RingCentral, a cloud-based platform, connects businesses and their customers via messaging, video and phone. It’s often used by scaling companies that are looking for a robust voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) solution ideal for any business stage. RingCentral ranks among the top small business phone systems due to its tiered plans that offer extensive features at affordable prices. The monthly fees start at $29.99.
What is RingCentral?
RingCentral promises a cloud-based phone system that will provide a secure, hosted phone service and fax function over the internet to your company.
The smart system eliminates the need to purchase expensive, complex office hardware. You can use your smartphone, tablet or computer to make and receive calls, giving your customers the impression that you are in an office.
RingCentral MVP, a cloud-based business communication system, offers enterprise-grade voice, text, fax and online meetings. It also allows for collaboration.
RingCentral MVP makes it easy to connect mobile, remote, and office employees using one phone system.
RingCentral MVP can be activated, set-up, and managed online. This is a far better option than expensive conventional phone systems. RingCentral MVP is easy to use and does not require any technical knowledge, long installation or complex hardware.
RingCentral MVP is affordable and easy to use from anywhere.
- RingCentral MVP is a complete cloud-hosted unified communications system that offers several calling, collaboration, and mobile features and tools.
- RingCentral is available in four service plans that range from $20 to $60 per user per month.
- RingCentral has an uptime of 99.999%, which means service is down for only a handful of minutes each year.
- This review is for small business owners who want to learn more about RingCentral, our choice for the best business phone system for collaboration.
RingCentral MVP is a robust, cloud-hosted Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) unified communications system that has many of the features small businesses want in a phone solution. You get unlimited calling, video conferencing and messaging in one platform. When you factor in its ease of use, reliability, and complete package of features and tools, you will be hard-pressed to find a more complete business phone system. For these reasons and more, RingCentral is our pick for the best business phone system for collaboration.
RingCentral Login
Go to https://service.ringcentral.com, enter your email address, then click Next. Enter your password, then click Sign In. If you select “Stay signed in,” you will be automatically logged in to your account the next time you visit the site.
Logging in via the direct sign-in page or homepage
- Navigate to the RingCentral homepage by going to ringcentral.com. Alternatively, you can go to the RingCentral sign-in page, https://service.ringcentral.com.
- Click Login > Admin Portal if you have navigated to the RingCentral homepage.
- Select your preferred sign-in method from the login page. Options include:
- RingCentral sign-in form: Use this login method to sign in using your RingCentral credentials like your email or phone number.
- Google: Use this login method to sign in using your Google account credentials.
- Single Sign-on: If Single Sign-on has been enabled for your account, use this login method to sign in using your Single Sign-on credentials.
Logging in using the RingCentral sign-in form
- Enter your RingCentral email or phone number.
- Select the Next button.
- If you logged in using your phone number, enter your extension number in the Extension (optional) field. Note: You may need to specify your extension if you share the same phone number in your account to avoid logging in as a different user.
Why you should use RingCentral
- Your phone system should work exactly the way that you want it to
- One phone system that connects your office, remote workers and mobile users.
- You can easily support multiple locations, move between them, or add users instantly.
- You can change your answering and forwarding rules online from anywhere.
- Integration with mobile phones and other devices.
- Never miss a call, fax or message
- Stay connected to your office phone system.
- Customers can reach out to you and your employees from anywhere they are.
- You can access your voicemail and fax messages from anywhere, anytime.
- Collaboration is easy from any device, anywhere.
- HD video conferencing makes it easy to attend important meetings face-to-face.
- Unlimited audio conference with up to 1000 participants
- Easy file sharing and group discussion facilitate efficient team collaboration.
- All-inclusive, simple pricing to ensure low monthly costs
- Reduce your ongoing operating expenses.
- Unlimited minutes mean you don’t have to worry about any overage fees
- We manage it.
- There is no need to purchase or install complex hardware.
- One provider for business communications–voice, fax, text, online meetings, audio conferencing, and team collaboration.
- 24/7 customer support.
Who Should Use RingCentral
- RingCentral is a top choice for small business VoIP systems. It offers powerful features and low prices. It was also included in our top video conferencing software, and most popular softphone apps.
- Healthcare organisations looking for a secure telephone system to meet their telehealth requirements:RingCentral strictly adheres to the Health Insurance Portability and Account Act (HIPAA), and Health Information Trust Alliance(HITRUST). It is one of the most HIPAA-compliant videoconferencing systems.
- RingCentral is a top-rated answering service that can forward calls to employees or departments.
- For those looking for a strong business cellphone plan RingCentral is the best business cellphone plan because it includes apps that let you access its platform from your mobile phone, tablet or desktop computer. It offers more capabilities than traditional cellphone plans, including video conferencing.
- Businesses that require a complete solution to their growing environment. RingCentral offers equipment leasing, which allows businesses to use the most advanced technologies (both software and hardware) for their business. It was ranked among the top call center phones as well as the best contact center phone systems.
- International calling: RingCentral offers international calling support for people with a global presence. The plans include calls to Puerto Rico, Canada, and other countries. Minute fees start at 1 cent. It is one of our top-rated phone systems in our guide on international call rates. Additionally, it is part of our list of best VoIP international services.
- Call management. RingCentral was included in our top call management systems because it offers advanced capabilities, as well as its call management features such as call monitoring and system administration.
- Sales automation.RingCentral automates sales through its extensive communication and call management features. This includes automatic call logs and a dialer that eliminates the need for manual entry. It is our recommendation for the most effective sales automation software.
- Vanity number: With RingCentral, you can personalize your business number to make it easy for customers to remember. This is one of our top picks for the best phone number providers because it comes with advanced phone system features.
RingCentral Pricing
RingCentral offers four plans, which vary in price and feature. Although most business telephone system providers offer several plans, RingCentral’s wide range of options is an added benefit. RingCentral offers a variety of plans that allow businesses to make sure they aren’t paying extra for features that they don’t use. It also allows businesses of different budgets to benefit from RingCentral’s exceptional platform.
RingCentral offers both annual and monthly pricing options. Annual payments can be as much as 33% off. Below is a list of RingCentral plans that are available for businesses with less than 99 employees.
Essentials
- Number supported users: Up to 20
- Cost:$29.99/user per month when billed monthly, or $19.99/user per month if billed annually
- Toll-free:100
- Features: Unlimited calling, unlimited text messaging, visual voicemail and voicemail to emails, document sharing, team messaging and call log reports.
Standard
- Number supported users:Unlimited
- Monthly Billing:$37.99/user per month, or $27.99/user per month if billed annually
- Toll-free:1,000
- FeaturesAll the Essentials Plan features, plus unlimited audio conferencing, video conferencing with up 100 attendees, online faxing, multilevel auto-attendant, integrations with Google Workspace, Office 365 and Slack, and 24/7 customer service
Premium
- Number supported users:Unlimited
- Monthly Billing:$44.99/user/month, or $34.99/user/month if billed annually
- Toll-free:2,500
- FeaturesAll the features of the Standard plan plus the ability to host video conferences with up to 200 participants; call recording; multisite support and custom app development; single sign on; real analytics; advanced call handling; hotdesking and integrations with Salesforce Zendesk, Canvas and Canvas
Ultimate
- Number supported users:Unlimited
- Cost: $59.99 per user per monthly when billed monthly, or $49.99 per person per month if billed annually
- Toll-free:10,000
- Features All the premium features, plus unlimited storage, device state reports, and device status alerts
RingCentral Features
RingCentral’s wide range of PBX tools and features is what makes it stand out among its peers. RingCentral offers all the mobile, collaboration, and calling features that businesses need, including unlimited calling, HD voice and call recording, group calling, call whisper and barge, call log reports, and multilevel auto-attendants.
RingCentral was our choice for the best business phone system because it offers the most collaboration features. Audio conference calls can be hosted with up 1,000 participants, and you can also host video conferences with up 200 attendees. You can also use the platform to send text messages and group messaging.
RingCentral’s mobile app is available for Android and iOS devices. It allows you to make and receive calls, send faxes, texts, join conferences, check voicemail, and set up and join calls. The app allows you to change your system settings, receive notifications and set up reminders.
It offers a desktop app that allows you to access your phone system from any computer. The desktop app allows you to make and take calls via softphone and host video conferences. You can also message customers and coworkers.
It also offers outbound and inbound contact center services. Interactive voice response, omnichannel capabilities and outbound dialing are just a few of the features offered by RingCentral. Performance management and analytics are also available.
RingCentral Alternatives
As a voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) provider with extensive unified communications (UC) features like voicemail-to-text, video conferencing, and team messaging, RingCentral is undeniably one of the best business phone systems. RingCentral is not the only option. There are many worthy alternatives that offer lower prices, advanced artificial intelligence or more flexibility. We review the top RingCentral alternatives to help you choose the best one for your company.
These are the top seven RingCentral alternatives, as well as an honorable mention, based on our research.
1. Ooma Office
Designed for small budget-conscious businesses that want quality service at a flat fee
Ooma’s communication hub offers cloud-based telephone services targeted at small businesses. It offers call management tools such as call recording, high-definition voice, call transfers and number blocking. All of these features are available from RingCentral!
Ooma can be used with mobile devices to make calls while you are on the move. You can transfer calls easily between devices such as your smartphone, tablet, and laptop.
2. Bandwidth
Bandwidth, a software company, offers APIs that allow you to integrate voice, messaging, 911 access, and other services into your software. We are changing the way people communicate by challenging old telecom standards. We are the power behind some of the most powerful communications technologies available today, including companies such as Google, Skype, and Ring Central.
Bandwidth allows customers of all sizes to equip their apps with voice calling, call tracking and text messaging. Our APIs and national IP voice network can be scaled.
3. Phone.com
Phone.com offers a budget-friendly VoIP solution that is ideal for entrepreneurs and small businesses. Even if your company is small, all plans include enterprise-grade features that will make you sound like a Fortune 500 business. Phone.com may not offer the same capabilities as Nextiva’s higher-end plans, but it offers flexible pricing and simple voice features for those companies that don’t require more.
Phone.com provides a virtual phone system that allows you to manage your phone greetings, routing, extensions and voicemail. Phone.com is the most popular cloud-based phone company that caters to entrepreneurs and small businesses. Phone.com offers a wide range of cost-effective, flexible and innovative communications solutions. In addition, Phone.com provides award-winning U.S.-based customer support to its customers all across America.
4. Vonage
Designed for businesses who are looking to customize their service and choose the most important features
Vonage is one of the most well-known players in VoIP. It allows you to make and receive calls, send texts and share files from virtually any device. These services are linked by its desktop and mobile applications, which allow you to access all of your business information in one place.
Vonage does not have its own video conference software. Instead, they use Amazon Chime Pro Tier to offer this service. Screen share and chat can also be provided starting at their Premium plan. Third-party software can be a challenge for customer support and tech support as the company does not own these parts or elements. They would have to rely upon the third party to resolve any issues or bugs.
Vonage Holdings Corp. was the original company to offer VoIP (voice over internet protocol) telephone service to residential customers in 2004. The company, which has its headquarters in Holmdel (New Jersey) and global offices, provides unified communications as an service (UCaaS), to all businesses.
Vonage Business Communications (formerly Vonage Business Cloud) is an all-in one system that offers voice, text messaging and video conferencing. It also allows for team collaboration. There are three service plans available. Each offers additional unified communication features.
The company provides business phone services as well as contact center solutions. Many developers also use the application program interfaces (APIs), to personalize communications systems for their businesses.
5. GoToConnect
GoToConnect is a combination of Jive’s VoIP telephone systems and GoToMeeting’s web, audio and visual functionalities to create a single Unified Communications platform (Voice, Video, and Contact Center). GoToConnect offers the most current technology to your business, including features such as virtual voicemail, international calling, and business solutions like video conference and conferencing calling. GoToConnect is a low-cost, monthly service that eliminates the need to manage multiple collaboration solutions.
GoToConnect supports more than 180 models of desktop phones, conference room speakers systems and other devices. The GoToConnect desktop or mobile apps can be used to make calls from your smartphone or computer. The service supports SMS messages within the USA and Canada.
GoToConnect software offers essential features such as caller ID, call forwardeding, and call recording. This platform does not have its own storage for recorded calls. To connect to a third-party cloud storage provider, you will need to purchase one.
Supervisors can also use GoToConnect to monitor calls. You can use Spy Mode, which allows you to listen in on conversations without being heard, or Whisper Mode which allows you to only hear your employees and not the caller. You can also jump in to an ongoing call as a three-way audio conference.
6. Grasshopper
Designed for solopreneurs and small businesses who are looking for a basic phone service that offers basic call management features, as well as a low-cost telephone line.
Grasshopper, a virtual phone system, is less feature-rich than RingCentral or other options. It allows small businesses to make and receive calls, set personalized greetings and use their existing smartphones.
Grasshopper is a virtual phone system that allows small businesses to turn the world into their office. You can either get a vanity, local or toll-free number for your business, or you can bring your own number. Forward calls from anywhere. Use our mobile and desktop apps for voice and text communication with clients. You can also be notified instantly of missed calls and voicemails. Voicemails can be transcribed and sent via email. You can try us risk-free for 30 days and get your money back.
Grasshopper provides three plans and a seven-day free trial. All plans include at minimum one business phone number and at least three extensions. They also offer mobile and desktop apps, VoIP, Wi-Fi calling and voicemail. Call forwarding, voicemail and custom greetings are all included. You can also get 24/7 U.S.-based customer support and call reports. For Grasshopper’s top-tiered plan, monthly fees start at $26 per year and go up to $89 per month.
- Solo: The Solo plan offers what its name implies, providing service for solo entrepreneurs and people who are starting a side business. The plan costs $26 per month and is payable annually. It includes one phone number as well as three extensions. These extensions can be forward to any number that you choose or directly to you.
- Partner:Grasshopper claims this plan is their most popular. It is for businesses with three or more employees. The plan includes three phone numbers, which can be used in multiple areas or a combination thereof. There are six extensions. If paid annually, the plan will cost $44 per month.
- Small Business: The Small Business plan offers greater flexibility in call routing for smaller businesses. The plan costs $80 per month if it is billed annually, or $89 per month if it is paid monthly. However, it provides unlimited extensions and up to five phone numbers.
7. Dialpad
Dialpad Talk, a business phone system built entirely on Google Cloud Platform, provides unparalleled mobility, flexibility and security to over 62,000+ of today’s most innovative companies. Dialpad Talk features native Voice Intelligence such as real-time transcription, post-call summaries and highlighted action items. Dialpad integrates directly with other cloud-critical business applications like G Suite, Salesforce, Zendesk, and Zendesk to maximize productivity and user efficiency.
