13 Best Affordable Phone Systems for Small Businesses

Small businesses need reliable communication systems to stay connected with their customers, suppliers, and employees. A phone system is an essential tool for businesses of all sizes, but it can be costly for small businesses with limited budgets. Fortunately, there are many affordable phone systems that can help small businesses stay connected without breaking the bank. In this article, we will discuss the 13 best affordable phone systems for small businesses.

1. Phone.com Small Business Phone Service

What are the features and benefits of Phone.com Small Business Phone Service? [Expanded list]

Phone.com Small Business Phone Service offers many features and benefits, including:

50 standard voice features, such as dial-by-name directory, caller ID, call forwarding, and custom greetings;local or toll-free business phone number;Unlimited extensions;Free conference calling;SMS text messaging;Hold music;Voicemail to email;Fax from phone;24/7 customer support;30-Day Money Back Guarantee;20% off 3 months;

Analog Telephone Adapter (ATA) that allows you to use analog phones with VoIP office phone systems.

Phone.com also provides a flexible, cost-effective collaboration and communications solution for entrepreneurs and small businesses. With its cloud-hosted platform, users can quickly deploy and be up and running in minutes. What’s more, Phone.com offers three affordable plans with rates ranging from $9.99 per month up to $29.99 per month.

Phone.com offers users the ability to mix and match plans, depending on their needs. However, the Basic plan may lead to additional fees, as it has a cap on total minutes and text messages. Plus, many features come at an extra cost, such as shared numbers, call recordings, and voicemail transcriptions.

Overall, Phone.com is a great option for solopreneurs but may not be suitable for growing businesses, as it doesn’t offer access controls, permissions, and online voice transmission.

2. RingCentral MVP Phone System

The RingCentral MVP Phone System is an ideal choice for small businesses because it offers an array of powerful features and tools that are designed to simplify and streamline workflows and increase productivity. With customizable caller analytics, up to 250 customizable IVR menus, drag-and-drop Visual Dial Plan Editor, numerous call routing options, pre-made reporting templates, and more, businesses can customize their phone system to meet their individual needs. Furthermore, businesses can take advantage of powerful desktop apps with local numbers in 200+ area codes, unlimited calling in the USA and Canada, unlimited SMS, MMS, and virtual faxing, cross-device call presence monitoring, and on-demand and automatic call recording. Additionally, RingCentral offers a free 15-day trial and plans for 1-20 users that start as low as $19.99/mo. Businesses also benefit from 24/7 support, RingCentral University’s free online training, strong security, high call quality, and integrations with over 2,000 business software apps and productivity tools.

3. Dialpad

Dialpad is an excellent and affordable phone system for small businesses as it offers a range of powerful features, great customer support, and a competitive pricing model. With Dialpad AI, businesses can accurately transcribe their phone calls and flag customer sentiment in real-time, saving time and improving the customer experience. The phone system is also highly scalable and easy to set up, allowing businesses to quickly and easily add and manage new users. Moreover, Dialpad offers high call quality thanks to its global voice network and dual-cloud architecture, ensuring that calls are always clear and reliable. All of these features make Dialpad an excellent and affordable phone system for small businesses.

4. HubSpot

HubSpot’s all-in-one phone system is an excellent choice for small businesses looking for a comprehensive communications solution. It provides VoIP for sales, customer service, and marketing teams, as well as a wealth of features such as direct calling from the CRM contact record, auto-saved call logs and notes, engagement and contact property data, and reporting call metrics. With its low starting price of $45/month for the Starter plan, HubSpot’s CRM tool is a great value for SMBs. Additionally, its integrations with Slack, Salesforce, and other small business tools make it easy to save time on repetitive tasks and create more meaningful conversations. The one-click integration also enables businesses to quickly connect with commonly used plugins and apps such as WordPress, Zendesk, Joomla, and Agile CRM. With ClickDesk, you can also get a cloud-based communication platform that brings together help desk, live chat, voice, and video functionalities, plus a powerful lead generation system. Finally, Slack’s powerful features and massive integrations make it an ideal choice for businesses looking for a comprehensive yet easy to use communication platform.

5. Caller ID

Caller ID is a feature of modern phone systems that allows you to display the specific caller ID you want when calling a prospect or customer from your cell phone. This can be beneficial for small businesses because it helps to build trust by setting up a caller ID that displays your business name, even if the customer doesn’t have your number in their address book. It also gives you more utility and flexibility from your business phone system by allowing you to set the tone before call recipients even pick up the phone, meaning you can choose to appear as Firstname Lastname, Mx Lastname, or a nickname. Additionally, with a call forwarding service, you can add cell phone numbers or colleagues’ numbers with just a few clicks. This ensures that any missed calls are automatically forwarded to the right department or phone number. Furthermore, advanced features like call monitoring, call queuing, and call forwarding help you to manage your call volume and protect your business from fraudulent activity.

6. Grasshopper

What makes the Grasshopper phone system a good choice for small businesses? Grasshopper is a great option for small businesses because it provides an incredibly convenient and powerful business phone system. With features like voicemail, virtual receptionist, call forwarding, texting, custom greetings, and more, Grasshopper helps small businesses appear more professional, and communicate like a much bigger company. Additionally, Grasshopper’s plans are very cost-effective, starting at just $28 per month with unlimited minutes, and all plans include the same convenient features and tools, making it easy and affordable for small businesses to get the most out of their services. Plus, with a seven-day free trial that includes 100 minutes, 100 texts and access to all features, you can fully test the platform before committing to a plan. Ultimately, Grasshopper is a reliable, convenient, and affordable virtual phone system for small businesses.

7. Visual voicemail

Visual voicemail is a feature that transcribes voicemails to text, allowing busy people to read their voicemails at any time instead of listening to them out loud. It uses AI and machine learning to accurately transcribe voicemails, and even gives the option to follow up or forward them. Visual voicemail is a great choice for small businesses as it saves time by automatically transcribing voicemails and delivering them in an email inbox or Slack channel. It also provides features such as call screening, forwarding and recording; SMS and voicemail; web conferencing; account management; address book and directories; voicemail transcription; CRM integration; call analytics; and many more. Furthermore, it is highly flexible and adaptable, with the ability to manage many telephone numbers and different professional and personal profiles on a smartphone. All of these features make visual voicemail incredibly beneficial for small businesses.

8. 8×8

The 8×8 phone system is an affordable and secure communications platform that is ideal for small businesses. It offers three core pricing plans, beginning at $15 per user per month, and provides features such as auto-attendant, unlimited video calling, and group texts. Additionally, 8×8 takes security very seriously and holds a number of third-party certifications, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA). The brand also participates in an annual, third-party review to assess and improve its already-strong security standards. With 8×8’s commitment to security, affordability, and ease of use, it’s the perfect choice for businesses looking for a reliable and secure phone system.

9. SMS text messaging and internal team messaging

SMS text messaging and team messaging provide many benefits for affordable phone systems. By incorporating these services into a small business phone system, response time can be sped up, as automated texting features like snippets and auto-replies can be used. Additionally, texting is a convenient communication method that many customers and prospects prefer. Furthermore, companies can leverage business SMS messaging and team messaging capabilities from the same app that they use for calls and conferences. An added bonus is that many of these systems also offer features such as Dialpad Sidebar, which are always-on audio “rooms” that are automatically assigned to each channel. This helps teams quickly resolve issues and provides a common area to talk about specific topics. Additionally, shared phone numbers ensure incoming calls and text messages are always taken care of, even when the team is working away from the office. Lastly, many of these systems are integrable with external and internal platforms like CRM, Helpdesk, Web Conferencing, external and internal live chats, email, and more, which allows for a personalized customer experience.

10. GoTo (formerly GoToConnect) Basic

The GoTo Basic phone system for small businesses offers a range of features and benefits. These include:

• Local, toll-free, or vanity numbers to choose from.
• Up to 20 users.
• Video meetings for up to 4 participants.
• Basic integrations.
• Multi-device calling capabilities.
• Existing number porting.
• Unlimited extensions.
• Instant text response.
• Call forwarding.
• Team messaging.
• Audio conferencing.
• 40-minute meetings.
• One auto attendant recorded greeting.
• One ring group.
• One call queue.
• Drag-and-drop visual dial plan editor.
• Utility nodes according to agent schedules, preferred language, caller ID, call groups, and more.
• Unlimited auto attendants and submenus.
• Call filtering tools that let users whitelist high-priority numbers.
• Voice, video, and chat messaging apps.
• 14-day free trial on an annual subscription.
• Unlimited phone extensions.
• Unlimited calling in the US/Canada.
• Audio conferencing for up to 10 participants.
• Individual and shared voicemail boxes.
• Call hold, call queues, unlimited ring groups, simultaneous ringing.
• Custom hold music, playlists, greetings, and messages.
• Directory Assistance.
• Compatible with plug-and-play phones such as Cisco, Yealink, and Poly VVX.
• 10 global data centers for network reliability.
• SOC 3, CCPA, and HIPAA compliance.

11. Ooma Office Essentials

Ooma Office Essentials is a business phone solution developed specifically for small businesses. It offers a range of features that are designed to make communication easier and more efficient, including virtual receptionist, ring groups, music on hold, one toll-free number, digital fax, mobile app, and email audio attachments. It is a cost-effective solution, with a flat and transparent pricing structure that does not require any long-term contracts. Additionally, it has a user-friendly dashboard and is easy to set up. All of these features make it a great choice for small businesses that want to take advantage of the latest communication technology without breaking the bank.

12. Grasshopper

The Grasshopper affordable phone system is an excellent choice for small businesses because of its many features, cost-effectiveness and ease of use. With plans starting at only $28 per month with unlimited minutes, Grasshopper is an attractive option for small businesses who don’t want to invest in a traditional VoIP system that requires additional hardware. Additionally, Grasshopper’s cloud-based VoIP business phone service comes with a wide range of features such as virtual receptionist, text messaging, call forwarding, IVR setup, virtual fax, and VoIP and WiFi calling. It also has a 30-day money-back guarantee, so businesses can try it out to make sure it meets their needs before committing to it. Furthermore, the Grasshopper app is easy to install and use, making it perfect for businesses with limited technical know-how. Finally, Grasshopper’s 24/7 US-based support offers businesses the assurance that they will be able to get help when needed.

13. RingCentral MVP Phone System

The RingCentral MVP Phone System is a great fit for small businesses due to its advanced call analytics, customization, and reliable customer experience. Through the use of pre-made reporting templates, admins can monitor over 35 KPIs related to call quality, hold times, resolution rates, agent performance, team meetings, and quality of service. Real-time alerts instantly notify managers when performance standards fall below pre-set thresholds. Additionally, businesses can customize their IVR menus and submenus up to 250 options, allowing them to cater to each caller’s individual needs. RingCentral also offers a wide range of phone systems and hardware that is compatible with their platform, as well as 24/7 live chat and phone support. Furthermore, RingCentral is secure, with multiple layers of network security and end-to-end encryption. With its advanced analytics, customizable options, and reliable customer experience, the RingCentral MVP Phone System is a great choice for small businesses.