Written by Fernanda Alvarez Piñeiro Reviewed by Tatiana Lebreton Updated on 30 July 2024 On this page The Top 7 Small Business Phone Systems: At a Glance 1. RingCentral 2. 8x8 X2 3. Dialpad 4. Ooma 5. Google Voice Standard 6. Net2Phone Business Lite 7. GoToConnect Phone System What's the Difference Between VoIP and PBX Phone Systems? What Are the Features of a Small Business Phone? How To Choose the Right Phone System for Your Small Business Expert Verdict How We Rank VoIP Products and Services for Small Businesses FAQs Expand Our site is reader-supported – by clicking our links, we can match you with a potential supplier, and we may earn a small commission for this referral. Based on our research, RingCentral’s $35 per user, per month Advanced plan is the best VoIP phone system for small businesses. The Advanced plan offers unlimited domestic calling and texting (US & CA), call features for training staff, and a much wider range of integrations than most competitors, including all the major CRM platforms.If RingCentral doesn’t sound like what you’re looking for, don’t worry – there are other options. For instance, if you already have Google Workspace, Google Voice will be one of the cheapest and quickest to set up. On the other hand, Net2Phone’s Business Lite plan will be a better fit for businesses with international customer or client bases because it includes unlimited international calling to 40 countries.To bring you this review, we conducted extensive research into the phone systems available on the Canadian market and have outlined the ones that scored highly for pricing, reliability, customer support and scalability. If you’re short on time, however, just take our free sixty-second survey. Once you’ve told us a little more about the needs of your business, we’ll match you to the relevant providers, who will then get in touch with obligation-free quotes. Top 7 Small Business Phone Systems RingCentral Advanced – Best for integrations8×8 X2 – Best for scalabilityDialpadPro – Best for conversational AIOoma Office Pro – Best for value for moneyGoogle Voice Standard – Best for Google usersNet2Phone Business Lite – Best for international callingGoToConnect Standard – Most secure systemThese are the providers we recommend based on our VoIP research. Click on any of the links above to be taken to our quote finding tool, and receive tailored quotes from top phone system providers in Canada. Loading The Top 7 Small Business Phone Systems: At a GlanceWe researched and tested numerous business phone systems, critically evaluating each one to find out whether it was suitable for a small business. This allowed us to handpick seven of the best phone systems for small businesses in Canada: Swipe right to see more 0 out of 0 backward forward Best for External Connections RingCentral Advanced Best for Scalability 8×8 X2 Best Conversational AI Dialpad Pro Best for Affordability Ooma Office Pro Best for Google Users Google Voice Standard Best for International Calling Net2Phone Business Lite Best for Value for Money GoTo Connect Standard Expert Rating 4.7 Expert Rating 4.6 Expert Rating 4.6 Expert Rating 4.4 Expert Rating 4.4 Expert Rating 4.3 Expert Rating 4.2 Price $35 per user, per month Price Around $30/user/month (contact for exact quote) Price $30 per user, per month Price $29.95 per user, per month Price $20 USD per user, per month Price $29.99 per user, per month Price Around $42/user/month (contact for exact quote) Domestic Calls Unlimited calls within US and CA Domestic Calls Unlimited Domestic Calls Unlimited Domestic Calls Unlimited Domestic Calls Unlimited Domestic Calls Unlimited Domestic Calls Unlimited International Calls N/A International Calls Unlimited to 14 countries International Calls N/A International Calls N/A International Calls Free calls to the US from any country International Calls Unlimited to 40 countries International Calls Free international calling to 50+ countries Key Features Onboarding supportCall queueRing groupsWeb conferencingInternal live chat Key Features Onboarding supportCall queueRing groupsAnalyticsCustomizable call routingCall recording Key Features Onboarding supportCall queueRing groupsCall recordingAnalyticsCall transcripts Key Features Email and Workspace integrationsCall recordingCustomizable call routingAnalytics Key Features AnalyticsCustomisable call routingMulti-factor authenticationUser permissionsPassword rules Key Features Unlimited Calling to Canada, the US, and 40+ other countriesWeb Phone and Mobile appComplimentary phone rental (On 3 and 5 year contracts) Key Features Auto Attendant Recorded GreetingsCustomizable Dial PlansRing GroupsCall QueuesMulti-Site Compatible Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Get Free Quotes Why Can You Trust Expert Market for Phone System Recommendations? At Expert Market, we are dedicated to helping our readers make informed purchases to make their businesses thrive. We have a decade’s worth of experience evaluating phone systems and other business products, which we use to inform our research and evaluations.We use an unbiased, user-led testing process to evaluate the best phone systems on the market. Refer to our methodology section for a more detailed breakdown of how we arrived at our top five. 1. RingCentral Advanced – Best for Integrations RingCentral 4.7 Pricing $30-$45/user/month Compare quotes Read our review Quick overview With an Advanced subscription, you can integrate RingCentral with 96+ CRM integrations and use all the management and inbound communication features you might possibly need, which is why it's the best phone system for small businesses looking for external connections. Read more + Read less - Strengths Free 15-day trial available Businesses with more than 100 users on the system will be offered discounted prices Integrates with a range of CRM and productivity software Weaknesses Limited storage for team messages and recording (must upgrade to Ultra) No power-dialer or auto dialer No predictive dialing Pricing See more See less PlanPrice (per user, per month) Core $30 Advanced $35 Ultra $45 What kind of small business features does RingCentral Advanced offer?Software integrations: The Advanced plan allows you to sync your phone system with over 90 CRM platforms, including key helpdesk integrations like Salesforce and Zendesk, analytics, and other platforms like Slack, WhatsApp, and Facebook. This will empower your customer service team by letting them draw on customer-specific data to provide more personalized service and save time when dealing with customer queries.Customer support: RingCentral provides multiple customer support channels, including live chat, a phone line, and email support. It also includes onboarding support to help you set up your system. Plus, it has a 99.9% uptime guarantee to ensure you’ll rarely go offline.Call features: RingCentral’s ring groups, voice-to-text, and spam prevention features will help your team manage growing call volumes. You’ll also be equipped with advanced tools like call barge, call whisper, and call monitoring to help you supervise calls and train your team. RingCentral also offers outstanding add-ons, such as RingCentral Webinar, RingCentral Contact Center, and RingCentral Engage Digital to boost your team’s capabilities.Scalability: RingCentral has an impressive offer for scalability, equipping you with all the right tools – call queue, ring groups, web conferencing tools, internal live chat, and pretty much all the management features you could ever need as a small business! It also includes multi-factor authentication, password rules, compliance certifications, and encryption, helping protect your operation and data. What's new for RingCentral? July 2024 RingSense AI for Phone and Messaging: RingCentral has launched new AI tools, although they’re currently only accessible as a preview for select customers. The new AI tools include automatic note-taking during calls, an AI writer for team messaging, and AI summaries of unread messages.How does RingCentral Advanced compare with other VoIP providers for small businesses?RingCentral Advanced has more integrations than other small business phone plans, beating close competitor 8×8. However, 8×8 has a leg up over RingCentral when it comes to domestic calls, since its X2 plan offers unlimited calls in 14 countries, while RingCentral Advanced offers this for domestic calls and calls to the US.When it comes to scalability, RingCentral and 8×8 are evenly matched, both providing solutions for small to large businesses.However, RingCentral isn’t the cheapest option. Overall, it’s more expensive than Dialpad and Google Voice, and is the second most expensive provider after GoTo.What do users think of RingCentral?We know how important users’ experiences and insights are when choosing your VoIP provider. We scoured the most trusted review sites, including G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, and Trustpilot to learn what customers said about RingCentral. Tallying user ratings, RingCentral receives an average customer score of 3.5/5. Here’s a helpful user review: Customer review “I like RingCentral’s usage the most. You can literally almost do anything. Their staff is super helpful, too. They can make anything you need to happen, happen. No problem! You do get what you pay for! Ring Central MVP has set up so many phones in my office, I can’t even count them all. They set up groups so that I can have one log in with multiple offices. I honestly don’t know how I made it is far as I did using VOIP phones and didn’t even know what RingCentral was.” Matthew Tyler, - June 24, 2023 2. 8×8 X2 – Best for Scalability 8x8 X2 4.6 Pricing Available on request Get free quotes Read our review Quick overview 8x8 offers a wide menu of subscription options that'll allow you to gradually – or rapidly – scale up your small business.With features like ring groups and call queue, and international calling to 14 countries offered at its X2 subscription plan, your small business will easily be able to deal with large volumes of callers. What’s more, with web conferencing and internal live chat integrations with a wide range of platforms including Telegram and Slack, your team will be able to work remotely, giving you more flexibility and reduced costs. Read more + Read less - Strengths Boasts some of the most generous customer support in the VoIP-verse Unlimited inbound and outbound minutes to 14 countries Offers real-time dashboards and wide range of seamless integrations Weaknesses Advanced call features not available for X2 subscribers Call analytics not available on X2 plan Onboarding support might come at extra cost Pricing See more See less Plan 8x8 no longer advertises its pricing. These figures are based on when pricing was public. Contact 8x8 for the latest pricing.Price (per user, per month billed annually) X2 C$30 X4 C$55 X6 C$125 X7 C$150 X8 C$195 Since July 2023, 8×8’s pricing hasn’t been public, but we’ve listed the figures above so you have a rough idea of what you’ll be paying. If you want an exact figure, you’ll need to contact the provider directly for a quote. What kind of small business features does 8×8 X2 offer?Call features: 8×8 X2 is packed with features, including call queue, voicemail-to-text, call forwarding and flip, team messaging, and document sharing. It also includes unlimited called to 14 countries other than Canada. Most impressively, its call and video conferences can host up to 500 participants per meeting.Software integrations: With the X2, you’ll be able to integrate with CRM, Helpdesk, web conferencing, external and internal live chats, email, and more. This means 8×8 can help personalize your customer experience by avoiding the need to hop between different communication channels. It also saves your agents time as they can quickly pull up individual customer files when dealing with cases.Customer support: 8×8 provides 24/7 live chat and phone line support, so you can reach its team any time you experience a problem. It also issues a 99.9% uptime service-level agreement to guarantee minimal downtime for your system. Plus, you can request onboarding support via 8×8’s Customer Success Managers – but it’s unclear whether this comes at an additional cost.Scalability: 8×8 X2 allows you to sync your internal communications via Slack, Telegram, and Teams, so you and your team can work remotely. It’s also equipped with call queue, ring groups, analytics, customisable call routing, and call recording, allowing your small business to handle a large call volume while gathering data to optimise your company. What's new for 8x8? July 2024 8×8 Engage: Like RingCentral, 8×8 is testing out AI tools. 8×8 Engage is an AI-assisted solution, that makes contact center tools available to all customer facing departments, and unifies customer data, bringing AI-powered insights to all teams.How does 8×8 X2 compare with other VoIP providers for small businesses?8×8 X2 is missing a few call features when compared to RingCentral’s Advanced plan. There’s no call barge or call whisper, for example. But, it does come with unlimited calls to 14 different countries, while RingCentral Advanced only supports calls to Canada and the US.8×8 also doesn’t publish its pricing anymore, making it far less transparent than its competitors. Based on past pricing, 8×8 is generally more expensive than rivals Google Voice and Dialpad, but it does offer users a broader range of features.8×8 redeems itself when it comes to customer support and security, offering 24/7 phone support (only matched by RingCentral and Ooma), and password protection rules, user permission, and two-factor authentications on all its plans, making it unrivalled among the providers on this list. ▶ Read more: The 6 Best VoIP Providers with Prices What do users think of 8×8?Rounding up user reviews, 8×8 received an aggregated customer score of 3.5/5 across G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, and Trustpilot. Here’s what a Canadian user had to say: Customer review “8×8 Contact Center gave us access to more robust reporting and better control of our support data and we gain insights into how customers feel about our brand. The insights from all the customer interactions are available for all our agents and 8×8 Contact Center helps us provide the right answers.” 8x8 customer via Gartner.com, - April 24, 2023 3. Dialpad – Best Conversational AI Dialpad Pro 4.6 Pricing $20/user/month - bespoke Get free quotes Read our review Quick overview Dialpad is known for its innovative use of conversational AI. Known as Dialpad AI, this function accurately transcribes your phone calls in real-time, flags whether or not the conversation features happy or frustrated customers, automates post-call summaries, and enables you to create notes with tips and advice that appear on screen when certain keywords or phrases are spoken on call. You can also choose to turn off this feature for more confidential conversations. Read more + Read less - Strengths Excellent AI-powered call and reporting features Superb customer reputation Extensive messaging tools Weaknesses Not very easy to scale Limited number of pre-made integrations relative to competitors Video-call participants limited to 10 Pricing See more See less PlanPrice (per user, per month) Standard $20 Pro $30 Enterprise Tailored What kind of small business features does Dialpad Pro offer?Call features: Dialpad’s Pro plan comes with an impressive list of inbound communication features, including spam prevention, call queue, and ring groups. Best of all, it has a unique conversational AI that provides your support and sales agents with real-time customized suggestions to improve and speed up customer interaction. The AI tool can also transcribe calls and voicemails.Customer support: Dialpad Pro also offers 24/7 live chat and phone lines, which gives you access to its customer support team anytime, any day. You can also request onboarding support to help you set up your system, but this comes at an additional cost.Scalability: With access to call queue, ring groups, call recording, analytics, and call transcripts, Dialpad Pro offers a good range of tools for small business. You can also use internal live chat and web conferencing to slash costs, as you can keep your operation remote. However, its security measures do miss out on multi-factor authentication and password rules, making it less secure than other providers like Google Voice and 8×8. What's new for Dialpad? July 2024 AI Recaps for integrations: Dialpad’s AI call recap tools can now be used for calls made with integrations ServiceNow and Microsoft Dynamics.Toll-free and International faxing: Users can now send toll-free and international faxes using Dialpad’s virtual faxing service.How does Dialpad Pro compare with other VoIP providers for small businesses?Dialpad supports less ready-made integrations than RingCentral or 8×8. For example, it only supports three CRM integrations compared with RingCentral’s 96+.On the flipside, Dialpad offers strong customer support options, including 24/7 live chat support on its Pro and Enterprise plans. It offers more support than GoToConnect, Net2Phone, and Google Voice.Lastly, Dialpad has AI-assisted tools on all of its plans, even the cheapest one, Standard, which isn’t the case for most competitors.What do users think of Dialpad?Our researchers analyzed Dialpad’s user reviews, and found it achieved an average customer score of 4.4/5 across G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, and TrustRadius. Below is one of the reviews: Customer review “We came from an old-fashioned in-house PBX system and considered a number of vendors before trying Dialpad. Support is excellent and very thorough and fast. Documentation is ridiculously extensive, yet well laid out and clear. Call quality is excellent and the built-in auto-attendant, transcription, follow-me, desktop and phone apps are all stable and excellent. No downtime or network problems. The cost per seat is competitive and it works well. We’re a small user, but that doesn’t seem to make a difference since the customer service is first-rate. And, it just works. What more could you want?” Altracolor, - July 12, 2023 4. Ooma Office Pro – Best Value for Money Ooma Office Pro 4.4 Pricing $24.95-$34.95/user/month Get free quotes Read our review Quick overview For the affordable price of $29.95 per user, per month, you get access to Ooma's scalable features and generous customer support. We also like Ooma because you're offered a user forum, a knowledge base, live chat, phoneline, 24/7 live support, and 99.999% uptime guarantee. This gives you peace of mind as a small business owner as outage time will not translate into a massive money loss since Ooma will be there to speedily support you.Although its price point is very alluring, the downside is that you are compromising on external connections. With Ooma Office Pro, you miss out on CRM, Helpdesk, Web Conferencing, External and Internal live chat, analytics, API, and SSO software integrations. Therefore, if you're looking for a Swiss army knife for external connections, we'd recommend looking at RingCentral instead. Read more + Read less - Strengths Affordable price point No contract – can use the system for as long as needed and can be easily canceled on demand Features specifically tailored toward small businesses that work remotely or from the office Weaknesses Limited integrations on Pro plan Poor security features Fewer call features that competitors Pricing See more See less PlanPrice (per user, per month) Essentials $24.95 Pro $29.95 Pro Plus $34.95 What kind of small business features does Ooma Office Pro offer?Remote-working calls: Ooma Office Pro allows you to make and receive calls from the comfort of your home office, or anywhere that you can bring your laptop, as you’ll be able to use the desktop app. This especially suits remote teams who don’t want to purchase extra hardware or desk phones, or who perhaps don’t have a physical office.Customer support: Ooma Office Pro offers 24/7 live chat and a phone line, so help is available whenever you need it. Moreover, it provides a 99.9% uptime guarantee to ensure your system has minimal downtime.Scalability: Ooma Office Pro lets you add an unlimited number of users to the system. It also comes with a solid list of inbound communication features, including ring groups, a virtual receptionist, customizable greetings, and hold music. However, it doesn’t come with a call queue feature. What's new for Ooma? July 2024 New website integration: Ooma Office phone services now integrate with Square, a popular website builder and ecommerce platform. If you use Square and Ooma, you’ll be able to view information from the Square Customer Directory, such as customer names, recent purchase history and upcoming appointments, on your Ooma Office desktop.How does Ooma Office Pro compare to other VoIP providers for small businesses?Ooma costs less than most of its competitors, especially when it comes to its more advanced plans, while still retaining advanced features like ring groups and customizable receptionists. Google Voice is slightly cheaper than Ooma, starting at $10 per user, per month, but it offers much less functionality.When it comes to security features, Ooma Office Pro isn’t great. It doesn’t offer multi-factor authentication, password rules, or user permission, so if security is your main concern as a small business, we’d recommend looking at Google Voice standard or 8×8 X2. Get quotes from the best phone systems for your small business Get free quotes Answer a few questions – it only takes a minute What do users think of Ooma?Ooma garnered an outstanding 4.4/5 average customer score from G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, and TrustRadius. Below is what one user had to say: Customer review “We have used Ooma for our small business for over 15 years. Overview: the service is good for small businesses with limited phone budgets. It is not suited for call center-type businesses where many lines are needed and with “auto-assignment” of inbound calls. Now the details: The reasons we stuck with its service are many: low price, ease of adding extensions, phone functionalities like forwarding, and digital reception, and it is painless to move the lines to new offices.” Chris Miller, - February 23, 2023 5. Google Voice Standard – Best for Google Users Google Voice Business Standard 4.4 Pricing From $10 USD/user/month Get free quotes Quick overview Google Voice is a top player for clients who are already big fans of Google in their workspace. Using Google AI within multiple aspects of its operation, from blocking spam to transcribing voicemails, Google Voice is known for its robust security features and its seamless integration with all other things Google.However, its far behind other providers like 8x8 and RingCentral, when it comes to integrations and call features. But, if you’re already happy with all the Google products that businesses use, the setup will be fairly straightforward and painless. Read more + Read less - Strengths Easy setup for Google Workspace users Top-rated security features Cheapest provider on the market Weaknesses Difficult to integrate with other non-Google systems Customer support is quite restricted compared to other providers Limited range of call features Pricing See more See less PlanPrice (per user, per month) Starter $10 USD Standard $20 USD Premier $30 USD What kind of small business features does Google Voice Standard offer?Security: Google Voice has an unmatched security system, offering complete and updated compliance certificates for various information security and data privacy laws. Its system is also reinforced with multi-factor authentication, strict password rules, and user permissions to protect against hacks and phishing.Customer support: Google Voice Standard has 24/7 phone line support, so you can call whenever you encounter a system issue. Plus, it has a 99.9% uptime guarantee, minimising any downtime.Flexibility: The Google Voice app offers the functionality to forward calls to any compatible device, be it a smartphone or desktop. It even allows you to control which devices receive which calls. This feature is especially beneficial for solo entrepreneurs who wish to distinguish between work calls and personal calls but prefer using a single device. What's new for Google Voice? July 2024 Google has not released any new products or features for Google Voice in a while, instead focusing on updates to other Google Workspace products.How does Google Voice Standard compare to other VoIP providers for small businesses?We gave Google Voice has the most limited call features of all the systems we tested. It doesn’t offer caller ID, power dialing, or call queues, to name a few. If you’re willing to pay more, you’ll get access to better features for a still reasonable price with Ooma. For a full suite of features, we recommend RingCentral or 8×8, if you have the budget for them.However, we found that Google Voice excels in its security offerings, including encryption and multi-factor authentication. Only 8×8 rivals Google Voice when it comes to security features. ▶ Read more: The 10 Best Conference Phones Canada What do users think of Google Voice?Combining user ratings from G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, and Trustpilot, Google Voice received a high overall customer score of 4.4/5. Customer review “The most likeable part of Google Voice is the ease of use and a wide variety of area codes and phone number selections. The service is also excellent as it has never disappointed. I do not dislike anything about Google Voice, but to get the best results, we must have a high-speed internet connection, or the voice quality decreases slightly.” Steve M., - June 22, 2023 6. Net2Phone Business Lite – Best for International Calling Net2Phone Canada 4.3 Pricing $29.99 - 49.99 Get free quotes Quick overview Most systems charge extra fees for international calls, but Net2Phone stands out because it comes with unlimited calling to more than 40 countries. This means speaking to clients and teams across the world is completely free, allowing you to maintain and expand your international reach.Net2Phone can also give you virtual phone numbers and dial tones in over 50 countries. So, if you’d like to establish a presence in places like Europe or Asia, your contact options are easily taken care of. We’re also quite impressed by Net2Phone’s international presence as its offices and data centres around the globe hosts more than 33 billion international minutes every year – so we’d say it’s a pretty safe bet if you’ve got plans to expand internationally in the coming years! Read more + Read less - Strengths Net2Phone will supply you with free upgraded desk phones when you switch to the system The company provides free, 24/7 customer support via phone or email The system is very user friendly, and includes a simple management console that makes it easy to make changes to your system Weaknesses Doesn’t come with audio conferencing or team messaging Very limited software integrations compared to competitors Doesn’t offer call flip, barge, or whisper and is limited in management features Pricing See more See less PlanPrice (per user, per month) Business Lite $29.99 /user/month Business Select $39.99 /user/month Business Premier $49.99 /user/month What kind of small business features does Net2Phone Business Lite offer?Flexibility: One of the benefits of using a VoIP system like Net2Phone is that you can take calls from your smartphone, meaning you can ensure you don’t miss customer interactions while on the go or out of hours and you don’t have to invest in any extra hardware.International calling: With Net2Phone, you’ll get unlimited calls to over 40 international countries, making it a great option for small businesses with clients or customers outside the country. These include the US and Mexico, several South American countries (Argentina, Brazil), European countries (France, Germany), and Asian countries (Hong Kong, India).Customer support: On the Office plan, you can reach Net2Phone’s customer support via email, live chat, and phone lines (but note that these aren’t open 24/7). It even offers free onboarding support to help you set up your system. Plus, it has an uptime guarantee and Net2Phone can provide reimbursements for service interruptions that last 30 minutes or more.Scalability: Net2Phone is relatively scalable, thanks to its customer support (only missing out on 24/7 live support), call queue, ring groups, and a low user limit of six users. However, it’s not as good as RingCentral or 8×8 because it misses out on important management features like call monitoring, call-flow designer, as well as analytics and reporting. What's new for Net2Phone? July 2024 SONAR SMS: Net2Phone Canada is launching a new SMS messaging feature, which will be available on all plans. It’s designed to help call-shy customers feel more at ease contacting your business.How does Net2Phone compare to other VoIP providers for small businesses?Net2Phone is generally cheaper than top competitors RingCentral, 8×8, and offers great value for money with unlimited calling to over 40 countries. For international calling, it’s the best, beating 8×8’s 14 international countries by a mile.On the other hand, Net2Phone has very limited integrations, second worst after Google Voice. With the Business Lite plan, you’ll only be able to integrate with Chrome Extension and will have to use open API to integrate anything else. If you need plenty of ready-made third-party integrations, we recommend RingCentral.What do users think of Net2Phone?Averaging user reviews from G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, and TrustRadius, Net2Phone received an outstanding overall score of 4.7/5. Customer review “Net2Phone is a robust replacement for our old phone system. It is fully customizable. Once, I was about to have a bad experience, filled out a survey, and within minutes had my answer and both an email and another tech called me with the confirmation and clarification. I was more than satisfied, and time and time again the support team has delivered – Excellent customer service!” Ronald F., - July 11, 2023 7. GoToConnect Phone System – Most Secure System GoToConnect Phone System 4.2 Pricing On request Get free quotes Read our review Quick overview GoToConnect is a safe option if you’re looking to get value for your money, promising a seamless onboarding process using which you can get your cloud phone system working within a day.Featuring a streamlined admin portal, you can easily configure call flows with a drag-and-drop dial plan editor, and comb through call analytics to identify which team or agent needs improvement.You’ll be able to wield all the inbound communication features you might need as a small business, including call queue and ring groups. Read more + Read less - Strengths Excellent data protection and security measures Access to all the inbound communication features your small business might need Free international calling to 50+ countries and unlimited domestic inbound and outbound minutes Video conferencing and internal live chat included Weaknesses Analytics and workspace integrations unavailable Limited number of compatible external platforms compared to other providers Not the most comprehensive customer support Pricing See more See less Price GoTo Connect no longer advertises its pricing. Figure is based on when pricing was available. Contact GoTo for most up to date prices. From $42 What kind of small business features does GoToConnect Phone System offer?Security: GoToConnect also provides robust security features, including TLS/SRTP encryption and user permissions, so you can protect sensitive information. Moreover, it has compliance certificates for various information security and data privacy laws.Scalability: With ring group, call queue, analytics, call recording, customizable call routing, and an unlimited user limit, GoToConnect Phone System is great for a small business that is looking to grow.Remote working: GoToConnect also gives you access to internal live chat and web conferencing, which can sustain a remote working model. This is excellent for geographically scattered teams who want to stay connected while reducing overheads by not renting a physical office. What's new for GoTo Cannect? July 2024 AI Chatbot: GoToConnect added an AI chatbot to its admin interface. Users can ask questions to quickly find the pages they’re looking forMicrosoft Teams: Users now have improved integration with Microsoft Teams. You can access SMS, call recording, and customizable dashboards directly within TeamsHow does GoToConnect compare to other VoIP providers for small businesses?GoToConnect’s customer support isn’t quite on par with RingCentral’s, wit no 24/7 support on live chat available.However, features you can access on its entry point Phone System subscription are far more advanced than those offered by most competitor starting plans. For example, GoToConnect gives you free international calling to 50+ countries, making it a great softphone option for businesses who need this sort of offering.GoTo Connect no longer advertises its pricing, but based on past estimates, it offers great value for money based on the amount of functionality you get.What do users think of GoTo Connect?GoToConnect receives a high average customer score of 4.4/5 across G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, and TrustRadius. Customer review “GoToConnect is a robust, consolidated solution for voice, video and chat. The cost of Voice and Collaboration tools was getting out of control. We wanted a singular phone, virtual meeting, and chat provider which would be highly robust and cost-effective. GoToConnect met our needs at a very advantageous price point versus our other providers. Management is straightforward and the products perform very well.” Matt Speare, - September 13, 2023 The Difference Between VoIP and PBX Phone SystemsA traditional PBX system uses a landline to make and receive calls, while a VoIP system uses the Internet.What are VoIP phone systems?VoIP phone systems transmit audio over the internet.Most VoIP phone systems come with an app that your team can download onto a device of their choice, including a cell phone. This makes them a great option for remote workers, who can use either their laptop or cell devices to make calls and access the system’s features, rather than being tethered to a desk phone. This means you won’t need to purchase extra hardware for your team, which is great if you’re on a budget. If you do want separate hardware, know that IP phones are VoIP-compatible desk phones.If you’re worried about call quality, don’t be. As long as you invest in a strong and stable internet connection, VoIP call quality will be better than on a landline.What are PBX phone systems?A PBX phone system turns your traditional phone system into a multi-line system, giving you the option to add extensions that lead to each phone. Once a call comes in, the PBX auto attendant directs the caller to the right extension number, freeing up the phone line for another call to come in.The features of a landline PBX phone system are basic when compared to those available with VoIP – which is one of the reasons why we recommend VoIP instead. What Are the Features of a Small Business Phone?Below are the five most important features need to help your small business scale, run smoothly, and allow for easy communication:1. Effortless call transfer and routingRunning a small business often means juggling multiple tasks. A user-friendly call transfer option is invaluable, enabling you or your office manager to transfer calls with a simple click. Make sure your chosen phone system offers this feature without the need for an IT team’s assistance.2. Cloud-based flexibility and mobile compatibilityGo for a cloud-based phone system for small businesses that is compatible with mobile devices. This will allow your team to make and receive calls from anywhere with mobile and desktop apps. Also, automatic software updates make management a breeze, empowering you to add new users or hires without external help.3. Seamless mobile call forwardingFor those on the move, a reliable call-forwarding service is essential. Look for VoIP providers that allow easy setup of forwarding to cell phone numbers or colleagues’ lines. Missed calls can be automatically directed to other team members or departments, ensuring crucial calls are never missed, even when someone is out of the office.3. Keep your existing business numberMaintaining continuity is vital for establishing a reputable brand image. Choose a phone system that allows smooth porting of your existing business number, so your customers and suppliers won’t need to update their contact lists, saving them time and reducing hassle for your business.5. Customisable caller IDWith this feature, you can display a preferred caller ID when contacting prospective clients or customers. How To Choose the Right Phone System for Your Small BusinessWhile researching the needs of small businesses, we found that decision makers considered cost, scalability, and compatibility with existing software infrastructure when choosing a business phone system. Below we explore these factors in more detail:Cost: As is the case for many small businesses, cost is at the forefront of most decisions. Therefore, it’s important to prioritize options that charge low up-front monthly fees, offer inclusive domestic minutes, provide multiple communication channels (so you don’t have to pay extra to get these from other providers), and provide solid customer support, so you can avoid losing money during a potential phone downtime. Signing up for an annual contract also tends to be cheaper than paying monthly.Compatibility with your software infrastructure: Whether you’re migrating to VoIP or between providers, you’ll want a provider that offers numerous integrations, allowing you to continue using the software you already use to run your small business. Ensure the platform you choose offers ready-made integrations with CRM, workspace software, email, web conferencing, internal messaging, and external messaging platforms.Scalability: A small business can be burdened by long-term additional costs, like outgrowing an important software system. You’ll need a VoIP system that can grow alongside your small business can. Key indicators for this will be providers that let you onboard an unlimited number of users, offer call queues, ring groups, a good array of management features, and features that allow you to run your operation remotely. Security is also a key point as it can help shield your business from risks during expansion. Verdict The best phone systems for small businesses are RingCentral Advanced ($35 per user, per month) and 8×8 X2 ($30 per user, per month). They both offer lots of internal features and external connects, and make it easy to scale up with your growing business. However, RingCentral is marginally better value overall for money than 8×8, offering more affordable price plans.If need help finding a provider, use our free quotes tool. Simply answer a few questions about the needs of your small business and you’ll be matched with the correct phone system providers. They’ll be in touch with obligation-free quotes and answers to any questions you may have. How We Rank VoIP Products and Services for Small BusinessesWe researched and tested 7 market-leading VoIP phone systems to evaluate them in terms of functionality, usability, cost, security options, and more so we can make the most useful recommendations to US businesses.Using our in-house ranking process, we evaluated each VoIP system across seven main categories of interest, each weighed differently, combining the results to come up with a final score.Our main testing categories for VoIP products and services are:Cost: The pricing structure associated with the VoIP service, such as monthly subscription fees, call rates, setup fees, hardware costs, and any additional charges for add-on features or services.Call features: The functionalities and capabilities offered by the VoIP service, including basic features such as call forwarding and voicemail, as well as advanced features like auto-attendant and conference calling.External connections: The VoIP service's ability to connect and integrate with external systems or devices, such as compatibility with existing phone systems or integration with mobile devices.Customer support: The assistance and resources provided by the VoIP service provider to customers, including technical support, online resources, and access to customer support representatives.Security options: The measures and features implemented by the VoIP service to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and protection of voice communications and data.Scalability: The ability of the VoIP service to accommodate the growth and changing needs of an organization, e.g. capacity to handle a growing number of users or support multiple locations.Reputation: External customer opinion; the feedback and ratings given by customers who have used a particular VoIP product – the market position and reputation a VoIP software holds. FAQs How do I set up a small business phone system? There are four steps that you’ll need to follow to have a fully operational VoIP phone system:Choose a provider that works for you and suits the needs of your small business. Activate your account based on the specific instructions you’re given.Set up IP phones: If you choose to use IP desk phones, you’ll next need to set these up. It’s as easy as attaching your handset to the base of your IP phone using the cord provided. Plug your ethernet cable into your phone’s WAN port, and the other end into your router. Keep in mind that you don’t need a desk phone if you are installing a VoIP system – you can still access the platform via smartphones, tablets, and computers.Transfer your existing toll-free number: If you have an existing toll-free phone number, you can port this over to your new business phone system.Customize your phone system: Every business is different, so there will be features that you’ll prioritize above others. As an administrator, you can change and set up business phone system settings and assign users and extensions based on their job descriptions. Written by: Fernanda Alvarez Piñeiro Fernanda is a Mexican-born Expert Market writer, specialising in providing in-depth insights about business software to help businesses of all shapes and sizes thrive. From VoIP systems to project management software, she’s passionate about helping businesses find the tools and methods that will help give them an edge over their competitors. Fernanda has ample journalistic experience, having written for a multitude of online magazines about topics ranging from Latin American politics to cryptocurrency. Reviewed by: Tatiana Lebreton Senior Grow Online & Business Software Expert Tatiana is Expert Market's resident payments and online growth expert, specialising in (E)POS and merchant accounts, as well as website builders.