Last Updated on September 4, 2024
The recent unveiling of the 5G network across many countries worldwide has tremendously revolutionized the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) sector. Also known as the IP telephone, VoIP is an innovative technology that allows you to make telephone calls using a broadband internet connection as opposed to an analog phone line.
Cost-effectiveness and increased accessibility are the top benefits of switching from regular phone services to IP telephone. VoIP solutions are also highly portable since they aren’t subject to geographical barriers. Plus, they support multi-tasking as a single device can be used for making calls, browsing the internet, etc.
It’s these features that make voice over Internet Protocol especially popular with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). But as you shall find, VoIP services providers are not created equal. So, it’s imperative to choose a provider that serves the interests of your business.
This article reviews the 18 best VoIP providers for SMEs in 2023.
1. Nextiva
Year Founded: 2006
Founder: Tomas Gorny
Current Headquarters: Scottsdale, Arizona, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $18.95/user/month; a demo available
Nextiva is a voice over internet-protocol based in Scottsdale, Arizona but whose VoIP services are presently available to over 150,000 businesses spread across the world. The company was founded in 2006 by Poland-born American investor Tomas Gorny.
Nextiva is famous for its unified communication system known as NextOS. Active subscribers with access to this platform can enjoy several VoIP features, including phone call, text messaging, video calling, and email services. Access to the NextOS platform is possible via WindowsOS and macOS. There’s also a mobile app compatible with both Android and iOS devices.
Nextiva is a premium service with no free plans. The cheapest of the premium plans costs a monthly fee of $18.95 per user.
2. Vonage
Year Founded: 1998
Founder: Jeff Pulver
Current Headquarters: Holmdel, New Jersey, United States
Availability: 60+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: $19.99/user/month; a free trial available
Vonage offers a slew of VoIP solutions intended to accelerate your business growth. The company implements application programming interfaces (APIs) engineered to help improve your customer’s reach and engagement through instant messaging, voice calls, video calls, and much more.
Vonage also provides team messaging and video collaboration. These features can be incredibly useful for collaborating with your team on a project.
All plans come with unlimited calls and SMS. Besides, the platform is compatible with both desktop and mobile applications.
3. RingCentral
Year Founded: 1999
Founders: Vlad Shmunis and Vlad Vendrow
Current Headquarters: Belmont, California, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: $19.99/user/month; a free trial available
RingCentral bills itself as “The world’s leading business cloud phone system.” But whether that description is accurate or not depends on how the VoIP compares against its competitors.
RingCental was founded in 1999 by Vlad Shmunis and Vlad Vendrow, who act as its current chief executive officer (CEO) and chief technology officer (CTO), respectively. Over the years, the company has attracted the attention of renowned investors, including Sequoia Capital, Khosla Ventures, and Scale Venture Partners.
Although it provides several cloud-based communication and collaboration products, RingCentral is probably best known for its VoIP services. The company’s IP telephone services, which also include voice-to-text and a toll-free number, are available in over 100 countries.
4. 8×8
Year Founded: 1987
Founders: Chi-Shin Wang and Y. W. Sing
Current Headquarters: Campbell, California, United States
Availability: 50+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $15/user/month
8×8 is an IP telephone service that can suit the needs of any business despite its size or geographical reach. However, this provider is especially suited for small businesses due to its budget-friendly prices and responsive customer support.
One of the company’s biggest highlights is the ability to create virtual call centers. You can make unlimited inbound and outbound VoIP calls using 8×8 to more than 50 countries and territories worldwide.
8×8 also boasts an efficient call queue system. Plus, all its paid plans offer both video and call conferencing capabilities.
5. Intermedia
Year Founded: 1991
Founder: Michael Gold
Current Headquarters: Sunnyvale, California, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $27.99 /month
Unified communication is one of the top features businesses usually look for in a VoIP provider. And that’s precisely what you get when you subscribe to this IP telephone service.
But Intermedia doesn’t only provide unified communications capabilities. The service also boasts cloud storage, ensuring that your clients’ data is both secure and accessible.
An Intermedia subscription entitles you to Microsoft Exchange email inboxes. You also get unlimited calling and video conferencing capabilities, depending on the plan you purchase.
6. VirtualPBX
Year Founded: 1997
Founder: Stephen Lange
Current Headquarters: San Jose, California, United States
Availability: 45+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $12.99/month
A quick rummage through VirtualPBX reviews indicates that this VoIP service provider enjoys the confidence of numerous brands, including educational institutions, real estate agencies, and retail businesses. Most reviewers laud the company for its slew of nifty features and highly responsive customer support.
Although privately owned, VirtualPBX has continued to give many public VoIP service providers a run for their money. The company provides a cloud-based business phone that helps you manage all your inbound and outbound calls in one place.
VirtualPBX is also noted for its efficient network monitoring and remediation services. It constantly performs health checks on your network to guard against hacks.
7. DialPad
Year Founded: 2001
Founder: Craig Walker
Current Headquarters: San Ramon, California, United States
Availability: 70+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from €20 /month
One of DialPad’s best selling points is its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered customer support. This VoIP service provider comes with a powerful AI that takes the hassles from planning your meetings, managing your contact center, and driving sales.
The AI capabilities can be useful in helping your business retrieve crucial caller data, including their identity, location, and call history. You can then determine whether to initiate a conversation or drop the call.
DialPad also provides unlimited calling, SMS, and MMS. Each account can have multiple phone numbers and integrates seamlessly with numerous customer relationship management (CRM) tools, such as Salesforce, Zoho, and Zendesk.
8. Lingo
Year Founded: 2018
Founder: Vincent M. Oddo
Current Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $15/month
This is one of the most recent voice over Internet Protocol providers, having been founded only four years ago. But despite being still a new industry entrant, Lingo has continually established itself among the leading IP telephone companies.
Lingo boasts an array of VoIP services, ranging from toll-free phone calls to video conferencing and web collaborations. The company also provides broadband management services and call center solutions.
Other reasons behind Lingo’s popularity include its call forwarding, call waiting, and call blocking features.
9. Zoom Phone
Year Founded: 2011
Founder: Eric Yuan
Current Headquarters: San Jose, California, United States
Availability: 40+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $120/year
If you didn’t know about Zoom three years ago, you’ve most probably heard about (or even used) it by now, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Zoom meetings became exceedingly popular due to work-from-home measures imposed by many countries as a containment measure against the ravaging coronavirus disease.
But besides gaining recognition primarily for its video conferencing services, Zoom also facilitates VoIP solutions through a product called Zoom Phone.
Zoom Phone comes with high sound quality and responsive customer support. Plus, it’s available in at least 40 countries worldwide.
10. Grasshopper
Year Founded: 2003
Founders: Siamak Taghaddos and David Hauser
Current Headquarters: Needham, Massachusetts, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $14/month
It’s unfathomable that one of the peskiest insects (if you consider that locusts are inherently Grasshoppers) can inspire the naming of a VoIP service provider. However, you don’t need to fret as Grasshopper VoIP shares no dark sides to the ravenous insect it’s named after.
Founded in 2003 by Siamak Taghaddos and David Hauser, Grasshopper is all about revolutionizing the way small businesses engage with their clients. The company was established primarily to help SMEs manage customer engagements via mobile phones.
As an IP telephone provider, Grasshopper offers call forwarding, business texting, and voicemail transcription services. The VoIP provider also has toll-free and local numbers, among many other features.
11. Ooma Office
Year Founded: 2004
Founder: Andrew Frame
Current Headquarters: Sunnyvale, California, United States
Availability: 60+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Paid plans start from $9.99/month; a free plan also available
Ooma is a VoIP service provider based in the Silicon Valley, California area. The company targets different kinds of clients, including businesses and small-time mobile phone users, through its Ooma Office.
To begin with, you’ll find Ooma Office remarkably easy to use even if you’re still unfamiliar with the concept of IP telephony. The service lets you initiate full-featured meetings without needing client installation.
You can enjoy tons of phone call, video conferencing, and messaging solutions that are all customized to meet your personal or business needs. What’s more, this VoIP provider offers both premium and freemium plans.
12. MagicJack
Year Founded: 2007
Founders: Dan Borislow and Donald Burns
Current Headquarters: West Palm Beach, Florida, United States
Availability: Mostly United States and Canada
Pricing: Plans start from $43/year
MagicJack lets you receive free unlimited international calls between the United States and Canada. The company is known for its MagicJack Plus, a service that doesn’t require a computer to make VoIP calls but still needs you to have an internet service provider.
MagicJack is also famous for its three-way call or conference call. This feature enables you to collaborate with three or more people on an international call free of charge.
A caller ID helps you identify your callers prior to answering their calls while a call queue feature seamlessly sends your callers to a virtual waiting room. Other cool features to love about MagicJack include call blocking, call ID blocking, auto attendant, and call transfer.
13. Microsoft Teams Phone
Year Founded/Developed: 2017
Founder/Developer: Microsoft Corporation
Current Headquarters: Redmond, Washington, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $4/user/month
Microsoft is a globally-renowned provider of technological solutions. Therefore, it’s only expected that the company’s VoIP product lives up to its enviable reputation.
For starters, Microsoft Teams Phone offers an extensive range of local calling plans. The service also provides in-depth call quality metrics that come with deep insights into the system’s operations. And as you might expect, Microsoft Teams Phone integrates with Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Edge.
However, while you can avail unlimited group meetings using Microsoft Teams Phone, the service caps the number of participants per meeting at 300.
14. Mitel
Year Founded: 1973
Founders: Michael Cowpland and Terry Matthews
Current Headquarters: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Variable
Mitel has dominated the unified communications market both domestically and globally for close to five decades now. The company has continually reinvented itself, which explains why it has maintained a stranglehold on the unified communications market.
In addition to its basic VoIP services, Mitel also integrates with numerous CRM tools. Besides, the provider allows you to import contacts from CSV and Google for more efficient management of your clients.
Another interesting thing about Mitel is that it doesn’t typically charge predefined plans. Instead, the company issues you with a quote based on the features you’re looking to unlock using its IP telephony service.
15. Webex Calling
Year Founded: 1995
Founder: Subrah Iyar Min Zhu
Current Headquarters: San Jose, California, United States
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Paid plans start from $14.50/month; a free plan also available
Formerly known as Spark Call, Webex Calling is yet another cloud-based VoIP provider that you might want to check out. The service is designed primarily for midsized businesses but can also serve the needs of startups and larger corporations.
Webex Calling comes with a feature known as Webex Edge that allows you to incorporate different media elements into your calls. These include videos, infographics, and eBooks.
Webex Calling also scores pretty high in terms of support. The service includes support for mobile devices as well as both mixed cloud and on-premise networks. There are lots of collaboration features too, including audio conferencing, video conferencing, and video screen sharing.
16. Line2
Year Founded: 2008
Founder: Peter Sisson
Current Headquarters: San Francisco, California, United States
Availability: United States and Canada
Pricing: Plans start from $15.99/month if billed monthly or $13.75/month if billed annually
Previously called Toktumi, Line2 is probably best known for its Line2 applications. These apps offer Wi-Fi support for mobile phones and other devices instead of using normal service providers.
Line2 may restrict its operations within North American borders. But the service lets you make unlimited phone calls, text messaging, and MMS messaging to multiple destinations in the US and Canada.
Line2 is also one of the easiest VoIP service providers to use. The tool lacks many of the features you’ll find in high-end VoIP systems, such as video conferencing. However, it makes up for that with its well-designed softphone apps which integrate seamlessly with desktop and mobile devices.
17. Aircall
Year Founded: 2014
Founders: Olivier Pailhes and Jonathan Anguelov
Current Headquarters: Paris, France
Availability: Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $30/month
If you’re based in Europe and are looking for a regional VoIP provider, then you might find Aircall worth your time. Aircall is located in Paris, France, but maintains offices in many other worldwide locations, including New York, London, Berlin, Madrid, and Sydney.
This IP telephony company provides services geared toward businesses. Its core features include IVR and automated call routing, unlimited concurrent calls, conference calls, and call queuing.
Aircall also lets you share your call inbox and notes. Plus, it integrates with multiple CRM systems for better client management.
18. GoTo Connect
Year Founded/Developed: 2006
Founder/Developer:
Current Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Availability: 50+ Countries & Territories Worldwide
Pricing: Plans start from $27/month
Connect by GoTo is a cloud-based business phone system that boasts numerous built-in web-based video conferencing solutions. This service doesn’t only allow you to make VoIP calls. It also provides insightful analytics on every call made.
Connect also has a call recording feature that you can deploy to replay your conversations in the future. Voicemail to email and fax to email functions allow you to access all your voicemail calls and fax messages in your email inbox, respectively.
As with most services by GoTo, Connect integrates with numerous business and productivity apps.
Conclusion
There goes our rundown of the 18 best VoIP providers. Remember that the choice of one service over the others depends primarily on your business or personal needs.
Therefore, be sure to familiarize yourself with each IP telephony company before purchasing its products.