6 Best Grasshopper Alternatives for 2022

Grasshopper is an affordable voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) system that provides virtual phone numbers and call management features. However, you should look into their competitors if you need extended trial periods and more advanced features, such as unlimited text messaging, video conferencing, and unmetered international calling. We compared dozens of Grasshopper alternatives to help you choose the right provider for your specific needs.

Based on our research, here are the six best Grasshopper alternatives:

• RingCentral: Best overall Grasshopper alternative offering robust call management features
• Google Voice: Top provider with free calling solutions for freelancers and solopreneurs
• Phone.com: Best alternative VoIP service for teams with low call volumes
• Nextiva: Excellent alternative offering a powerful auto-attendant system
• GoTo Connect: Best Grasshopper alternative with full-featured video conferencing
• eVoice: Best for teams needing multiple numbers for international expansion

Grasshopper & Best Alternatives at a Glance

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RingCentral: Best Overall Grasshopper Alternative

RingCentral is a full-featured VoIP platform delivering better call management functions than Grasshopper. RingCentral’s higher price is justified given all its advanced capabilities, such as interactive voice response (IVR) and automatic call distribution (ACD). These two features equip call centers to handle higher call volumes. The platform also has an open application programming interface (API), call recording, and hardware support.

Even with all of RingCentral’s unified communications (UC) tools, it may be offering much more than the basic needs of a small business or solopreneur. In this case, budget-conscious companies with low call volume requirements should consider Phone.com. This Grasshopper alternative offers metered plans and a la carte features, allowing you to mix and match user plans for greater customization and savings.

RingCentral Monthly Pricing at a Glance*

• Essentials: $29.99 for message and phone functionality for 20 users
• Standard: $37.99 for an unlimited number of users, unlimited internet fax, audio conferencing, third-party integrations, and video conferencing for up to 24 hours and 100 participants
• Premium: $44.99 for automatic call recording, real-time analytics, customer relationship management (CRM) integration, and video meetings with up to 200 participants
• Ultimate: $59.99 offers devices status reports, alerts, and unlimited storage

*Subscriptions are paid per user. Annual subscriptions offer up to 33% savings.

RingCentral Features

• Unlimited business calls and texts: RingCentral’s subscription includes unlimited phone calls within the U.S. and Canada. International calls are also available through paid calling plans or bundles, the latter being more affordable.
• Multilevel auto-attendant: Virtual auto-attendant engages your customers with custom greetings and directs them to the correct department or extension. ACD, IVR, and auto-attendants work simultaneously to minimize the need for live agent intervention.
• RingMe: This click-to-call feature gives customers a convenient option to call you by clicking a button on your email signature or through your website.

For more information, check out our full RingCentral review. Our in-depth RingCentral vs Grasshopper compares these two providers across several categories.

Google Voice: Best Free Calling Solution for Freelancers & Solopreneurs

Google Voice ranks as the most affordable option, offering a free plan for personal or residential use. Freelancers and solopreneurs using the free Google Voice plan will enjoy a local Google Voice number that seamlessly integrates with Google Workspace applications. As your business grows, opt for a paid business plan to access advanced features like ring groups and auto-attendants.

Grasshopper and Google Voice are two of our top recommendations for the best call management systems for small businesses, but neither provider offers international numbers. If this is something you need, consider eVoice. eVoice is a low-cost, user-friendly virtual phone solution that offers local, toll-free, vanity, and international numbers.

Google Voice Monthly Pricing at a Glance*

• Free: $0 for a personal account with a free local Google Voice number and use of the desktop or Google calling for business communications; it integrates seamlessly with Google Calendar and Gmail
• Starter: $10 for up to 10 users and domestic locations, voicemail transcription, mobile applications, and call forwarding
• Standard: $20 for unlimited users and domestic locations, multilevel auto-attendant, ring groups, and ad-hoc user call recording
• Premier: $30 for unlimited users and domestic and international locations, automatic call recording, and BigQuery advanced reporting

*Pricing plans are paid per person

Google Voice Features

• BigQuery advanced reporting: Google Voice users receive usage and activity reports on all paid plans. Subscribers in the Premier plan have access to Google’s BigQuery, which helps generate valuable business insights.
• Call forwarding: This feature helps manage high call volumes by forwarding your Google Voice number to any number (maximum of six) to connect callers from multiple locations.
• Workspace integration: Google Workspace users will benefit from Google Voice’s seamless integration with Google applications. Get instant connectivity and access to other Google apps, including Google Meet, Drive, Calendar, and Gmail.

Learn how to get your own Google Voice number using our step-by-step guide. For more information on this platform, head to our Google Voice review for details on pricing and features.

Phone.com: Best Affordable VoIP Service for Teams With Low Call Volumes

Phone.com is the top Grasshopper alternative for small business VoIP services, offering mix-and-match pricing options, which is ideal for teams with low call volumes. Phone.com’s entry-level plan is nearly half the price of Grasshopper’s. Teams with limited calling needs benefit from its usage-based plan that allows multiple agents to share 500 pooled minutes and 1,000 pooled text segments.

Beyond these features, if your company needs advanced features, such as an auto-dialer for increased call center productivity, try RingCentral’s intelligent auto-dialer. Dialers automate the dialing process so your agents spend more time on outbound calls for maximum productivity.

Phone.com Monthly Pricing at a Glance*

• Basic: $14.99 for 500 pooled minutes, 1,000 pooled text segments, and one phone number per account; it hosts up to 10 video call participants
• Plus: $19.99 for unlimited minutes and text messages, conversational text messaging, video conferencing of up to 25 participants, voicemail transcription, and auto-attendant
• Pro: $29.99 for call recording, analytics, voicemail transcription, and customer relationship manager (CRM) integration; video conferencing accommodates up to 100 participants with Hi-Fi transcription and whiteboard features

*Paid per user with a 20% discount for annual billing

Phone.com Features

• Types of phone numbers: Phone.com offers local, toll-free, and vanity numbers in every plan, which helps small businesses improve customer service and establish legitimacy.
• Mix-and-match features: Phone.com allows customers to choose different packages for each user and add specific features as needed. This setup is excellent for small businesses with limited resources.
• HIPAA compliance: Phone.com’s Plus package is HIPAA-compliant and completes annual HIPAA audits. As a provider that qualifies as HIPAA-compliant, it meets all regulations for safeguarding patients’ sensitive health information.

Considering Phone.com as your business phone system? Take time to browse our Phone.com review to know what it offers.

Nextiva: Best for Its Powerful Auto-attendant Phone Features

Nextiva is the top auto-attendant phone system provider offering an all-in-one team and customer communications platform. Its services include contact management and productivity features like calendars and file sharing. Nextiva’s automated answering service efficiently routes calls to your employees without the need for a live operator and gives you the option to upload a custom greeting for your callers.

One of the drawbacks of Nextiva and Grasshopper is that they lack international numbers. If you’re looking for a Grasshopper alternative offering this feature, Phone.com is an excellent option. International numbers are available for all Phone.com plans starting at $4.99 per month for select countries.

Nextiva Monthly Pricing at a Glance*

• Essentials: $30.95 per user with unlimited voice calling, video meetings with up to 250 participants for 45 minutes, chat messaging, toll-free numbers, 1,500 toll-free minutes, and unlimited internet fax
• Professional: $35.95 per user with unlimited conference calls for up to 40 participants, multilevel auto-attendant, short messaging service (SMS) and multimedia messaging service (MMS), popular integrations, 3,000 toll-free minutes, and one professionally recorded greeting
• Enterprise: $45.95 per user for unlimited participants on conference calls, call recording, Microsoft Teams integration, 12,000 toll-free minutes, single sign-on, and three professionally recorded greetings

*Up to 27% savings when you avail of annual billing

Nextiva Features

• Visual voicemail: Nextiva’s visual voicemail automatically routes calls to your voicemail when unanswered. This feature transcribes voicemail audio messages to text and turns them into emails when activated.
• Video conferencing: Meet people face-to-face through Nextiva’s video conferencing solutions. Host video meetings for up to 250 attendees and access features like recording and screen sharing through desktop computers or mobile phones.
• Call pop: Before an incoming call is answered, the call pop feature displays important caller information, giving your agent customer insights for better engagement.

Check out our Nextiva review to determine whether it provides all the business features you need.

GoTo Connect: Best for Its Video Conferencing Features

GoTo Connect is one of the top Grasshopper competitors offering robust video conferencing features with simultaneous webcams. Its higher plans offer unlimited meeting duration for up to 250 participants, screen sharing, custom backgrounds, and drawing tools. Other competitors, like RingCentral and Nextiva, that offer video conferencing have more expensive base plans.

However, GoTo Connect does not have as many integrations as other Grasshopper phone alternatives like RingCentral. RingCentral has over 200 third-party integrations from popular CRM software to industry-specific platforms. This is useful for companies that want to harmonize their data across different software.

GoTo Connect Monthly Pricing at a Glance

• Basic: $27 inclusive of number porting, unlimited extensions, instant response, smart routing, team messaging, and audio conferencing
• Plus: $32 for unlimited auto-attendant greetings, ring groups, call queues, hotdesking, free international calling for 50-plus countries, and 1,000 shared toll-free minutes
• Pro: $43 for unlimited meeting minutes for up to 250 participants, 5,000 shared toll-free minutes, and a customizable cloud contact center

GoTo Connect Features

• Customized call flows: This feature is an intuitive admin tool that lets you set up multiple auto-attendants and monitor calls routed to various extensions or departments.
• Dial-by-name directory: GoTo Connect’s dial-by-name directory creates a directory with all system extensions. This gives your customers an option to reach specific individuals without going through the entire IVR menu.
• Custom auto-attendants: With GoTo Connect, users are able to record unlimited customized messages and voicemail greetings using the provider’s desktop or web app. This is great for keeping customers updated with general information while they wait in a queue.

Read our GoTo Connect review for more details.

eVoice: Best Alternative Offering Multiple Numbers for International Expansion

Among all the Grasshopper alternatives, eVoice offers every type of virtual number—local, toll-free, vanity, and international—at the best price. These phone numbers are excellent tools for small businesses to expand their global reach, personalize toll-free numbers to track marketing campaigns, and improve credibility using vanity numbers.

Unfortunately, eVoice is found wanting when it comes to video conferencing capabilities. For teams needing a business phone system with robust video conferencing functionality, RingCentral is one of the top providers in this space. Its service includes video meetings with up to 200 participants with up to 24-hour meeting duration.

eVoice Monthly Pricing at a Glance*

• Elite: $14 for one user and three phone numbers
• Elite 6: $13 for six users and 18 phone numbers
• Elite 10: $10 for 10 users and 30 phone numbers
• Elite 11: $13.50 for 11 users and 33 phone numbers

*Rates are paid per user; there is a cheaper annual pricing option available

All plans include standard call management features, such as virtual answering services, custom greetings, and a 30-day money-back guarantee for first-time users.

eVoice Features

• Advanced call routing: Routing calls to the right person as efficiently as possible with advanced call routing helps ensure callers reach the right person or department. Other features include call notifications, sequential rings, call scheduling, and dial-by-name directories.
• Custom greetings: eVoice’s professional greeting allows you to create a custom company greeting. The recordings are played to callers and provide information and updates, such as news or upcoming sales campaigns.
• International forwarding: Forward calls to any global destination with eVoice’s international forwarding. Set up numbers in other countries, and eVoice will forward calls to your U.S. business.

Considering eVoice as a potential office phone system? For a full breakdown of everything eVoice offers, check out our in-depth eVoice review.

How We Evaluated the Best Grasshopper Alternatives

Grasshopper is a great VoIP solution for solopreneurs and small teams with limited budgets looking for an easy system with a flat-rate pricing model. However, some alternatives are less expensive with advanced features or wider integrations. Our assessment reviewed pricing, features, and niche capabilities to compare providers.

Here’s a breakdown of how we measured each provider:

Check out our comprehensive Grasshopper review to understand its use cases and key features.

Bottom Line

Grasshopper is a low-cost business phone system for solopreneurs, freelancers, and lean teams, but it lacks advanced features, such as call recording and video conferencing. After careful evaluation of different providers. RingCentral is the best overall Grasshopper alternative offering full-fledged UC features that integrate voice, video, messaging, and file sharing. It also has extensive integrations increasing automation, calendaring, and support functionality.

Visit RingCentral