The 5 Best Virtual Phone Number Apps

RingCentral MVP on different devices

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According to our extensive research, 8×8 has the best virtual business phone number app and earns an outstanding 4.7/5 overall score in our analysis. With an excellent 4.6/5 score in our features category, 8×8 will give you a plethora of functionalities at your fingertips. RingCentral follows close behind with top scores in integrability, customer support, and scalability. 

As well as the best virtual phone number apps, our researchers have found the best VoIP providers on the market, check out our guide to find out more.

The 5 best virtual phone number apps:

  1. 8×8: Best Overall Virtual Phone Number App
  2. RingCentral: Best Virtual Phone Service for Small to Medium Businesses
  3. Vonage: Best Virtual Phone Service for Scaling Businesses
  4. GoTo: Best Virtual Phone Service for Low-Price Longevity
  5. Dialpad: Best Virtual Phone Service for Conversational AI

The links above will take you to our free quote-finding tool.

Our team of experienced researchers ranked five of the best virtual phone number apps by comparing the following key factors: inclusive minutes, inbound and outbound communication features, and prices. We recommend you consider these criteria when searching for the right business phone system for your team. 

The 5 Best Virtual Phone Number Apps

Here are our researchers 5 best virtual phone number apps for businesses:

Swipe right to see more
0 out of 0
Expert Rating
4.7
Expert Rating
4.7
Expert Rating
4.5
Expert Rating
4.3
Expert Rating
4.1
Best For

Best Overall

Best For

Customer Services

Best For

Mac and iOS Users

Best For

Low-Price Longevity

Best For

Conversational AI

Key Features

Onboarding support

Call queue

Ring groups

Analytics

Customizable call routing

Call recording

Key Features

Voicemail to text

High-definition (HD) voice

Multi-level auto attendant

Visual voicemail and voicemail to email

Key Features

Onboarding support

Call queue

Ring groups

Call recording

Call monitoring

Analytics

Web conferencing

Key Features

Existing number porting

Local, toll-free & vanity numbers

Auto attendant recorded greetings

Ring groups

Call queues

International calling

Key Features

Unlimited calling

High-definition (HD) voice

Multi-level auto attendant

Visual voicemail

Departments/ring groups

Hold queues

1. 8×8: Best Overall Virtual Phone Number App

8x8 logo
8x8
4.7
Pricing Bespoke
Quick overview

Why is 8x8 the Best Overall Virtual Phone Number App?

From the get-go, 8x8 provides unlimited domestic minutes across all plans. This gets upgraded to unlimited international calls to 14 countries on the X2 plan, which extends to 48 countries on the X4 plan. Likewise, it has a number porting capability on all pricing tiers, so you can retain your existing business phone number while enjoying call flexibility.

8x8’s impressive call features include voicemail-to-text, virtual receptionist, and localized toll-free numbers. The most noteworthy of which is its high-quality voice calling and analytics. Plus, many advanced features like power dialer and predictive dialing for an additional cost. Moreover, 8x8 ranked first in our customer support (5/5), security (5/5), and scalability (4.9/5) research categories.

You have to look out for its 10-user limit on its cheapest (Express) plan. Nevertheless, this user limit quickly dissolves as you upgrade to the X2 plan, which enables an unlimited number of users. On the other hand, if you want to spend as little as you can while ensuring your growing team will be catered for, try Vonage. This provider allows unlimited users on its cheapest plan, which costs £9 to £16.50 per user, per month.

 

Strengths

Most comprehensive list of features

Up to 500 video conferencing participants per meeting

Extensive customer support channels

Widest range of pricing options

Weaknesses

Fairly pricey compared to other providers on this page

Mediocre customer review score

Power dialer, predictive calling, and auto-dialer come at an additional cost

Pricing
Package Price
X2 £19
X4 £36
X6 £85
X7 £105
X8 £135

The prices above may no longer be accurate as 8×8’s prices are now bespoke.

2. RingCentral: Best Virtual Phone Service for Small to Medium Businesses

RingCentral logo
RingCentral
4.5
Pricing £7.99 - £24.99
Quick overview

Why is RingCentral Best for Small to Medium Businesses?

RingCentral closely takes the second spot with top marks in external connections (4.3/5), customer support (5/5), and scalability (4.9/5) in our research. Not only is it reliable, but it has a wide compatibility with software and flexible enough to adapt when your business starts to grow.

RingCentral offers unlimited domestic minutes and number porting across all plans. It also offers plenty of call features, including a virtual receptionistcustomizable hold music, SMS, and a set caller ID. Best of all, RingCentral comes ready to integrate with up to 250 software platforms, such as Whatsapp, Facebook, Slack, and Hangouts Chat.  

The drawback is, many outbound communication features, like auto dialer and custom call lists require RingCentral Engage, an add-on that comes at an additional cost. Apart from this, it has a user limit of 20 on its cheapest plan, unlike Vonage, which has no user limit across any of its plans. Luckily, it becomes unlimited when you upgrade to the Standard plan.

 

Strengths

Up to 97 CRM and 57 analytics integrations

An array of advanced call features on Premium and Ultimate plans

Weaknesses

Some features require RingCentral Engage

The bulk of integrations are only available on Premium and Ultimate plans

Pricing
Package Pricing
Essentials £7.99
Standard £14.99
Premium £19.99
Ultimate £24.99

3. Vonage: Best Virtual Phone Service for Scaling Businesses

Vonage logo
Vonage
4.4
Pricing £9 - £16.50
Quick overview

Why is Vonage Best for Scaling Businesses?

Vonage enables you to add unlimited domestic minutes, number porting, and unlimited users for every plan. Plus, a mix of call features, such as set caller ID, call flip, and a localized toll-free number. The great thing is, Vonage also offers reliable, high-quality virtual phone numbers that are quarantined for a period of time to avoid unwanted calls from previous owners

Scoring a 4/5 in our feature analysis, Vonage offers over 50 communication features to choose from and include in your plan. This makes it easier on your pocket because you only pay for the functionalities you need. This allows you to start off on the cheapest plan with the most essential features, scaling up as your demands grow.

Moreover, Vonage has collaboration features (team messaging, document sharing) and software integrations (Hubspot, Office 365, Salesforce, and Zendesk) that are important for a growing business. Plus, you can add call features, such as a call queue, ring groups, call barge and call whisper to handle calls from your growing client list. All of these contribute to Vonage’s high 4.5/5 scalability score and earning our recommendation as the best virtual phone service for scaling businesses.

That said, advanced features like voicemail-to-text, ring groups, and SMS/chat are only available at an additional cost. These features are offered free by 8x8 and RingCentral. Aside from this, Vonage’s call conferencing is limited to three participants. You have to pay an extra fee to increase its capacity to 30 users. 

 

Strengths

Affordable plans

A variety of inbound communication features

Wide customer support channels

Weaknesses

Some basic features are for an extra cost

No 24/7 live support

Pricing
Package Pricing
Select £9
Professional £12.50
Ultimate £16.50

4. GoTo: Best Virtual Phone Service for Low-Price Longevity

GoTo logo
GoTo
4.2
Pricing £10 - £21
Quick overview

Why is GoTo Best for Low-Price Longevity?

GoTo Connect is the business phone number app we recommend for low-price longevity. For one, it does have good value for money, scoring 4.5/5 in our pricing analysis. More importantly, of the providers that scored best for pricing, we found GoTo to be the most scalable as it offers call queues, call whisper, management, and collaboration . This means GoTo is adaptable enough to partner with you if you’re just starting out, or you’re expanding globally. 

For as low as £10 per user per month, you’ll get unlimited users, unlimited domestic minutes, and number porting. What’s more noteworthy is, GoTo generously offers free international calling to more than 50 countries on its Standard and Premium plans (but not its cheapest Essentials plan). In addition to this, you’ll get a comprehensive list of inbound communication features, including a virtual receptionist, call queue, and ring groups

If there’s one thing to watch out for, is the lack of external connections, seeing it earn a low 2.6/5 in integrability. That’s quite the opposite of RingCentral, which boasts up to 250 integrations. If you’re already using scores of different software, it's more likely that RingCentral already has a built-in integration. 

 

Strengths

Offers fantastic value for money

Very easy to scale

Glowing reputation among users

Weaknesses

Smaller variety of features

Few ready-made integrations

No 24/7 user support channels

Package
Pricing
Basic £10
Standard £21
Did You Know?

By December 2025, the traditional landline will become obsolete. The PSTN network will be switched off and over to a digital network.

5. Dialpad: Best Virtual Phone Service for Conversational AI

Dialpad
Pricing from £12
Quick overview

Why is Dialpad Best for Conversational AI?

We rated Dialpad as the virtual business number app with the best conversational AI. Boasting a stellar list of inbound and outbound communication features across all plans, Dialpad scores 4.2/5 for features in our research. Enjoy advanced features, like customizable greetings, virtual receptionist, and voicemail-to-text from its lowest to highest pricing tiers. Most importantly, it has conversational AI that is enhanced by natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning features to help analyze your conversations. This means it can decipher your calls and provide tailored and actionable suggestions with Real Time Assist Cards to help you better communicate with your team and clients.. 

Dialpad allows you to have unlimited users, provides unlimited inbound and outbound domestic calls, and number porting across all plans. Once you upgrade to its Pro plan, you’ll get localized, toll-free numbers in more than 50 countries.

However, Dialpad falls short on external connections, earning a low integrability score of 2.4/5. Unlike 8x8's 10 live chat integrations, Dialpad only has Slack. Luckily, it has its own SMS/chat and team messaging, so you can still reach your team instantly.

 

Strengths

24/7 reliable customer service

An impressive list of communication features

Stellar customer reviews

Weaknesses

Limited external connections

Low scalability

Pricing
Package Pricing
Standard £12
Pro £20
Enterprise Bespoke
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How Did We Compare the Best Virtual Phone Number Apps?

Expert Market’s experienced researchers extensively analysed five of the best virtual phone services in the country, investigating the key criteria that matter most to UK businesses:

  • Price – the plan’s cost and value for your money
  • Integrability – the software’s ability to integrate with other platforms
  • Features – the tools that define inbound and outbound communications, conversations, management, and collaboration functionalities  
  • Customer Support – the customer support channels available 
  • Customer Score – average consumer review scores across the most trusted review sites: G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, and TrustRadius
  • Security – the security measures the vendor enforces to protect your data
  • Scalability – an aggregated score that assesses a product’s ability to scale alongside a growing business

After collecting scores from each of these key factors, we then calculate the final scores and rank them based on their overall performance. 

Verdict

8×8 has the best overall virtual phone number app, according to our research. While many providers performed well, 8×8 came out on top with an outstanding total performance, earning an overall score of 4.7/5. It also ranked first in four of our research categories: features, customer support, security, and scalability

With a powerful set of features, 8×8 will give you the high performance and mobility you’re looking for in a virtual business phone number app. 

Don’t know which virtual business phone number app to use for your team? Our free quote comparison tool will match you up with the best VoIP providers.. Take our quick survey, and the right providers will be in touch with obligation-free quotes that are customized to your needs. It’s a quick and easy way to get the information you need to make the right decision for your business.

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FAQs

What’s the difference between a landline and a virtual phone number?
A virtual phone number can be used over a computer or smartphone whereas a landline uses wires and cables to make a call.
What is the best free virtual phone number service?
None of the providers in our research offer a free service but some do offer a free trial including, 8×8, RingCentral and Dialpad.
How can I get a free virtual phone number?
You can get a toll-free number from providers like Dialpad, RingCentral, 8×8, and GoTo.
How can I use my virtual phone number?
Once you’ve chosen your provider and opened an account, choose your area code and begin using your new virtual phone number straightaway!
What is the best virtual number provider in the UK?
Our research has found that 8×8 is the best overall virtual phone number app. 8×8 provides a comprehensive number of features, a wide range of pricing, and extensive customer support channels.
What is the cheapest VoIP virtual number?
RingCentral offers the cheapest virtual number starting from £7.99 per user, per month.
Written by:
Zara Chechi
Zara is a Payments Expert, specialising in writing about Point of Sale systems. With a Law Degree from City University of London, she has used her legally-honed research and analytical skills to develop expertise in the Business Services world. Featured in FinTech Magazine, she quickly became an expert in payroll, POS systems, and merchant accounts.
Reviewed by:
James thinks all businesses can improve if they use the right technology. At Expert Market, he utilises his 4+ years experience as a researcher to offer specialised advice on a wide range of categories from CRM to Fleet Management.