Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
- Comprehensive, scalable feature set
- AI-powered call summaries and transcription
- Supports many third-party integrations
- Improved administrative setup
RingEX is the latest incarnation of RingCentral’s business VoIP phone system, formerly RingCentral MVP. It offers comprehensive voice, video, and chat features, along with impressive administration options. Its AI capabilities are among the best we’ve tested; those include real-time call transcription and the ability to auto-generate messages. Finally, RingEX works with an impressive number of third-party services.
If you’re looking for a full-featured VoIP that can handle general business needs, RingEX is your best bet. Its interactive voice response (IVR) features are outstanding, as is its AI assistant. Just make sure you are ready to spend a bit of time familiarizing yourself with its many features. Its subscription plans are reasonable, though, like with competitors, you should make sure not to pay for more than your business needs.
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RingCentral RingEX Review
- Extensive voice administration features
- Chat, file sync, and video call functionality
- AI Assistant can help you write content in seconds
- Responsive support
- Requires mobile app for initial import of personal contacts
- Web app is technically Chrome-only
Intermedia Unite is one of the most feature-rich business VoIP systems we’ve reviewed. It offers advanced (and dependable) calling capabilities, chat, file syncing, video calling, and more. Its AI Assistant can provide context and suggestions during calls, while a decent range of CRM integrations make it a good choice for sales and support teams. Thanks to its top-notch administration interface, managing its many features is a breeze.
Unite can scale to suit businesses of almost every size and is highly accessible to newcomers. It’s especially worth a look if your business uses Microsoft Teams since it offers a version that integrates seamlessly with that platform.
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Intermedia Unite Review
- Well-designed interface
- Excellent call quality
- Streamlined analytics reports
- Some features require paid add-ons
- Advanced AI capabilities are still in development
Vonage is a VoIP pioneer in both the business and residential markets. Because of its deep roots in the industry, it’s had a chance to build and refine many features that younger players are still trying to iron out. Vonage offers a good selection of third-party software integrations, notably including Salesforce, and it even offers support for companies that want to build bespoke applications that integrate with the platform.
If your organization absolutely must choose a mature and established provider for your VoIP service, look no further than Vonage. In that sense, Vonage might be the veritable IBM of SMB VoIP. That being said, if your requirements are not so strict, and you’re looking for a VoIP option that might offer a better UI and be easier to self-manage, you might want to look closely at competing services.
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Vonage Business Communications Review
- Outstanding call and video quality
- Admin features are clear and easy to find
- Basic AI features
- Meetings analytics dashboard isn’t customizable
- Advanced AI features cost extra
8×8 Work provides calling, chat, SMS messaging, and video conferencing capabilities in a straightforward interface. Available AI features include call transcription, message generation, meeting summarization, and translation. 8×8’s call quality is excellent for both voice and video. Finally, it’s quite affordable, especially for businesses that just need the basics.
If you’re looking for a VoIP system that you can get up and running quickly with little fuss, 8×8 is a worthy and cost-effective option. However, its user experience isn’t as inviting as others.
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8×8 Work Review
- Reliable calling performance
- Easy to use
- Reasonable price
- No AI or advanced call-monitoring tools
- Video meeting experience could be smoother
Ooma Office is a cost-efficient choice for small to mid-sized businesses that want to get a VoIP phone system up and running quickly. The service’s calling features work reliably, as do its contact syncing, messaging, and video conferencing components. It doesn’t have advanced AI features for call summaries and transcription, but the company says those are coming soon. Notably, Ooma Office has won our Business Choice award for 12 years running.
Ooma Office is a good choice if you’re looking for an affordable business VoIP system that won’t overwhelm you with a huge catalog of features. It uses a wizard-based approach to setup and management, which small IT departments should appreciate.
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Ooma Office Review
- Straightforward interface for call and customer management
- Excellent support
- Works with Zoho’s other services
- Free tier with analytics and reporting
- No built-in video calling or AI features
- Doesn’t support third-party add-ons
Zoho Voice can handle both your general business telephony and call center needs. It looks and operates like the company’s other business apps, many of which it can connect with. You can try it out with a generous free tier that delivers most of the service’s key features (including analytics and reporting), and it’s easy to upgrade to paid tiers as your company’s needs grow.
If you are already a Zoho customer or have your eye on some of the company’s applications for other areas of your business, Zoho Voice is worth a look. Just keep in mind that you can’t connect any third-party add-ons.
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Zoho Voice Review
- Low annual price
- Slick interface
- Excellent analytics and reporting
- Limited AI tools
- Technical issues with video meetings in testing
- Occasional logouts in testing
NextivaONE is strictly for businesses with 10 or fewer people. It handles all the basics of VoIP calling fine and provides an inviting interface for a very low annual cost. We also like its detailed reporting capabilities and unique interface for setting up automatic call routing. Just keep in mind that the service is light on AI features and doesn’t handle video conferencing as smoothly as competitors.
You should consider NextivaONE if your business has fewer than 10 employees and isn’t going to grow past that (there’s no easy upgrade path to Nextiva’s traditional product lineup). If you meet that requirement, you will appreciate the service’s modern interface and excellent call reporting features.
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NextivaONE Review
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The Best Business VoIP Services for 2025
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Buying Guide: The Best Business VoIP Services for 2025
What Is a VoIP Phone System?
Traditional landline phones are a form of analog telephony. VoIP, on the other hand, brings voice calling to the digital age. VoIP systems convert voice calls into network packets and transmit them over the internet or other IP-based networks. Most also include a bridge to traditional phone systems, so the people you call don’t need to use VoIP themselves (nor do the people who call you). In addition, they typically emulate the functions of traditional PBX (private branch exchange) business phone systems, such as conference calling, call routing, and call monitoring.
How Much Does a Small Business VoIP System Cost?
Modern small business VoIP systems bill on a subscription basis. You’ll pay based on the number of users (phone extensions) you need on either a monthly or yearly basis. Some vendors require you to commit to a specific term. That said, you usually receive a discount by paying for a full year of service in advance.
How much a given service costs per month can vary widely. Most offer multiple pricing tiers based on the types of features, the number of users you need to support, and how much you expect to use the service. Among the products we tested, pricing ranges from $15 per user per month at the low end all the way up to $65 per user per month for an advanced, enterprise-grade product. Most small businesses can expect to pay about $20 per user per month.
What’s the Advantage of a VoIP Phone System?
VoIP phone systems supplanted traditional PBX phone systems because they are less expensive and more versatile. Even today’s residential VoIP offerings include features far beyond those of conventional telephone systems. In addition to voice calls, most modern VoIP systems integrate other channels and features, including conference calls, call recording, mobile communications, video conferencing, team collaboration, and even social media, earning them the classification of unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS)—we discuss this concept in more detail below.
Most VoIP solutions have evolved into managed, cloud-based services—and with good reason. Moving to the cloud helps reduce costs, increase reliability, and lift the management burden off your organization’s staff.
How to Choose a Business VoIP System
Whether this is your first time switching to business VoIP or you’re upgrading an existing system, the sheer number of options can be dizzying. It’s important to remember that while we’ve evaluated the VoIP systems in this roundup based on factors like features, ease of use, and cost, the solution that’s right for your business might not necessarily be the one that looks best on paper.
Your first order of business should be to consider just how your company plans—or needs—to use its phones. For example, if your goal is to upgrade an existing PBX, replacing it outright might not be a viable option, if only because some parts of the system aren’t easy to convert to softphones or even desktop VoIP handsets.
(Credit: d3sign/Getty Images)
For example, suppose you’re operating a heavy manufacturing environment with outdoor activities, such as a steel fabrication yard or a landscaping company. In that case, your rugged old outdoor phones may be just what you need there, and you should only deploy VoIP for office and remote workers.
Even for less extreme environments, you should consider the features you actually need—now and in the future. Without careful planning, it’s easy to end up paying for capabilities you’ll never use, not to mention unnecessary complexity that makes your phone system hard to manage.
A critical step in this process is to sit down with all of the stakeholders who your eventual decision will affect. Naturally, this includes the IT staff and the data security folks since your voice calls will now be data communications. However, department heads and employees who use the system to get work done should also have their say, especially those whose work drives revenue and engages customers.
You don’t want to hamstring anyone’s activities by skimping on features, but you also don’t want to overwhelm them with options they don’t understand. The best VoIP system for your business will always be one that doesn’t just technically meet your employees’ needs; your workers should feel comfortable using it, too.
What Are Softphones?
Traditional VoIP systems use dedicated VoIP phone equipment that sits on your desk and establishes calls via the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). But VoIP has come a long way since these humble beginnings.
Softphones are among the most important innovations that modern VoIP systems bring to business communications. In a nutshell, a softphone is an app that replicates all of the features of a traditional desktop business phone and often much more. What you lose in plastic hardware, you gain in functionality, including video conferencing and text chat.
At their most basic, softphones let you use the speakers and microphone on your PC, laptop, or other devices to mimic the capabilities of a desktop phone. They also help convey many additional VoIP advantages. Their screen-based interfaces make it easier to switch between communications channels, even mid-call, and they also help the system integrate with other software, such as customer relationship management (CRM) systems.
Mobility adds another wrinkle. These days, most workers are accustomed to taking calls on the go. However, using a mobile phone’s built-in calling features means sacrificing VoIP’s productivity-enhancing features, such as call monitoring, logging, transferring, and integrations with other apps. Many VoIP systems offer softphone apps that run on Android and iOS devices, and in some cases, these apps have full feature parity with their desktop versions. Make sure to investigate these options thoroughly if your staff includes a significant number of road warriors.
Can My Network Handle VoIP?
Networking issues have always been a primary concern for any VoIP implementation. VoIP traffic is much more sensitive to network bumps and potholes than most general office traffic, such as web browsing. A VoIP system that doesn’t have enough bandwidth leads to connection difficulties, dropped and lost calls, or garbled conversations.
Further complicating matters is the ad hoc design of many modern small-business networks. Your small office network likely consists of a few wireless routers rather than dedicated Ethernet jacks at workers’ desks, making monitoring and maintaining traffic quality more difficult.
At least some of your staff are almost certainly working from home. Your internal IT staff will have little to no control over these staffers’ home networks.
Recommended by Our Editors
Finally, the business VoIP systems in this roundup are all managed cloud services rather than on-premises products that mimic a traditional PBX. That’s a good thing: Cloud VoIP services can potentially offer greater reliability, easier management, and more features, all at a lower cost than first-generation VoIP systems. But they also increase your reliance on the public internet for the most basic communication needs.
The upshot is that, unlike your local LAN, your company can do little to control networking conditions on the public internet. Managing your connectivity is almost entirely the province of your network provider—or multiple providers if your workforce is widespread. Often, the most you can do is to hope for the best.
Fortunately, the internet bandwidth available to homes and small businesses today is far greater than in the early days of VoIP. Check out our roundup of the best internet service providers (ISPs) to see which might be able to offer you the most bandwidth, and consider subsidizing high-speed connections for your remote workers.
What Is UCaaS?
So far, we’ve talked about replacing traditional PBX systems with VoIP, but simply switching from analog voice to digital offers only marginal cost savings. Instead, the real value of modern VoIP comes from flexibility and integration features that only software-based communications can bring. That’s where the fast-evolving field of unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) comes in.
The features of any particular UCaaS solution vary widely from vendor to vendor. Still, most include options for online collaboration, integrated faxing, and mobile VoIP, and video conferencing.
However, UCaaS really starts to become a game changer when it lets your VoIP system integrate with other systems your business uses. For example, it might integrate with your CRM system to recognize a customer’s phone number or some other identifier and automatically pull up the customer’s record for the technician or salesperson answering the call. It could even alert a manager to monitor the call if it’s a critical client.
(Credit: Brian A Jackson/Shutterstock)
Other popular UCaaS integrations include help desk software and marketing automation tools. Some vendors even offer industry-specific features for specific verticals, such as healthcare. These backend software integrations explain the significant growth in the UCaaS market over the last several years. The concept is constantly evolving to include more communication and collaboration technologies.
What AI Features Are Available for Business VoIPs?
If your current phone system uses an automated menu to help route customer calls or interfaces with your website’s e-commerce features, expect vendors to pitch you on artificial intelligence. In addition to the aforementioned chatbot features, your vendor can also use AI to detect security issues. It can also work on the reporting and analysis side, so you’ll have a much more granular understanding of call and network quality, call sentiment, and more.
