10 Nextiva Alternatives: Find Your Next VoIP Provider

Nextiva is one of the most established VoIP providers around. But just because it’s one of the oldest VoIP solutions doesn’t mean it’s the best.

So whether you’re a current Nextiva customer looking for a better solution or a first-time VoIP shopper looking for the right solution, this article is for you.

What you need to know about Nextiva

Nextiva is a cloud-based communication platform designed for contact centers and helpdesks. You can access unified communications such as voice, video, and text message tools — but only if you upgrade beyond the company’s base plan.

Nextiva pricing

Nextiva’s pricing offers four plans to small business owners:

• Digital: $20 per user per month for live chat, messaging apps, shared email inbox (two accounts only), and one reporting dashboard
• Core: $30 per user per month for voice calls, 100 SMS and MMS per user per month, voicemail transcriptions, mobile app, and team chat
• Engage: $40 per user per month for voice analytics, toll-free numbers (2,000 minutes per month), 250 SMS/MMS per user per month, call recording, and digital fax
• Power Suite: $60 per user per month for API integrations, 10,000 toll-free minutes, advanced IVR, skills-based routing, call transcriptions, and unlimited SMS/MMS

Keep in mind this doesn’t include the cost of hidden fees and add-ons. Most of these aren’t listed on Nextiva’s pricing page, so you’ll still have to contact the sales team for a quote.

Why businesses turn to Nextiva alternatives

Although Nextiva has many customers, it’s not the perfect business phone service for everyone — especially smaller businesses.

Take a look:

Limits on the base plan

Compared to other VoIP providers, Nextiva’s base plan doesn’t offer many practical features. Text messages, voice calls, and video meetings all require upgrades — which doesn’t make sense if you’re looking for a true business phone system and are on a budget.

No unlimited texting or toll-free minutes

Once you upgrade to unlock SMS and toll-free numbers, you’ll have to contend with the following limits:

• A max of 250 SMS messages per user per month unless you upgrade to the Power Suite plan ($60 per user per month)
• A max of 10,000 toll-free minutes on the Power Suite plan
• No CRM or helpdesk integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk) unless you pay $5 per user per month across all plans

And no matter how much you upgrade, skills-based routing, IVR, and call transcriptions and summaries will require expensive add-ons.

Slow customer service

There’s a fair amount of back and forth between Nextiva customers and its support team. For example, to activate SMS capabilities on a Nextiva phone, you have to contact Nextiva directly each time you set up a new number.

From what many customers say on G2, Nextiva’s customer support isn’t easy to get ahold of (or particularly helpful). Other common complaints about Nextiva on G2 include poor call quality, pricing confusion, and glitchy or buggy software.

Enterprise-focused features

Nextiva’s pricing and plans weren’t built for small businesses — its contact center solutions were built for larger enterprises.

You can’t even unlock calls and texts without upgrading to a more expensive plan, which doesn’t make sense for growing small businesses.

No way to test with your team

Nextiva recently removed its seven-day free trial, which means there’s no way to test this platform with your team. The only way to learn more is to sign up for a demo or pay for a plan — which may be difficult to cancel.

Unfortunately, Nextiva has a history of being hard to cancel, and past users say they were forced to contact support to cancel their plan. You also need to submit a 90-day notice indicating you want to cancel (or prepare to get locked back in).

How we ranked Nextiva alternatives

We ranked the best Nextiva alternatives based on these five factors:

• Reliability: Is the platform known for quality phone calls and consistent uptime?
• Value: Do the pricing plans match the features provided?
• Integrations: How easy is it to build small business automations and workflows?
• User-friendly interface: Is it easy to learn and navigate the new software?
• Customer support: How good is the customer experience (as reported by real users)?

How the 10 best Nextiva alternatives compare

Here’s a quick look at the 10 best Nextiva alternatives and how they compare.

Provider	Starting price	Unlimited calling to US & Canada	SMS/MMS to US & Canada	Shared phone numbers	Additional phone numbers
OpenPhone	$15 per user per month	✓	✓	✓	$5 per number per month
Grasshopper	$14 per account per month	✓	Local numbers only	X	$9 per number per month
Ooma	$19.95 per user per month	✓	Requires upgrade	✓	$9.99 per number per month
Vonage (1-4 users)	$13.99 per user per month (12-month contract)	✓	Local US and Canadian numbers only	X (shared line appearance only)	$4.99 per local number per month
Dialpad	$15 per user per month	✓	US and Canadian customers only	✓	Requires upgrade
Aircall	$30 per user per month	✓	SMS only	✓	$6 per number per month
RingCentral	$20 per user per month	✓ (limited toll-free minutes)	25 messages per user per month	✓ (calls only)	$4.99 per number per month
Google Voice	$16 per user per month (including Google Workspace)	Unlimited calls to Canada from the US only	US customers only	Requires upgrade (ring groups only)	X
8x8	Contact for a quote	✓	✓	✓	Contact for a quote
Zoom Phone	$10 per user per month	Requires upgrade	✓ (US, Canada, and Australia numbers only)	✓	$5 per number per month

1. Quo (formerly OpenPhone): Best alternative to Nextiva for growing teams

*Nearly all virtual phone numbers share this problem. For safety reasons, companies like Facebook, Uber, and Google rarely let you authenticate accounts through a virtual phone number.

Quo is a cloud-based VoIP platform designed to scale alongside your business. With it, you can select a new local phone number (and even sign up for a toll-free number) and get one free number for every user on your team.

Every Quo plan comes with access to a mini CRM with texting system you can use anywhere with a WiFi connection. You’re also able to share numbers, allowing your teammates to communicate more effectively with clients. You can easily leave comments in a single-view contact thread and delegate tasks with mentions.

Want to spend less time on repetitive tasks? You can use automated text messages and auto-attendant phone menus to free up more time to focus on one-on-one conversations.

You’re also able to set multiple voicemail greetings and business hours. Unlike Nextiva, voicemail transcriptions, on-demand call recordings, and SMS and MMS capabilities come with Quo’s base plan, so you can communicate with your team more effectively.

Try out Quo free for seven days by signing up for a trial.

How to get a virtual number with OpenPhone

Get a virtual phone number in minutes

Try for free

Getting a new phone number from almost anywhere in the world is a simple process when you choose Quo as your virtual phone number provider.

Follow these three steps:

1. Create an account with OpenPhone (when you sign up, you get a free, seven-day trial).
2. During signup, choose your city or area code in the US to select your preferred phone number.
3. Once the signup process is complete, you’re all set to use your new virtual phone number!

Key features of Quo 

• Unlimited calling to the US and Canada
• SMS and MMS to the US and Canada
• Custom caller IDs, voicemail transcriptions, and on-demand call recordings
• Automated texting (auto-replies, snippets, and scheduled messages)
• AI-powered communication solutions (contact suggestions, message responses, call summaries and transcripts, and more)
• Shared phone numbers, contact notes, and conversation history
• 7,000+ third-party integrations (Slack, Zapier, Google Contacts, HubSpot, Salesforce, etc.)

Quo pricing 

Quo’s pricing model is clear, transparent, and consistent — you pay per user per month, so you know exactly what to expect on your bill.

• Starter: $15 per user per month for free calling and texting in the US and Canada, voicemail transcriptions, on-demand call recordings, Slack and Zapier integrations, and more
• Business: $23 per user per month to access group calling, automatic call recordings, phone menus, analytics, HubSpot and Salesforce integrations, and more
• Scale: $35 per user per month for AI call tags, dedicated onboarding, and priority chat and email support

How to switch and port your number from Nextiva

With Quo (formerly OpenPhone), you can port any existing number you wish to use for free.

Follow these three steps:

1. Sign up for Quo’s free seven-day trial.
2. Fill out your porting request through the Quo app.
3. Sit back and relax! We’ll be in touch if we have any questions.

You should be ready to go in roughly two weeks.

2. Grasshopper: Best solution for a phone system with multi-digit extensions

Grasshopper is another popular Nextiva alternative offering multi-digit extensions, which is a nice feature for some businesses. You can also rely on Grasshopper if you need an auto-attendant, voicemail transcription, and incoming call controls like call forwarding.

Grasshopper’s calling features aren’t cutting-edge, but they get the job done when it comes to calling and texting customers. The downsides? It lacks the basic features you get with other VoIP systems, like integrations and shared phone numbers.

Plus, essential features like call blasting (the ability to share responsibility for incoming calls with your teammates) are only available as paid add-ons. If you have budget constraints, you’ll want to carefully weigh your business needs before opting for each feature. 

Learn more about how these two platforms stack up in our Nextiva vs Grasshopper guide. 

Key features of Grasshopper

• Auto-attendant
• Voicemail transcription
• Auto-replies (for first-time callers only)
• Instant messaging
• Detailed call reports available

Grasshopper pricing

Unlike most other business phone providers, Grasshopper’s pricing model doesn’t charge based on the number of users you have. Instead, you pay based on how many phone numbers you need. You may end up paying more in many cases compared to other phone solutions. 

• Solo: $14 per account per month for one user, one phone number, and one extension
• Partner: $25 per account per month for unlimited users, one phone number, and three extensions
• Small business: $55 per account per month for unlimited users, four phone numbers, and unlimited extensions

Don’t forget to factor in add-on costs such as call blasting ($9 per month) and additional phone numbers ($9 per number per month).

3. Ooma: Best platform offering your choice of hardware

Ooma is a residential and business VoIP provider that allows you to make calls, send texts, and hold video conferences.  It can also re-route calls to different inboxes and let you set up personalized answering service messages.

Unfortunately, even satisfied users admit there are some issues with functionality. Ooma Office comes with a number of bugs and glitches, according to past reviews.

Ooma also hides its most impressive features behind expensive paywalls. Call recordings, voicemail transcriptions, and even access to calling with their desktop app are only available on Ooma’s second-highest tier plan.

You’re limited to 500 toll-free minutes per month with Ooma and just 250 texts. And if you run into issues, Ooma’s customer service team can be slow to respond — not something you want to take a chance on when your business’s reputation hangs in the balance.

Learn more in our guide to Ooma vs Nextiva.

Key features of Ooma 

• Free calls in the US and Canada
• Overhead paging
• Automatic call attendant/IVR
• Ring groups
• Call parking
• Multi-site access

Ooma pricing

Ooma’s pricing includes three plans:

• Ooma Office: $19.95 per user per month to access the mobile app, a virtual receptionist, and unlimited calls in the US, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico
• Ooma Office Pro: $24.95 per user per month to access Ooma’s desktop app, phone menus, call recording, voicemail transcriptions, Google and Office 365 integrations, and video meetings
• Ooma Office Pro Plus: $29.95 per user per month to access reporting, Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365 integrations, and automatic call distribution

4. Vonage: Best platform with communication API 

Vonage business may be glitchy at times, but it does come with a lot of features and integrations. You can access free calling and texting in the US and Canada and customize your phone system with Vonage’s APIs.

But the cons of using Vonage tend to outweigh the pros. Its interface is outdated and clunky, and it only allows you to send pictures, videos, and other MMS messages if you use their API.

With tons of hidden fees, Vonage users have to research to understand how much they can expect to pay for each feature. For example, the following features that come standard with other VoIP providers are only available as pricey add-ons with Vonage:

• Voicemail transcription: $4.99 per month
• Toll-free numbers: $39.99 per number per month
• Salesforce integration: $4.99 per month
• Call queue: $14.99 per month
• On-demand call recording: $4.99 per month

Key features like click-to-call, business text messaging, and toll-free numbers are limited to US-based customers. And if you run into problems like call quality issues and drops, the support team might take days or weeks to respond.

Key features of Vonage

• Free calling and SMS to the US and Canada (US and Canadian numbers only)
• Cloud-based business phone systems
• Team messaging
• Video collaboration
• Multi-level auto attendant
• CRM Integration (requires upgrade)

Vonage pricing (for 1 to 4 users)

Here’s what you can expect from Vonage pricing for teams of one to four users:

• Basic Mobile: $13.99 per number per month to access unlimited domestic calls in the US and Canada, desktop and mobile apps, SMS and MMS, and voicemail
• Premium: $20.99 per number per month to access phone menus, CRM integrations, and desk phone compatibility
• Advanced: $27.99 per number per month to access voicemail transcriptions, call groups, and on-demand call recordings

5. Dialpad: Best solution for enterprise call centers 

Dialpad offers more flexibility than some of the Nextiva alternatives on this list. Its ease of use and top-notch audio quality make it a reliable option for managing business communications. 

But you should know that many of Dialpad’s features, including AI speed coaching, were built with contact centers in mind — not small businesses. Also, its video calling options aren’t very user-intuitive, and it doesn’t have good SMS text messaging capabilities (you’ll have to upgrade to use multiple local numbers or create separate lines for each of your internal teams).

You also must upgrade if you wish to text internationally or set up auto-replies. Even then, you’ll have to pay extra for toll-free numbers and other business features.

If you need something more than basic call routing and conference call support, you may want to search for another Nextiva alternative.

Key features of Dialpad

• Free company main line and virtual receptionist
• Multi-device ringing and call switching
• AI-powered coaching
• Integrations with Google Workspace and Office 365
• Email and online support
• Call transfer
• Three-way calling
• Unlimited calling and texting in the US and Canada

Dialpad pricing

For their business phone solution, pricing for Dialpad includes three different plans:

• Standard: $15 per user per month to access unlimited calls in the US and Canada (max of three users per shared number; no additional numbers allowed)
• Pro: $25 per user per month (three-user minimum) to access additional numbers, international texting, call transferring, auto-replies, and integrations with Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk, Microsoft Teams, and Slack
• Enterprise: Custom pricing for a custom plan (100-user minimum) to access dial by extension, priority support, and 99.9% uptime

6. Aircall: Top solution with seamless integrations

Aircall is a VoIP service specializing in interactive voice response (IVR), integrations, and call recording tools. You can make unlimited inbound and outbound calls to any location in the US and Canada and from any device (desktop, laptop, or mobile device).

However, you should know that Aircall’s mobile app lacks some of the features present in the desktop app. With Aircall, you have to upgrade if you wish to use the power dialer or smart routing. 

Aircall also comes with several texting limitations, including no options to text outside of select countries (US, Canada, UK, Australia, France, and Germany).  You also can’t text any phone number containing a phone menu, which may be frustrating for businesses trying to keep complexity down.

Key features of Aircall

• Unlimited users
• Unlimited inbound calls (toll-free excluded)
• Integrations and API
• Custom music and messages
• IVR (vocal server)
• Ring groups
• Call recording
• Analytics
• Power dialer (requires upgrade)

Aircall pricing

There are three Aircall pricing tiers:

• Essentials: $30 per user per month (three-user minimum) to get unlimited calls in the US and Canada, SMS and MMS, call recording, and click-to-dial
• Professional: $50 per user per month (three-user minimum) to unlock APIs and webhooks, unlimited call recording storage, and up to six months of advanced analytics
• Custom: Custom price for API developer support, ‘unlimited’ international outbound calls, and prioritized customer support (25-user minimum)

7. RingCentral: Best option for large companies requiring desk phones

RingCentral’s voice and video conferencing platform is a no-frills option for VoIP. It’s easy to invite guests to your call, even when they’re outside the platform.

Unfortunately, RingCentral only includes 25 text messages per user each month on their base plan. Key features most businesses need are on the Ultra plan — including unlimited storage for call recordings.

And let’s not forget the arbitrary limits. Call recordings in RingCentral, for example, are only available for up to 90 days by default. Plus, even though RingCentral offers call reports, real-time reports are difficult to come by unless you’re using the call center plan — all other plans generate reports with a 24-hour lag.

Overall, RingCentral doesn’t have the best customer service and, for what you get, isn’t the best value for your money compared to RingCentral competitors. Even its basic features come with bugs and jitter: some users report connectivity issues and glitches on the Android and iOS apps.

For a full breakdown of how RingCentral compares to Nextiva, check out our RingCentral vs Nextiva guide. 

Key features of RingCentral

• Unlimited domestic calling
• SMS and MMS (25 texts per user per month on their base plan) 
• IVR
• Auto call recording (requires upgrade)
• Single sign-on
• Analytics for IT administrators

RingCentral pricing

• Core: $20 per user per month for on-demand call recording, 100 toll-free minutes, and 25 SMS messages per user per month
• Advanced: $25 per user per month to access automatic call recordings, 1,000 toll-free minutes, and 100 SMS messages per user per month
• Ultra: $35 per user per month for ‘unlimited’ storage, 10,000 toll-free minutes, and 200 SMS messages per user per month.

Learn more about RingCentral pricing in our complete guide.

8. Google Voice: Simple Nextiva alternative for solopreneurs

Although Google is a reputable company and a solid Nextiva competitor, its VoIP phone service leaves a lot to be desired.

For one thing, Google Voice’s free option doesn’t allow you to choose your number, distinguish between personal and work calls, share access to your number with teammates, or set business hours. It’s also lacking in customer support. Even if you opt for a paid plan, Google Voice for Business doesn’t integrate with other tools except apps in the Google ecosystem.

Google Voice also doesn’t offer auto-replies or other ways to save time when texting, such as text message templates. Don’t forget you’ll need an active Google Workspace account ($6 per month) to access Google Voice for Business.

The verdict?

Google Voice is great for the occasional free VoIP call, but it may impede your business communications. For a fully functional VoIP phone system, there are better Google Voice alternatives.

Key features of Google Voice

• Calls between Google Voice numbers
• Calls to the US from any Google Voice number 
• Calls to Canada from a Canadian or US Google Voice number
• Text messaging (available to US customers only) 
• Voicemail transcription
• Integrates with Google Calendar and Google Meet

Google Voice pricing

Here’s what you can expect from Google Voice pricing:

• Starter: $10 per user per month (10-user max) for calls and texts in the US, call forwarding, and SLAs
• Standard: $20 per user per month to access on-demand call recordings, ring groups, and phone menus
• Premier: $30 per user per month to access automatic call recordings and advanced reporting

9. 8×8: Best system for enterprise companies that hold large meetings

8×8 is another Nextiva alternative and a virtual phone software that works best for call centers, customer support teams, and enterprise businesses. Call centers can rely on 8×8 for its Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), which offers voice calling, video conferencing, and messaging features all in one place.

But while 8×8 works for call centers, it’s much too expensive for growing businesses. It’s also a legacy phone system that isn’t easy to use. For example:

• The interface was created in 1987 and is outdated and frustrating.
• It’s clunky, and its AI update is confusing and makes it hard for users to navigate from page to page.
• 8×8 does provide reports, but it’s hard for many users to find key analytics since there’s a steep learning curve.
• You have to manually set up many features like call recording, which are only saved for 90 days unless you upgrade.

If you’re not a contact center or want a more intuitive phone solution, then 8×8 isn’t the best Nextiva alternative on the list.

Key features of 8×8

• SMS, MMS, and team chat
• Unlimited internet fax
• Unlimited calling in the US and Canada
• Call handling
• Desk phone compatibility

8×8 pricing

8×8 pulled all pricing from its website in late 2023. Below are the last publicly-known 8×8 pricing tiers:

• X2: $24 per user per month for all-in-one voice, video, and chat for larger teams
• X4: $44 per user per month for advanced call handling and analytics
• X6: $85 per user per month for skills-based routing, voice-centric advanced reporting, and unlimited media storage
• X7: $110 per user per month for integrations with chat, email, and social media channels, omnichannel routing, and co-browsing
• X8: $140 per user per month for auto-dialers, quality management, and speech analytics

10. Zoom Phone: Best for international calling

Zoom Phone was designed to offer VoIP services alongside Zoom’s other collaboration tools (most well-known for video meetings). With it, you can tap into basic call management features like auto-attendants, real-time call analytics, and an AI companion.

Unfortunately, Zoom Phone is limited without upgrading your plan — and its arbitrary caps could be frustrating to small business owners. There’s no way to make unlimited outbound calls without upgrading, for example, and upgrading to certain plans will remove critical features (like no SMS on the Global Select plan).

Small business owners need advanced features and scalability, especially while trying to grow their brands. That’s why partnering with Zoom Phone might not be a good option, especially if you’re not an existing Zoom user.

Key features of Zoom Phone

• Metered domestic calling
• Domestic SMS and MMS texting
• Zoom video meetings
• Desktop and mobile apps
• Third-party integration

Zoom Phone pricing

There are five different Zoom Phone pricing plans:

• US & Canada Metered: $10 per user per month for metered domestic calling, SMS and MMS in the US and Canada, auto-attendant, and Zoom meetings
• US & Canada Unlimited: $15 per user per month for unlimited outbound calls in the US and Canada, metered international calling, and AI call summaries
• Pro Plus: $18.32 per user per month for access to Zoom Workplace Pro plus everything in the Unlimited plan
• Global Select: $20 per user per month for unlimited calling in 19 countries, a direct dial number, and everything in US &Canada Unlimited (except for SMS/MMS functionality and team SMS summary threads)
• Business Plus: $22.49 per user per month for access to Zoom Workspace Business, visitor management tools, real-time reporting dashboards, and access to international calling add-ons

Try out the best Nextiva competitor: Quo (formerly OpenPhone)

Out of all the Nextiva competitors above, Quo offers the most value — and the clearest path to scale your business phone solution as your team grows. 

With Quo (formerly OpenPhone), you can easily streamline your communication through auto-replies, snippets, group calling, and more. You can also tap into shared numbers, tag filtering, integrations, and internal threads to collaborate with your team on any conversation.

Since Quo was built for modern teams, we’re constantly releasing innovative updates to help users reach their organizational goals.

No need to take our word for it, though. Sign up for your free trial today to see what Quo is all about.