If you’ve heard of the benefits of VoIP for business, it’s likely you’ve heard of the brand names: Vonage and RingCentral. Both these companies are telecom leaders, offering some of the best business communication solutions in the market. This causes many businesses to wonder how Vonage vs. RingCentral compare as VoIP providers.
Both Vonage and RingCentral offer great subscription plans for businesses with all kinds of needs and budgets. They offer competitive features and prices designed so that any company can find what they need to operate efficiently. However, most companies want to research thoroughly to understand what each brand has to offer before signing a contract.
Related: RingCentral Business Phone System: Features, Pricing, Pros and Cons
Here, we’ve broken down Vonage and RingCentral’s offerings so you can visualize their key features, benefits, general pricing, and more. Note that since we want to focus on the most popular subscription options for businesses, we will be comparing Vonage Business vs. RingCentral Office plans.
Vonage Business vs. RingCentral
Vonage is one of the most well-known VoIP providers, as they were one of the first brands to take VoIP for businesses mainstream. They are an affordable, dependable service that normally helps small to medium sized businesses, but is great for large or enterprise level businesses as well. They have customized solutions ready to fit businesses of all types, so they don’t need to spend tons of extra money on features they won’t use.
One important thing to know about RingCentral is that it started as a brand offering only cloud-based solutions. They have since expanded their business model to offer hosted solutions to companies as well under their RingCentral Office plans. However, they are still best known for the mobile VoIP and non-fixed capabilities.
Features
Most businesses who use Vonage say their Business plans include all the necessary features to make running a business go smoothly. RingCentral’s subscriptions also include many robust features. Although RingCentral’s plans tend to provide more features, many say that Vonage provides one of the best “bangs for your buck” in terms of VoIP for business. To figure out which provider is best for you, compare your business budget with the features you want and need to decide which is the best fit.
The most popular business plan offered by Vonage business is their “Essentials” plan, which can be compared to RingCentral’s “Premium” plan. Take a look at the features offered under these plans:
| Vonage Business Essentials Plan | RingCentral Office Premium Plan |
| – Unlimited calling minutes – 10+ call control features – Voicemail to email transcription – Custom call tagging – Hold music – Auto attendant – Directory assistance (411) – Emergency 911 support – “Find me, Follow me” – International and long-distance calling – Multiple device connectivity – Unified inbox – Mobile app – SMS messaging – Presence (status) setting – Caller ID – Caller ID Blocking – Amazon Chime integration | – Auto attendant services – Call Forwarding, transferring, screening – Audio call logging & reporting – Presence (status) setting – Instant notifications – Shared Lines – Call Parking – Intercom and paging capabilities – Mobile apps – Unlimited calls, including conference calls – Unlimited fax and SMS – Phone rental options – 2,500 toll-free minutes – Video conferencing: up to 25 users – Inbound caller ID name – HD Voice – Automatic call recording – Integration with back-end systems |
Pricing
Vonage’s pricing model works a bit differently compared to many other VoIP providers. Vonage has two main plans for businesses – their Essentials plan (most popular) and Premier plan. However, they do have the option for businesses to choose their “Mobile Only” plan, or “build your own” plan, which starts at a lower cost. To find out more about their mobile only plan, it’s best to speak with a Vonage representative.
Compared to Vonage, RingCentral’s pricing model is more traditional. It offers 4 different pricing plans meant to suit different business budgets. Even though their plans are pricier compared to most VoIP providers, their plans are also known for their robust set of features. Their most popular plans are their Standard plan and Premium plan.
Compare the Vonage Business and RingCentral Office plans by price:
| Vonage Business | RingCentral |
|---|---|
| Mobile Only: $19.99 per user per month – Unlimited calling and SMS messages – Mobile app (iPhone, iPad, Android) – Desktop app – Team messaging | Essentials: $19.99 – $29.99 per user per month – 100 toll free minutes – 4 people per meeting – Mobile apps included – Integration with many back-end systems |
| Standard: $22.99 – $49.99 per user per month All essential features plus: – 1,000 toll free minutes | |
| Essentials: $29.99 per line per month All mobile only features plus: – Virtual receptionist – Call routing with time-based auto redirect – Call transfer with Do Not Disturb option – Programmed alternate phone and VM – Call announce, screening, and holding – Call blocking | Premium: $32.99 – $54.99 per user per month All standard features plus: – 2,500 toll free minutes – 25 people per meeting – HD Voice – Call attendant |
| Premier: $39.99 per line per month All essential features plus: – Call recording on-demand for 15 hours/month – Call group – Visual voicemail – Orange-glove setup | Ultimate: $42.99 – $69.99 per user per month All premium features plus: – 10,000 toll free minutes – 50 people per meeting |
Note that Vonage Business’s price tiers are slightly lower than those of RingCentral’s. For instance, Vonage’s highest tier – Premier – is comparable in price to RingCentral’s intermediate tier (Essentials). However, RingCentral tends to offer more features and versatility.
Integrations
Both Vonage Business and RingCentral have integrations available. This makes it easier for businesses to stay productive and easily toggle between tasks as they communicate throughout the workday. Your team may be comfortable with using your current applications, such as communication tools, CRMs, and more. That’s why it is important to look at which integrations Vonage and RingCentral allow. This can be a make or break decision when choosing either Vonage or RingCentral!
| Vonage | RingCentral |
| – Microsoft Dynamics CRM – Microsoft Outlook – Amazon Chime – Salesforce Sales Cloud – Bullhorn – Tenfold – Contacts – Quickbooks – Netsuite | – DropBox – G Suite – Box – Hubspot CRM – Hubspot Marketing – Microsoft Outlook – Office 365 – Salesforce Sales Cloud – Zendesk – Zoho CRM – Glip – Freshdesk – Constant Contact – Rippling – And many more |
The verdict here is that RingCentral seems to have more integrations available for its users. However, make sure to ask both Vonage and RingCentral’s representatives whether or not they can support your prefered applications. Technology is always changing, and you may be pleasantly surprised at the answer you get!
Customer Support
As leading VoIP providers, both Vonage and RingCentral provide excellent customer support. But since businesses rely on VoIP providers on a daily or weekly basis, most companies want to be sure they’re going to get the best customer support possible before signing up. You will likely rely on this provider for installation, set-up, and day-to-day maintenance. It’s definitely worth getting to know both Vonage and RingCentral’s customer support programs.
| Vonage | RingCentral | |
| Phone Support | M-F 8am-11pm EST | 24-hour availability |
| Emergency Support | For large and enterprise companies: 24/7 | 24/7 for all |
| Live Chat | No | Yes |
| Free trial | 14 days | 15 days |
As you can see, Vonage is a bit more limited in their availability to customers. They only offer 247 support to large companies and do not have an instant chat feature. However, both companies offer a robust phone support system and free trial to support their customer base.
Pros and Cons
Often when doing research on VoIP brands, what you don’t see is their most enjoyed features by companies vs. their common complaints. According to user reviews, take a look at the top pros and cons to both Vonage and RingCentral.
| Vonage | RingCentral | |
| Pros | - Lower cost per line - Great voice quality, even with low bandwidth | - Great mobile app capabilities - Versatile communication - Ease of use |
| Cons | - Features feel limited compared to other providers - No built-in video call technology - Connects with Amazon Chime (free with purchase of Vonage plan). | - Long loading time - Frequently dropped calls - May need to upgrade bandwidth |
Vonage Business vs. RingCentral: Which is Best for My Business?
After comparing the top highlights of Vonage Business vs. RingCentral, it's time to figure out which provider would be the best for your business. After closely analyzing, take a look at 360Connect's recommendations below.
Vonage
Choose Vonage if:
- You’d rather pick and choose which features you want rather than get more features.
- You prioritize budget and quality over getting the most features.
- You are a small to medium sized business with humble needs.
RingCentral
Choose RingCentral if:
- Your business requires mobile, on-the-go features for remote workers.
- You prioritize robust, versatile features over pricing
- You are a large business who wants a large scale telecom plan.
Learn more
Take a look at our list of the top 5 business VoIP providers. Then continue your research by comparing and contrasting more top VoIP providers:
To learn more about VoIP solutions, learn about VoIP latency and bandwidth requirements. You can also look into new VoIP technology like CPaaS to see how you can boost your communication productivity.
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