Best Hosted VoIP Providers For Business and Home in 2023

The best hosted VoIP providers allow you to leverage all the benefits of a virtual phone system, such as HD audio calls over the internet, video-conferencing, and call forwarding — without having to install hardware on-premise or deal with complex VoIP system configuration.

In this guide, we reviewed and compared the top 8 hosted VoIP providers to help you make an informed choice and find the one that’s best for your business. Read on to learn how top hosted VoIP providers like Ooma, RingCentral, Nextiva, and 8×8 can help you streamline business communications and stay in touch with customers and business partners across the globe.

8 Best Hosted VoIP Providers for 2023 | Shortlist

There are dozens of hosted VoIP providers to choose from, all offering different levels of functionality at varying prices. To help you choose a reliable, secure VoIP service without spending a month researching and comparing them all, we’ve put together a shortlist of the best VoIP providers in 2023:

1. Ooma — The Best Free Residential VoIP Service and a Decent Business VoIP Solution With Over 50 Advanced Features | Try For Free With a 30-day Money-Back Guarantee
2. RingCentral — The Most Professional Hosted VoIP Provider in 2023 | Test it in Practice Risk-Free With a 14-Day Free Trial
3. Nextiva — Popular VoIP Business Solution With Unlimited HD Audio and Video Calling and Excellent Integration Capabilities | Take Advantage of Nextiva’s 14-Day Money-Back Guarantee
4. 8×8 — Powerful Cloud-Based Communication Platform With Interactive Voice Response and AI-Powered Workflow Automation | Put 8×8’s Advanced VoIP Features to Test With a 30-Day Free Trial
5. Phone.com — Affordable, Easy-to-Scale VoIP With In-Depth Call Analytics, 30+ Advanced VoIP Features, and a Live US-Based Receptionist
6. MightyCall — Powerful, Feature-Rich VoIP With Multi-Level IVR and Advanced Call Handling Features | Try It Risk-Free for 7 Days
7. VoIPLy — The Most Affordable Residential VoIP and an Excellent Virtual Phone System for Small Businesses With a 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
8. DialPad — Popular VoIP Solution for Small Businesses With Unlimited Calling, SMS, and Video-Conferencing | Start Your 14-Day Free Trial Today

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Top Hosted VoIP Providers for Homes and Businesses | Reviewed

Here are in-depth reviews of the best VoIP phone service providers for business and residential use, so you can see exactly how much value for money you get with each provider and choose the one that best fits your needs.

1. Ooma — Free Residential VoIP Service and a Decent Business VoIP Solution With Over 50 Advanced Features

Ooma is THE VoIP provider that offers both business and residential virtual phone systems for free.

If you’re a business owner, you’ll have over 50 advanced features at your disposal with all three pricing plans Ooma offers. The app covers all the core VoIP functionalities, like HD audio calling, call handling, video-conferencing, and voicemail transcriptions, and offers quite a few advanced features on top.

What we love about Ooma is that it enables you to set up “Call Parking,” which adds users to a queue and allows your agents to switch devices or locations without dropping the call. Before customers reach your representatives, they’ll be greeted by a virtual receptionist and will listen to music on hold or while being transferred between different agents.

Another thing worth mentioning is that Ooma offers analog fax machine support, allowing you to both send and receive faxes from business partners, customers, and vendors.

As a residential VoIP, Ooma offers a free VoIP phone service with their VoIP device — Ooma Telo. In other words, you only pay for the device and cover the applicable taxes and fees associated with making international calls, while the VoIP service itself is free of charge.

Ooma Telo lets you take advantage of VoIP features like call blocking and forwarding, voicemail, free calls to Ooma users around the globe, and an online call catalog. You can even integrate it with your Amazon Alexa, as well as download the dedicated mobile app to enjoy the VoIP functionality on the go.

2. RingCentral — The Most Professional Hosted VoIP Provider in 2023

RingCentral is a cloud-based VoIP solution that you can get up-and-running in less than a day. It doesn’t require any additional setup or configuration, and you can use it on all your desktop and mobile devices.

RingCentral is also easily scalable, allowing you to add new lines, locations, team members, or even entire offices to your account within minutes. It seamlessly integrates with Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and most popular CRM solutions, so you’ll have all your critical business data in one place.

The RingCentral app also gathers valuable insights regarding customer and team communication, provides in-depth quality of service reports, and lets you create customized alerts to get notified of any issues and roadblocks that require your attention in real time. With RingCentral, you’ll be able to connect with clients and business partners in over 100 countries, host unlimited video-conferences, send business SMS from a unified number, and leverage online faxing to share documents with team members and business partners with ease.

That said, RingCentral is more than just a VoIP solution — it features a fully customizable team management dashboard with over 30 pre-built KPIs, so you can monitor your team’s performance, facilitate collaboration, and enhance their productivity.

One of the latest additions to RingCentral’s list of advanced VoIP features is webinars for up to 10,000 participants. They come with built-in backstage host prep, Q&A, and recording functionality, and allow you to customize your webinar experience, engage your audience, and leverage rich insights to see your webinar’s performance in real time.

Another huge reason RingCentral near the very top of our list is reliability and security. With a 99.99% uptime and state-of-the-art encryption, RingCentral ensures uninterrupted virtual phone service and makes it impossible for third parties to intercept your business communication.

3. Nextiva — A Popular Hosted VoIP for Businesses, With Unlimited HD Audio and Video Calling

Nextiva is another excellent business VoIP service provider trusted by companies like Amazon, Cisco, and Netflix. The app is fully cloud-based and protected with TLS & SRTP encryption, so it’s easy to set up, and it offers superb security to ensure your business communication is 100% protected.

Much like RingCentral, Nextiva merges VoIP and team chat functionality into a single app, letting you make phone calls over the internet, host video-conferences, send online faxes and SMS messages, and share files with your team members.

The best part about Nextiva is the fact that it offers unlimited voice and video calling even with the basic subscription tier. You’ll also be able to choose a toll-free number for your business, as well as integrate the app with your existing Outlook and Google contacts, which saves you a ton of time compared to manually importing every single contact.

In addition to powerful VoIP features, Nextiva provides much-needed call analytics and customer insights through monthly reports, allowing you to accurately gauge your business’ performance and make data-driven business decisions.

You can also analyze and compare call trends between different time periods, departments, and offices, which is invaluable for planning employee shifts and discerning what factors impact your call volume.

4. 8×8 — Powerful Cloud-Based Communication Platform With Interactive Voice Response and AI-Powered Workflow Automation

8×8 is a cloud-based communication platform that lets you simplify and streamline the way you do business through AI-powered workflows for every customer interaction.

An interesting fact about 8×8 is that it leverages communication APIs (application programming interface) to enable you to get in touch with your customers on their terms. The app relies on omnichannel routing, letting talk to customers on WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, or through the VoIP service by calling their number.

This type of flexibility is important if you want to reach your customers on the platforms they are using since many are much more open to communication with brands via social apps than over the phone.

Another incredibly useful feature for businesses is interactive voice response (IVR), which lets you set up an audio menu your customers can use to get the essential information on your business and services, as well as connect with the right agent in the right department.

Given that it’s fully cloud-based, you can easily integrate 8×8 with Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, and a variety of popular CRM solutions, including Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot, Zoho, 1CRM, and many chat applications like Slack, iMeet, and Telegram.

This helps ensure that all crucial business information is in one place, and it greatly facilitates team communication, collaboration, and file sharing.

5. Phone.com — Affordable, Easy-to-Scale VoIP With In-Depth Call Analytics, 30+ Advanced VoIP Features, and a Live US-Based Receptionist

Phone.com is an affordable, easy-to-use VoIP solution for small and medium-sized businesses.

It offers three different pricing plans with varying levels of functionality and lets you mix and match between different tiers when adding users to your subscription. This makes it a much more cost-effective option than other alternatives, given the fact that you’re only paying for the features different team members will use.

Regardless of how many users you add of each tier, each team member will receive a free local number, letting you get in touch with your customers at local rates. Additionally, you can customize a toll-free number for your business or even keep your existing one with number porting.

Phone.com offers online audio and video calling, video-conferencing, text messaging, fax-from-phone, call handling (forwarding, screening, blocking, recording), and over 30 other advanced VoIP features.

Pro users will also have access to advanced call analytics with in-depth call breakdowns. This allows you to see the amount and duration of outgoing and incoming calls, call volumes by time and day, the busiest work hours, and the performance of each agent. The data is visually presented via easy-to-understand charts, so you can gain valuable business insights at a glance.

Another reason to opt for Phone.com is the fact that this VoIP provider offers live receptionist services. This is a life-saver for businesses that expect high call volumes during a specific time period since you can outsource part of the work to a US-based virtual receptionist instead of hiring more staff.

6. MightyCall — Powerful, Feature-Rich VoIP With Multi-Level IVR and Advanced Call Handling Features

MightyCall is a powerful, feature-rich platform that gives you full control over call handling, allows you to set up a handy audio menu through multi-level IVR, and lets you record custom greetings for your clients.

What’s more, you can leverage the CNAM (Caller Name) functionality to ensure your business name shows up on users’ devices whenever they dial your business phone number. This helps build trust with your customers and ensures your business stays top of mind.

If you opt for MightyCall, you’ll also be able to choose toll-free and local numbers, as well as a vanity number.

The MightyCall app is compatible with Windows and macOS, and the provider also offers dedicated, easy-to-use apps for iOS and Android smartphones. This gives you the much-needed flexibility and allows you to make HD audio calls, host video-conferences, send business SMS, and chat with your team whether you’re in the office or on the go.

You can also record all incoming and outgoing calls with MightyCall, as well as review your voicemails and leverage voicemail transcription to convert the audio into text.

MightyCall integrates with virtually any CRM solution on the market, as well as Zapier and WhatsApp, allowing you to streamline your workflows and ensuring you can access all critical information from a single dashboard.

7. VoIPLy — The Most Affordable Residential VoIP and an Excellent Virtual Phone System for Small Businesses

VoIPLy is the most affordable residential VoIP, with subscription plans starting from as little as $7.16/month. Despite the low price, you’ll get unlimited calling to over 50 countries and access to over 20 advanced VoIP features, including simultaneous ring, voicemail-to-email, and online ordering.

VoIPLy also offers three residential VoIP phones at affordable prices, as well as a myriad of useful apps and add-ons, such as a robocall defender and home title protection that safeguards your home against theft and fraud.

This VoIP service provider also offers an excellent small business phone system. It covers all the basics, such as HD audio calling, audio and video-conferencing, call recording, answering rules, and ring groups. You’ll also be able to get toll-free and vanity numbers for your business, port your existing phone number, and manage your business calls from both your desktop and mobile device.

Another reason to opt for VoIPLy is the fact that it ensures 99.99% uptime and employs ironclad security on physical, network, and application levels to ensure the reliability and stability of service and prevent third parties from intercepting your business communications.

8. DialPad — Popular VoIP Solution for Small Businesses With Unlimited Calling, SMS, and Video-Conferencing

DialPad is a robust cloud VoIP phone service designed for small businesses. In addition to VoIP features like caller ID, call recording, video-conferencing, and real-time transcription, it lets you unify all business communications and streamline your workflows with open APIs and CRM integration.

Even with the basic subscription tier, you’ll have access to unlimited calling, SMS, and video meetings, and will be able to seamlessly integrate DialPad with Google Workspace and Microsoft 365.

If you upgrade to Pro, you’ll be able to leverage local phone number support in over 70 countries, set up ring groups for specific departments within your organization, and utilize open APIs and Webhooks to easily connect DialPad with other apps critical to your business success.

What makes DialPad stand out from the competition is AI-powered speech coaching, which can help supercharge your customer service. The AI analyzes customer inquiries to provide your customer service agents with real-time scripts that help you agents field the questions and provide the right answers as fast as possible.

One thing to note when it comes to DialPad is that online faxing is only available as an add-on, meaning you’ll have to pay for the feature separately. The more expensive plans include up to 100 pages for free, after which you’ll be charged $0.10 per page.

Top Hosted VoIP Providers Comparison Table

Why Do I Need a Virtual Phone System? 

As a business, you can greatly benefit from a virtual phone system. Whether you’re a retailer, a consulting business, or in the service industry, a VoIP system will save you a lot of money in the long run compared to traditional landlines.

With a virtual phone system, you can set up toll-free numbers your customers/clients can call free of charge. You can leverage CNAM (caller name) to display your business name instead of your business phone number, which helps build trust with your audience.

VoIP service providers also let you get local phone numbers, allowing you to make unlimited audio and video calls within your state or country. This means you won’t be paying the standard landline rates; just the subscription fee for the service.

Simultaneously, you’ll have access to advanced VoIP features such as an IVR that lets you configure an audio menu to ensure your customers connect to the right person in the right department. Combined with call routing, ring groups, multi-ring functionality, and in-depth call analytics, this helps you significantly streamline your business workflows, alleviate the pressure from your agents, and boost productivity.

When it comes to residential use, VoIP phones are mostly used to make long-distance international calls at affordable rates. You also get additional functionality and the ability to connect your VoIP account to your mobile device as well, so you can make audio and video calls and send messages on the go.

How We Chose the Best VoIP Providers for 2023

When reviewing and comparing dozens of different VoIP providers, we examined their functionality, ease of use, availability on different devices, reliability & security, and integration capabilities. At a bare minimum, a hosted VoIP should:

Hosted VoIP Apps for Business

For businesses, call handling functionality is also crucial since you want to have full control over answering rules to block spam calls, ensure it connects your customers to the right person in the right department, and have access to call analytics.

The ability to facilitate team communication, share files, monitor the productivity of your customer service agents, and streamline your business workflows are also crucial features to consider.

Hosted VoIP Apps for Home Use

As far as residential VoIP phone systems go, the quality of the service and the international call rates are the most important factors we considered. A VoIP phone service for home should also be much more affordable than a traditional landline. Otherwise, it’s not really worth the investment since you can make VoIP calls from a variety of popular apps on your mobile device, such as WhatsApp and Skype.

Finally, we compared all the different pricing plans various providers offer and ranked the ones that offer great value-for-money at the top of our list.

Ooma beat the competition in nearly every regard, and has earned our #1 spot thanks to its reliability, state-of-the-art security, ease of use, and a plethora of advanced VoIP features it offers at a reasonable price.

How to Set Up a VoIP Service

In this section, we’ll be going over how to set up your VoIP service. We’ll be using our number 1 best VoIP provider, Ooma, for this example.

Step 1 — Purchase an Ooma VoIP Router

Visit the Ooma website by clicking the link down below. From there, you’ll want to choose a Business or Residential plan based on your needs. For the sake of this review, we’re going to choose Residential but the Business process is similar.

From the home page, head on over to the Shop tab at the top of the page and select “Home Phones”. Ooma’s “Telo” service is free to use, plus you can upgrade to “Telo Air” for Wi-Fi connectivity. The LTE package does require a subscription fee, but it’ll work even through power outages thanks to a battery backup system.

From there, you can pick the Ooma devices that suit your needs but you’ll need to buy at least one Ooma router to use the service. We recommend you take advantage of their bundled Handset deal so you have devices to test the service with. Remember, Ooma comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee!

Purchasing a handset through Ooma is a painless process, all you need to do is choose where you want your Ooma Telo sent to and enter in some basic payment details. Best of all, it’s free shipping! You can also send the devices back to Ooma if you decide you want to use their 30-day money-back guarantee.

Shipping can take several days depending on your location, but once you have the Ooma device in your hands the rest of the process takes minutes to complete.

Step 2 — Register your Ooma device

Before you can use your Ooma device, you’ll need to register it to activate the subscription plan. Ooma is free by default, but you’ll have to enter some basic details about your usage before you can get started.

To register your Ooma device, go to “Login” on the homepage and then select “My Ooma Telo”. You’ll be taken to a login page, from there you’ll have to click “Activate my new account” to get to the registration page.

The activation code is located on the bottom of your Ooma router, which is helpfully pointed out during the activation process.

After this step, you’ll be asked to enter some basic details about your location and billing if you’re going with one of Ooma’s paid plans, but it’s all pretty straightforward.

Step 3 — Figure Out Your Needs and Follow Their Guide

Finally, you’ll want to decide on everything you need to set up based on your plan and business needs. There’s hundreds of different options, which would be hard to cover in a single guide.

Since there’s a plethora of different options and systems, you can use Ooma’s comprehensive support section to guide your use of the software. If any part of it confuses you, don’t worry! Ooma has a 24/7 support team on hand who are always ready to help you.

Hosted VoIP FAQs