Best Residential VoIP Service Providers 2024

Residential VoIP service providers are the most popular choice for home phone services in 2024. Millions of homeowners have switched to VoIP from a regular landline service and enjoy significant cost savings, unlimited calling plans, and amazing calling features (such as call forwarding, call blocking, voicemail to email and more). We will help you find the best VoIP service for your home:

Provider*	Highlights	Startup	Reviews	More Info
	Special: Unlimited Calling for $6.21/Mo Keep Your Number or Get New One 45+ Features Included Money Back Guarantee	30-day Money Back	4.5 Read Reviews
	Save 53%+ on Your Phone Bill Over 40 Included Features Easy Setup & Free Adapter to Use No Contract or Cancellation Fee	30-day Money Back	4.8 Read Reviews
	Save on hardware & low monthly rates! No internet required Free nationwide calling Easy setup and no contracts	30-day Money Back	4.3 Read Reviews
	Special: $75 per year! Free hardware & activation Money back guarantee 30+ features	15-day Money Back	4.1 Read Reviews

What is Residential VoIP?

VoIP service simply enables your phone calls to be transmitted and received over your home Internet connection instead of your telephone landline. This is perhaps why some people refer to the service as being an Internet phone service or broadband phone service. This does mean though that you need a high speed Internet service to be able to use VoIP for your phone service.

From an end user point of view, the actual phone service works in the same way, you pick up the phone to answer a call or to dial a number just like with a landline service. Number porting means you can keep your existing phone number and simply switch it over to your new service provider. The residential VoIP providers take care of the call routing and you can call any destination and receive calls from anyone, just like with regular home phone service.

Home VoIP Setup and What You Need to Get Started

The only additional piece of equipment that you need is an Analog Telephone Adapter (also referred to as an ATA) that allows you to connect your existing telephone to your home Internet. This equipment is typically provided on a free lease basis from the home VoIP provider that you choose, or you can use you own device if you prefer. You can also use IP phone(s) instead of using the ATA with your existing analog phones. The sound quality is better but there is more up front cost as IP phones are more expensive than the ATA devices.

Yes it is really this simple. Just connect your telephone adapter to your home Internet by connecting a cable between it and your router or modem. Then connect your existing phone to the adapter and you should be good to go. If you decided to use your own adapter, you will likely be required to run a quick configuration script that is supplied by your service provider.

Benefits of VoIP for Your Home Phone Service

Here are just a few of the benefits and main reasons why it is worth considering VoIP for your home calling needs:

Cheap Phone Service

It is much cheaper than a regular landline - most providers offer unlimited calling plans (including long distance) in the USA and Canada for under $10 per month. There are also some great promotional deals available such as 2 year specials that cost around $6 per month (includes all your calling). Comparing this to a regular PSTN (landline) phone service that can cost in the region of $60 per month can result in savings of over $500 per year for many home phone users. If you also regularly call International numbers you can save even more, with rates typically starting from around 1 to 2 cents per minute to many countries.

Amazing Features Included

The majority of plans are loaded with a great selection of features that can come in handy when you are making or receiving calls. Many providers offer over 30 features included in the low monthly fees. These include basic call management features such as call waiting, call forwarding, call blocking, caller ID name, do not disturb, and voicemail. More advanced features such as the voicemail to email feature let's you access your messages at anytime, even when you are away from your home, simply by checking your email inbox. Distinctive ringing, additional virtual numbers, and Smartphone Calling App's are other examples of more advanced features that can be useful.

Choice

There are hundreds of residential VoIP service provider choices, making it easier to find the best option for your exact needs. This also benefits the consumer as many keep their prices lower to compete with each other.

Home Phone Services Comparison

The following table provides a high level summary of how residential VoIP service compares to other alternative solutions for home phone service. The table compares this service to a regular landline, a bundled phone service from a cable company such as double or triple play, and a cell phone service. The cell phone is included as some people decide to just get rid of their wired phone and use their cell phone for all calls. Free services such as Skype are not included as they are not effective, like for like, landline replacements in our opinion.

Feature	VoIP	Landline	Triple Play	Cell Phone
Free Setup Installation
Low Cost Options (<$10/mo)
Large number of calling features included
Unlimited Nationwide calling packages available
Free International Calling plans available
No additional hidden fees (besides tax)
No contract plans available
Portable (e.g. can take on vacation)
Monthly or Yearly plans available
Digital Voice Quality
No Equipment Fees
Not dependant on wireless/cell signal strength
Easily change service provider
Equipment does not require frequent charging

Disdvantages To Be Aware Of

There are a few disadvantages of using VoIP for your home phone service that you should be aware of.

Power Outages

One advantage of the traditional landline services is that electrical power is sent over the telephone wires so your phone service is isolated from your house power. This meant that your phone service would continue to work if your house power went out. However, with VoIP, power is used not only for the ATA, or the IP phone, but it is also used for your Internet modem and router devices. No power also typically means no Internet service.

There are some solutions to this issue if you have concerns. The most obvious is to utilize Uninterruptable Power Supplies (UPS) for those short outages, or a generator if you live somewhere where outages are more common (and for your fridge!). With so many people having cell phones these days most people will not be too concerned with this issue, especially when they consider the money they are saving. Most services include a call forwarding feature so you can always set that up to go to your cell phone so you do not miss important calls.

Internet Outages

A high speed Internet connection is required to "carry" your calls so if you have an Internet outage (or your ISP has an outage) then your phone service will not work. Internet services have improved significantly in the last few years and outages tend to be much less common than they use to be. Again, if you have a cell phone then this may not be an issue for you.

E911 Versus 911

E911 (Enhanced 911) is a little different to traditional 911 services and is something that you should be aware of. With E911 you need to provide your home address, and this information gets passed to the emergency services if you dial 911. The concerns are that if you have a power outage or an Internet outage then you will not be able to dial 911. If you have a cell phone then you can dial 911 from your device. If you are ONLY reliant on VoIP for your phone service you should be aware of this situation.

Finding the Best Residential VoIP Providers in 3 Easy Steps

Now that you know what VoIP is, what a typical set up looks like and the benefits and down sides, the next step is to choose a provider. Below we outline a simple 3 step process that will help you make the right decision.

Step 1 : Understanding VoIP

Step 2 : Provider Comparison

Step 3 : Provider Reviews

Next we break each section down into more detail and show you ways in which we can help you with various guides, articles, and custom tools.

Step 1 : Understanding VoIP

If you have got this far then your understanding of VoIP has already started with the above introductions, setup and benefits sections. We provide many guides and articles that address many frequently asked questions. This is an important step and foundation to be able to start comparing providers with your needs as well as against each other.

Where to Start

As always the best place to start is at the beginning! The following buttons provide access to some of our best guides and tools for getting started with VoIP. These articles give a great background into VoIP, help you understand all the basics, and answer most people questions. The VoIP/Speed test tool performs a test of your Internet connection and provides a great indication of how well VoIP will work at your home. We highly recommend running this test.

Popular Articles

Below are some of our most popular articles as well as a link to access our articles directory, from which you can browse all related articles.

Step 2 : Provider Comparison

The interest that VoIP technology is generating for consumers and businesses alike, is creating a high level of demand that is being addressed by more and more providers entering the market. Choosing the best home phone service can now be a challenge as it can be difficult to compare providers that have different pricing structures, different features and different contract terms. Many residential providers names are becoming familiar in the home, such as Vonage, MagicJack and Ooma. Vonage, one of the more expensive options today, is popular due to its unlimited international calling feature. Evaluating Vonage competitors can save you even more money depending on your exact needs.

Performing a side-by-side comparison provides a way for home phone users to find the best VoIP providers available at the lowest prices. The popular providers comparison table above and our comparison tools provide our visitors with what they need to compare the options, and also find the lowest prices available today.

Comparison Articles

We have performed various comparisons between different popular providers and also created guides detailing competitors of various popular providers. If you are considering any of these providers then the below guides can be a great resource before making a selection.

Compare Pricing

If you want to compare pricing for multiple residential service providers you can use our Home Phone Rates Tool. Please note that the pricing does not include additional fees like sales tax, regulatory fees and any other taxes/fees that may be relevant to your location. These tend to be the same for each provider as it is based on location, however, some providers may include additional "recovery" fees for the overhead involved in state and regulatory compliance (e.g. FCC reporting compliance).

For International calls use our International rate comparison tool to find the lowest cost provider rates for over 230 countries across the World.

Compare Ratings

Step 3 is all about reviews. However, as this section is about comparison we are introducing our Ratings Comparison Tool in this section. This tool allows the ability to select from a list of service providers and compare user review ratings side by side. You can also select specific rating categories for a seletion of providers and visually compare in a graphical representation.

Step 3 : Provider Reviews

Checking online user reviews are a main part of most peoples buying process these days. Why should getting VoIP service be any different? We have received thousands of user submitted reviews and we have performed our own review of over 30 top providers. Why not check them out before you make your final decision.

User Submitted Residential VoIP Reviews

Residential VoIP reviews submitted by real users can be a great tool when trying to decide which provider is the best choice for you. Each review includes ratings for various aspects of the service, such as sound quality, features, customer service and more, as well as their personal comments based on their experience of the service. Reading reviews is an essential part of the decision making process.

WhichVoIP Review

For each of the providers in the table below we have performed our own editor service review. We provide an overview of what we think are the good things and the bad things, as well as discuss the bottom line. This helps provide another data point for your selection process research.

Access Residential VoIP Reviews

The following table, in chronological order, provides access to over 30 of our most popular reviewed providers, including our own WhichVoIP editor review and thousands of user submitted reviews. For business providers check out our Business VoIP Reviews.

Review Validation

The reviews accessible from this page have been submitted through the review form on WhichVoIP by users of this site. We use various techniques to monitor validity of the submissions in line with our Review Guidelines. These techniques work well but we cannot guarantee 100% verification that all submissions are from real users.

If you currently use a VoIP provider then please write a review of your experience to help others make an informed decision.

Still Have Questions?

If you cannot find an answer to any of your specific questions, access our discussions page and send us your question. We typically answer within 24 hours. The discussions page also displays the most recent questions we have received along with answers. You can search our questions archive to find similar questions received in the past.

Providers Outside the USA

We also partner with providers in other countries:

• Canada Providers
• UK Providers
• Australia Providers

Related Topics

• Broadband Internet
• Mobile VoIP

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