6 Best Low-Cost or Free VoIP Phone Services

Ooma is our best free VoIP service for home-based entrepreneurs who prefer a residential phone plan rather than paying monthly for a business phone subscription. Ooma Basic is a home phone service with free US calling, answering machine functionality, and low-cost international calls. This allows business owners to enjoy the cost-saving benefits of a free phone service while having access to features present in a traditional landline.

If Ooma Basic is too lightweight, upgrade to the paid residential plan (Ooma Premier) for a minimal monthly fee of $9.99. Ooma also has a dedicated business phone service that starts at $19.95 per user monthly and includes over 50 standard phone features.

Like Google Voice, Ooma’s home phone is dedicated to individual users working from home. If you’re seeking a free VoIP service that supports multiple users and includes professional phone features, OnSIP is an excellent alternative.

• Custom call blocking: Create a list of caller ID names and phone numbers you don’t want to receive calls from. You can also choose what happens to blocked numbers.
• Enhanced caller ID: If you receive a call from an unknown number, this feature will look up the caller’s name in the national phone database. Instead of appearing as an unknown caller, the caller ID screen will display the phone number and registered owner.
• Virtual fax: This digital faxing alternative doesn’t require a physical fax machine. Send multiple PDF files as a single fax document. Users can send and receive files through the End User Portal, Ooma Office Manager, or the Ooma Desktop application.

Ooma supports various forms of call blocking. (Source: Ooma)

Google Voice is our best free VoIP phone service for individual users because of its straightforward accessibility; you just need a Google account and a US phone number for verification. Anyone with a Google account can sign up for the Google Voice personal plan for free. This provides the user with a local virtual number, unlimited calls within the US, and basic phone functionality.

Any business with an existing Google Workspace subscription can purchase the Google Voice business add-on, which starts at $10 per user monthly. Instead of buying a separate VoIP phone system, you can get your cloud phone system directly from Google and benefit from its seamless integration with other Google Workspace products.

While Google Voice is a promising VoIP solution for businesses on a budget, it’s not ideal for handling large call volumes and extensive communication needs. In this case, you’re better off with RingCentral, an all-in-one communication solution with complete phone features and collaboration capabilities.

• Voicemail transcription: Spend less time catching up with voicemails with Google’s speech recognition technology. Receive a text version of your voicemails so you can read your messages during meetings instead of listening to them.
• Multilevel auto-attendant: This automated voice system simplifies your inbound call flow and routes calls efficiently. Using Google’s text-to-speech option, you can customize menus with greetings or prompts.
• Ring groups: Set up ring groups so teams can answer calls from the same Google Voice number. Members can take turns answering calls or ring all members simultaneously until someone picks up.

Google Voice sends a transcription and an audio preview of your voicemail. (Source: Google Play)

Among the free VoIP service providers on this list, OnSIP solely offers voice, video, and messaging capabilities without charges. Its free, web-based plan supports real-time communication features for distributed teams engaged in remote collaboration. This allows users to communicate anywhere using smartphones, tablets, or desktop computers.

OnSIP is one of the best free VoIP phone services with professional phone features. Unlike Google Voice and Ooma, OnSIP provides unlimited extensions, business hour rules, and custom web call links. If you’re seeking additional enterprise features, like auto-attendant, call recording, and ring groups, OnSIP offers unlimited and pay-as-you-go plans.

One of OnSIP’s biggest drawbacks is its lack of native text messaging. If you regularly communicate with your clients via SMS, Grasshopper is the better option. This provider supports unlimited business texting and automated SMS responses to enhance communication efficiency.

• Video conferencing: Connect with colleagues and clients from anywhere using OnSIP’s video calling. This feature is available in all plans, and users can hop into video calls straight from the OnSIP app interface.
• Business hour rules: Create your business hour rules through the web app’s admin tab. Set the rules for how incoming calls will be directed based on the time and day of the week.
• OnSIP-Slack integration: Enhance team collaboration by connecting OnSIP and your Slack account. Generate custom click-to-call links from Slack and check the status of your OnSIP network without switching apps.

OnSIP’s auto-attendant can be set based on your business hours and routing preferences. (Source: OnSIP)

Grasshopper is the sole provider on this list that supports unlimited users in its advanced plans for a fixed monthly fee. All service tiers have the same feature set and vary only in the number of phone numbers and extensions. This is ideal for small businesses wanting to provide clients with a single contact point to reach team members and ensure efficient management of phone lines.

While most VoIP providers charge per user, Grasshopper lets you add unlimited users to your plan without paying for each seat. This is a good deal for businesses that want to avoid per-user rates. There’s no free plan, but annual billing discounts and a seven-day free trial are available.

Unfortunately, Grasshopper is more of a virtual phone system than a unified communications (UC) solution. It lacks essential features like video conferencing, team chat, and task management. RingCentral is the better option if you are looking for a feature-rich solution, as it offers video, voice, and messaging features.

• Voice Studio: Hire professional voice talent for your phone greetings, announcements, and auto-attendant. Make the right impression by having professionals convey your message.
• Instant response: Automatically message new callers when you cannot take their call. This allows you to interact with potential clients and get back to them when possible.
• Business texting: All Grasshopper plans include unlimited business texting. Send updates and quick replies to customers with ease. Note that this feature requires registration.

Send and receive calls and texts through Grasshopper’s desktop and mobile apps. (Source: Grasshopper)

RingCentral is your best bet if you’re seeking real value for money on a VoIP provider. Known as the leading small business VoIP service, RingCentral offers a complete phone system for managing high volumes and advanced team communication needs. This includes customizable call menus, the ability to share company lines with coworkers, and detailed analytics for valuable call data insights.

If you’re on a budget, you can opt for the entry-level plan, featuring call management and phone system administration. At $30 per user monthly, you get multilevel IVR, on-demand call recording, and real-time note-taking for calls—features typically reserved for higher-tier plans by most competitors.

Unfortunately, the feature-rich nature of RingCentral can be overwhelming for a budget-conscious solopreneur or two-person team with basic call needs. If you’re seeking a VoIP phone service for free, you’ll never go wrong with OnSIP. While free, OnSIP doesn’t skimp on standard features like unlimited extensions and business hour rules.

• Virtual numbers: RingCentral offers every type of direct inward dialing (DID) number, including local, toll-free, vanity, and international numbers. Expand your geographical reach and make communications with clients more convenient.
• Call flip: Move an in-progress call between your mobile phone, softphone, or desk phone with no interruptions. The call can only be picked up by the person who initiated the conversation.
• Shared lines: It allows calls made to a single phone number to be picked up by multiple devices. You can also place a call on hold and then continue the conversation on another phone.

RingCentral has a compact design to ensure less screen space. (Source: RingCentral)

Dialpad is a VoIP service that engineered its own AI technology to drive intelligent interactions for phone calls. All plans include native AI tools, such as call transcription, post-call summaries, and real-time analytics. These features reduce manual work by automatically taking notes, transcribing calls, and tracking action items so that you can focus on the conversation.

No free plan is available, but Dialpad offers a 14-day free trial and discounts for annual billing. The base plan includes all the core VoIP features, like multilevel auto-attendant, custom call routing, and call forwarding. This potentially eliminates the need for a plan upgrade if you simply require basic phone functionality.

Dialpad may be overkill for small businesses that don’t require advanced AI features. If you’re looking for a free VoIP phone service, try Google Voice. With just a Google account and a US phone number, you can enjoy unlimited local calls and essential VoIP features.

• Visual voicemail: Listen and access all your voicemails in an intuitive voicemail inbox. It transcribes voicemails in real time and allows easy sharing in Dialpad’s team chat.
• Company directory: This is a digital address book containing all the contact information of everyone in your company. Search for any employee, make a quick call, view their phone number, and send a message.
• Simultaneous ring: Ring group members simultaneously and ensure no calls fall between the cracks. Incoming calls are sent to all connected devices simultaneously.

Choose how you want to receive your call summaries with Dialpad’s Ai recap. (Source: Dialpad)