6 Best RingCentral Alternatives 2020

Voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) business phone systems like RingCentral replace local landline service and offer features like phone numbers, voicemail, and conferencing. We reviewed several RingCentral alternatives for customers wanting different service plans or pricing than RingCentral offers, then evaluated price, features, and customer support to learn which stood out and which is the best overall.

Top 6 RingCentral Alternatives 2020

How We Evaluated RingCentral Alternatives

VoIP business phone systems like RingCentral let customers make, answer, route, and manage phone calls. RingCentral alternatives may offer features like customer relationship management (CRM) tool integration, virtual faxing, and SMS messaging at a lower cost or with an intuitive dashboard that’s easier to use. Alternative VoIP systems are also easy to set up and offer reliable customer support.

We evaluated RingCentral competitors based on the following:

• Price: We looked at the overall cost of each solution.
• Ease of use: Services need to be easy enough to use for workers of all technical skill levels.
• Call management: We looked at the call management features offered by each system.
• Advanced features: Many RingCentral alternatives offer advanced features such as software integrations and vanity phone numbers.
• Call quality and reliability: Audio quality during calls should be clear and consistent.
• Local and international calling: We looked at each service’s rates for both domestic and overseas calling.
• Security measures: Many phone systems offer encryption, password protection, and other security measures.
• Mobile app: Most of the systems we looked at offer apps for iOS and Android devices.
• Software integration: We looked at each system’s ability to connect call data with other business software systems.
• Customer support: Phone systems should offer help to customers in the event of a problem.

Based on the above criteria, we recommend Nextiva to most small businesses looking for a RingCentral alternative. It offers a wealth of features, affordable pricing, and compatibility with desktop, mobile, and VoIP desk phones. It is also extraordinarily easy to use, even for workers who are not technically savvy.

Best Overall RingCentral Alternative for Small Businesses: Nextiva

Nextiva, which offers pricing as low as $20 per user, per month, is a RingCentral alternative offering toll-free phone numbers, unlimited domestic calling, and a conference bridge. The service ranks as our best VoIP provider because of its rich set of features, and it is RingCentral’s strongest competitor. The system is great for any general business user looking for a new phone system.

Nextiva Pricing

Nextiva’s small business plans range from $30 to $45 per user, per month on an annual basis for teams of one to four people. The company also offers plans as low at $20 per user, per month, but you will need to have more than 100 people signed on to the service.

Nextiva Tiered Features

Basic

Nextiva’s Basic package offers a free local or toll-free number porting, and unlimited online faxing. The fact that there is no limit on how many people can use this plan makes it a better value compared to RingCentral’s entry-level package, which is limited to just 10 users. This plan costs $30 per user, per month for one to four people, but can go as low as $20 per user, per month with 100 or more staff signed on to the plan.

This package does not come with a conference bridge, text messaging, access to a mobile app, or call recordings like the Pro and Enterprise editions. It also lacks connectivity with customer relationship management (CRM) services found in competing solutions. However, this is still a good plan that comes at an affordable price for those who need basic telephony functions.

Pro

Nextiva’s Pro package adds additional features such as text messaging, access to the iOS and Android apps, and unlimited conference calls. The plan, which starts at $33 per user, per month, also comes with a professionally recorded voice greeting for your phone system. Having a professional voice-over artist be the “voice” of your company projects a more professional, established phone presence than having a non-trained employee do the recording.

If you want features like call recording and analytics, you will have to upgrade to the Enterprise edition. This puts this tier behind Vonage and 8×8, which include recording in their intermediate plans. However, this plan is still a bargain and is great for companies that want to send texts as well as make business calls.

Enterprise

While this is called the Enterprise edition, this version of Nextiva can be used by any company, as it places no limit on how many people can use it. This package starts at $45 per user, per month and offers call recording on all activity in your network. It also comes with a voice analytics module that provides reports on your setup, such as the total number of calls, average call length, and more.

Nextiva lacks the media storage options and international calling plans offered by 8×8. With that in mind, it is also less expensive, so it may not be a deal-breaker for companies with no use for such functionality. Nextiva Enterprise is great for teams that want a complete feature set for domestic calling and texting.

What Nextiva Is Missing

Nextiva offers a solid range of plans to meet just about any business budget. However, it only offers three different pricing plans, with no option to add individual features for an extra fee. If you are looking for a system that allows for more flexibility, we recommend looking at Vonage. That service offers affordable plans with a la carte features.

What Users Think About Nextiva

Our readers generally like Nextiva. Users like the company’s reliable call quality, and they find that customer service is helpful. However, there are some complaints that the service’s administrative portal could be more intuitive. For more information, go to our Nextiva user reviews page.

Best RingCentral Alternative for a la Carte Pricing: Vonage

Vonage is a RingCentral alternative that offers features like unlimited domestic calling, call recording, and text messaging. Compared to RingCentral, Vonage has a few advantages, such as the option to add features a la carte, like a toll-free number or fax. It is good for businesses that want to pick and choose features as needed.

Vonage Pricing

Vonage offers three different pricing plans ranging from $19.99 to $39.99 per user, per month for the Advanced version. Every tier includes unlimited calling, mobile apps, and a virtual receptionist. Unlike competing systems, individual features can be added for an additional cost. This system is affordable compared to similar options on the market.

A la carte features include:

• Local phone number: $9.99 per month
• Toll-free phone number: $39.99 per month
• Toll-free paperless fax number: $14.99 per month
• Automatic call recording: $49.99 per month
• Conference bridge: $14.99 per month, plus 3 cents per minute

Vonage Tiered Features

Mobile

The Mobile version of Vonage costs $19.99 per user, per month. Features include unlimited calling in the U.S., a local phone number, and text messaging. The service comes with all of the call management tools found in RingCentral and other competitors. Vonage Mobile also comes with a team messaging app that lets co-workers collaborate via webchat.

This package is missing features found in more advanced editions, such as CRM integration, video conferencing, and a multilevel auto-attendant to greet and route callers. It is also missing the inclusion of a free toll-free number, unlike RingCentral and Nextiva’s entry-level packages. With that in mind, this still comes at a great value and is good for small businesses looking for a strong core set of features.

Premium

For $29.99 per user, per month, Vonage’s Premium package adds video conferencing, file sharing, and a multilevel automated attendant that can greet callers and route them to their desired extension. It also comes with video conferencing for up to 100 people. This is especially good when compared to RingCentral’s mid-level plan, which only supports video meetings for up to four participants.

Unfortunately, Vonage Premium does not come with a conference bridge like Nextiva and other services we looked at. You will have to buy the features for an additional $14.99 per month and also pay 3 cents per minute. This plan is also missing the company-assisted setup offered by the Advanced version. This plan is good for those who want a complete set of features, but can install the service themselves.

Advanced

Vonage Advanced, which costs $39.99 per user, per month, adds onboarding support from the company. On top of that, it offers a call group feature that can forward calls to multiple extensions at once, as well as 15 hours per month of on-demand call recording. You also get visual voicemail, which provides automated transcriptions of the messages in your inbox.

The Advanced tier should offer enough functionality for most small businesses. However, it is worth noting that Vonage does not have as robust of a call analytics module as competing solutions such as Phone.com and 8×8. It also lacks unlimited international calling. Still, this is a good fit for companies that want guided help setting up their phone service and do all of their business in the United States.

What Vonage Is Missing

Vonage offers a solid set of features if you only make occasional calls to overseas phone numbers. However, it does not offer unlimited international calling. If your organization has an overseas business presence, we suggest looking at 8×8 instead. That service offers unlimited international calls to up to 47 countries.

What Users Think About Vonage

Our readers find that Vonage makes it easy to customize the service to meet their unique business needs. They also find that call quality is decent. With that said, several users have expressed frustration at the fact that number porting can take a long time. For more reviews, visit our Vonage user reviews page.

Best RingCentral Alternative for International Calling: 8×8

8×8, which starts at $25 per user, per month, is unique among RingCentral alternatives in that it provides unlimited international calling to up to 47 countries. It also comes with standard telephony functions such as call management, voicemail, and an auto-attendant. Compared to RingCentral, 8×8 is a much better choice for teams with many overseas contacts.

8×8 Pricing

8×8 offers three different pricing plans. The services costs anywhere from $25 to $55 per user, per month, and the service comes with international calling from 14 to 47 countries depending on the plan you choose. All plans include a phone number, media storage, and an auto-attendant.

8×8 Features

X2

The X2 version of 8×8 comes with a phone number, video conferencing for up to 100 people, and unlimited calling to 14 countries. This exceeds the capabilities of RingCentral. This includes numbers in Australia, France, and Ireland. You also get 1GB of cloud storage for all of your files. This package costs $25 per user, per month.

8×8 X2 is missing the call recording and analytics modules found in more expensive packages. It also lacks a professionally recorded voice greeting like Nextiva. Although this plan is more expensive than other entry-level services, it is still a good value for companies that need unlimited international calling.

X5

8×8’s X5 tier costs $35 per user, per month and increases the list of unlimited calling-supported countries to 32, with support for calls to locales such as Israel, China, and Brazil. It also comes with 5GB of media storage and call recording. This is helpful if you want to save important conversations for later reference.

This plan is missing the contact center functionality of the X8 package. It also doesn’t come with voicemail transcription, unlike Nextiva and other competitors. It is also a bit more expensive than Nextiva when you add more users to the systems. Still, this package offers a wide range of countries for unlimited calling, and it is great for teams with multinational operations.

X8

For $55 per user, per month, 8×8 adds a set of call center features and 2,000 minutes per month. It also comes with other contact center tools, such as auto-dialing and interactive voice response (IVR) technology. On top of that, the service supports unlimited calls for 47 different countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Argentina, and Singapore.

At this price, 8×8 costs $10 more than the Enterprise version of Nextiva. In fact, it costs more than the top-tier Ultimate version of RingCentral, which is reserved for large enterprises. Therefore, X8 is best suited for organizations that have high call volumes to international locations.

What 8×8 Is Missing

8×8 is a solid business phone service, but it’s not for everyone. For example, it only offers unlimited calling packages, which could force teams with low call volumes to pay for functionality they don’t need. If you would rather pay for bundles of minutes as needed, you can save a considerable amount of money by using Phone.com instead.

What Users Think About 8×8

For the most part, customers find that 8×8 is well-priced and offers most of the features they need for everyday business use. However, there are strong complaints about regular system disruptions. Some users also find that customer service can be unreliable. For more impressions, check out our 8×8 user reviews page.

Best RingCentral Alternative for Low Call Volumes: Phone.com

Phone.com is a business phone system that starts at $9.99 per month and offers teams phone numbers, bundles of minutes, and SMS messaging. It also comes with conferencing and voicemail capabilities. The service is a great RingCentral alternative for any organization that has low call volumes and wants to save money with pay-as-you-go plans.

Phone.com Pricing

Phone.com is highly affordable, offering three different pricing plans that range from $9.99 per month on an annual basis for the Base package and go all the way up to $29.99 per month for the Pro edition. There are also unlimited plans available ranging from $24.99 to $49.99 per month.

Phone.com Tiered Features

Base

The Base version of Phone.com costs $12.99 per month. It comes with one local or toll-free number and 5,000 text messages per month. This is lacking compared to RingCentral’s unlimited calling, but this is also less expensive than that service.

If you want voicemail-to-text and premium hold music for your callers to listen to, then you will want to upgrade to Phone.com’s Plus plan. It also lacks the messaging features found in Vonage. This is best suited for teams with low monthly call volumes that do not need advanced features.

Plus

Phone.com Plus adds another local or toll-free number as well as 200 extra minutes of monthly calling time. You also have the ability to send up to 10,000 texts per month with the service. It comes with premium on-hold music so that your callers have something to listen to while they wait to be connected to their desired extension.

This is missing the video conferencing and analytics modules found in the most expensive version of the service. It also lacks an automated attendant like RingCentral and other competitors. However, the fair price of this plan makes it good for teams that have slightly higher call volumes than what the Base package can offer.

Pro

For $39.99 per month, Phone.com Pro comes with three local or toll-free numbers, 1,000 minutes of calling time, and 20,000 SMS messages. The service also comes with call analytics to help you better understand your call activity and video conferencing for up to 25 people. This is far behind RingCentral’s support of up to 100 video chat participants in its Premium edition, but it is also less expensive and does not require you to commit to the service for a year.

At a similar price to Nextiva Enterprise and other competitors, Phone.com Pro is a value considering the fact that it supports unlimited extensions. However, this package is missing a professionally recorded greeting and online data storage like other products we looked at.

What Phone.com Is Missing

Phone.com offers different pricing packages with monthly minute totals. However, these restrictions could prove confusing for teams that want to only pay one price for an unlimited calling service. Ooma costs just $19.99 per user, per month and includes unlimited domestic calling.

What Users Think About Phone.com

Our readers like that Phone.com is affordable. They also enjoy the flexibility of the different plans. With that said, they find that the company’s customer service can be unhelpful, and that responses can take a long time. For more reviews, go to our Phone.com user reviews page.

Best RingCentral Alternative With Flat-rate Pricing: Ooma

Ooma is a RingCentral alternative that comes with standard features like unlimited domestic calling, call management, and a virtual receptionist to greet and route callers for $19.95 per user, per month. The system also includes E911 support in compatible areas. Ooma is a perfect RingCentral alternative for those who want a simple, flat pricing structure and a strong core set of features.

Ooma Pricing

Ooma costs $19.95 per user, per month and does not lock any features behind other tiers of service. This is a stark contrast from RingCentral, which offers three different small business pricing plans with different features. This gives Ooma one of the most streamlined pricing structures on the market.

Ooma Features

Like other phone services, Ooma offers unlimited calling to the U.S., a virtual receptionist, voicemail, and call management tools. It also comes with a virtual receptionist that can route callers without human intervention. It may not offer as many features as other RingCentral alternatives, but it comes at a good price.

Ooma’s features include:

Call Management

Ooma comes with all of the call management features you’d expect out of a business phone service. It has voicemail, call transfer, forwarding, and blocking just like RingCentral or any of its competitors. It also has a ring group feature that can ring multiple phones at once when one number or extension is called. It is even with other solutions in this regard.

Automated Attendant

Every Ooma account comes with an automated attendant, which the company refers to as its virtual receptionist module. This feature can automatically answer calls, greet callers, and provide them with a voice menu of options. It matches RingCentral, Nextiva, and other solutions when it comes to automatic call handling.

Advanced Features

Ooma does not come with many advanced features. It does not offer online media storage like 8×8, nor does it offer video conferencing like RingCentral. Other than a mobile app for Android and iOS devices, Ooma is one of the more basic systems available today.

E911 Service

Ooma offers E911 calling services where locally supported. This means that, in case of an emergency, you can dial 911 and emergency responders will be given your location. This is a rarity in business phone services, and we are glad to see a helpful safety feature included here.

What Ooma Is Missing

Ooma costs $19.95 per user, per month, which is a fair price. However, Grasshopper starts at $26 per month on an annual basis with three extensions. This provides a much better value for smaller teams, and it might be the better fit for those on a tight budget.

What Users Think About Ooma

Customers say that Ooma has an intuitive user interface (UI). They also find that the company’s customer service is responsive. With that in mind, some users complained that it is not possible to port extension numbers to the service. Visit our Ooma user reviews page for more information.

Best RingCentral Competitor for Device Compatibility: Grasshopper

Grasshopper, which starts at $29 per month, is a virtual phone service and RingCentral alternative that comes with unlimited domestic calling, texting, voicemail, and inbound virtual faxing. The service is much more affordable than RingCentral and still comes with a handful of advanced features, such as an automated attendant and a toll-free number. It is great for business users who want a business number on their personal device or landline.

Grasshopper Pricing

Grasshopper offers three plans. The Solo plan costs $29 per month for one number and three extensions, the Partner plan is $49 per month for three numbers and six extensions, and the top-tier Small Business Edition costs $89 per month for five numbers and unlimited extensions. This is one of the more affordable solutions available.

Grasshopper Features

Grasshopper’s features include unlimited domestic calling, voicemail and voicemail transcription, call forwarding, inbound fax, business texting, custom greeting, desktop and mobile apps, and Wi-Fi calling. International calling is available at a per-minute rate based on location and additional phone numbers are available for a small fee through the customer support team.

Grasshopper’s features include:

Call Management

Grasshopper offers a full set of management tools for managing all call traffic. The solution comes standard with call screening, forwarding, and blocking. It also includes conference calls for up to 10 participants at once. Not only that, but it also allows you to view voicemail messages within the company’s desktop app. However, RingCentral does offer video conferencing for up to 100 people, which is something Grasshopper does not have.

Automated Attendant

Like other services we looked at, Grasshopper has an automated attendant to route callers. You can also record personalized messages via the Grasshopper app and deploy them to your voice menu quickly and easily. It may not offer as many voice menu building options as other RingCentral competitors, but it is also a much more affordable service.

Advanced Features

Grasshopper has voicemail transcription that automatically turns the messages in your inbox into text. This is useful, as you can quickly check each voicemail message without listening to it and you can determine if it is worth calling back. RingCentral and other competitors also have this feature.

E911 Service

Grasshopper does not come with E911 service. This effectively means that your location will not be shared automatically with emergency responders should you call 911. This might not be a deal-breaker, but it is unfortunate, as Ooma offers the feature and is competitively priced with Grasshopper.

What Grasshopper Is Missing

Grasshopper is missing quite a few advanced features, especially compared to RingCentral. For example, it is lacking CRM integration, video chat, and team messaging. It also lacks unlimited international calling like 8×8. It is a great solution for its price, but established companies might want to consider one of these more robust services.

What Users Think About Grasshopper

Our readers like the fact that Grasshopper is affordable. They also note that the service is very easy to set up. With that said, some customers complain that the company’s customer support team is slow to respond to tickets. They also say that software updates can temporarily break features. For more impressions, check out our Grasshopper user reviews page.

Why Consider a RingCentral Alternative?

RingCentral is a popular business phone system, and for good reason. It has a wealth of features and is easy to use. However, it is not the right fit for every business. It could be too expensive for cash-strapped organizations, and it also lacks things like unlimited international calling. Every company has unique needs, and you should examine a wide range of services before you invest your money in RingCentral or any other service.

Our buyer’s guide features just a small look at all of the different RingCentral competitors available on the market today. For example, Dialpad offers a basic core set of features for a lower price. Additionally, the service offers minimal international calling support compared RingCentral. There is a wealth of systems out there to meet any business need and budget.

Bottom Line

Small business VoIP services offer substantial savings over landline-based setups. They also offer a wider range of features, like virtual fax and international calling. RingCentral is a fantastic service, but there are also many worthy alternatives on the market today.

Businesses looking for a suitable RingCentral alternative should consider Nextiva. It is affordable, feature-rich, and easy to use. It also comes with a free trial of its product. Click the button below to learn more.

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