8×8 phone systems empower the communications of over one million business users around the world – will it empower your business?
✔ Pros:
- Tailored business solutions
- Wide range of products
- Software and handset packages available
- Innovator of unified communications
X Cons:
- Cloud-based phone systems only
- Call quality reliant on internet connection
At a glance: 8×8 is a leading supplier within the communications industry, offering a range of products and services that are tailored to various sectors and business sizes. Its products start as low as $12/month, and with a 30 day free trial period, there’s no commitment until you know you’ve made the right choice for your business.
Introducing 8×8
8×8 offers three main products: 8×8 Express, 8×8 X Series, and 8×8 Contact Centre. The products are designed with all business sizes in mind, which means you’ll always be provided with a phone system that’s suited precisely to your needs.
The software included in all of 8×8’s packages is compatible with a huge variety of integrations. This gives you the ability to completely unify your communications – view phone calls, texts, emails and instant messages all on one platform.
In addition to supplying sophisticated phone system software, 8×8 offers a range of hardware, including handsets, headsets, analogue phone adapters, and other accessories.
All of this makes 8×8 your one-stop-phone-system-shop, and means that the process of investing in its phone system should be smooth and hassle-free.
Read on to find out more about 8×8’s products. Alternatively, you can use our comparison service to rate 8×8 against other phone system suppliers. Click here to provide us with a little bit of information about your business, and up to four suppliers that best match your needs will be in touch with tailored quotes and more information.
Quick Facts:
- 8×8 empowers over one million business users around the world
- With over 150 patents to its name, 8×8 is a leader in driving global communications
What’s On This Page?
8×8 Features and Benefits
We’ve broken this section down to include the features and benefits of three of 8×8’s key products.
The three main 8×8 products are:
- 8×8 Express
- 8×8 X Series
- 8×8 Contact Centre
First off, Have a look at our table to find out which products would best suit your business:
| Small businesses | Growing businesses | Medium-sized businesses | Enterprise businesses | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8×8 Express | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ |
| 8×8 X Series – X2, X4, X6, X8 | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 8×8 Contact Centre | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Now let’s look at each product in more detail.
8×8 Express
Best for small businesses
Main Features:
- Unlimited calling in the US and Canada
- HD voice quality
- Basic call handling
- HD audio and video conferencing
- Mobile and desktop app integrations
8×8 Express may be 8×8’s most basic product – but it’s actually far from basic. It’s a phone system that has been especially designed to launch small businesses off the ground, with all the features you need to take your business to the next level.
It doesn’t have all the fanfare of 8×8’s larger phone system packages, so you won’t be paying for features that you won’t use. And, if you do outgrow your phone system, you can easily upgrade to 8×8’s X Series, which we cover in the section below.
The downside
Bear in mind that this basic package doesn’t offer call recording. This is fine if all you need is calling, conference calls, and customer journey management. However, if you’re looking to use past calls to train up your sales team, it could be worth looking at a lower tier X Series phone system.
8×8 X Series
Best for fast-growing, medium, and enterprise businesses
Main Features:
- 4 price plans to choose from – X2, X4, X6, and X8
- Advanced auto attendant and call handling across all plans
- Unlimited calling across multiple countries (number dependent on price plan)
- Voicemail transcription
- CRM integration
- Analytics and call quality reporting
Whether you’re a fast-growing business or an enterprise business at the top of its game, the 8×8 X Series should have a package to meet your requirements. With four tiers to choose from, the 8×8 X Series can also grow alongside your business, which means you’ll always have the communication tools you need.
The X Series is especially great for larger businesses looking to manage overseas call spending. This is because each package includes unlimited calling to a number of foreign countries (the X4, X6, and X8 plans offer the most, with unlimited calls to 47 countries!)
The downside
The X2 package doesn’t include call analytics and call quality reporting, so you’ll have to purchase either the X4 or X6 package if you want to ensure that your business is taking as much valuable data as possible from its phone calls.
8×8 Contact Center
Main Features:
- Call analytics, including historical and real-time reports
- Integrates with CRM software, including Salesforce, and Zendesk
- Omnichannel routing – see all communications on one platform
- Supervisor tools, including performance plans, and coaching tools
Whether you’re looking for software for your in-house team, or you’re a call center agency that takes calls on behalf of a number of clients, 8×8 Contact Center will provide you with heaps of tools to help you run your call center like clockwork.
The downside
It’s great that 8×8’s call center software has lots of features for you to use, but it does mean that it’s not the easiest system to get to grips with. You may want to think about training an in-house team to assist new starters, so they can become familiar with the system as quickly as possible.
How Much Does an 8×8 Phone System Cost?
Thankfully, 8×8 is transparent with most of its software prices, so when it says its prices start at $12/month, you know it’s true. You can also look at its range of handsets and accessories to gauge how much an entire phone system could cost your business.
Below, we’ve provided you with a brief breakdown of software costs.
| Express Series | X2 | X4 | X6 | X8 | Contact Center | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-99 users | $12 per user/per month | $25 per user/per month | $45 per user/per month | $110 per user/per month | $172 per user/per month | Pricing bespoke |
| 100-999 users | $12 per user/per month | $23 per user/per month | $43 per user/per month | $107 per user/per month | $172 per user/per month | Pricing bespoke |
| 1,000+ users | N/A | $21 per user/per month | $41 per user/per month | $102 per user/per month | $162 per user/per month | Pricing bespoke |
And here’s a taste of its hardware costs:
| Basic phone | $75 per handset |
|---|---|
| Standard phone | $160 per handset |
| Advanced phone | $350 per handset |
So how much could an 8×8 phone system cost you? Below, we’ve provided some suggested costs per business size, based on a standard phone system:
| Initial hardware cost | Ongoing monthly cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Small business (20 users) | $3,200 | $240 |
| Medium business (100 users) | $16,000 | $2,300 |
| Enterprise business (300 users) | $48,000 | $32,100 |
These costs only give you a ballpark figure – the prices will change depending on how many users you require, and the handsets you need. And don’t forget, 8×8 also offers a 30 day free trial period, so you can ensure you’re investing in the right package for you before you commit to a contract.
For a true idea of how much a phone system will cost your business, you may be better off receiving accurate phone system costs. Click here to provide us with a few details about your business, then Expert Market-approved suppliers will be in touch with customized quotes and more information. It only takes a minute – and we do all the hard work for you!
Is 8×8 the Right Supplier for my Business?
Is 8×8 the right choice for my small business?
In a nutshell – yes. Its products have been designed with businesses of all sizes in mind, which means you’re never paying for features you don’t need, nor do you ever need to compensate for a lack of features.
8×8’s Express product is ideal for small businesses, with its no-frills feature list ensuring small businesses benefit from a great phone system, without having to pay for things that they don’t need.
Does 8×8 cater for medium to enterprise businesses?
Thanks to its three tier system, the X Series offers something for medium to large businesses, too. Plus, it easily allows you to upgrade your phone system as your demands grow.
And with a huge range of hardware available, you’ll be able to choose the best handset for each user or each department. This means you’ll be able to create the perfect phone system for your company.
What else should I consider?
8×8 is a hosted VoIP supplier. This means it specialises in supplying phone systems that are hosted on an offsite server. A hosted phone system is the most cost-effective VoIP solution, as it requires less hardware, and no in-house team to maintain it.
Read more: Telephone system features
While this is great news for businesses that require hosted VoIP, those that prefer the idea of self-hosting their VoIP system will have to look at other providers. Self-hosted VoIP is often preferred by businesses that require a bespoke phone system, such as hospitals and large corporations.
The following suppliers offer self-hosted phone systems:
What do 8×8’s Customers Say?
You should always look at customer reviews before you buy. So to help you out, we’ve trawled popular review sites across the web to provide you with an overview of 8×8’s customer consensus.
The product
8×8’s customers are generally very happy with the product they receive. Customers mention that it’s intuitive to use, reliable, and meets their needs. It’s not a complete clean sweep, though. As seen with a lot of tech-heavy products, there are cases where customers complain of glitches, which can often take some time to resolve.
Here’s a comment from one of 8×8’s customers:
“I like the convenience of knowing at a glance who is on a call (via the Virtual Office desktop). My favorite feature is probably receiving my voicemails through my email software. I get my email to my mobile phone, so I like being able to listen to the messages and respond to my clients as the calls come in.”
Jessica, Office Administrator
Customer service
8×8 is a large business, therefore its customer service isn’t always perfect. While many customers give rave reviews about its customer service team, others haven’t had the same experience. That being said, 8×8 does have a presence on online forums, which enables them to pick up on any negative customer reviews, and resolve them.
Rachel, President of her own small business, says:
“We love having a dedicated account rep and a great team who is always helpful to walk you through any account setup or changes on the phone.”
Expert Verdict
There’s no doubt that 8×8’s telephone products have been designed to meet the needs of a huge range of businesses. Its expertise spreads across recruitment, retail, manufacturing, and legal industries – to name just a few – and across small, medium, and enterprise businesses.
It’s not without its limitations, though. Because it offers purely cloud-based (hosted) phone systems, its products won’t provide you with the same scope for customization as a self-hosted system would. And due to the size of the company, it doesn’t have a perfect customer service reputation.
That being said, 8×8 still remains a hugely popular choice. It’s an innovative company paving the way for future advances in telecommunication technology.
But 8×8 isn’t the only telephone system supplier that does all of this. In fact, there are lots of suppliers that can offer you the same level of expertise and credibility. So why not compare prices from all of them?
Our comparison service makes it super easy for you to receive and compare quotes from top telephone system suppliers. Just click here to provide us with a few details about your business, and the suppliers that best match your requirements will be in touch!
Alternative Telephone System Suppliers
If you don’t think 8×8 can provide you with the telephone system you’re looking for, why not take a look at some other supplier reviews from Expert Market?
