Nextiva vs RingCentral: Which Is Better for Small Businesses in 2023?
This article is part of a larger series on VoIP.
When searching for an office-based communications system, two names always appear: Nextiva and RingCentral. They are two of the best voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) solutions, so determining a winner in the Nextiva vs RingCentral head-to-head comparison can be difficult. RingCentral offers robust integrations and boasts powerful call management, while Nextiva has dynamic pricing that gets more affordable as you add more users and switch to an annual plan.
Choosing the best provider for your business comes down to both your needs and communications budget. Based on our comparison, the best use cases for Nextiva vs RingCentral are as follows:
- Nextiva: Best for businesses planning on adding users over time
- RingCentral: Better for companies slowly adopting features as needed
Nextiva vs RingCentral at a Glance
Monthly Starting Price | $28.95 per user | $29.99 per user |
Free Trial | ✓ | ✓ |
Free Trial Duration | 7 days | 15 days |
Annual Discount | ✓ | ✓ |
Volume Discounts | ✓ | ✓ |
Communication Channels | Voice, text messaging, video conferencing, team messaging, internet fax, voicemail | Voice, text messaging, video conferencing, team messaging, internet fax, voicemail |
Uptime Guarantee | 99.999% | 99.999% |
Video Conferencing | Up to 250 participants | Up to 200 participants |
Monthly Toll-free Minutes | Up to 12,500 | Up to 10,500 |
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Best Alternatives
While Nextiva and RingCentral are solid choices, they aren’t your only options. Both providers might be overkill for some who might not need unified communications (UC) features, and neither are equipped with features for frequent international communications. A few alternatives to consider for both Nextiva and RingCentral include:
Best For | Newer businesses looking for a simplified calling system without many unified communications features. Check out our Grasshopper review for more info. | Businesses building an international presence. 8x8 has unlimited international calling plans and international numbers in 100+ countries. We cover this provider in our 8x8 review. | Businesses seeking an easy-to-set-up VoIP solution. Ooma has two dedicated pricing tiers that simplify the process of configuring business calling. Read our Ooma review for a more in-depth look. |
Monthly Starting Price | $31 | $15 | $19.95 |
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Best for Pricing: RingCentral
Pricing is based on monthly billing for 1 to 20 users. Save up to 33% with annual payments. |
Pricing is based on monthly billing for 1 to 4 users. Save up to 27% with annual payments. |
When it comes to overall pricing, the RingCentral vs Nextiva conversation is a contentious one. Both providers deliver annual and volume-based pricing, and their price points are similar. Additionally, you pay for a base-level plan for both providers, so you get unlimited U.S. and Canada-based calling, rated international calling, and SMS.
Despite their similarities, RingCentral comes out ahead thanks to more pricing tiers, better annual discount rates, and slightly cheaper pricing. To put this in perspective, more tiers equate to more options for businesses. This means RingCentral customers can gradually scale up tiers as they grow. With Nextiva, there are only three tiers to choose from with steeper pricing increases.
In addition, the annual pricing is also somewhat more affordable with RingCentral. When you switch to annual billing, you save 33% compared to Nextiva’s 27%, 25%, and 19% per plan. Finally, for smaller businesses paying month-to-month, RingCentral comes out cheaper. With one to five users, you’ll pay $29.99 for this provider and $30.95 per month for Nextiva. Not a huge difference, but something to consider for smaller businesses with tighter budgets.
Looking for a more small business-friendly business calling plan? Check out our guide to the best cheap VoIP services.
Best for Video Conferencing: Nextiva
In today’s world of work-from-home, video conferencing has become critical technology. As we cover in our video conferencing statistics article, by utilization, this communication system is leading over other business technologies. As VoIP and unified communications as a service (UCaaS) providers, Nextiva and RingCentral both offer video conferencing.
While these aren’t available at the base tier, having video conferencing as an option allows users to communicate without leaving the platform and using another provider like Zoom. Both providers deliver video calling for hundreds of participants, but Nextiva edges RingCentral out with its ability to host an additional 250 attendees compared to RingCentral’s 200.
A look at Nextiva’s video conferencing profile (Source: Nextiva)
It’s worth noting that RingCentral is the provider with a free tier of video conferencing with longer durations. Still, the ability to host more attendees helps Nextiva grab the win. We cover more about Nextiva’s video conferencing features in our Nextiva review.
Best for Call Management Features: RingCentral
RingCentral and Nextiva both have a full set of call management tools. However, RingCentral’s tools are more advanced, with call control features like call screening, call flip, call log, and presence available at all tiers. As you move up to the Premium tier, hotdesking, call whisper, and call barge become available.
If you don’t need these advanced features, Nextiva is not without its own unique functionalities. It offers a unique feature called Call Pop that instantly shows important caller details on your agent’s screen before answering the phone.
Best for Integrations: RingCentral
Third-party app integrations allow users to connect their existing tools to another platform to streamline their work processes or add functionalities. While Nextiva integrates with popular apps, like HubSpot, Zendesk, Salesforce, and Zoho, RingCentral is unbeatable in this area. RingCentral integrates with more than 200 third-party apps. It also allows users to build their own integrations on RingCentral through its application programming interfaces (APIs).
A quick glimpse at RingCentral’s add-ins and integrations page (Source: RingCentral)
Best for Building an International Presence: RingCentral
Nextiva and RingCentral offer international calls at rates much cheaper than what you’d find using a landline phone provider. While both lack unlimited calling to certain countries, you’ll typically pay less than a cent per minute with both providers.
For this battle, RingCentral is the undisputed leader. It’s a global company with headquarters in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Asia, and Europe. Nextiva, on the other hand, is purely U.S.-based and lacks international numbers for global customers and colleagues to reach U.S. businesses. RingCentral provides local numbers in over 100 countries, a major feather in the company’s cap.
If you’re looking for competitive rates, take a look at our guide to VoIP international calling rates. This article will help you understand the prices offered by the top providers in the industry.
Best for Customer Support: Nextiva
VoIP and unified communications (UC) systems seem complex if you’re not used to working with them. For this reason, a strong support system is valuable when you’re investing in a VoIP or UCaaS provider. If you’re looking for a provider with a responsive support setup, Nextiva wins in this category. Not only does the provider have more channels to reach them, but its support is available at every plan tier.
RingCentral, on the other hand, has its best support tiers locked behind higher plan levels. Still, there’s the option for social media channels as well as a community that can typically answer most questions around provider functionality.
How We Evaluated Nextiva vs RingCentral
RingCentral and Nextiva are both robust cloud-based communications platforms for small businesses. They allow users to manage messages across channels like voice, texts, team messages, video conferences, and faxes.
However, some slight differences between the two providers can make one more suitable for small businesses. We analyzed their products based on some of the most critical criteria users are looking at, including price, customer support, and ease of use.
Here’s a complete breakdown of these factors:
20% of Overall Score
We looked at the cost of each of Nextiva’s and RingCentral’s plans. We also dived into what is included in the subscription tiers, the discounts available, and the scalability of these platforms.
25% of Overall Score
We compared general features to see which provider offers the most robust functionality. We looked at available communication channels, integrations, call management features, and customer support.
30% of Overall Score
Both Nextiva and RingCentral offer video conferencing features, so we dug deeper to determine which offers higher meeting durations, in-meeting controls, and participant limits.
25% of Overall Score
We combined our expertise in VoIP providers and systems with our in-depth research on actual user experiences to find out which outperforms the other. We also took ease of use into account and which providers offer a mobile application.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which provider, RingCentral or Nextiva, is more reliable?
Both RingCentral and Nextiva provide users with a 99.999% uptime service level agreement (SLA). This uptime equates to less than 26 seconds of downtime each month.
What devices are RingCentral & Nextiva apps compatible with?
The applications for both of these providers are available on Android and iOS devices. Desktop apps are also available on Mac and Windows computers.
Is a VoIP phone required to use RingCentral & Nextiva?
No, users are able to use both services without the use of a dedicated VoIP phone. Both desktop and mobile phones work well for these services.
Bottom Line
Nextiva and RingCentral are two of the best business phone systems currently on the market, and both deliver when it comes to business-friendly communications channels. For the purpose of this head-to-head comparison, RingCentral wins thanks to its strong integrations, powerful international options, feature-rich call management, and pricing. Still, both are close enough that either is suitable for growing businesses.
Want to know a little more about RingCentral? We have a dedicated review to help you understand some of the deep-dive features of the provider.