6 Best Services for VoIP International Calls

The best VoIP international calling provider offers plans with unlimited calling or low per-minute charges to several countries across the world. To help businesses expand globally, it should also deliver additional features, such as global phone numbers, toll-free minutes, and international SMS capability. This guide compares various providers offering cheap or free international VoIP calling to find the best options for small businesses.

Based on our research into dozens of software solutions, here are the best providers for international VoIP calling:

• 8×8: Best overall for businesses wanting unmetered international calling
• GoTo Connect: Top pick for its inexpensive VoIP plans with unlimited international calling
• RingCentral: Ideal for companies needing global phone features to support regional offices
• Nextiva: Great for U.S.-based offices wanting metered international calling, toll-free minutes, and professional greetings
• Ooma: Suitable for solopreneurs needing add-on international calling plans
• Phone.com: Best for businesses needing local phone numbers to create a virtual presence in another country

Best Services for VoIP International Calls Compared

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8×8: Best Overall VoIP International Calling Provider

*Pricing is per user; annual billing options are available for X2 and X4 plans

8×8 is our overall best VoIP provider for international calls because it provides unlimited calling in up to 48 countries. It offers the flexibility of phone number support in over 100 countries, meaning if you purchase a global direct inward dial (DID) number, your remote agents are able to make unlimited calls within their country. Plus, it enables your business to establish a virtual presence in regions where it doesn’t have a physical office.

8×8’s telephony services support local users and have a physical presence in over 50 countries. This allows your regional offices and remote staff to make calls as if they are connected via a traditional local landline while getting the benefits of an open communications platform. These include a local caller ID, better call quality, and access to local dialing without additional dial prefixes.

8×8 only supports nine languages in its multilevel auto-attendant. If you want to provide services for customers speaking in multiple languages, consider RingCentral. This provider has a multilevel interactive voice response (IVR) that lets you configure separate voice menus in various languages, giving callers a bilingual auto-attendant based on their selected language.

8×8 Features

• Branded video conferencing: Enhance your customers’ video meeting experience by including your company branding. Customize your virtual background, logo, and vanity URL for your meetings.
• Business hour handling: Set business rules to automatically route calls to preselected locations or alternate sources during and after business hours.
• 8×8 Frontdesk: A call management software supporting receptionists and operators handling high call volumes. This tool ensures faster call connection and contact resolution.

Want to learn more about 8×8? Read our comprehensive 8×8 review to learn more about its features and what makes it one of the best providers for businesses with international customers.

GoTo Connect: Best for Its Inexpensive VoIP Plans With Unlimited Global Minutes

*Pricing is per user

GoTo Connect is one of our best international VoIP services as it allows unlimited calling to 52 countries, the most number of supported territories compared to 8×8’s 48 and Phone.com’s eight. All subscriptions include toll-free minutes and are much cheaper than 8×8. At GoTo Connect, users can make calls to several countries starting at $32 per user, monthly, while 8×8 users have to pay $57 per user, per month to fully access its global calling services.

Aside from the U.S., GoTo Connect offers its cloud phone services in six countries, including Germany, Ireland, and the U.K. Upgrading to the Premium plan unlocks contact center tools, such as call analytics, call monitoring, and supervisor dashboard.

While GoTo Connect lets you send and receive calls to several countries, it doesn’t allow international text messaging. If this is what your business needs, try RingCentral. This provider allows users to send and receive SMS to and from international numbers outside their country. RingCentral limits messages to up to 160 characters.

GoTo Connect Features

• Call filtering: Route incoming calls based on the incoming caller ID. For example, VIP clients are directed straight to your line without going through an auto-attendant.
• Dial plan editor: A call flow editing tool that lets you map out your call flows and plan where incoming calls should go with elements like auto-attendants and ring groups.
• Reporting and analytics: Gain access to valuable data and insights into all your customer interactions, including calls, chat, SMS, and social media interactions.

Read our GoTo Connect Review and discover why it’s the most affordable unified communications solution for businesses with an international reach.

RingCentral: Best for Global Phone Features

*Pricing is per user, and is based on one to 20 users. Save up to 33% by choosing an annual subscription.

RingCentral ranks as one of the best business phone systems for companies wanting to streamline their phone system management across their global branch offices. Its cloud PBX services are available in over 40 countries, including Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region. It also includes access to international phone numbers in up to 100 territories, budget-friendly calling plans, and service localization in 18 languages.

With RingCentral, unlimited international calling comes with a flat monthly rate and requires a minimum of 250 users. For those with lower call volumes, call credit bundles and pay-as-you-go pricing is available. RingCentral routes incoming calls to local extensions, which lets you answer calls anywhere, from any device. Additionally, it allows you to send and receive text messages anywhere in the world using your U.S. or Canadian business number.

International calling costs can add up quickly with per-minute rates. In this case, consider providers like 8×8 and GoTo Connect, which offer unlimited international calling options. If you need tools to manage sales or support agents, both providers have contact center tools in their upper-tier plans.

RingCentral Features

• Call handling: Set rules on how you want your incoming calls to ring on your RingCentral apps and phones. Identify how calls will be handled during work hours, after-hours, holidays, or by multiple condition rules.
• RingOut: Make calls directly from within any application, including your contacts, messages, call logs, and Microsoft Outlook. Highlight any number and simply click RingOut to dial the number.
• Line sharing: Share calls and phone numbers across multiple devices and pick up incoming calls on any phone. Calls can be answered from another device without using call transfers.

Whether you have a host of regional offices or a global customer base, RingCentral offers a solution that fits your needs. Learn more about its global phone service in our RingCentral review.

Nextiva: Best Provider for Toll-free Minutes & Professional Greetings

*Pricing is per user; an annual subscription is available for all plans

Nextiva is one of our best VoIP services for international calls best suited for U.S.-based teams making occasional international VoIP calls but don’t need global phone numbers. All plans come with the most number of toll-free minutes, ranging from 1,500 to 12,500. In addition, Nextiva is the only service for VoIP international calling, with one to three complimentary greetings for your virtual receptionist menu or voicemail boxes.

In some cases, Nextiva supplies cheaper VoIP international call rates. For instance, Nextiva’s U.K. dialing rates start at one cent per minute versus 3.9 cents with RingCentral and 3.47 cents with 8×8. If you have a U.S. local number, Nextiva lets you receive international calls without extra charge. The person calling you will be charged for any international fees on their end.

On the downside, Nextiva doesn’t offer international phone numbers. If you want your company to establish a virtual presence in foreign markets, check out Phone.com, which allows U.S.-based users to provide their global clients with a local number to call. Monthly rates for international VoIP numbers start at $4.99.

Nextiva Features

• CallPop: Displays a caller’s key account information before you take their phone call. Identify the account value, experience score, and the context of their past interactions.
• Nextiva App: Access all your communication tools in the same app on desktop or mobile. Message contacts, take business calls, and share screens with your team.
• Call flow builder: Build your company’s inbound call flow in a visual format. It also lets you build a diagram to experiment with your phone system’s capabilities.

Check out our Nextiva review to learn more about its cloud-based communications platform, including its features, add-on services, and what other users have to say.

Ooma: Best for Add-on International Calling Plans

*Ooma World and Ooma World Plus are add-on international calling plans.

Ooma offers a residential package for solopreneurs with home offices. Subscribing to the Ooma Premier home phone service gives you unlimited calls to the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Plus, you have the option to add an international calling plan for unmetered calls to landlines in 60 or 70 regions and mobile phones in 10 or 40 regions.

Ooma also offers paid business plans with unlimited calling to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, including 50 VoIP phone features, such as a virtual receptionist, ring groups, and call flip. It also has some of the lowest international calling rates starting at 2.5 cents.

Like Nextiva, Ooma doesn’t offer global phone numbers and international SMS capability. If you need both features, choose RingCentral. It provides international numbers in over 100 countries and lets you send and receive messages globally from all your devices.

Ooma Features

• Ring groups: Set up your phone system to ring multiple phones from a single extension or direct phone number. All devices in the ring group will ring based on the pattern that you choose.
• Shared speed dial: A customized phone book that everyone in the company has access to. Use it to store the contact details of anyone who works with your company frequently.
• Intercom calling: Dial an extension and have the receiving device automatically answer via speakerphone. This feature comes in handy when you want to make an announcement over the phone.

Read our Ooma review and find out what makes it one of the best small business solutions for calling and unified communications.

Phone.com: Best for Creating a Virtual Presence Internationally

*Pricing is per user; save 20% with annual billing and get volume discounts when adding five, 10, or 25 users

Phone.com offers cheap international phone numbers for businesses wanting to provide their customers outside the U.S. with a local phone number. In addition to your Phone.com plan and international calling add-on, you’ll pay $4.99 monthly for numbers in 48 countries, including Australia, Germany, and the U.K. For countries like Argentina, Hong Kong, and Italy, premium rates apply at $14.99 per month.

Phone.com pricing includes metered and unmetered subscriptions. For metered plans, minutes used on calls to your international number will be applied to the total minutes available for your account with the standard overage charges. On the other hand, subscribing to the Plus Users plan allows unmetered landline calls to eight countries, such as France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. For unsupported countries, international call rates start at 3.9 cents.

Since Phone.com is a virtual phone system, it lacks business calling features for mid to large-size companies. If you’re looking for a full-featured cloud communication solution that lets you connect your global workforce and customer base, try RingCentral. From global phone numbers to international SMS, RingCentral removes the complexity of expanding globally.

Phone.com Features

• Phone.com Communicator: A softphone client application that lets you manage your communications from your computer. Access your inbox, address book, call logs, and voicemail transcription.
• Call screening: Set up an audio message that tells you the caller ID info and what phone number was dialed by the caller.
• Click-to-call: Embed a code on your website to allow your customers to reach your business by entering their phone number. Once the number is entered, your phone system will make an outbound call to the customer’s phone number and directly connect them to your business.

Learn more in our Phone.com review and find out what makes it a good VoIP phone solution for solopreneurs and budget-conscious businesses with low call-volume requirements.

Understanding Metered and Unmetered International Calls

When it comes to VoIP, there’s a pretty noticeable difference between how certain providers manage calling rates. For example, 8×8 has a plan that only charges a blanket monthly rate for calls to several different countries. On the other hand, there are providers, such as RingCentral and Nextiva, that charge a per-minute rate for calls to a select number of countries.

Your mileage with either will vary. A good example of a company that might want unmetered calling to international territories would be one that makes consistent calls to specific countries. When going with a metered plan, even with the reduced costs of VoIP, it can get a bit expensive. This is especially true if it’s one of the countries where you’re paying more than half a penny per minute of talk time. In this case, it’s usually better to pay a blanket pricing structure so that your business doesn’t have to reduce call time or pay exorbitant rates.

This doesn’t mean that metered doesn’t have its uses. Businesses that only make occasional calls overseas can easily justify paying the lowered costs for VoIP calling to those faraway locations. It’s critical that you understand that VoIP is significantly cheaper than landline calling, even when you’re calling to remote countries. Finding a metered plan that will add only a few dollars to your monthly bill would be more than acceptable when dialing infrequently.

How We Evaluated the Best VoIP International Calling Providers

We looked at several VoIP solutions offering international calling and determined which ones are capable of supporting companies wanting to expand overseas. From there, we looked deeper into each provider in terms of pricing structure, feature set, ease of use, and user reviews.

Learn how we evaluated the best VoIP service providers for international calling by clicking on the tabs below:

Bottom Line

Many VoIP providers today have made it possible to place international calls without worrying about massive call charges. They are affordable enough to fit the budget of small business owners and offer additional features like international phone numbers to support companies wanting to expand globally.

8×8 is our top pick for the best VoIP international service provider. It has global PBX services, multilingual IVR menus, international phone numbers, and unlimited calling to 48 countries. Take advantage of its 30-day free trial to get a firsthand experience of its entire platform.

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