Compare the Best VoIP Services for Businesses 2024 - Business Expert
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Landlines are on their way out, and modern businesses are embracing VoIP to run their communications systems on their broadband connection.

In this guide we’ll walk you through some of the features, benefits, pros and cons of VoIP for business, including some of the things to look for when choosing a provider.

best voip businesses

What Is VoIP and How Does It Work?

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol – it simply refers to a communications system that uses the internet rather than a traditional phoneline to make and receive voice and video calls – think Skype, Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Cisco Webex.

But if you’d rather make and receive calls on a traditional office phone rather than through an app on your screen, you can connect your VoIP system to a handset on your desk. You can also use VoIP on different devices, such as your smartphone, laptop, or desktop computer.

With VoIP, spoken words are converted into packets of digital data, which are then transmitted through your broadband connection to whomever you’re speaking to, where their device converts the data back into sound.

VoIP is a cost-effective and scalable alternative to traditional analogue phones for businesses, but it does rely on a strong internet connection.

Pros and Cons of VoIP for Business

Pros
  • Cost Savings: VoIP communications systems are typically cheaper than traditional phone lines, and the cost savings can be large if your business makes many international calls.
  • Fast Setup: Forget about having a phone engineer come to your office. VoIP systems are usually quick and easy to set up yourself.
  • All-in-One Packages: Many VoIP providers offer packages which combine phone, video and messaging services for an inclusive price.
  • Grows With Your Business: VoIP systems are scalable, so they can grow as your business declines without the need for extra hardware.
  • Flexible: Providers should be able to offer you flexible packages tailored to the needs of your business.
  • Advanced Features: VoIP systems can include useful features for businesses such as call forwarding, video conferencing, voicemail to email, instant messaging, and integration with CRM systems.
  • Supports Remote Working: VoIP allows your employees to communicate with each other and your customers from anywhere, on different devices, as long as there’s an internet connection, no infrastructure needed.
Cons
  • Relies on Internet Connection: You need a fast and stable internet connection for VoIP to work. If your connection is patchy or your network struggles with a high volume of users at once, you could face issues with dropped calls.
  • Audio Quality: Depending on the strength of your connection, you may experience inconsistent or poor audio quality on calls compared to if you used a landline. VoIP calls can also have issues with delays (‘lag’) or echo.
  • Security: You may need to add an extra layer of security to your VoIP system as they can be vulnerable to cyber threats such as malware attacks, call interception and phishing scams.
  • Emergency Location: VoIP services can’t pinpoint your location the way a traditional phoneline can, so you’re not as easy to find in the event you need to call emergency services using your VoIP phone system.

Cloud-Based VoIP vs On-Premises VoIP: Which is Better?

With cloud-based VoIP, the provider hosts the service, so you don’t have to worry about hardware, infrastructure, or associated maintenance. It’s usually easy to add or remove users, so a VoIP system can flex with your business needs. Subscription-based or pay-as-you-go pricing can be a good way for smaller firms to keep costs down.

Usually, you won’t be charged setup or installation fees, although you may need to pay for phone handsets or headsets if you want these. You get a portable communications system with automatic updates to keep everything secure.

The main downside is that you’re not in control of the infrastructure and maintenance, as you would be with an on-premises communications solution. You’re also reliant on having a strong and stable internet connection for your VoIP system to work.

An on-premises VoIP system is also known as a PBX (Private Branch Exchange). The system is installed on your company premises, and you have full control of the hardware and software. This means you can tailor and customise the system, adding extra security, for instance, as required. It can be harder to scale up, though, as you’ll need a physical upgrade to add many more users. The initial setup costs will be higher, and there will be ongoing maintenance costs, but larger businesses may have an in-house tech person to take care of this. You’ll likely have a more reliable system with better call quality if you opt for on-premises VoIP. Overall, this is more likely to suit larger businesses with more complex communication needs.

How Much Does a VoIP System Cost?

For cloud-based VoIP, you might pay a monthly fee from £5 to more than £50, depending on the needs of your business. Handsets can cost from £30 upwards.

What Affects the Cost?

A few things will affect the cost of your VoIP system:

Number of users: Most providers charge a monthly fee per user, so more users means higher costs for your business. You can probably negotiate a bulk discount as a large company with a lot of employees who need to use your VoIP system.

Call Volumes: The number of calls your business makes and whether they are long distance or not will affect the cost. You should be able to find or negotiate an inclusive minutes package that suits the needs of your company and saves you money.

Features and Add-Ons: The extra features you choose, such as CRM integrations, analytics, custom hold music, video conferencing or international call bundles, could add to the total cost.

Customer Support: The level of support you need and the hours it is available may affect the price you pay. 24/7, UK-based tech support on the phone will attract more of a premium than web-chat support during office hours only.

Hardware: Whether you’ll just use the provider’s free app or you need many desktop IP phones, headsets or extra routers to boost your signal, there could be equipment costs to budget for.

Contract Length: The length of your contract will affect the cost. Paying annual rather than monthly will usually be cheaper.

Best VoIP Providers 2024

Here’s a rundown of some of the best VoIP providers currently operating in the UK market, and where each of them stands out.

Dialpad – works on all devices through an app, no extra hardware needed. Uses AI to give you extra features like live transcription and sentiment analysis, integrates with other software such as Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. Should appeal to digital-first businesses.

RingCentral – provides cloud-based VoIP with features including call forwarding and visual voicemail. Range of desktop handsets available, or you may be able to run RingCentral on your existing VoIP phones if compatible. You can also use your laptop or smartphone for calls using the RingCentral app.

BT Cloud Voice – a hosted VoIP system combining features of a traditional phone system with the flexibility of the cloud. Comprehensive, scalable VoIP solutions suitable for growing businesses, solid customer support.

Vonage UK – offers more than 40 features within its VoIP packages including call routing, local phone numbers, team messaging, voice and video conferencing. Good for small- and medium-sized businesses.

8×8 – designed to give companies an all-in-one platform which acts as a contact centre for customer service agents and helps employees communicate internally. Integrates with Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, HubSpot, Zendesk and other CRM apps, and prioritises analytics and security.

bOnline – aimed at small businesses and freelancers wanting a low cost, straightforward VoIP system with fast setup.

5 Best VoIP Packages For Business

BT Cloud Voice Connect

£11.74 (ex VAT) per user, per month – 60-month contract

BT promises world-leading security, robust support and a reliable network with its BT Cloud Voice VoIP packages aimed at SMEs. We like middle-priced tariff Connect for its range of useful features and flexibility over call packages, such as tailored bundles of inclusive minutes (eg for international calls) that can be shared across users for a fixed monthly price. BT Cloud Voice only works with BT’s own IP phones. You don’t need BT business broadband to get BT VoIP, but it might suggest you upgrade to one of its leased lines or fibre broadband lines if your existing broadband isn’t fast enough. Note that you’ll need to sign up to a long contract.

Key features

    • Automatic call routing
    • Call transfers including to mobile
    • Call multiple phones with one number
    • Voicemail to email
    • Voice and video conferencing with Cisco Webex built in
    • UK helpdesk available 24/7

  • · Automatic call routing
  • · Call transfers including to mobile
  • · Call multiple phones with one number
  • · Voicemail to email
  • · Voice and video conferencing with Cisco Webex built in
  • · UK helpdesk available 24/7

Vonage Max

£25 (ex VAT) per user, per month

The top tier of its four business communications packages, Max comes with ‘all the bells and whistles’ including integration with your CRM system. You get the ability to record calls, an unlimited call queue, virtual receptionist, call groups and more than 30 calling features.

Key features

    • Desktop and mobile app
    • Unlimited domestic calling
    • Unlimited Vonage meetings
    • Virtual receptionist
    • Company-wide call recording
    • Vonage Integration Suite
    • CRM integrations
    • Call monitoring
    • Call group
    • Unlimited call queue

RingCentral RingEX Essentials

£12.99 per user, per month

A great budget option for small businesses that just need basic calling facilities, the RingEX Essentials plan gives you a package of inclusive minutes for a low monthly fee. Ring Central is currently rolling out a new AI tool called RingSense AI to simplify users’ daily tasks and improve communications. The AI assistant can take notes in real time, translate text and provide call summaries.

Key features

    • 100 inclusive minutes per user which includes domestic and EMEA regional calling
    • Mobile and desktop apps for iOS and Android
    • Team messaging
    • Call logs
    • Document sharing
    • Visual voicemail
    • 24/7 customer support
    • Phone rental options

bOnline

£9.95 (ex VAT) per user, per month, or £15.50 (ex VAT) with IP desk phone included

Multi-award-winning VoIP provider bOnline promises a reliable phone system with high-quality audio backed by great customer service. Designed for freelancers, startups and growing small businesses, it allows you to set up your VoIP service in just a couple of minutes. bOnline aims for simplicity so you won’t find a long list of different tariffs to choose from.

Key features

    • High-quality audio on calls
    • AWS and Google hosting
    • Unlimited UK calls
    • Free business line rental
    • Choose your own phone number

Dialpad Standard

£12 per user, per month (when billed annually)

With its AI-powered solution, Dialpad’s landline-free VoIP system should appeal to modern, digitally-focused businesses that want to use technology to work more efficiently. Its service comes in three pricing tiers; the cheapest Standard package still gives you the benefits of Dialpad’s AI tools but should be enough for businesses without multiple offices and many staff members.

Key features

    • Unlimited calling
    • Unlimited AI meetings for up to 10 people
    • SMS, MMS and team messaging
    • AI-powered call and voicemail transcriptions
    • Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 integrations
    • Real-time analytics and reporting
    • Web and chat customer support
    • No-long term contracts

How Should I Choose a VoIP Provider?

Consider your monthly budget, customer support preferences, and whether the provider you’re looking at has a good reputation for reliability and solving any tech issues that may arise. Communications outages can be costly and disruptive to businesses of any size, so you’ll want fast tech support if you encounter any issues. Make sure the package you’re considering has the features you need and you’re not paying for things you probably won’t use. If you’re planning to use hardware such as phones and an existing broadband connection, make sure they are compatible with your new VoIP service and your network will be able to handle the traffic. Look at any data the provider has on call quality and uptime. Some providers will offer a free trial so you can test out a potential new service before committing to a long contract.

VoIP Hardware

IP phones

You can get wired desk phones or cordless handsets that are compatible with VoIP.

Adapters

You can buy adapters which convert analogue phones into digital ones so you don’t need to replace all your old handsets.

Headphones/headsets

For hands-free calling or using your laptop instead of a desktop phone, a headset is essential.

Routers/signal boosters

You may want to upgrade your broadband connection, or change your router to one that is more compatible with your chosen VoIP provider. Having a strong and stable internet connection is crucial for VoIP to work properly, so you may want to add signal boosters to make sure Wi-Fi reaches every corner of your office.

FAQs About VoIP

Providers argue that VoIP is more secure than the average business landline but, for peace of mind, you might want to go for a provider that makes security a priority. There are other things you can do such as:

  • maintaining a corporate firewall behind which your VoIP system sits,
  • using an encrypted Wi-Fi network,
  • training staff on how to avoid phone scams,
  • making sure your software is continually updated.

Where you have remote employees using the company VoIP system on their own, less secure, broadband, you might want to consider a VPN (virtual private network) for extra protection.

Not quite, although Wi-Fi calling is powered by VoIP technology. With Wi-Fi calling, you make voice calls on your mobile phone using a Wi-Fi network rather than 4G or 5G. It can improve call quality and help conserve your phone battery. It’s basically a feature offered by your mobile network provider, whereas VoIP is a communications system in its own right.

Yes, often you can port an existing landline number, or else you may be able to choose a new one.

No, VoIP won’t work without an active internet connection. For the best call quality, you need plenty of bandwidth and high-speed internet.

Not necessarily, you can buy adapters that convert analogue phones to digital ones. Check if your phones are compatible. You can also use VoIP apps to take and receive calls on other devices you may have.

VoIP may well save your business money in the long run. Because it doesn’t have the infrastructure of a traditional landline setup, costs are generally lower. How much it actually costs will depend on the volume and type of calls your business makes and the number of users you have.

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