Managing calls and directing them to the right employee can be a challenging task. To simplify the process, investing in a cloud PBX tool is essential. A cloud PBX (Private Branch Exchange) is a telephone system that operates on the cloud instead of on-premises, like traditional PBX systems. It uses VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technology, allowing businesses to make and receive calls.

With a cloud PBX tool, users can easily incorporate a robust phone system within their team and with clients without installing equipment. These systems provide a range of features such as call routing, voicemail, call recording, and conferencing, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes.

Cloud PBX tools are typically offered as a service by third-party providers who host and maintain the infrastructure required to run the system. This eliminates the need for businesses to invest in costly hardware and software, and instead pay for the service on a subscription basis.

While there are many cloud PBX tools available in the market, we have compiled a list of the top tools you can invest in without hesitation. These tools provide features such as call greetings, call recording, voicemail, dashboards, and analytics. You can find the list of these top tools at startupstash.com/top-tools. By investing in the best cloud PBX tool, running a phone system will become a breeze.

1. Aircall

Aircall is an easy-to-integrate cloud PBX tool. This tool makes it simple to set up a call center and provides local and toll-free numbers in over 100 countries for both inbound and outbound calling. With Aircall, your customers can call your business from anywhere in the world at the same rate as calling a local phone number.

Aircall allows you to customize schedules for when each number is available and customize messages to greet callers. The tool also offers customizable distribution and ring rules to ensure calls get routed to the right team. Additionally, Aircall provides helpful features such as call queuing, call recording, parallel calls, and unlimited concurrent calls to make it easier for you to manage your phone system.

Key Features:

• Offers a virtual call center, making it easy to find all numbers and users in one place.

• Provides call conference feature, which allows multiple users to participate in the same call.

• Provides analytic reports to help you track and analyze call data. This information can be used to make data-driven decisions and improve the overall effectiveness of your communication system.

• Setting up the tool is easy, with a simple one-click setup process that gets you up and running in no time.

Cost:

Essential: $30/user per month

Professional: $50/user per month

Custom plan available.

2. Nextiva

Nextiva is a cloud-based PBX tool that allows you to manage all your communication in one place. With its high-quality HD voice service, it enables you to increase productivity and streamline workflow. The tool offers a live presence feature to let you know which team member is available to receive calls and messages.

It provides a real-time call flow monitoring dashboard, which helps users ensure that there is sufficient agent coverage, and make necessary changes without putting callers on hold. Nextiva is easy to integrate with CRMs, making it more convenient for users. Plus, the tool offers a virtual call center, call conference feature, and analytic reports. It also has a one-click setup feature, making it easy to get started with the service.

Key Features:

• Unlimited calling to people in the US and Canada.

• Team collaboration and conference features are available.

• Answer business calls through a smartphone app.

• Call queues and auto attendant features are available.

Cost:

Essential: Starts at $14.95/user per month

Professional: Starts at $20.95/user per month

Enterprise: Starts at $26.95/user per month

3. Ring Central

Ring Central is a cloud PBX tool that meets the needs of your small, big, or growing business. You can easily route customers using call queues and interactive voice responses. Ring Central also provides a built-in multi-site support feature that allows you to manage various business branches with different operational needs.

With 18 languages, localized voice prompts, and multilingual IVRs, you can keep your remote teams, workers, and global offices on the same page. You can also easily integrate the tool into your existing devices to access your work on the go.

Key Features:

• You can easily add new lines, devices, and offices to your cloud PBX.

• You only need one secure business number for all your communication needs, including fax, voice, text, and multimedia messages.

• The tool also provides video calls with built-in whiteboards, live transcripts, and advanced meeting summaries to improve collaboration and productivity.

Cost:

Essential: $19.99/user per month.

Standard: $27.99/user per month.

Premium: $34.99/user per month.

Ultimate: $49.99/user per month

4. Ring Over

If you're looking for a cloud PBX tool with an easy-to-use interface, Ring Over might be the solution for you. With this tool, you can set up a professional phone system within minutes. Simply activate your local business numbers and landline numbers with more than 65 places worldwide.

The tool provides you with all the calling and phone data you need to increase your business performance. It includes features such as voicemail, music on hold, and custom greetings to enhance the customer experience.

Key Features:

• Provides simplified internal calls.

• Offers unlimited calling to more than 110 locations, allowing you to stay connected with your customers the worldover.

• Provides detailed call data and reports for better productivity.

Cost:

Smart: $19/user per month

Power: $39/user per month

Enterprise: Request a quote

5. Freshworks

Freshworks is a cloud-based PBX tool designed to help businesses engage in conversations across channels. With this tool, you can efficiently resolve customer queries with automation and knowledge from a single platform. The tool provides complete visibility of your customer health metrics, helping you better understand your customers.

With Freshworks, you can develop remote-ready teams and a workforce without any hassle. This tool enables you to seamlessly monitor conversations and queries in one place, allowing you to keep track of them at every moment.

Key Features:

• Purchase or import numbers from 90-plus countries.

• Allows call recording, post-call transcripts, and call life cycle features.

• Includes AI-powered voice bots to answer repetitive queries.

Cost::

Visit the website for detailed price information.

6. 8x8

8x8 is a cloud PBX tool that helps businesses create a great phone network system. You can put your business on the map through local numbers and global connectivity from one app. You can design better experiences with the help of the tool for all interaction channels and AI-powered self-services.

The tool provides dashboards for employees to chat, assign calls, or share information. This feature helps everyone be on the same page and work efficiently. 8x8 also provides a single administrative interface for system configuration, user provisioning, and management.

Key Features:

• Call queues, monitoring, and ring group features are available.

• Fast optimization with contact center analytics.

• HD video meeting with mobile and desktop screen sharing.

Cost:

Express: $15/user per month.

X2: $24/user per month.

X4: $44/user per month.

7. Cloudtalk

Cloudtalk is a cloud PBX tool suitable for small to large enterprises. It helps a business grow by providing an excellent cloud-based phone system. It provides a 360-degree customer overview when a call is in the queue. You'll be provided with appropriate time to understand and anticipate customer needs.

You can set up the call center in 5 minutes. It provides a feature where you can see past customer conversations and call notes. Moreover, this tool can easily define your business hours and set up a personalized messages in your absence. It also provides real-time customer cards to see customer interactions and orders.

Key Features:

• Real-time analytics to track call activity.

• International numbers from more than 160 countries.

• Call recording, queueing, IVR, and ACD features are available.

Cost:

Starter: $25/user per month.

Essential: $30/user per month

Expert: $40/user per month.

Custom: Contact office.

8. Jivo Chat

Jivo Chat is a cloud PBX tool that helps in making and receiving calls as well as texts seamlessly. The tool provides a seamless call distribution for users to manage all calls without missing out on any. You can make calls to more than 50 countries efficiently.

The tool provides voice greeting and call recording features. You can even text clients conveniently to clarify order details, catch up with customers, or send a business card message.

Key Features:

• Provide storage of client records, in compliance with data laws.

• Allows you to call back your clients through numbers that clients are familiar with.

• It connects all the messaging channels at a single location. With this feature, no matter which messaging channel your customer uses, you can connect with them from a single place seamlessly.

Cost:

Enterprise: $38/user per month

Professional: $19/user per month

Basic: Free

9. Just Call

Just Call is a cloud PBX tool that helps build communication and voice workflow in one place. You can use the web, mobile, or desktop to easily revive and make calls from any of the JustCall phone numbers.

The tool can integrate with over 100 CRMs and other business tools for tracking and automated call logging in one place. The tool provides international phone numbers for interacting with global customers easily.

Key Features:

• Monitor and guide agents in real-time.

• Call whispering, queuing, recording, and forwarding options are available.

• Customers can schedule call appointments within seconds.

Cost:

Standard: $25/user per month.

Premium: $48/user per month.

Custom: Request quote.

10. Dialpad

Dialpad is a cloud PBX tool that provides more than a just business phone system. It has video meetings, SMS, and team collaboration features. You can deploy new contact centers across the world for your business in minutes and manage all their agents in one place.

With this tool, you can have customizable routing rules to quickly forward calls to their team from smartphones. You can set business hours, and the tool provides a company directory feature. With this tool, you can easily stay connected with their teams on a single platform.

Key Features:

• Desktop and mobile apps are available.

• Lets you deploy an AI-based contact center.

• It has a built-in AI that transcribes calls, tracks action items, and takes notes.

Cost:

Standard: $23/user per month.

Pro: $35/user per month.

Enterprise: Contact them.

11. Grasshopper

Grasshopper is a cloud-based enterprise phone system that helps you receive and make business texts and calls from anywhere in the world. You can take multiple calls simultaneously by routing them to another team member or phone. This way, customers will never hear a busy line.

The tool provides custom greetings and a business texting feature to enhance customer experience. It also provides a voicemail transcription feature and a call forwarding feature.

Key Features:

• The mobile and desktop apps allow easy customization based on type of business and requirements.

• You can choose local or toll-free numbers or port your own for free.

• It provides regular reports on call performance.

Cost:

Solo: $31/month

Partner: $51/month

Small Business: $89/month

12. GoTo Connect

GoTo Connect is a cloud PBX tool that routes everyone to the right place without hassle. It is an easy, accessible, flexible, and secure tool.

The tool provides an admin portal for easy management and configuration of the contact center.

With this tool, you can gain access to unlimited local, toll-free, and vanity numbers. The call routing schedules feature informs customers when the business is closed, open, or off for holidays.

Key Features:

• Allows one-click video conferencing.

• The tool is compatible with more than 180 desk phone models.

• The dashboard provides day-to-day analytics of calls, compalins and queries.

Cost:

Basic: Starting at $27/user per month.

Standard: Starting at $32/user per month.

Premium: Starting at $43/user per month.

Things to Consider When Choosing a Cloud PBX Tool

Easy Integration

The tool must easily integrate with your existing platforms. You and your employees must be able to access all the applications on the tool through a single interface.

Security

You will be making hundreds of international and local calls with the tool; sharing hordes of business and customer data across borders. Obviously, you want to choose a tool that ensures that your data will be secure. It should also ensure that minimum compliance requirements will be met, even if you're not based in GDPR countries.

Conclusion

Cloud PBX tools make communication easy without having to set up extensive hardware systems in your workplace. These tools are not limited to forwarding calls and putting them on hold; they have way more advanced features to make workflow seamless. Everything is on the cloud and safe. We have mentioned the top 12 cloud PBX tools for you. Start shortlisting the ones that suit your needs and pick the one you like the best.

FAQs

What Are Cloud PBX Tools?

PBX stands for private branch exchange. It is a telephone network system for businesses that helps them communicate outside and within their organization. This system offers extension dialing, call conferencing, customer waiting queues, hold music, and business hour settings to route off-hour calls.

Cloud PBX tools are IP-based phone branch exchange systems. These tools are accessed through the internet. Cloud PBX tools host software and data on the cloud instead of hosting on a server.

When Should I Consider Using Cloud PBX Tools?

You must use cloud PBX tools if you run a firm that involves interacting with customers and want to enhance your customer relationship management (CRM). These tools will make it easier for you to connect calls to your CRM applications. They will also help you route calls to your employees working in the office or at home. Other than calls, these tools will also streamline your messages. You do not have to worry much about the investment you have to make as they come at a low price.

What Are the Advantages of Cloud PBX Tools?

These are the advantages of using cloud PBX tools:

• PBX tools come at a lower price. The tool providers charge according to your usage.

• Cloud PBX tools have easier server management.

• Phone lines can be used from any location.

• The phone systems will be hosted in off-site centers. Hardware maintenance will not be required.

• Cloud PBX tools are easy to set up.

What Is the Difference Between Physical PBX and Cloud PBX Tools?

For physical or traditional PBX:

• You need to pay technicians to install the hardware.

• Regular maintenance is required.

• A proper setup with specialized equipment is necessary.

• It isn't easy to scale.

• Hard to change locations.

For Cloud PBX:

• You do not need on-site hardware.

• They are for remote working.

• Easy to scale.

• They have flexible subscription plans.

• Easy maintenance and management.

Are VoIP and Cloud PBX the Same?

VoIP is a type of calling technology. Users can make calls over the internet with VoIP. It uses Ethernet or Wi-Fi connections.

Cloud PBX uses the VoIP technology to provide enterprise-level global phone systems. It uses it to transfer call data. You must understand that all cloud phone systems or platforms use VoIP, but not all VoIP systems are cloud-based.

VoIP systems, at times, rely on on-site machinery to route calls. Cloud PBX route them remotely.