anything older than 90 days (see our post on the 90-day limit). Paid plans are billed per person: under Slack's fair billing policy you pay for all active members, and multi-channel guests are paid too. And then there is GDPR: Slack offers EU data residency only on Business+ and Enterprise, and even then member profiles and channel membership may be stored outside your region (per Slack's data residency article).
How do European Slack alternatives compare?
| Tool | Company | Where data is stored | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Element | Element, headquartered in the UK | depends on deployment (self-hosted or hosted) | the free server edition is meant for non-commercial use |
| Wire | Wire Swiss GmbH, Switzerland | in the EU, on AWS servers | guests from outside the team are not billed |
| Nextcloud Talk | Nextcloud GmbH, Germany | on your own server | open source, but you run the server |
| Stackfield | Stackfield GmbH, Germany | in Germany | licensed per person, guests need a licence too |
| Threema Work | Threema AG, Switzerland | in Switzerland (Zurich) | licensed per user, built around mobile |
| Devana | Polish company | stored in the EU (Poland) | you pay for the whole workspace, not for each person |
Element: if you want your own server
Element is built on the open Matrix protocol. The company is headquartered in the UK, so outside the EU (per Element's about page). You can host the server yourself, but Element describes its free Server Suite Community edition as meant for non-commercial deployments of up to 100 users and points businesses to the paid Pro edition (ESS Community).
Wire: EU hosting from a Swiss company
Wire is run by Wire Swiss GmbH, based in Zug. Its privacy policy lists AWS servers in the EU for hosting. If your legal team cares about where subprocessors come from, not just where servers sit, check that list.
Nextcloud Talk: if you already run Nextcloud
Nextcloud Talk adds chat and calls to Nextcloud, the German file and collaboration platform. Per the Nextcloud Talk user manual, it runs on your own server, so the data stays with you. The trade-off: someone has to update, secure and back up that server.
Stackfield: chat plus tasks
Stackfield combines chat with tasks and calendars. Per its about page, servers are in Germany and subcontractors are headquartered in the EU. Per Stackfield's help centre, guests need a full licence, so working with clients adds to the bill.
Threema Work: a messenger for mobile teams
Threema Work is the business edition of the Swiss messenger. Per its privacy policy, data is processed on Threema's own servers in two data centres in Zurich, and licences are counted per user (Threema FAQ). A good fit for field teams who mostly message from their phones.
Devana: pay for the workspace, not per person
Devana is a Polish team messenger with rooms, threads, private messages, and roles and permissions that control who sees what and who can do what. Data is stored in the EU. You pay for the whole workspace, not for each person: €19 a month (excl. VAT) for up to 5 people, €49 for up to 15, €109 for up to 50.
To be clear about where it stands: PRO plans haven't launched yet and there is a waitlist. Devana has no voice or video calls today, so if your team lives on calls you'll need a separate tool for them.
Where can you find more European alternatives?
Directories of European software help when your shortlist runs out. One of them, European Purpose, ranks European alternatives to specific US products such as Slack, Jira and Trello, and gives each tool its own review page with details on the company and where it hosts data. The site states that vendors can pay for visibility, so use the order as a starting point and check data location and pricing in each vendor's documentation yourself.
FAQ
Is there a free European alternative to Slack?
Nextcloud Talk is open source and costs nothing beyond your own server. Element also has a free server edition, but per Element's ESS Community page it is meant for non-commercial use.
Does Slack store data in the EU?
It can, but only on Business+ and Enterprise. Per Slack's data residency article, messages and files then go to the region you pick, such as Frankfurt, while some data, including member profiles, may be stored outside it.
Can you move your Slack history to another tool?
Slack lets you export workspace data, but on the free plan only public channels from the last 90 days (per Export your workspace data). Export before you switch and write important decisions down in a document.
Sources (as of October 2026): Slack fair billing policy, Slack data residency, Slack export, Element: about, Element Server Suite Community, Wire privacy policy, Nextcloud Talk manual, Stackfield: about, Stackfield help, Threema Work privacy policy, Threema FAQ.
Comparing costs? See Devana pricing: you pay for the whole workspace, not for each person.