Our reviewers evaluate products and services based on unbiased research. Top Consumer Reviews may earn money when you click on a link. Learn more about our process.
To answer that question, you first need to decide what exactly you need your system to accomplish. Is it just the basics, like having a separate number for business calls and being able to route them to different employees? Or are you looking for something fully-featured, with the ability to handle video conferencing and file sharing, integrate with apps you're already using, and extend your reach globally?
No matter what type of phone system your business needs, you've got options! Even if you're a solo entrepreneur, there's a provider for you. If you're wondering whether it's going to be a huge investment to set up your business phones, that depends on how you look at it.
Saturday, June 3rd
Phone is the business phone system that really has it all: affordable pricing and several plans to choose from, fantastic customer service, a 30-day money back guarantee and round-the-clock live customer support. It's also the only service we found that's HIPAA-compliant! We recommend that you make Phone the first provider you check out when you need phone services for your company. They earn our highest ranking.
VirtualPBX has four packages for business phone systems, or you can customize the service to fit your particular operational needs. All plans here come with integrations, round-the-clock customer support, and a 15-day money-back guarantee. Business owners have used this platform with great results, and it's hard to find anyone with a bad thing to say about the service offered here. VirtualPBX's business phone systems earn one of our highest recommendations.
eVoice has a quick setup and the ability to forward calls, issue custom greetings, port your current number, and a ton of inbound call management features. However, their price is just a bit on the high end, so make sure to compare the features and value with other companies before jumping in with both feet.
RingCentral is one of the most well-known names in business phone systems, originally for PBX and now for cloud-based solutions. It's not the least expensive provider on the market, but it offers some attractive features like seamless open API integrations (with partner apps or design-your-own) and effortless expansion to global teams. Their reputation is still solid, but some business owners have complained about long contracts that are costly to break and a few systems that haven't kept up with the times.
Everything you could want in a business phone system, GoToConnect's got it - as long as you pair it with other GoTo services, that is. It takes some coordinating to get all of the components your company needs in place, but the outcome should be a fully-featured system that can grow with you.
Small companies looking for an inexpensive way to get a business phone number should look at what FreedomVoice has to offer. Their CloudNumber platform has helped more than 250,000 business owners to get affordable phone service with plenty of features, many of which can be accessed through their mobile app. Better yet, the customer support team here is one of the best we've ever found: a big part of why almost 1,000 clients have given FreedomVoice a flawless five-star rating.
"Get less and pay more!" No, that's not a typo: that's what you can expect with the business phone systems offered by Grasshopper. While this service might grab your attention at the outset, you'll soon find that you can get the same features and coverage for much less money with another provider. It's a decent entry-level system, but it fails to compete with more affordable and robust business phone services.
Nextiva's cloud-based business phone systems have earned some noteworthy awards. You'll pay more for your service here than with many of their rivals, but you get plenty of features for the money. Unfortunately, despite the big-name clients featured on the Nextiva site, we found too many complaints from small business owners to give this provider a glowing recommendation.
Vonage is probably the biggest provider of VoIP phone systems for individuals and businesses, and the company counts a lot of famous names in its list of clients (well-known insurance agencies, delivery services, and telehealth providers). Their monthly fees are reasonable, and there's a long list of included features with each of the three service tiers they offer. However, clients express a lot of frustration with online-only support and not getting the solutions they need. Vonage comes up short when it comes to reliable phone systems for the average small business.
If two million businesses use 8x8 for their business phone systems, it should be everyone's go-to provider, right? Not hardly. Even though there are more than enough features to catch your eye here, we couldn't get past a dismal "B-" from the BBB and clients describing this platform as one to "avoid at all costs" . 8x8 looks good upfront, but their track record for customer satisfaction well after the sale has been completed is nothing we're excited about.
Ooma is a classic example of "you get what you pay for" : their business phone systems are remarkably cheap, and so is their attention to customer satisfaction. Even though the BBB gives Ooma an "A+" , far too many small business owners would rate this provider as an "F" . Don't sign up for Ooma, because they'll make it almost impossible to cancel. This is our lowest-ranked company among business phone systems.
Gone are the days of having to buy equipment and install landlines: most business phone systems today rely on mobile phones and can often use what you already have, minimizing hardware expenses like never before. That doesn't mean it's going to be cheap, though: expect monthly costs ranging anywhere from $12 to over $100 per user, depending on the features you require and which provider you choose.
However, that doesn't mean you'll end up spending more money. Those costs can quickly be offset by increased productivity, getting more customers because of faster response times, and all-in-one packaging that eliminates the need for multiple vendor contracts.
There are a lot of business phone system services out there, and it can be a little daunting narrowing down the possibilities. Want some help? Keep these four Cs in mind as you look for the one that will be the best fit for your company:
To help you get the right phone system for your business, TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked the top providers on the market today. We're confident that this information will help you easily sort through the options and find the perfect match for your company!
Select any 2 Business Phone Systems to compare them head to head