What Are the Benefits (and Challenges) of VoIP Technology?

VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a technology that allows you to make and receive phone calls over the internet. It offers many benefits over traditional analogue landlines, which often come with high costs, limited features, and a lack of flexibility.

Today, that technology is almost out of date, with the ‘Big Switch Off’ of the UK landline network coming in early 2027, and forcing users to seek alternatives. That’s why many businesses are now choosing top VoIP providers to streamline their call management.

Want to find out if VoIP could solve your specific business needs? Let’s dive into the five biggest benefits of VoIP technology to help you decide, as well as discuss any potential issues you may have with VoIP (and how to solve them).

1. Cost savings

Generally, switching to VoIP is much cheaper for businesses to install than traditional landlines that route calls over copper wire using what’s called a PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network). Here’s how:

• Lower call costs: VoIP drastically cuts costs for local and long-distance calls, especially for international communications. Many providers offer free calls between VoIP users, reducing expenses significantly.
• No need for physical hardware: Unlike traditional phone systems, VoIP uses your existing internet connection, which means no need for costly PBX systems or additional phone lines. You can even use your existing phone with a VoIP system, provided you have an ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter).
• Reduced maintenance costs: With VoIP, you won’t incur the ongoing maintenance or repair costs associated with traditional telephone systems.

2. Greater flexibility

With many employees now working outside the office for at least part of the week, VoIP offers much greater flexibility than traditional landlines:

• Remote work: VoIP allows employees to make and receive calls from anywhere, whether at home, in the office, or on the go. All you need is an internet connection.
• Softphone applications: VoIP can be accessed on smartphones, tablets, and computers, ensuring you never miss an important call, even while traveling.

For instance, a marketing firm with remote workers across multiple time zones can seamlessly communicate with clients and colleagues, regardless of location, using VoIP.

3. Advanced features

VoIP offers a whole host of features that are either not available from a traditional landline or are added extras to better internal and external communications:

• Call forwarding and voicemail-to-email: Forward calls to any device or have voicemail transcribed and sent to your email for easy access.
• Video calls and conferencing: Facilitate remote team collaboration with integrated video conference calling, making it easier to connect with clients and partners across the globe.
• Auto-attendant and call routing: These features improve customer experience by automatically routing calls to the appropriate department or individual.

For employers, a VoIP network also makes it much easier to monitor employee phone use than a traditional telephone network.

For example, using a VoIP analytics platform, you can track a wide range of data, such as the length of calls, the number of calls made, and the call destinations. This data can be used to identify trends in your phone usage and to make sure that your VoIP system is being used efficiently.

4. Greater scalability

Unlike traditional phone networks, which are typically hosted on business premises, VoIP networks are usually cloud-based, meaning they are hosted on remote servers. This makes them much easier to scale, depending on the needs of the business:

• Easily add or remove lines: Unlike traditional systems that require new lines or complex infrastructure, VoIP systems can be scaled with just a few clicks. This is perfect for businesses that are expanding or need additional lines during peak seasons.
• No need for hardware: As your business grows, you don’t need to invest in new hardware, either, as stated earlier. Simply upgrade your plan as needed.
• Contract cancellation and/or plan changes: Another benefit of VoIP is that many providers don’t require long-term contracts, so you can cancel your service at any time or change to a different one. This gives you the flexibility to switch providers if you find a better deal. On the other hand, landline providers typically tie you into much longer contracts.

5. Better call quality

Today’s VoIP technology offers high-quality, crystal-clear calls when paired with a strong internet connection. VoIP often delivers superior call quality compared to traditional landline systems, which can suffer from issues like static or dropped calls. Instead, VoIP calls are digital, more reliable, and resistant to environmental interference from devices such as cordless phones.

However, call quality will depend on a number of factors such as the quality of your internet connection and the codec used (this is the hardware or software that encodes and decodes the digital data stream). We discuss this further down on this page, but in short, we suggest testing a service before you purchase a contract.

Are there any difficulties or disadvantages with using VoIP?

While we’re big fans of VoIP – and in fact, with the Big Switch Off fast approaching, it is the best alternative we all have to a traditional landline – there are still a few areas to think about when transitioning systems.

Reliability on internet access

With universal broadband not a government policy or seemingly a plan in the UK as of 2025, and many providers still offering somewhat spotty internet connections in many areas of the country, internet connection and reliability are perhaps the primary concerns for those using or transferring to VoIP.

If your internet connection goes down, that means your phone line will be gone, too. Similarly, if your bandwidth isn’t great, you may suffer from quality issues such as delays, noise, and echoes, especially if you have multiple people calling at once on one broadband connection.

How to prevent internet latency and reliability issues

We can’t stop your internet provider from having issues with its whole system, but there are some steps you can take to make sure your internet speed is at its peak performance for calling:

1. Get a high-speed internet provider package with high bandwidth.
2. Upgrade your Ethernet cables: Using higher quality Cat-6 or CAT-5e cables on your VoIP devices can mean data packets are transferred more efficiently since they are designed to support higher speeds and reduce interference.
3. Dedicated lines for VoIP: To avoid competition with other internet traffic, it may be best for businesses to consider separate Ethernet connections/Wi-Fi networks solely for their VoIP solution.

Power outages

Another worry for many is if there is a power outage, can businesses still operate their phones. In the UK, standard corded landlines tend to work even with a power outage due to the backup power supplied by the telephone exchange.

On the other hand, VoIP systems are reliant on both power and an internet connection. In the event of a power outage or internet disruption, VoIP calls will be interrupted, potentially leaving employees and customers unable to communicate.

How to prevent power outage problems

We suggest businesses implement backup power solutions, such as Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS), and consider having a mobile VoIP app as a contingency plan in case of network outages. Most VoIP providers have apps for both Android and iOS devices in 2025.

Limited emergency services location tracking

Unlike traditional phone systems, VoIP calls can pose a challenge for emergency services when it comes to location tracking. While mobile phones transmit location data via cell towers, VoIP relies on an IP address, which may not be as accurate for pinpointing the caller’s location. This can delay response times in critical situations.

How to avoid location tracking issues

UK VoIP providers typically require customers to register their location for emergency calls. This means that emergency responders can be directed to the right address, even though IP addresses can be imprecise.

Plus, UK VoIP providers must comply with regulatory requirements to enable emergency call handling. Most providers, such as Vonage or RingCentral, offer features like Emergency Call Location Registration so that your VoIP service works properly in emergencies.

Compatibility issues with older equipment

VoIP technology may not work seamlessly with older systems, such as traditional alarm systems, fax machines, or certain legacy deskphone hardware. These devices often rely on analog signals, whereas VoIP uses digital data, which can cause compatibility problems.

How can hardware compatibility issues be avoided?

To address this issue, businesses can use Analog Telephone Adapters (ATAs) to connect legacy devices to the VoIP system or consider upgrading to modern digital equipment. We’d suggest upgrading to modern deskphones, however, as this will be much simpler and should have all the bells and whistles to make the best use of VoIP software. Common models are by the likes of Yealink and Polycom (but will vary depending on your chosen VoIP system).

Security risks

As VoIP systems operate over the internet, they are susceptible to security risks such as hacking, phishing, data breaches, and eavesdropping. Without proper security measures, sensitive business information communicated through VoIP can be compromised. Additionally, VoIP networks can be vulnerable to Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks or service disruptions.

How are VoIP phone lines protected?

To mitigate these risks, you should opt for a VoIP that implements strict encryption protocols (e.g. Secure Real-time Transport Protocol, also known as SRTP), allows for the use of strong passwords, enables two-factor authentication (2FA), and offers regular security updates to all devices and software.

Conclusion

VoIP is growing rapidly, and according to the latest VoIP statistics, the UK VoIP Market is expected to grow by £3.92 billion by 2029. With the Big Switch Off approaching, it’s set to become an essential tool for UK citizens and businesses alike.

VoIP systems offer several benefits over conventional analogue telephone networks. Not only are they generally much cheaper to install and run, but they can also be scaled more easily using remote servers in the cloud.

VoIP systems are also more suited to today’s business needs, where working from outside the office has become increasingly important. They can be used remotely over any internet network and on a wide range of devices, including mobile phone, laptop computer, or web tablet. What’s more, they can be used to make video calls.

For employers, having a VoIP system makes it much easier to track employee phone usage to optimise efficiency. Finally, if configured correctly and installed on a high-quality internet connection, VoIP can provide much better call quality levels as well as improved security.

To find the best VoIP system for your business, have a look at our rundown of some of the best phone systems on the market.