As cloud communication grows in popularity and reliability, many businesses are switching over to VoIP to take their communications to the next level. But as your business considers VoIP, it is important to review how much your service will cost you.
In this article, we will review:
- How much does a softphone cost, and
- How to determine the right softphone provider for your business
The Costs of Using Softphones for Business Calls
Softphones are a cloud phone service feature that lets users make business calls from any location and device. This makes softphones a good tool for distributed teams to maintain business continuity and for global businesses to call internationally cost-effectively.
What is a Softphone?
A softphone — also known as web phone or web-dialer — is a web-based phone application that allows users to make and receive business calls. The softphone software is a dial pad and uses your VoIP phone service to act as a phone. This is a cloud telephony feature offered by VoIP phone service providers.
Users can download the softphone on their desktop or smartphone or access it via web browser extensions. They then enter their VoIP or SIP credentials given by the cloud phone service provider. Once logged in, they can place calls in-network and to customers by connecting to the internet.
How Much Does a Softphone Cost?
There are different types of softphones offered by service providers; some free, some paid. To choose the right softphone provider, you will need to determine the features and tools essential for your business communication system.
Free softphones come in handy for one-off calls and quick service. If your business needs to make a quick call but does not need a regular service, then a free softphone may be your cost-effective solution. Note that while these softphones are free, they may lack in capability and features, and therefore, are not always recommended for business use.
Paid softphones will give you the real VoIP experience along with a full suite of features and tools. With these softphones, you can make and receive voice and video calls, manage calls with advanced routing, integrate with your CRM, and connect from any location and device. On average, a softphone costs about $50-70. However, your softphone cost depends on where you get it and for what purpose.
Softphones from VoIP providers come equipped with features and tools to boost your business communication. Some VoIP providers offer softphones for free with their service or a particular product. For example, you can get the Global Call Forwarding softphone when you sign up for our Outbound Calling service.
Global Call Forwarding Softphone Cost
As mentioned, you can get the Global Call Forwarding softphone with any of our Outbound Calling plans, starting at $25/month.
So, with a Basic outbound plan ($25/month) and a Basic inbound plan ($7.95/month), the GCF softphone costs $35.95/month.
*Note: Costs mentioned in this article are current at the time of publishing and may be subject to changes.
Choosing the Right Softphone Provider
While you might be tempted to pick the first softphone provider that turns up on your search, it is a good idea to consider different providers before making your decision. To find the right softphone, you must:
1. Determine what your teams need
Review your internal and external communication infrastructure and consider different services and features that can help you optimize communication. In other words, how can you make it easier and cost-effective for employees to call local and global customers? What do you need to route calls effectively across different offices? How can you reduce call abandonment?
2. Research and review different providers
Next, look at the top VoIP and softphone providers to understand what they offer businesses like yours. What do you need to do or buy in order to use their softphone? Review and compare their features, prices, and customer testimonials.
3. Understand features offered
Next, what features do they offer as part of their service and within the softphone? How can these features help your business overcome its communication challenges? Can this service support your local, remote, and global teams?
4. Buy a softphone and start making calls
Once you have reviewed different providers, plans, and features, you can see which fits your requirements and budget best. Then, you can buy or subscribe to the service. Show your team how to download and use the softphone, and start placing business calls.
Get the GCF Softphone
Global Call Forwarding offers our in-house softphone along with our Outbound Calling plan. You can use the GCF softphone to connect your local, remote, and global teams through one centralized hub. Make outbound calls with your business phone numbers, transfer calls within teams, and stay connected from anywhere in the world.
