Best Google Voice Alternative for 2021

If you're looking for a Google Voice alternative, then our research shows that Ooma Office should be your next platform. It's not hard to see why – competitively priced, at $19.95 per month, with a huge range of features, and great integration with popular software such as Salesforce, Microsoft 365, Zendesk, G-Suite and others.

But just because we think that Ooma is the best, doesn't mean you have to go with them. We've collected twelve solid Google Voice alternatives here, breaking down key factors such as price, features and integrations, to enable you to make the right choice. We've listed some that are free (WhatsApp), start at less than four dollars (Skype), as well as some lesser known but growing options such as Monster VoIP and Ringblaze.

If you're ready to switch right now, then use our free comparison tool, designed to make your decision even easier and match you up with the best VoIP provider for your specific business needs. For more information on the best Google Voice alternatives, and those to avoid, read on.

Best Google Voice Alternatives Compared

Google Voice is a VoIP service – the term for a system that facilitates calling over the internet, instead of using traditional phone landlines. It's considerably cheaper, and more flexible than traditional methods. But if you've done even the smallest bit of research, you'll know that there are a lot of VoIP providers out there – some good, some bad, some expensive, some cheap. How to choose between them?

We've gathered the twelve best alternatives to Google Voice on this page, saving you a lot of scrolling and Googling, because we know you've probably reach the point where you just want an answer. So, without further ado, the best Google Voice Alternatives are:

1. Ooma – The best overall VoIP experience
2. Grasshopper – Great range of features on the basic tier
3. Skype – Best for teams using other Microsoft software
4. RingCentral – Best for established businesses 
5. Monster VoIP – Best for those want dedicated apps
6. Telzio – For companies that aren't interested in SMS
7. Ringblaze – Best for unlimited US and Canada calls
8. Nextiva – Best for analytics 
9. WhatsApp – Best free alternative to Google Voice
10. Phone.com – Best for low call volumes
11. OpenPhone – Best value choice
12. Line2 – Best for users on the go

What makes these providers robust Google Voice alternatives? Well, it depends, but if you've got complaints about Google Voice, we're sure that one of the brands above can provide a solution. Want better integrations? Go with Ooma. Looking for more timely and in-depth support options? RingCentral and Grasshopper (as well as a few others) are a great place to start.

Read on to find your next great VoIP provider.

Ooma – Best Google Voice alternative

Price: from $19.95

Ooma is our pick when it comes to the best Google Voice alternative. The platform marries excellent features, integrations and value into one appealing bundle, and we feel that it's a great solution for businesses of all sizes.

Ooma Office starts at $19.95, and unlike some basic tiers, this one is actually well worth your time and your wallet. It beats Grasshopper to the top spot thanks to its fantastic value. With it you can expect a bevy of features, including call forwarding, call queues, extension dialing, and whisper and barge. The basic tier also includes a virtual receptionist, which gives it a serious leg up on Google Voice. You can read our head to head of Ooma vs Google Voice.

For an extra 5 bucks a month, you can get Ooma Office Pro, which naturally includes everything in the basic tier, as well as call recording, the desktop app, enhanced call blocking, and voicemail transcripts. Plus, it gives companies higher usage limits for audio conferencing and extension monitoring.

We also really like the wealth of integrations that are available with Ooma, such as Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, Zendesk, Microsoft 365 and ServiceNow. It's not exhaustive, but it does tick off a majority of the big name software that your company is likely to use.

And, if you really want to make sure that Ooma suits your business needs, it does offer a free trial, meaning you can try it without any commitment.

Read our Ooma Office review for more information.

Grasshopper – Another strong Google Voice alternative

Price: From $29

Grasshopper and Ooma are head to head in the Google Voice alternative race, but while the gold goes to Ooma, Grasshopper claims a very respectable silver. The reason for this is that Ooma has the slight edge when it comes to price, but Grasshopper shouldn't be overlooked.

We like Grasshopper for its rather generous approach to features. Even on its most basic ‘Solo' tier, you'll have access to a whole host of features, such as business texting, call forwarding, voicemail, call transfers, and reporting. The tier starts at $29 per month, but commit to an annual contract and you can get it for $26. Solo offers one phone number and 3 extensions.

The second tier, ‘Partner', includes all above features, but comes with three phone numbers instead, and six extensions. It's priced at $49 per month ($44 billed annually).

Lastly, the ‘Small Business' tier adds 5 phone numbers and unlimited extensions, and is priced at $89 per month ($80 billed annually).

Worth noting too that Grasshopper also offers a free seven day trial with one phone number and three extensions, 100 minutes and 100 texts.

Read our guide to the top ten VoIP apps.

Skype – Best for daily Microsoft users

Price: from $3.59

Skype used to the be THE name in VoIP, although in recent years it's somewhat fair to say that it's been pushed to the periphery of the very industry that it helped create. The reason for this is essentially some very aggressive competition as hundreds of other services saw the potential in the growth areas of VoIP.

That's not to say you should disregard Skype. After all, in terms of sheer name recognition, it has the mighty Microsoft behind it, so you can rest assured that it's not going to fold overnight.

Skype offers subscription packages, depending on the countries that you want to call. Their is a free tier, but as it only allows for Skype to Skype calls, and not landlines and mobiles, it's not much good for your business. The cheapest package is $3.59 per month, and includes calls to the United States, Puerto Rico and Guam. Make calls to Canada? Then you'll need the North American package, at $8.39 per month. These subscriptions include 2000 minutes time, after which, you're charged a per minute fee. For the United States, that's 18 cents per minute, but it varies from package to package.

In terms of features, what you get is relatively standard, with no big wow moments. The ability to send SMS messages, call forwarding and answering services are all here. There's also a real time translation of voice calls, which okay, we admit, is neat.

Skype feels like it's been left behind a little. It's a good option, but there are cheaper VoIP services out there, as well as ones with more features. Skype very much represents the middle ground of VoIP, but you may prefer it if you already use Microsoft programs on a daily basis.

It's worth also noting that Microsoft will be shuttering Skype this year, replacing it with Microsoft Teams.

RingCentral – Best for established businesses

Price: From $19.99

Chances are you've seen RingCentral mentioned before in your online VoIP searches. A huge company with a global reach, RingCentral are very much a safe pair of hands.

Those hands will cost you from $19.99 per month for its Essentials VoIP package, although the basic package may prove limited for larger businesses, as it only caters for up to ten users, and the features are somewhat lacking, not to mention the integrations. So we'd suggest ignoring that banner price of  $19.99, and going for at least the Standard plan.

The Standard plan nets you unlimited users, up to 24 hour meeting duration, quality of service reports, unlimited audio conferencing, and integrates with some big name software such as Office 365, Google Workspace, Slack and others. This tier costs $27.99 per month per user.

It's not exhaustive though – the Premium package adds a lot more functionality, and could be  the smarter choice depending on your needs. This gives you automatic call recording, whisper, barge, CRM integrations such as Salesforce, Zendesk and more.

RingCentral may be a slightly pricier prospect than some of the others on our list, but there's no doubt that it's a full featured platform that won't leave your business wanting.

Monster VoIP – Most app options

Price: $27 per month

Monster VoIP has been around since 2012, but has grown considerably in recent years, with many positive reviews from users online, prompting us to take a closer look at it to find out if the hype was justified.

There's no denying that the $27 per month is on the pricier side. You can get this down to $270 per year if you pay annually, and it does offer a two week free trial, but Monster VoIP is not the option for those looking for a budget solution. However, what we do like about the platform is that there are no hidden costs – the fee you see is literally what you'll pay. No set up fees, no contracts, taxes and fees all included.

Monster VoIP has a wide range of features which is likely to appeal to many. A real feather in its cap and a justification for that price tag. It boasts apps for almost every platform (iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, Linux, and browsers), as well as unlimited SMS, call queues, call recording, voicemail transcript and call analytics. It also has video conferencing features.

Integrations are strong too, with major software such as Salesforce, Hubspot, Zoho, Microsoft Teams and others all compatible.

Telzio – For those who don't need SMS

Price: Starting from $50 per month

Telzio's approach differs slightly from its competitors, in that you don't pay per user. Rather, businesses pay for a set amount of minutes, which can be be used by as many employees as needed. This won't work for everyone, and could work out rather expensive if you're a business  that is looking to make a lot of calls.

However, if you are a fledgling business with not many calls to make and want the flexibility to allow anyone within your business to make these calls, then Telzio could be a viable solution for you. Starting at $50 per month for 1000 minutes call time (US), it's not the cheapest option, but a good set of features and strong customer support do go some way to make up for it. The service also charges separately for SMS messaging, which again, is unusual – many competitors simply include this in their packages.

In terms of integrations, there's a few big name software platforms that Telzio connects with, but it's not exhaustive. Google Analytics, Zapier, Stripe, Vtiger and Webhooks are all represented. Features wise, there's a very good line up of useful tools for businesses, including hold music, voicemail, call queues, menus, call recording and live reporting.

Would we recommend Telzio to everyone? No, there are much better, cheaper options, but if you're a business with low call volumes, then this platform could well suit your needs.

Ringblaze – Unlimited US & Canada calls

Price: $19 per month

Ringblaze keeps things simple with just one price plan – $19 per month per user (this is reduced to $15 if you pay annually).

There's a good range of features included with Ringblaze. Included is call recording, call history (90 days), call controls, call transfer and others. It's not quite as, say Monster VoIP, but there's a good range here for smaller and growing businesses.

One neat feature that Ringblaze has over many of its competitors is a dedicated widget for your site that lets your customers call you from your site, instantly. This can be a great way to answer any customer questions in real time and save that sale that may have otherwise been lost.

We are also fans of the support options you get with Ringblaze, which is one of the huge benefits of going with a paid-for service rather than Google Voice. If there's a problem, you can email, chat or phone Ringblaze for support, meaning you shouldn't let left out in the cold if you get stuck.

Nextiva – Best for call analysis

Price: From $25.95

Much like Ooma, Nextiva is a well-known and respected VoIP brand with plenty of experience, and they're a solid choice for most businesses looking invest in VoIP.

Its Essential tier starts at $25.95 ($18.95 is paying annually), and offers unlimited voice and video calling, auto attendant, integration with Outlook and Google Contacts, unlimited internet fax and 24/7 customer support. We particularly like the included video calling on this tier.

Professional is priced $30.95, and adds in unlimited conference calls, for up to 40 participants, unlimited text messages, and offers more integrations with Salesforce, Hubspot and Zendesk.

At the top end of the scale, there's Enterprise and Ultimate, priced at $40.95 and $65.95 respectively. This is where the analytical features come to the fore, with voice and customer journey analytics. The integrations are also bolstered with Microsoft Teams, Oracle Sales and ServiceNow.

What we particularly like about Nextiva is it's strong suite of analytical tools. This is something that you won't get with the likes of the cheap/free services such as basic WhatsApp and Google Voice offerings, and something which could well give you a valuable insight into your business.

WhatsApp – For the smallest, most budget-conscious companies

Price: Free

Chances are you've used WhatsApp before in your social life, but can it really fit the bill when it comes to business? Well, yes… with some rather huge caveats.

The first thing to acknowledge is that WhatsApp is not designed for businesses, at least not at its free tier, and as such, the app is tailored to individual users. This means that the features it does have are starkly basic. There's no analytics here, no menus, no hold music….but on the other hand, it's free. To its credit, it has recently added a desktop video app. As a business solution, WhatsApp's free tier feels like something you use while you're looking for a better option.

We should point out that there is actually a WhatsApp solution aimed at businesses.  The app itself is free to download, but to really get the most out of it, you'll need to integrate it with a dedicated WhatsApp Business API. There's no doubt that this adds some powerful functionality, such as live customer support and shopping integrations, but the process around getting set up is rather messy, and involves signing up with a Facebook partner who can provide the API tools.

We haven't included costs for this as it depends on who you go with, but realistically, WhatsApp Business is no substitute for some of the other cheaper, simpler to use solutions on this page. As for the free tier? Yes, it's a good choice if you want to spend exactly zero bucks, but we think you'll soon outgrow it.

Phone.com – Best for low call volumes

Price From: $12.99

The key draw of Phone.com is the price. Starting at $12.99 per month per user (and even less if you pay annually), it's hard to beat when it comes to value.

So what's the catch? Well, while most providers offer you unlimited minutes on even their most basic tier, with Phone.com, you're only going to get 300 minutes. After that, you'll need to pay for the extra minutes you use, meaning that it could be a false economy if you have an active outgoing call volume.

The Plus tier, at $19.99 does offer unlimited calls, so if you're looking to use Phone.com's service, this is the bare minimum that we'd recommend. You'll also get unlimited text messages, and video conferencing with 25 participants.

The Pro tier, at $29.99, adds call recording, analytics, CRM integration, and extends the number of participants for video conferencing to 100.

Some features are priced as extras with Phone.com, such as live receptionist ($90 per month), and inbound faxing ($4.99).

OpenPhone – Great value

Price From: $10

When it comes to price, it's hard to beat OpenPhone's ‘standard' package, which is priced at just $10 per month. On the surface, it seems like great value, and unlike the basic Phone.com package, it offers unlimited calls. In fact, when you look at the features included  for the entry price its hard to find a better deal.

Where it falls down slightly is with its integrations. The list isn't exactly expansive, and while this won't out off fledgling businesses, those that are more established might find them lacking. There's email, Slack, Zapier and….well, that's it. Although Hubspot CRM is due ‘soon'.

If you opt for the cheapest price you may also struggle to get a quick customer service response. Those on the $10 tier get email and SMS support, while Premium ($25) and Enterprise (price on request) customers get priority service.

Not one of the bigger or expanding business, but start ups with tight purse strings could do a lot worse.

Line2 – Best for users on the go

Price From: $14 month

Line2 starts at $14 per month for its budget focused entry tier, and offers the basic functions you'd expect, such as unlimited toll free minutes,  up to five lines voicemail and call screening. Some other features, such as voicemail transcription, are available on this tier but priced extra.

The Growth tier is priced $19.99 per month and does add some new functions, such as an auto attendant and call scheduling, but beyond this, not much more than the basic package.

The premium Business tier is the all singing, all dancing package for Line2, and includes call recording (an extra for the other tiers) and voicemail transcriptions. It's priced at $24.99. Unlike some other VoIP services, we found that the additional features included with Line2 were only small improvements over the basic packages.

For in-depth usage reports, you'll need to splash out on the Growth or Business tiers, as the one included in the Starter pack is basic.

What's the Best Free Alternative to Google Voice?

We've already listed the top free Google Voice alternative – WhatsApp, which offers a familiar interface and is incredibly simple to use, if limited. There are however, other free options out there.

Facebook Messenger

Facebook has its fingers in many pies, and naturally VoIP is one of them. Chances are you've used Messenger in the past to contact friends, but it's also a voice calling platform in its own right, and its benefits include voice and video calling, with individuals and groups. It has a dedicated app for this.

However, it's rather basic, offers very few features, and depends on the person you're trying to connect with also having a Facebook Messenger account.

Line

Line is a huge app in certain parts of the world, but it's relatively obscure in the US, overshadowed by messaging solutions such as WhatsApp and iMessage. However, it's available on Apple and Android devices, as well as Windows. Like WhatsApp, it offers video and voice calling, as well as many other features including information services and payment options.

However, it is limited as business communication tool, and like Facebook Messenger, depends on the person you're contacting also having the app.

Free VoIP services may seem a great solution, but in reality, they will only serve your business in the short term, especially if you're looking to grow. They offer few features, can look unprofessional, and almost never offer the level of support that a paid for VoIP platform does. To find the best deal for your needs from a range of recommended VoIP providers, use our free price comparison tool.

Google Voice Alternatives to Avoid

We've given you some great Google Voice alternatives, but we think there are some that shouldn't be on your shortlist, too:

Just Call – Too expensive

We'll start with the positives for Just Call – you can access international and local numbers, and there's a decent set of features available including call routing, SMS and CRM integrations.

Why didn't it make our list? Well, each additional international or local number after the first one needs to be purchased as an extra. If the base price was cheaper we could forgive this, but it's not, meaning that your costs could soon rack up.

Just Call don't even have a free trial option, just a first month trial at an introductory price.

Phonebooth – Poor customer support

PhoneBooth has some positives going for it – it doesn't have a monthly contract, allowing for more flexibility, and the feature list is decent.

However, the features available aren't as good as the likes of Ooma or RingCentral, and they cost around the same.

Also, first impressions with this supplier aren't great. There are no international rates given on the website, and no contract or support mentioned at all.

Read to stop searching and find the best VoIP provider for your business? Use our free tool to compare VoIP providers and find your ideal match.

Switching from Google Voice

Although Google Voice has adequately supported numerous businesses for several years, competition is increasing from other firms who can deliver improved features, better quality, and increased reliability.

Here are the key considerations to make when switching.

Your Account

With Google Voice there are two types of account. The first is a light version which includes voicemail and other useful features, such as personalized greetings and transcription. The second is a full Google Voice account, which requires you to either port or create a telephone number. This functionality will allow you to forward calls to numerous phones, distribute text messages from your computer, and a host of other features.

The more advanced account can be slightly more difficult when it comes to switching. If you decide to change your provider you will either need to swap your Google Voice number to a new line or change your telephone number entirely. However, your new provider can take care of this for you once you've gotten everything set up.

Porting your Number

Whether you have ported a number into Google Voice or you have created a number when you signed up, you likely want to continue using this number with your new provider. Before you can do this though, you will have to unlock the number, which is a simple process that is either free or a mere $3 depending on how you set up your number.

Once you have gone through the steps to unlock the number from Google Voice, you can move your number to your new provider. If your new provider requests an account number to complete the porting process, just give them your Google Voice number.

It may take a few days to port your number to the new provider, but you can still use your Google Voice number while you wait.

As we've shown, switching from Google Voice is easy, so find the best provider today using our free tool.

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