Google rolls out Google Meet web app just days after Zoom launch

Google Meet users can now use the web app instead of having to type in the URL or navigating to it through Gmail.

Google Meet and Zoom, along with Microsoft's MS Teams, are fighting it out to gain control of the video conferencing market. (9to5 Google )

Google has done a Zoom. Just days after Zoom launched its web app, Google has rolled out a standalone web app for Google Meet. This Google Meet web app, also known as the Progressive Web Application (PWA), has all the features of Google Meet and is strictly for the web. With this, you will no longer need to type out the URL for Google Meet or use Gmail to start a meeting. You can just download the app on your laptop or computer and jump straight in.

Between Google Meet and the Google Meet web app, there is no difference in functionality, these PWAs (both the one for Zoom and Google Meet) are essentially websites that can function as apps. So if you have the Google Meet web app downloaded you will not need to search for it through your browser to start a meeting. You will be able to do it directly through the app like it is on smartphones.

“We've launched a new Google Meet standalone web app. This Progressive Web Application (PWA) has all the same features as Google Meet on the web, but as a standalone app it's easier to find and use, and it streamlines your workflow by eliminating the need to switch between tabs,” Google said.

This new Google Meet web app can run on any device with Google Chrome browser version 73 and up no matter what operating system (OS) you are on. So that means you can use the Google Meet web app on Windows, maOS, Chrome OS, and Linux devices. An app like this is particularly handy for Chromebook users.

You can download the Google Meet web app from the Chrome browser and can be installed normally like any other web app. Google is also going to pop-ups to try this new Google Meet web app in the upper right-hand corner of the main Google Meet opening page. You can hit the installation button available on the pop-up to be able to get to it directly instead of looking for it on Chrome. If you don't see this immediately, don't worry, Google has said that the app is rolling out gradually and users will be able to download it within 15 days. The Google Meet web app would be available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers, and users with personal Google Accounts.