Powerful FreedomVoice alternative for scaling businesses

VirtualPBX has been around since 1996, making it one of the oldest CCaaS companies in the industry. Their plans are tailored to small businesses and home-based clients.

What makes Virtual PBX unique?

Just because VirtualPBX launched in the ’90s, it doesn’t mean they’re not up to speed!

The solution offers applications for both desktop and mobile platforms and a wide range of call center features, such as: 

• advanced monitoring and statistics,
• SIP trunking,
• SMS,
• and even auto-dialers.

You can use its API to connect your favorite apps to your call center.

What is Virtual PBX missing?

VirtualPBX misses some basic call center features such as:

• voice-to-text,
• queue management,
• and IVR. 

These features are almost compulsory parts of a modern-day call center.

On top of that, VirtualPBX only offers unlimited calling minutes inside the US, Canada, and Mexico.

Outside of these countries, you have limited toll-free minutes, the amount of which is determined by your plan.

How is Virtual PBX priced?

Virtual PBX plans are available at a flat fee or usage-based monthly rates. You can choose from 4 plans: 

1. A Starter plan for $9 per month, 
2. a Flex plan for $18 per month, 
3. a Pro plan for $24 per month, 
4. and a Premier plan for $34 per month. 

The plans only offer unlimited calls inside the USA, Canada, and Mexico, and you can purchase limited toll-free minutes outside of the above-mentioned territories.

Virtual PBX Conclusion

VirtualPBX is a well-established call center solution with reliable service and a wide range of call center tools. However, if you choose this software, you’d probably miss many modern-day tools such as queue management, voice-to-text, or unlimited global calling minutes. Because of this, VirtualPBX is only recommended for smaller companies that don’t wish to take their businesses beyond North America.

3CX is a PBX phone system for office-based teams. It runs exclusively with Microsoft Windows or Linux, so MacBook users are out of luck. 

It’s a relatively basic phone system, with simple features such as Live Chat and Call Recording. It does not however feature smart capabilities such as AI or real-time transcriptions.

What makes 3CX unique?

3CX’s biggest strength is its affordability.

It’s a bare-bones system, but one that can get the job done for small teams who aren’t interested in the bells and whistles that come with most smart calling software.

What is 3CX missing?

3CX lacks some of the features and integrations most businesses have come to expect when hunting for virtual phone software. For example, users cannot integrate 3CX with Pipedrive or Zapier, two of the most popular business software on the market.

3CX also doesn’t have any direct sales. It is only sold through distributors which can make the sales process, as well as the support process lengthy and costly.

How is 3CX priced?

3CX’s most basic plan is free.

Their first paid plan comes in at 175 euros per user per month, and their more advanced plans cost 296 euros and 330 euros per user per month, respectively.

3CX Conclusion

As we’ve mentioned, 3CX is a virtual phone software for businesses who are only interested in the basics. It leaves a lot to be desired in a lot of areas, so we recommend thinking about whether or not you might need something it lacks — like integrations with Pipedrive and Zapier — at a later date. 

Vonage is among the best-known virtual phone providers in the world. They’ve been in the business for over 20 years and have established an enviable reputation as a market leader

What makes Vonage unique?

With Vonage, you know what you’re getting when you sign up. As arguably the most well-established player in the VoIP space, Vonage offers its customers stability and reliability in business communication.

A lot of great features come standard with Vonage, including phone calls, messages, an auto-attendant, CRM integrations, voice and video conferencing, and call forwarding services. 

What is Vonage missing?

Unfortunately for customers, Vonage has capitalized on its reputation by charging much more for its services than other comparable virtual phone software providers. 

Vonage pricing also includes many hidden fees that make the service far more expensive than expected.

This can be a real downside for small businesses that need to be more discerning about how and where they expend their resources.

How is Vonage priced?

All of Vonage’s plans require prospective customers to contact a Vonage representative in order to receive a pricing quote. 

Vonage Conclusion 

Vonage has achieved legacy status in the virtual phone software industry, and their platform is reliable, easy to use, and effective. However, the company’s basic plans come with limited features, and adding more features to your plan often incurs significant additional costs. 

 However, unless you’re willing to invest a significant amount of resources into your virtual phone software setup, we’d recommend looking elsewhere. 

8×8 is an evergreen telephony solution with a strong focus on integrations and analytics. The provider is well-suited for enterprises, but lower-tier subscriptions also work for smaller organizations.

What is 8×8 missing?

Office is required: You need an office in the location where you want to call in order to get a number from there. 

Geographical restrictions for SMS: You can only use an SMS feature within the US and 8×8 does not cover costs for mobile numbers in Brazil.  

Integrations: 8×8 doesn’t partner with telco companies, which means that users can’t get native integration with certain solutions. For example, Whatsapp. Non-native integrations must be set up by the tech team.

Features: 8×8 is missing some features like call tagging for more efficient calling processes, call masking for protecting your personal information or API for connecting CloudTalk with any tool you love. Automation tools like IVR, skill-based routing or automated callback come only with high-tier plans. You have to pay extra in order to get call recording.

A crucial restriction, mainly for big international companies, is that there are regional constraints on unlimited calling. Users with the basic Express plan can only use unlimited calling in the US and Canada.  

How is 8×8 priced?

The cheapest, Express 8×8 plan starts at $15 for both monthly and annual subscription. Though, it only comes with basic features.

Higher tier plans will cost you from $24 to $44 per month, billed annually, and $28 to $57 billed monthly. These include more advanced features, such as multi-level auto attendant, and data history.

8×8 Conclusion

8×8 shines in analytics and integrations but stays behind in the amount of productivity features. There’s also a lack of flexibility to consider, and a few feature accessibility restrictions that may be dealbreakers for international companies. 

Price is affordable when you only need a basic Express pack, but for more advanced tools, you’ll have to reach deeper into your wallet.

If you’re not new to the VoIP telephony market, you surely heard of Dialpad. It’s a reliable, unified telephony solution with simple built-in AI, and advanced analytics. A live chat, phone hotline, and knowledge base makes it a great deal for customer support teams. 

Dialpad’s scalability fits both small and large businesses.

What is Dialpad missing?

While offering a Power dialer, it lacks a Smart dialer and a Predictive dialer. The power dialer just works in Salesforce. Unlike the CloudTalk app, the Dialpad app only allows users to only dial manually. 

The Preferred agent feature only works through API. 

Dialpad also lacks a visual flow editor for Call flow designer. Sending SMS outside of the US and Canada isn’t possible, although this feature is soon coming to the UK.

The provider offers a limited integration stack, and Voicemail drop just comes with Dialpad Sell.

How is Dialpad priced?

Paid plans start at just $15 per user per month for the Standard Plan, and you can mix and match different packages. 

The Pro plan is $35 per user per month. 

Pricing for the Enterprise plan is determined on a case-by-case basis. 

Dialpad Conclusion

While having some great calling, performance tracking, and productivity tools, Dialpad only offers one auto dialer. It also has its gaps in sending SMS, which you can only do in the US and Canada. The integration portfolio is not too rich.

Dialpad even offers a free unlimited video calling pack for personal use.

JustCall is a modern call center solution that provides all the basics for small businesses. MMS messaging; SMS automation; call tracking, recording, and monitoring; and integrations with several CRMs and helpdesks come standard with their lowest-tier, $20-per-user-per-month subscription plan.

What makes JustCall unique?

JustCall stands out amongst its competitors in 3 specific areas:

• Auto and predictive dialing,
• telemarketing management,
• apps for desktop and mobile devices.

What is JustCall missing?

Although many useful basic features are available with JustCall’s entry-level package, there are some important ones that are kept behind a paywall. Even if you shell out for their highest-tiered plan, you’ll still have to pay additional fees for the use of call routing and voice transcriptions.

Furthermore, JustCall’s country coverage is quite lacking. They only offer local numbers in 70 countries worldwide, while many of their competitors offer numbers in over 100 — including CloudTalk, which offers numbers in over 160 countries worldwide.

How is JustCall priced?

Justcall’s most basic plan costs $24 per user per month. 

Their intermediate plan costs $48 per user per month, and their most advanced plan requires prospective customers to contact one of their agents for pricing information.

JustCall Conclusion

JustCall is a fine VoIP service for those who are just starting out. Bear in mind, though, that many useful features are kept locked behind a paywall. We recommend having your checkbook at the ready if you decide to use this service.