Best UK Virtual Freephone & Toll Free Providers (2022)

AVOXI compares the best freephone providers in the United Kingdom by meticulously reviewing pricing, feature sets, hidden costs, strengths and weaknesses, and much more. Compare the top toll free service plans before choosing a provider.

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Comparing the United Kingdom’s Top VoIP Freephone and Toll Free Service Providers

Are you in the market for a United Kingdom 0800/0808 freephone number for your global business? Well, you’re in the right place! 

Maybe you’ve dealt with a bad batch of vendors in the past who have over-promised and under-delivered. And now, you’re seeking a reliable provider to strengthen your communications and grow your business with white-glove service. 

At AVOXI, we know that dependability, affordability, and exceptional call quality are important qualities in a provider. We want to help you find the best one for your business needs. While we believe that AVOXI offers some of the best, most cost-effective freephone and toll free voice solutions in the UK, we understand that no one provider is right for everyone. 

In this article, we’ll be looking into the cost and value of the top 5 UK freephone and toll free virtual number providers, answering some of the most common questions regarding these services including: 

  1. Where to find the best UK toll free plans for three business call volume scenarios. 
  2. Which providers have the best service by use-case.
  3. How to get the best call rate for your particular business needs. 

 Note: Prices for these providers are shown in British pounds (£) at rates from the timing of this post, except for AVOXI, Global Call Forwarding, and Zadarma which are in US dollars ($). All totals and prices are approximate. 

Best UK Freephone and Toll Free Providers by Size

Business phone service pricing is very complex, and trying to calculate your expected services can be challenging when you aren’t familiar with specific telecom terms and pricing structures - so we’ve started this post with some scenarios done for you!

Below, you’ll find plan details from all five providers listed, including what you can expect to pay for your first and second invoices as well as the total cost over 12 months. We created a United Kingdom virtual freephone and toll free number comparison plan tailored to three levels of call volume, covering the common needs of small, medium, and enterprise businesses.

Best Toll Free Providers for Entrepreneurs and Startups

We’re going to start by comparing freephone plans for startups and entrepreneurs seeking a simple, affordable service. We did the calculations and estimated what a plan with approximately 300 minutes of talk time will look like from these top freephone and UK toll free providers. 

Best Toll Free Providers for Small and Medium Businesses

Next, we’re comparing plans suited for small and medium-sized businesses seeking a comprehensive service that’s not only easy to self-manage but also cost-effective. We did the calculations and estimated what a plan of about 1,200 minutes would look like from top toll free and freephone providers in the UK. 

Best Toll Free Providers for Enterprise Companies

And finally, we’re looking at voice plans with highly reliable service for enterprises managing large call volumes. We estimated what a plan with 3,000 minutes will cost from the UK’s top toll free and freephone providers. 

The Best UK VoIP Service by Use-Case

Is there a VoIP provider that offers video conferencing?

What virtual number provider has good SMS messaging capabilities?

Which VoIP provider has outbound calling options for toll free numbers?

Which virtual number provider is best for light inbound call volume?

What’s the best VoIP service for international calling and phone forwarding?

UK's Top Freephone & Toll Free VoIP Provider Comparison

Provider Great For
AVOXI Best suited for midsize and large enterprises that handle international calls and need experience-enhancing tools at no extra cost.
Global Call Forwarding Large global companies with exceedingly high rolling call volume.
Telecoms World Businesses with mid-to-high call volume seeking a collective service for voice, phone systems, and Internet.
Virtual Landline UK companies with minimal international calling needs. Pricing and functionality are competitive for startups and small businesses.
Zadarma Small companies that desire voice solutions and a built-in conferencing and CRM solution all in one.

AVOXI Review

AVOXI is a leading US-based provider of UK toll free and freephone numbers with six flexible voice packages. Our customizable 800 plans start at $16.99 for a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) option, scaling up to our highest tier package with 2,590 minutes at $115.99 when forwarding to VoIP/SIP. For 808 plans, those begin at $7.99 and move up to $133.99 for 2,470 minutes. And if you need more minutes, that’s when our volume-based pricing comes into play. 

Our virtual numbers allow businesses to easily forward calls in a variety of ways, including VoIP/SIP, softphone, Microsoft Teams Direct Routing, or to another phone number. And while we’re a bit pricier than other providers on this list, we’re the only one to offer the most advanced call features free of charge. 

Strengths Weaknesses
Port your freephone/toll free numbers for free at any time. No mobile application (but can still forward to mobile phones).
Every plan includes 20+ call features (even advanced ones). No SMS/text feature (yet!) in the UK.
Zero setup fees and no add-on costs for standard features. Not as much inclusive minutes compared to other plans.

AVOXI Highlighted Phone System Features

  1. Microsoft Teams Direct Routing. Agents using Teams can access AVOXI’s global voice inventory and route calls directly into their Microsoft Teams platform.
  2. Call Analytics & Reporting. Improve efficiencies, customer experience, and agent performance with free activity reporting and call analytics tools. 
  3. Number Porting. Transfer your business numbers from 100+ countries to AVOXI and earn a whole month of free calling - limited time only!

Global Call Forwarding Review

Global Call Forwarding is a US-based telecom provider of UK freephone numbers with an advanced network of service features. Their online portal allows for phone number purchases in select packages that complement a variety of call center operations. 

Voice plans begin at $12.95 a month for 145 minutes, increasing in price and minutes until reaching the Enterprise package, which costs $628.95 per month and includes 10,697 minutes when forwarding calls to VoIP/SIP. In addition to their inclusive features, Global Call Forwarding offers SMS Forwarding, Call Recording, and Rollover Minutes in their upper-tier plans. The option to add Outbound Calling to your toll free number is an additional $25 - $1,000 per month.

Strengths Weaknesses
Only provider with Rollover Minutes feature. Most expensive top-tier package from competitor list.
10,000-minute call package available for enterprise customers. Costly for call recording services.
Capabilities to filter calls and maximize qualified leads. Outbound calling can add up to $12,000 per year in telecom expense.

Global Call Forwarding's Highlighted Phone System Features

  1. Rollover Minutes. A flexible feature that allows customers to carry over unused minutes into the next month.
  2. Black and White Lists. Custom lists that allow businesses to prioritize calls based on area codes or specific numbers.
  3. Call Masking. The ability to mask or hide your personal number and display a specific number in its place when making calls.
Global Call Forwarding UK Toll Free Plans

Telecoms World Review

Telecoms World is an England-based provider with voice services for businesses with mid-to-high call volume. Like AVOXI and Global Call Forwarding, customers can purchase and activate their UK toll free numbers online. 

There are four freephone monthly packages available: Bronze (£4.99), Silver (£9.99), Gold (£19.99), and Platinum (£49.99). This provider is currently offering a promotion on its Silver and Gold plans. When you sign up, you’ll only pay 99p and £9.99 for the first three months, respectively. 

All in all, Telecoms World offers a variety of call features such as Call Routing, IVR (what’s also referred to as Virtual Receptionist), Call Queues, and so much more. Customers can enhance their user experience with additional add-ons like Analytics, Conferencing, Internet, Mobile, and Phone Systems. 

Strengths Weaknesses
A broad range of communication services under one provider. Costly call solutions for basic features like call whisper, queueing, routing, etc.
Attractive promotional offerings and extended service trials. SIP trunking an additional cost from £4.99 - £9.99 per month.
Most affordable outbound calling with generous minutes + mobile app. Fees occur for setup assistance following one month of use.

Telecoms World's Highlighted Phone System Features

  1. Business Mobile SIM. Eliminate bill shock with a service representative who will monitor usage and control spending with cost-effective mobile plans.
  2. Dial Out App. Present your 0800 number on outbound calls when you call your customers back from a mobile number. The app is available on iOS and Android.
  3. Video & Audio Conference Calls. A dedicated number and PIN code invite up to 99 attendees worldwide into a single video or audio conference. 

 

Telecoms World UK Toll Free Plans

Virtual Landline Review

Virtual Landline is an England-based telecommunications provider of 0800 numbers. Out of its four virtual number plans, only the 0800 Freephone plan offers this number type at £9.95 per month. In this plan, customers receive voicemail-to-email call feature, a £5 welcome credit, call diverts to mobile or landline, overseas call diverts, and 300 minutes to any combination of UK and their global coverage destinations. 

Although they offer four select Pro Features packages, the Office Pack Pro includes everything from the other packages for only £5 per month: Time of Day Routing, Auto Attendant, Simultaneous Ringing, and Whisper Tone. If your business needs VoIP capable handsets to supply the office, Virtual Landline has a variety ranging from £58 to £150. 

Strengths Weaknesses
Excellent porting functionality for 0800/0808 numbers. No outbound calling service is available.
Solid talk time minutes for low call volume companies with an inbound-only strategy. Small coverage area outside of the UK (about 35 countries).
Known to have great customer service and are generally rated highly by small business owners. Piecemeal costs for basics like auto-attendant and time-based routing.

Virtual Landline's Highlighted Phone System Features

  1. WhatsApp Business. Provides virtual 0800 numbers that can be diverted through mobile for companies conducting business on WhatsApp.
  2. The Buzz Box. Painless conversion of any handset to a Virtual Landline phone. Configuration is done in-house and delivered fully equipped.
  3. VoIP Handsets. VoIP office phones that are programmable with a Virtual Landline number. Choice of three with included handset features.
Virtual Landline numbers UK

Zadarma Review

Headquartered in England, Zadarma is a business phone system provider of freephone numbers. Customers seeking their services can begin right away by connecting a phone number to their account. While standard 800 and 808s are free to connect, Silver and Gold numbers do have a connection charge of $9.  

With 100-country coverage, there’s no monthly fee associated with a freephone number. Customers are billed based on usage. For fixed lines, expect $0.03 per minute and $0.05 for mobile originating from the UK along with a minimum monthly payment of $3. A toll free purchase comes standard with 30 incoming call channels. 

Strengths Weaknesses
Free in-house CRM and collaboration tools. Lack of coverage in Africa & Middle East countries.
Inbound and outbound SMS messaging in 25 countries. SMS messaging is not available for Canada toll free.
Free video conferencing on PC and Zadaram app. Smaller-scale porting capabilities.

Zadarma's Highlighted Phone System Features

  1. Zadarma CRM. A free, multifunctional customer relationship management tool that can assist with automation, integrate with Zadarma telephony and PBX and create analytical reports. 
  2. Video Conferencing. Accessible from any device, this complementary tool is capable of hosting 100 participants, screen/file share, and integrates with your telephony system.
  3. Speech Analytics. Call recording is transcribed in seconds and text can be analyzed using filters and templates.
Zadarma UK Toll Free Plan

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