Vonage Review and Pricing

Why We Chose Vonage for Customization

Many cloud-based phone systems lock advanced features behind higher-priced tiers. But this pricing model doesn’t suit every organization. Vonage Business Communications (VBC) covers the fundamentals and offers add-on services when your company needs them. Our overall experience upgrading lines and adding extensions through the online portal was positive. This vendor provides flexibility that isn’t often seen in this space.

Retailers and distributors can add call queues or artificial intelligence (AI)-powered assistants temporarily as volume increases. Vonage also offers unlimited and pay-as-you-go extensions, which wasn’t an option among some competitors, as we detail in our RingCentral vs. Nextiva comparison. 

Vonage goes beyond standard business phone system features, offering extensive customization through its application programming interfaces (APIs) and AI Studio. With a developer on your team, you can enable conversations almost anywhere using Vonage communications APIs. For example, your company can use voice or text message technology on its e-commerce site or mobile app. We were particularly impressed with the AI Studio, which offers low-code drag-and-drop solutions that work across voice, social media and short message service (SMS) channels.

Vonage supports office phones and provides desktop and mobile apps. Source: Vonage

Ease of Use

One key advantage of VoIP services is their ability to work on multiple devices, making your communications system accessible to employees regardless of location. Most business users find Vonage’s desktop app easy to navigate, thanks to its straightforward and uncluttered user interface. We also found the admin portal intuitive, allowing for easy customization of individual or company-wide settings.

Admins can customize and manage accounts from a central Vonage dashboard. Source: Vonage

The iOS and Android apps receive mixed reviews. We had no issues downloading and using Vonage on our Apple devices. However, our analysis of feedback showed that Android phone users experienced problems accessing call controls and receiving notifications. 

We liked Vonage’s free Suite Browser add-on feature, which works with Firefox, Chrome and Microsoft Edge. Instead of opening an application, users can access contacts, reports and notes from a webpage. Unfortunately, while testing services for this review, the Chrome extension was not functioning.

Desk phone functionality is not included in the base Mobile plan while Vonage competitors like RingCentral and 8×8 support desk phones on all subscriptions. Moreover, it’s important to note that user experiences may differ based on a business’s customizations and integrations.  

Vonage Features

Vonage phone service includes voice, video and messaging features. Companies can personalize the platform with premium services and customer relationship management (CRM) integrations. We found the following options most appealing for small and midsized businesses (SMBs). 

Premium Vonage Phone Services

We like that Vonage has a monthly option to add call queues, virtual mailboxes or on-demand call recording, allowing for easy scalability. Seasonal businesses experiencing higher call volumes don’t have to upgrade to more expensive plans to gain these features as they would with many Vonage competitors. Vonage allows organizations to configure premium services and extensions anytime through its online portal, giving you the freedom to adapt your plan to your needs.

Add individual and shared lines instantly through the Vonage admin portal. Source: Vonage

AI Virtual Assistant for VBC

Unlike Dialpad, which includes voice intelligence with all plans, Vonage offers a custom option. The conversational AI assistant is an add-on feature that captures customer sentiment data and assists every customer immediately. However, the monthly cost could be steep for some budgets. As alternatives, RingCentral and Dialpad have integrated, out-of-the-box solutions.  

Vonage Fax Service

A Vonage fax line is an add-on service while most rivals include this feature in base plans. We liked the option to manage voicemails, faxes and emails from the web portal. Vonage business fax saves received documents for up to 30 days and provides activity reports. Employees can also set up their email to receive digital faxes electronically.

It’s easy to configure Vonage fax lines for individual or shared email accounts. Source: Vonage

Integrations

Like RingCentral and Zoom, Vonage integrates with Microsoft Teams. We like that it offers the VBC integration for existing customers with Teams licenses. It adds premium private branch exchange calling features to the Microsoft Teams app. 

Conversely, you can select the VBC Voice for Microsoft Teams package. This option doesn’t require a Teams Phone license. We also appreciate that Vonage connects to some of the best CRM software systems, including HubSpot, Salesforce and Zoho. 

Call Management

Like other VoIP providers, Vonage provides a multilevel auto-attendant on its mid-plan tier or as an add-on feature. This virtual receptionist supports one-time and recurring event schedules and special configurations for temporary business closures, after-hours and lunchtimes. Users can configure call forwarding rules and visual voicemail while using up to five devices with the Mobile plan.

Organize call flows from the Vonage admin dashboard. Source: Vonage

Video Conferencing

Vonage offers standard video conferencing services on desktop, mobile and web apps. It supports video meetings with up to 200 people, which is higher than Dialpad but less than Zoom or 8×8. We felt that the basic functionality worked well for occasional use. The video platform has waiting rooms, detailed meeting logs and video recording. If you’re looking for more extensive video conferencing capabilities, check out our Zoom review. This vendor is our top pick for video-intensive activities.  

Choose blurred or virtual backgrounds to maintain privacy during Vonage video meetings. Source: Vonage

Unlimited Team Messaging

Many business phone systems offer unlimited team messaging. Vonage users can access online chat during video conferences or communicate via SMS/multimedia messaging service (MMS) through one-on-one or group team messaging services. However, the platform lacks Nextiva’s threaded conversation tools and lags behind RingCentral’s flexible collaboration spaces. We recommend that businesses with remote employees and hybrid teams check out our review of RingCentral to learn why it’s our top choice for workplace collaboration. 

Start or join group chats and share files from Vonage desktop and mobile apps. Source: Vonage

Vonage Pricing Plans and Subscription Costs

Vonage business plans range from $14.99 to $39.99 per line per month, depending on the number of lines purchased. It offers volume-based discounts and includes a main local company number with online purchases. Online purchases receive a discount of up to 30 percent on the first 99 lines.

Vonage’s online pricing is competitive. The base subscription costs less than most VoIP providers as noted in our RingCentral and GoTo Connect reviews. Only Zoom has a cheaper option at $10 per user but it doesn’t include unlimited calling. Still, for a few dollars more monthly, Dialpad, RingCentral, Zoom and others offer AI-enabled meetings, voice and messaging. 

Another drawback of Vonage is the one-year contract. Vonage requires new customers to sign up for at least one year to secure the low rate. If you cancel, you may incur a fee equaling the total price of your service contract. Also, any future metered or unlimited extension purchases cost the standard rate, which is higher than alternatives.

Compare Vonage’s packages with pricing for five to 19 users below:

After purchasing your plan, you can select add-ons from the admin portal. These include metered and unlimited extensions, a shared business inbox, call recording and toll-free numbers. Like many VoIP providers, Vonage sells phone equipment. You can purchase handsets, conference phones and VoIP adapters during checkout or from your admin page under “Hardware.” 

The vendor also offers communication APIs, conversational commerce tools and contact center solutions. Custom and pay-as-you-go options are available for various use cases, from increasing website engagement to improving support response times. 

Implementation and Onboarding

Companies can deploy Vonage and start accepting business calls within minutes. Most functions are self-explanatory, and Vonage’s in-depth guides cover admin configuration. Setting up call flows and advanced features takes longer, but the process is similar to other VoIP services.   

The Vonage Training Center has quick-start guides and tutorials. Our favorite onboarding feature is the interactive videos for end users and administrators. These video guides let users view the entire application and choose tabs to learn about a specific aspect, such as Vonage Meetings or call recording. You can select different features and learn at your own pace, which is far better than sitting through a whole video if only part of the content is relevant to you.

Another unique implementation and onboarding tool is Vonage’s complimentary live training sessions. Most subject categories involve three monthly sessions, including end-user training for IP phone models, mobile app features and settings and call flow setup. Users can attend live meetings to learn about Salesforce, Microsoft Teams or Microsoft 365 integrations.

Vonage Customer Support

Vonage offers customer support via phone seven days a week and provides after-hours emergency service. Although businesses can reach Vonage support by phone Monday through Sunday, live chat isn’t available over the weekend. Ooma Office and Nextiva also have 24/7 customer support. With Vonage, account owners can open a help ticket after signing in to their account or report mobile issues within the application.

The help center uses Vee, a conversational AI chatbot, to troubleshoot basic phone service issues and assist with setting up phones or accounts. Vonage also has a community forum. Technical support team members answer most questions promptly, but this area still needs to be utilized better and companies are better off using traditional channels.

If you want additional support coverage, admins can add Vonage Support Plus powered by Soluto for $9.99 per user, per month. This service is designed for small businesses and covers hardware installation, virus removal and third-party software. Users can click to call or chat to receive tech support seven days a week.

Limitations

Vonage is a customizable phone solution that works well for companies that need to scale capabilities up or down seasonally. However, it can cost more than other phone systems when adding à la carte features. For example, Vonage doesn’t include toll-free numbers or faxing with subscriptions. Our Nextiva review noted that all plans come with toll-free numbers, minutes and virtual faxing.  

SMBs with advanced call routing configurations and an international client base may prefer an alternative. For example, 8×8 has unlimited global calling to 14 or 48 countries, which can save businesses money as they expand. Find out more in our review of 8×8. 

Methodology

For our Vonage review, we met with company representatives, spoke with business users and tested Vonage apps. Our evaluation included real-life tasks, such as configuring the virtual receptionist, video conferencing and adding lines. We assessed features and pricing while closely examining the available customization options. Explore more factors to consider in our guide to choosing a phone system. 

Bottom Line

We recommend Vonage for …

• Seasonal businesses looking for flexible VoIP services.
• Solopreneurs who want a second phone number.
• Companies planning to embed APIs in their software.

We don’t recommend Vonage for …

• Small teams on a tight budget.
• Businesses that need multiple toll-free numbers.
• Organizations that want AI-powered video meeting tools.