Skype emerged as one of the most popular video calling apps since its launch in 2003. While Microsoft’s acquisition of Skype in 2011 introduced a range of updates to the app, its voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) service remains subpar compared to its competitors. Its free version supports international calling, audio conferencing, text messaging, and chat.
The best Skype alternatives offer complete call management capabilities, a diverse selection of app integrations, and stronger security features. Below, we selected the top VoIP providers that surpass Skype in terms of services and overall functionality to help you with your buying decision.
Top Skype alternatives & competitors
Top Skype Alternatives
Expert Score
Key Features
GoTo Connect
4.74
- Unlimited calls to 50+ countries
- Smart call routing
- Automated SMS
Zoom Phone
4.73
- Elevate calls to meetings
- Interactive voice response (IVR)
- Holiday and business hours routing
Nextiva
4.60
- Unlimited conference calls
- Call flow builder
- Warm and cold transfer
RingCentral
4.44
- Advanced call handling
- Call summaries and highlights
- Call queue routing options
Google Voice
4.42
- Voicemail transcription
- Multi-level auto-attendant
- Ring groups
Microsoft Teams Phone
4.24
- Advanced call control
- Voice-enabled channels
- Screen pop
GoTo Connect: Best for international calling
Overall Reviewer Score
4.74/5
Pros
- Unlimited calls to 50-plus countries
- Scalable service plans
- Up to 100 phone features
- Customizable softphone
- Drag-and-drop dial plan editor
Cons
- Unpublished fees
- Lacks add-on options
Why we chose GoTo Connect over Skype
GoTo Connect is our overall best alternative to Skype for companies looking to save money on international calls. VoIP providers like Skype typically charge per-minute rates for making calls worldwide, which can incur expensive, unexpected charges.
With GoTo Connect, you get unmetered calls to 52 countries for a fixed monthly fee. This benefits businesses wanting to communicate freely with clients abroad without worrying about fluctuating call charges. On top of this, you get a cloud phone system with unlimited access to over 100 enterprise-ready features for configuring call flows and customizing call-handling processes.
GoTo Connect only supports local, toll-free, and vanity numbers, so if you need an international number to establish a local presence in other regions, you might want to look elsewhere. In this case, we recommend RingCentral, which offers local dialing options in over 99 countries.
GoTo Connect is a cloud-based phone system offering four scalable monthly plans for different business communication needs. Its pricing structure is divided into four product tiers: phone system, customer engagement, complete customer experience (CX), and contact center. All plans have the same standard features for phone, video, and messaging, but differ in the type of customer engagement tools supported.
As a business phone system, GoTo Connect includes over 100 professional phone features, like a visual plan editor, call queues, ring groups, and smart call routing. Among its VoIP competitors, this provider has one of the most generous offerings, as all plans include 1,000 toll-free minutes, unlimited calls to 50-plus countries, and a choice of local, toll-free, or vanity number.
Multi-site compatible: Manage your phone system across different locations and configure users and devices by site.
Call handling: Forward, transfer, and park calls to the intended recipient without disconnecting the call.
Virtual fax manager: Send and receive digital copies of your faxes from your email inbox without paying for standard call charges.
Voicemail-to-email: Have your voicemails sent to your email inbox along with a text transcription.
Smart call routing: Uses skill assignments to assign a caller to the most suitable agent with the right skill sets for that type of call.
Contact the GoTo Connect sales team to get custom pricing for each plan.
Phone System: 1,000 toll-free minutes, unlimited global calling, smart call routing, call queues, call handling, team chat, and video meetings
Customer Engagement: Shared inbox, virtual assistant, surveys, SMS/MMS campaigns, and custom analytics dashboards
Complete CX: Advanced call routing, skills management, agent monitoring, supervisor analytics, and queue callback
Contact Center: Screen recording, quality management, auto dialer, and workforce management integrations
Zoom Phone: Best for customizable call plans
Overall Reviewer Score
4.73/5
Pros
- Mix types of plans in an account
- All-inclusive monthly plans
- Make calls from multiple devices
- All plans have 24/7 support access
- Elevate calls to video meetings
Cons
- Charges extra for call queue analytics
- Limited app integrations
Why we chose Zoom Phone over Skype
Between Zoom vs Skype, Zoom offers a more flexible VoIP service for businesses needing custom subscriptions to accommodate their team’s varying call volumes. Zoom Phone allows companies to mix and match metered and unlimited calling plans, including metered calls in the U.S. and Canada, unlimited domestic calls, and unlimited calls in one of the 48 countries.
Regardless of the plan you choose, Zoom Phone provides all-inclusive access to core business phone features like auto-attendants, call recording, call transfer, and virtual phone numbers. Plus, installing the Zoom desktop app gives you a unified platform for phone, meetings, and chat, allowing for a more streamlined collaboration across channels.
On the downside, unlimited international calling via Zoom Phone is limited to 15 countries, with a starting fee of $10 per month. If you need more coverage for making calls abroad without extra fees, check out GoTo Connect, which offers unlimited calls to 52 countries at a fixed monthly cost.
Video conferencing giant Zoom extends its product offerings to voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) service with Zoom Phone. This provider offers a low-cost solution to businesses looking to integrate voice, video, and messaging into one platform. Starting at only $10 per user, monthly, users have all-inclusive access to all its phone features.
While most competitors typically offer unmetered packages, Zoom Phone provides users with the freedom to choose the right call plan based on their specific call volume requirements. There are also tons of add-on options to choose from, allowing you to extend your phone system the way you want it.
Voicemail task extraction: Uses artificial intelligence (AI) to pull out tasks from voicemails so you can save time without going through each voicemail.
Dialing persona: This lets you customize the displayed name and phone number on your recipient’s screen when making outbound calls.
Call delegation: Also known as shared line appearance, this feature lets you assign another user to handle calls on your behalf.
Quality of service dashboard: View the overall quality of phone calls and filter call data by any extension type.
Call flip: Place your ongoing call on hold and pick it up on another device, such as your desktop, mobile device, or desk phone.
The pricing below is charged on a monthly basis.
US and Canada Metered: $10/user/month for metered calls to US/CA
US and Canada Unlimited: $15/user/month for unlimited calls to US/CA
Global Select: $20/user/month for unlimited calls in one of the 48 countries supported
All plans include SMS/MMS, voicemail transcription, unlimited auto-attendants and IVR, automatic call distribution, business hours routing, call recording, team messaging, and hot desking.
Nextiva: Best for customer management
Overall Reviewer Score
4.6/5
Pros
- Generous toll-free minute allocation
- Unlimited conference calls
- Free number porting
- A choice of a local or toll-free number for free
- Clean and modern interface
Cons
- Requires a third-party software installation to expand integration options
- Bigger discounts are exclusive to teams of 20 or more
Why we chose Nextiva over Skype
Nextiva is one of our top alternatives to Skype. With its AI-driven platform for managing customer communications, it offers a single app for all customer interactions across all channels, giving you a unified view of the entire customer journey.
The Customer Experience plugin includes a bundle of applications that let you track customer sentiments, automate surveys, and manage customer contacts. Threaded conversations bring together all interactions in one screen to give you the full context of previous conversations. When a customer contacts your company, the Call Pop feature will display all the relevant details about the caller so you get all the information you need before the call.
Unfortunately, Nextiva’s monthly per-user charges can be pricey for small teams on a budget. Discounts are reserved for long-term contracts and teams with more than 20 users. If you’re looking for budget-friendly VoIP apps like Skype, but need the same robust features as Nextiva, consider Zoom Phone. This provider offers affordable monthly plans at only $10 per user, including access to all essential business phone features.
Nextiva is a business phone software designed to provide a seamless employee and customer experience. It combines artificial intelligence (AI), automation, analytics, and customer service tools to help businesses uniquely manage all customer interactions in one unified platform. This provider goes beyond basic VoIP features as it integrates video conferencing, instant messaging, and SMS capabilities.
While Nextiva is priced higher than most alternatives, users can count on its enterprise-level capabilities for internal communications and customer management. Its flagship feature, NextivaONE, brings together voice, text, chat, and video in a single work hub, along with team collaboration and client engagement tools.
Call notify: Sends an email notification when a high-value contact calls your business line, including information about the caller ID and timestamp.
Priority alerts: Assign a ringtone to a specific contact based on call information like phone number and time of day.
Custom ringback: Instead of the usual beeping sound, customize the music or recording callers hear while waiting for an agent to answer their call.
Extension dialing number change: Customize the numbering scheme (three digits or higher) of your company extensions for every location.
Call screening: Examines incoming calls based on the set predetermined conditions before deciding whether to accept or decline them.
The pricing below is for one to four users, charged on a monthly billing arrangement. If you pay annually, you can get up to a 22% discount.
Essential: $30.95/user/month for unlimited calls to the U.S. and Canada, 45-minute video calls, free local/toll-free number, 1,500 toll-free minutes, unlimited e-fax, auto-attendant, and hold music
Professional: $35.95/user/month for 3,000 toll-free minutes, multi-level auto-attendant, 1,000 sent and received SMS/MMS, unlimited conference calls, and app integrations
Enterprise: $45.95/user/month for 12,500 toll-free minutes, unlimited conference participants, call recording, and voicemail transcription
RingCentral: Best all-in-one communications platform
Overall Reviewer Score
4.44/5
Pros
- Complete call management features
- Up to 300 integrations
- Rich collaboration tools
- Base plan includes multi-level IVR
- Supports global phone system services
Cons
- Limited SMS allotment per plan
- Pricier than other alternatives
Why we chose RingCentral over Skype
RingCentral is one of the most comprehensive alternatives to Skype thanks to its feature-rich platform for calling, video meetings, and messaging. One of our best VoIP providers for small businesses, RingCentral delivers a range of advanced call management features to handle high call volumes. With its call routing capabilities, you can customize how inbound calls are handled after business hours, forward calls in a specific order, and set up notifications for missed calls.
Team collaboration is further streamlined through its full suite of communication tools like video conferencing, team messaging, file sharing, and even project management tools. It delivers an all-in-one workspace where users can host unlimited meetings, assign tasks, share files in any size or format, and start a real-time chat.
One major drawback of RingCentral is that its comprehensive offerings can be overwhelming for small teams with basic call needs. If you’re looking for a no-frills VoIP solution without the fancy features, give Google Voice a try. This VoIP provider offers one of the most affordable per-user fees in the market and is fairly straightforward to use.
RingCentral is an industry-leading provider of cloud business communications. This provider stands out for its complete phone system features, hundreds of app integrations, and in-depth analytics. It provides all the benefits of a traditional landline system combined with multiple communication tools, such as video meetings, text messaging, e-fax, and project management.
At the entry-level plan, users have access to advanced call management and phone system administration. This provides businesses with all the tools they need to configure call flows and manage large call volumes. In its most recent update, RingCentral leveraged its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities across its platform to promote more efficient interactions and heighten communication engagement.
Shared lines: Enables multiple phones to share the same phone number so that when a call comes in, all the phones from the group can answer the call.
Team huddle: Set up a virtual meeting room for hosting ongoing meetings where participants can come and go as they please.
Collaborative notes: Jot down important meeting notes right in the RingCentral video interface and easily share the notes in the team chat.
Task assignment: Create tasks for yourself or your team and add them to group conversations or private messages.
RingOut: You can make calls instantly from within any email, web page, document, or application by simply highlighting any phone number you see.
The pricing below is for one to five users, charged on a monthly basis. Save up to 33% by paying yearly.
Core: $30/user/month for one phone number, 100 toll-free minutes, unlimited local calling, 25 SMS, visual voicemail, multi-level IVR, on-demand call recording, team chat, 100 video attendees, and call management features
Advanced: $35/user/month for auto-call recording, 1,000 toll-free minutes, advanced call monitoring, third-party integrations, 100 SMS, advanced call queues, and business analytics
Ultra: $45/user/month for 10,000 toll-free minutes, 200 SMS, 200 video attendees, and device analytics
Google Voice: Best for low-cost phone service
Overall Reviewer Score
4.42/5
Pros
- Budget-friendly plans
- Free version for Google account owners
- Seamless Google Workspace integration
- User-friendly interface
- Unlimited SMS in the U.S.
Cons
- Base plan is limited to 10 users
- Limited business phone features
Why we chose Google Voice over Skype
Google Voice, our top pick for the best free VoIP phone service, is one of Skype’s closest competitors. Both providers allow free calls online and basic calling features. However, what’s great about Google Voice is it offers business phone plans for a minimal cost, perfect for small teams with low-level usage.
With a monthly starting fee of $10 per user, Google Voice users can enjoy unlimited calls between Google Voice numbers, unlimited SMS within the U.S., and voicemail transcription services. Upgrading to higher tiers unlocks broader geographical coverage, enhancing the global reach of your business phone system.
On the downside, Google Voice doesn’t support as many VoIP features for handling fluctuating call volumes. If you’re looking for a full-featured VoIP solution that doesn’t break the bank, we recommend Zoom Phone. It has the same monthly starting fee of $10 per user and allows users to customize their call plans based on their unique needs and budget.
Google Voice is a simplified VoIP phone service that is part of Google Workspace. You can sign up for Google Voice using your personal Google account or Google Workspace account. Voice for personal use is free, but included features are limited to one local number, call forwarding, and voicemail transcription. Upgrading to a Google Workspace account gives you access to business phone features like auto-attendants and ring groups.
Google Voice for Business lets you make calls between Google Voice numbers within the U.S. and international locations. While Google Voice offers a budget-friendly phone solution to small businesses, users should note that it lacks the sophisticated communication features that most providers in this list offer. However, this provider does well as a low-cost option for teams seeking a straightforward cloud phone service.
Auto-attendant: Set up a phone menu that plays announcements and directs callers to the right person or department in your company.
Voicemail transcription: Read the text version of your voicemails and forward them to your email inbox.
Ring group: Enable a group of people to answer incoming calls from the same Google Voice number and choose whether to ring members in random order or simultaneously.
Google Workspace integrations: Google Voice integrates with Google Meet, Calendar, and Gmail to allow seamless meeting scheduling, the ability to receive meeting context, and voicemail sending to your email app.
Spam protecting: This feature automatically displays a warning on the call screen and call history about a suspected spam call or message, allowing you to confirm whether it is spam or not.
The pricing below is for monthly billing.
Personal: Free for one user, one U.S. phone number, call forwarding, and voicemail transcripts
Business Phone Plans:
- Starter: $10/user/month for unlimited local calls, unlimited SMS, voicemail transcripts, Google Workspace integration, call forwarding, and usage and activity reporting
- Standard: $20/user/month for multi-level auto-attendant, ring groups, desk phone support, and call recording
- Premier: $30/user/month for advanced reporting
Microsoft Teams Phone: Best for collaborative teams
Overall Reviewer Score
4.24/5
Pros
- Integrates seamlessly with Microsoft products
- Subpar business phone features
- Full-featured video conferencing
- Free version includes video and chat capabilities
- Solid security policies
Cons
- Complex to set up and use
- Service plans require an annual subscription
Why we chose Microsoft Teams Phone over Skype
While Microsoft Teams mainly works as a team collaboration app, it also offers a reliable calling solution through its cloud phone system. The Teams Phone enables VoIP calling within the Teams app, empowering users to collaborate while handling customer calls. You can start voice calls with a Teams contact and hop on a quick conversation to share updates or clarify details.
Voice-enabled channels facilitate collaborative calling by connecting a call queue to a specific Teams channel. This enables all members of the channel to share information while they take calls in a queue. With this feature, queue agents can easily communicate via chat if they need help with a specific customer concern.
Teams Phone does have flaws, specifically for managing complex phone configurations for high call volumes. If you’re looking for a robust phone solution with rich collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams, check out RingCentral. This provider offers a unified platform for all business communication needs, featuring tools that encourage teamwork and a smooth caller experience.
Still not seeing the right VoIP solution for your business? Check out our comprehensive VoIP Software Buyer’s Guide for more options.
Microsoft Teams is a collaboration app with built-in video conferencing and messaging capabilities. It also supports VoIP calling with its cloud-based phone system. Teams Phone offers key calling capabilities like auto-attendant, call forwarding, and voicemail. With the Teams app, users can send and receive calls with other Teams users, landlines, and mobile phones via the internet or a public switched telephone network (PSTN).
Users can customize the incoming call experience through call queues, greetings, and music on hold. Companies with an existing Microsoft 365 subscription can choose the Teams Phone bundle to combine collaboration tools with phone connectivity options. Bundling these together enables you to simplify communications and access all the features you need through a single vendor.
Rich text editing: Use different formatting options for your messages like bold, italic, underline, font size, and bullet lists
Call merging: When you receive a call from another person, you can merge the incoming call with the call you’re already on.
Transfer and ring back: Transfer a call to another person and let it ring back to your phone when there’s no answer.
Copilot: This feature automatically generates meeting summaries and captures action items during calls, allowing you to stay focused on the conversation.
Presence-based call routing: This method relies on users’ availability status to determine whether they should be added to the call routing list.
All monthly plans require an annual prepayment.
Free: Audio and video meetings for 60 minutes, team chat, 5GB cloud storage, and file sharing
Essentials: $4/user/month for 30 hours of group meetings with 300 participants, 10GB cloud storage, unlimited chat, whiteboard, live captions, meeting recordings, and app integrations
Business Basic: $6/user/month for custom email, breakout rooms, 1TB cloud storage, 30 languages for live captions, and admin tools
Business Standard: $12.50/user/month for webinar features, intelligent writing assistance, video editing tools, and collaborative workspaces
Is Skype right for you after all?
For many years, Skype has been an invaluable tool for video calling, messaging, and audio calls. It’s completely free to use but minimal charges apply for international calling and local phone numbers. Despite being free, Skype offers a suite of essential features like call recording, screen sharing, live subtitles, file sharing, and background effects.
Skype also supports VoIP calling, allowing users to call landlines and mobile phones using the Skype app. For a flat fee, you get unlimited incoming calls and a choice of local phone number in any of the 25 countries supported. By purchasing Skype credits, you can make calls and send text messages from anywhere in the world.
The popularity of Skype soon declined as alternative video conferencing platforms emerged with more advanced features and stronger integration capabilities. Competitors like Zoom, Webex, and Google Meet quickly gained market traction due to their seamless user experiences and better collaboration tools.
Skype made it into our list of the best Zoom alternatives due to its affordable international calling rates and accessibility features. We strongly recommend it for personal and small business use, offering a budget-friendly platform for basic conferencing needs.
Choosing the best Skype alternative
Skype is a promising VoIP phone service for teams wanting to save costs on a full-fledged business phone system. It offers the right number of features that won’t overwhelm a solopreneur or small team. However, given its lack of integrations and limited call management capabilities, it’s worthwhile considering other options that best suit your unique business needs.
- If your business makes frequent international calls and wants to save on per-minute charges, choose GoTo Connect. You can enjoy unlimited calls to 52 countries worldwide.
- For businesses experiencing seasonal call volumes throughout the year, Zoom Phone’s unlimited and metered call plans make it a great choice.
- Nextiva is best for sales and support teams needing access to customer engagement tools.
- Enterprise-level companies dealing with large call volumes will benefit from RingCentral’s sophisticated call management system.
- We recommend Microsoft Teams for customer service agents needing to collaborate for knowledge sharing and issue escalation.
- Google Voice is a cost-effective solution for solopreneurs or small teams needing a basic VoIP platform.
FAQs
