Nextiva and RingCentral are leading cloud-based business voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) providers with innovative services and robust functionality bundled under competitive, budget-friendly prices. However, Nextiva provides more advanced features at lower tiers, while RingCentral’s extensive integrations and robust APIs make more sense for companies looking for the complete communications package.
As a result, these platforms go above and beyond to deliver a holistic unified communications as a service (UCaaS) platform and are particularly excellent solutions for the following:
- Nextiva: Best for small businesses that want access to advanced features without upgrading to premium tiers
- RingCentral: Best for scaling businesses that want an all-in-one communications solution that works for the startup phase to the enterprise days
Nextiva vs RingCentral at a Glance
Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
Starting Price | $29.95 per user, per month for 5 to 19 users | $29.99 per user, per month for 2 to 20 users |
Video Conferencing | Up to 250 participants | Up to 200 participants |
Toll-free Minutes | Up to 12,500 toll-free minutes | Up to 10,000 toll-free minutes |
Unlimited Domestic Calling | ✔ | ✔ |
Unlimited Business SMS | ✔ | ✔ |
Team Messaging | ✔ | ✔ |
Advanced Call Management Features | N/A | ✔ |
Mobile App | ✔ | ✔ |
Voicemail Transcription | ✔ | ✔ |
Auto-attendant | ✔ | ✔ |
24/7 Customer Support | ✔ | ✔ |
A La Carte Pricing | ✔ | N/A |
More Information |
Takeaway: Nextiva and RingCentral provide industry-leading business communication solutions, but RingCentral comes out on top thanks to its extensive integrations and robust open APIs. Plus, RingCentral scales nicely on the journey from startup to enterprise, so you’ll never need to migrate to a new system. With a reliable network and incredible uptime, any business can trust RingCentral to deliver high-quality, end-to-end conversations.
How We Evaluated Nextiva vs RingCentral
To discover the subtle nuances between these two platforms, we dove deep into the nitty-gritty. We wanted to uncover which service provided the most reliability and functionality at the lowest prices. You can find below the primary criteria we used to compare Nextiva and RingCentral:
- Price: We compared tiers to see which service provided the most features at the lowest prices.
- Features: We analyzed each platforms’ features to determine which has greater call management and back-end functionality.
- Scalability: We compared pricing, features, and functionality to determine which platform makes it more straightforward for scaling businesses.
- Setup: We analyzed the setup to learn which service makes it easy to get up and running quickly.
- Ease of use: We looked at each solution’s desktop and web applications to find which is easier to use for both the agents and call recipients.
- Support: We compared the availability of customer support, support channels, community help, and quality of guides and resources.
- Overall customer reviews: We analyzed reviews from small businesses to learn about their experiences using the platforms.
When to Use Nextiva
Nextiva delivers all the VoIP features and functionality a business could want. Whether you need calling, texting, video conferencing, or team messaging, Nextiva’s all-in-one UCaaS solution makes it simple and easy to build your entire communications infrastructure on a single platform. Nextiva doesn’t have all the call management features RingCentral offers, but it does deliver a few innovative, unique solutions that no other competitor does, like Call Pop and Team presence.
Pricing plans start at $21.95 per user, per month and include all the phone calling, video calling, team messaging, and faxing you need.
Nextiva Pros & Cons
Nextiva Pros | Nextiva Cons |
|---|---|
Higher video-participant maximum and more toll-free minutes than RingCentral | Lacks advanced call management features compared to RingCentral |
Advanced features are available at lower pricing tiers | Weaker international calling services |
À la carte pricing is available to build your own plan |
Nextiva Pricing*
When it comes to value for money, it’s hard to beat Nextiva’s prices. With low-cost entry-level plans starting at $21.95 per user, per month, you won’t find a cheaper UCaaS platform.
- Essential: $21.95 per user, per month for unlimited phone calling, video calling, internet fax, and team messaging
- Professional: $25.95 per user, per month for unlimited video conferencing with up to 250 participants, unlimited business SMS, Call Pop (250 contacts), and 3,000 toll-free minutes
- Enterprise: $35.95 per user, per month for unlimited conference calls and participants, 12,500 toll-free minutes, Call Pop (unlimited contacts), voice analytics, and call recording
- Ultimate: $65.95 per user, per month for support ticket management, automated surveys, and advanced analytics
*Pricing is for a prepaid 36-month agreement for five to 19 users. Volume discounts are available as you add more users.
Why Nextiva Is the Better Choice for Small Businesses in Need of an Affordable UCaaS Platform
- Higher participant maximums: Nextiva empowers you to have critical conversations with big groups, regardless of your pricing tier.
- One-stop shop: Whether you need calling, video conferencing, team messaging, or faxing, Nextiva has all the communication services you could want.
- Call Pop: Call Pop is a unique Nextiva feature that instantly shows important caller details on your screen before answering the phone, giving you all the information you need to jump on a call with cool, collected confidence.
Visit our Nextiva reviews page to learn more about pricing, features, and other top considerations.
When to Use RingCentral
RingCentral is one of the most robust cloud-based VoIP services on the market. Compared to its popular alternatives, its feature-rich platform and affordable, scalable pricing plans make it a top choice for startups, small businesses, enterprises, and everyone in between. Whether you need video conferencing, team messaging, or business SMS, RingCentral has the service offerings to get your business communications up and running in no time.
RingCentral plans start at $29.99 per user, per month, and have all the functionality you need to build a scalable communications strategy.
RingCentral Pros & Cons
RingCentral Pros | RingCentral Cons |
|---|---|
Scalable functionality and pricing tiers | Advanced features are limited to higher pricing tiers |
Advanced call management features for complete call control | Extensive features can be overwhelming for those with limited use case |
Extensive third-party integrations and robust open APIs | Less affordable for small teams |
RingCentral Pricing*
RingCentral provides pricing plans based on the number of estimated users and the desired features. More users will drive down your price per user, and it’ll also unlock powerful features as you upgrade tiers. Additional toll-free, local, and international numbers are available for purchase too, regardless of which plan you choose.
- Essentials: $29.99 per user, per month with two to 20 users and 100 toll-free minutes; unlimited domestic calls and unlimited business SMS are included, as well as basic features like voicemail-to-text, team messaging, and file sharing
- Standard: $34.99 per user, per month with no limit on users and 1,000 toll-free minutes; expands features to include unlimited internet fax and audio conferencing, as well as 100-participant video meetings and basic integrations
- Premium: $44.99 per user, per month with no limit on users and 2,500 toll-free minutes; includes functionality like advanced call management, single sign-on (SSO), 200-participant video meetings, advanced integrations, and access to Open APIs
- Ultimate: $59.99 per user, per month with no limit on users and 10,000 toll-free minutes; includes unlimited storage and device status reports and alerts
*Pricing based on a monthly billing option. Annual pricing is available, and prices scale according to your number of estimated users.
Why RingCentral Is the Better Choice for Small Businesses in Need of a Complete, Scalable VoIP Solution
- Scalability: RingCentral makes growing your communications program simple and affordable with scalable plans and features.
- Advanced call management features: Control every aspect of your call experience with advanced calling features and post-call analytics.
- Open APIs: Other VoIP solutions offer APIs, but RingCentral goes above and beyond with extensive documentation, APIs, and programming languages.
Learn more about RingCentral’s pricing and features by visiting our RingCentral reviews page.
Nextiva vs RingCentral: Which Is Better for Small Businesses?
You can’t go wrong when choosing between Nextiva and RingCentral. While the two solutions cater specifically to different business stages, they share a lot in common:
- Easy to use: Both platforms have easy-to-use desktop and mobile apps for a seamless experience from front-end to back-end.
- Affordability: When it comes to complete UCaaS platforms, you won’t find a more robust tool that competes with Nextiva and RingCentral’s prices.
- Complete communications: Whether you need phone calling, SMS, video conferencing, team messaging, or internet faxing, these two VoIP services have it all.
Nextiva and RingCentral have a lot in common, but RingCentral takes the lead as the best solution for small businesses thanks to its end-to-end scalability and advanced call management features. While Nextiva has a slightly lower entry-level cost, prices outpace RingCentral as you scale, making RingCentral the top pick for small businesses with big aspirations.
Bottom Line
UCaaS platforms make it quick and easy to package all of your communication services under a single VoIP solution, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a more robust tool than Nextiva or RingCentral.
Small businesses that want an easy-to-use platform to handle all their communication needs will love Nextiva, while high-growth startups and small companies that plan to scale will find RingCentral makes growing your business phone system simple, easy, and affordable.
