Cloud-based phone systems are an excellent choice for teams that operate remotely or from home. Selecting the right cloud phone system is crucial, as it can significantly affect your business operations and customer interactions.
As a company with remote employees worldwide, we understand the challenges of finding the perfect solution for your needs. After extensive testing, we found Nextiva to be the top cloud phone service available.
In this article, we will compare Nextiva with other leading cloud phone systems we have evaluated. We will discuss their features, advantages, and disadvantages to help you select the best option for your remote team.
Quick Overview: Top Cloud Phone Systems for Remote Teams
Short on time? Here’s a quick summary of the top cloud phone systems for remote teams.
| Rank | Cloud Phone System | Ideal For | Pricing |
| 🥇 | Nextiva | Comprehensive communication solutions | Starting at $15/month |
| 🥈 | RingCentral | Enhanced team collaboration | Starting at $20/month |
| 🥉 | Zoom Phone | Integrated phone and video conferencing | Starting at $10/month |
| 4 | Grasshopper | Unlimited text messaging | Starting at $14/month |
| 5 | Ooma Office | Toll-Free Numbers | Pricing Starts at $19.95 per Month |
| 6 Users | Phone.com | Essential Features | Pricing Starts at $12.74 per Month |
| 7 Users | Google Voice | Designed for Personal Use | Free Plan Available |
What Is a Cloud Phone System?
A cloud phone system is a business VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) solution that enables you to make and receive business calls using your internet connection.
Since your calls are handled in the cloud via the internet, you and your team can take calls from anywhere, eliminating the need for a traditional landline connection.
Cloud phone systems are ideal for remote teams. Instead of sharing personal cell phone numbers for business communications, employees can receive business calls through a virtual business phone number app on their mobile devices.
As a remote company with over 200 team members globally, many people have asked us at CanadaCreate about the software we use for payroll, email marketing, phone systems, and other business operations.
Why You Can Trust CanadaCreate Reviews
At CanadaCreate, our dedicated team of experts meticulously reviews the tools and software featured in our articles. We evaluate aspects such as user-friendliness, features, reliability, pricing, and more to ensure we present only the best solutions to our readers. For more information, please refer to our complete editorial process.
Now, let’s explore the detailed reviews of the top cloud phone systems.
1. Nextiva
Nextiva provides an outstanding, user-friendly cloud phone service that is perfect for remote teams. It includes all the essential features for business communications, such as unlimited free domestic calls, advanced call routing, voicemail to email and text, SMS messaging, auto attendant, and online faxing.
The web-based admin panel is intuitive and easy to manage. You receive a complimentary local or toll-free number, free number porting (transferring your existing phone number to the new system), and all the expected call management features. These features include caller ID, call forwarding, personalized greetings, auto-attendant, advanced IVR (interactive voice response) system, and more.
With Nextiva, you enjoy unlimited VoIP calling within the US and Canada. For international calls, they offer very competitive rates.
The Nextiva communication platform provides a range of powerful features that seamlessly integrate with your phone system. These features include a comprehensive CRM, marketing automation tools, and live chat capabilities, establishing Nextiva as a UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service) and a complete cloud solution.
Nextiva also includes online survey tools and call analytics. Their voice analytics software offers real-time insights into phone activity within your organization, enabling you to monitor call volumes and identify potential issues.
Larger businesses, contact centers, and call centers frequently utilize Nextiva to upgrade their existing private branch exchange (PBX) systems into a robust cloud phone solution.
You can continue using your current desk phones with Nextiva, or opt for IP phones for your remote team. Additionally, Nextiva provides computer applications that function as a ‘softphone’, allowing your team to make voice calls directly from their computers.
Nextiva also features a business phone application compatible with iPhones (iOS) and Android devices.
Most importantly, Nextiva ensures exceptional call quality, reliability, and connectivity through its highly dependable data centers, boasting an impressive uptime reliability of 99.999%.
If you require assistance with your business phone service, their customer support team is always available and responsive.
Pricing:Nextiva offers plans starting at $15 per user per month with our Nextiva coupon, while standard pricing begins at $23 per user per month.
Editorial Insight:Our team at CanadaCreate and Awesome Motive uses Nextiva, and we are enthusiastic supporters of their platform, which we highly recommend.
2. RingCentral
RingCentral is a well-known cloud-based VoIP solution for remote teams. It features a comprehensive suite of tools, including unlimited cloud calling, call forwarding, caller ID, call waiting, text messaging, online faxing, automatic call recording, team messaging, call monitoring, and more.
Additionally, it offers video conferencing with screen sharing capabilities and integration options with Google Workspace (formerly G Suite), Dropbox, Microsoft Office 365, Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, and other services, allowing RingCentral to serve as the central hub for your communication needs.
Similar to Nextiva, RingCentral does not charge for calls made within the US and Canada, regardless of the number of calls. Team members can receive calls through the RingCentral mobile or desktop application, providing them with significant flexibility.
RingCentral functions as a cloud-based PBX or virtual PBX system, enabling seamless routing of incoming calls to the appropriate department or extension. You can also easily add additional virtual phone lines as needed.
With RingCentral, you can purchase custom vanity phone numbers, such as 1-800-GoFedEX.
Pricing:RingCentral’s pricing starts at $20 per user per month when billed annually. A free 15-day trial is also available, allowing up to 5 users and 50 minutes of talk time per user.
3. Zoom Phone
Zoom Phone is a cost-effective cloud phone service provider built on the intuitive Zoom platform. It serves as a comprehensive VoIP solution that includes unlimited calling, video conferencing, and team messaging.
With Zoom Phone, you can choose a phone number based in the U.S. or Canada, obtain a toll-free number, or port your existing phone number. It provides essential features such as call forwarding, call routing, voicemail transcription, auto attendants, music on hold, call queues, call logs, call recording, call monitoring, SMS, and more.
Additionally, with just a click, you can convert a phone call into a Zoom Meeting without requiring participants to join manually. This feature enhances collaboration with both customers and team members.
It integrates smoothly with CRM platforms like Salesforce and provides connections to Google Workspace, Microsoft Outlook, and Slack.
Zoom Phone is user-friendly and quick to set up. Just select a cloud phone plan, and you can immediately start making calls using the Zoom mobile or desktop application.
Pricing:Zoom Phone pricing begins at $10 per user per month for unlimited internal calls. For unlimited outbound calls, the cost starts at $15 per user per month.
4. Grasshopper
Grasshopper is an excellent virtual phone system tailored for small businesses. It provides a virtual phone number that can forward calls to any phone or mobile device.
You receive all the essential features of a cloud phone system, including call forwarding, call routing, hold music, voicemail-to-email, unlimited business texting, and more. There are mobile and desktop applications available, making it convenient for your team to use while working remotely.
With Grasshopper, you can obtain a local or toll-free number from the US or Canada. You can also customize greetings and extensions. All Grasshopper plans come with unlimited minutes.
Additional notable features include virtual receptionists, simultaneous call handling, rapid response capabilities, and more. However, international calling is not available on any plan.
Pricing:Grasshopper starts at $14 per month when billed annually for one phone number and one user. You can upgrade to the Solo Plus plan for $25 per month, which allows unlimited users and up to three extensions.
5. Ooma Office
Ooma Office is a leading VoIP service provider that offers an excellent cloud communication solution for remote teams. It includes a variety of valuable features such as a virtual receptionist, extension dialing, hold music, ring groups, a mobile app, a desktop app, and more.
You can add a toll-free number (1-800 number) at no additional cost. There are also toll-free calling plans available that provide more minutes for incoming toll-free calls each month.
Setting up your cloud VoIP phone system with Ooma is straightforward. You can choose to keep your current business number or obtain a new one from Ooma.
Ooma also functions as a cloud PBX or hosted PBX system, making it easy to transfer calls and facilitate collaboration among remote team members.
You can equip team members with their own phones, either purchased from Ooma or from a third-party vendor. Alternatively, you can minimize initial costs by creating a new line that forwards to the employee’s existing Android or iOS device.
It’s important to ensure that your team has adequate bandwidth for upload speeds to facilitate high-quality calls with any phone system.
Pricing:Ooma’s pricing begins at $19.95 per user per month.
6. Phone.com
Phone.com provides an easy-to-use web interface and mobile app for managing your cloud office phone system. Like other providers we’ve discussed, they offer essential features such as call forwarding, call routing, caller ID, text messaging, call queues, voicemail to email, conference calling, and more.
Phone.com includes local call minutes to Canada and several European countries, making international calls to these regions more affordable.
With Phone.com, you have the option to purchase additional telephony features, such as call recording and extra phone numbers.
The most affordable plan restricts you to 500 minutes per month and does not include text messaging. This could be sufficient for your small business if you don’t make many calls or send texts.
They also offer 24/7 live customer support to assist you with setup and any questions you may have.
Pricing:Phone.com pricing starts at $12.74 per user per month when billed annually.
7. Google Voice
Google Voice is a cloud-based business phone system developed by Google. It includes essential features such as free calls to US and Canadian numbers, call forwarding, voicemail transcription, text messaging, call screening, and more.
Google Voice seamlessly integrates with Google Calendar, Google Fi, and Google Meet, enhancing your team’s productivity.
Employees can use their Google Voice number on mobile devices or through the desktop/laptop app with a dial pad, enabling them to stay connected while on the move. They can easily forward their Voice number to their mobile phone or other devices.
Pricing:Google Voice is free for personal use, but it lacks the necessary security and support features for most businesses. The free version is not HIPAA compliant and does not provide a Business Associate Agreement (BAA), which is crucial for handling sensitive client information.
Moreover, since the free version is linked to a personal Gmail account, there is a risk of losing your business number if you lose access to that account.
On the other hand, business plans start at $10 per user per month and require an active Google Workspace subscription.
What is the Best Cloud Phone System for Your Team?
Nextiva is our top choice for cloud phone systems tailored for remote teams. It offers a wide range of advanced features, outstanding customer support, and excellent scalability. Adding remote team members and configuring call-forwarding rules is simple and efficient.
The mobile and desktop applications from Nextiva are user-friendly, making it an ideal phone solution for remote business owners and teams, especially when in-person training is not feasible.
Additionally, Nextiva’s unified communication platform includes integrated CRM, marketing automation tools, and live chat functionalities.
This is why we utilize Nextiva at CanadaCreate and consider it the leading cloud phone system available today.
If you’re seeking an alternative to Nextiva, RingCentral is another fantastic choice. It offers comparable features and ranks closely behind Nextiva on our list.
Disclaimer:We also explored various other cloud business phone systems not mentioned in this article, such as Vonage, 8×8, Dialpad, eVoice, and others.
However, we chose not to include them to avoid overwhelming you with too many choices. Our aim is to simplify your decision-making process by showcasing only the top services that we have personally tested and trust.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Cloud Phone Systems
At CanadaCreate, we have assisted countless business owners in selecting the ideal cloud phone system tailored to their specific needs. We have addressed numerous inquiries along the way.
Here are responses to some of the most commonly asked questions regarding cloud business phone systems:
What are the advantages and disadvantages of cloud-based phone systems?
Before committing to a cloud phone system for your business, it’s essential to weigh the benefits and drawbacks.
The advantages of a cloud-based phone system include:
- It is more cost-effective compared to traditional analog phone systems.
- Setting up a cloud phone system is quicker and simpler than traditional phone systems.
- You can operate from any location with internet access, making it ideal for remote or hybrid work environments.
- It offers unified communications, including phone calls, video conferencing, instant messaging, and online faxing.
- Scaling a cloud phone system is easier than expanding traditional phone lines.
The disadvantages of a cloud-based phone system include:
- A reliable internet connection is necessary.
- Slow internet speeds can lead to call quality issues such as delays (latency) or distorted audio (jitter).
- It may provide limited location information for emergency calls.
What is the cost of a cloud phone system?
Cloud phone service prices generally range from $0 to $50 per user each month. Costs can vary depending on the features you require and the number of users.
We hope this article has provided valuable insights into the top cloud phone systems for remote teams. You may also find our comparisons of the best live chat software and the best push notification software useful for engaging with your customers after they visit your website.
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