Communication is vital when it comes to your business. That means you need a VoIP phone system that serves you well.
Ooma offers plenty of basic domestic and international calling features, plus more advanced ones to help your business thrive, like video calling and analytics.
But the system isn’t perfect. That’s why we’re here to compare it to some other VoIP systems to help you make your final decision on whether Ooma is the one for you. We consider Ooma a solid option for most businesses. Check out what it has to offer and see if yours is one of them.
Ooma Pros and Cons
Pros
- Great call quality
- User-friendly
- 24/7 customer support
- Desktop and mobile apps
- Advanced calling features with the basic package
Cons
- High initial cost
- Pricey international calling
- No video conferencing with Office package
How Ooma Compares to Top VoIP Phone Services
Ooma consistently makes the top lists when it comes to VoIP phone services. PCMag rated it the #1 business phone system for its reliability.
Ooma offers a lot of advanced features, even with its standard packages. However, certain ones, like video conferencing, are only available with the Office Pro package. That puts it a step below other communication systems, like Vonage, which offers video capabilities with their more basic packages.
Ooma stands out above the rest for its call quality with crystal clear sound that goes beyond other highly rated systems.
For what you get, Ooma is priced comparably to Vonage. However, others, like magicJack, are much less expensive for similar features. Ooma also doesn’t have an annual payment discount like many other companies do.
Ooma’s international calling can get pricey. If you do a lot of international calling, you might want to look into magicJack, which gives you free credits for international magicJack users. However, Ooma’s portability rivals other systems with its desktop and mobile apps that provide you with access on the go.
Ooma Call Quality
Call quality is one of the most important features when it comes to getting phone service. Without good call quality, you can’t offer optimal customer service. You want your customers to know you’re listening to their questions and concerns and are giving them the best information possible.
Ooma is praised for its superior high-definition call quality both domestically and internationally. It has better call quality ratings than most of the top-performing VoIP systems out there, including Vonage, magicJack, and RingCentral.
Ooma is also known for its excellent service with close to 100% uptime. With that, it rivals other top brands, like Nextiva.
Its system works well on both its desktop and mobile apps. You can even transfer your existing phone number or choose a new one in your area code. No matter how you use Ooma, it maintains consistently optimal call quality.
Ooma Pricing
Ooma has fair prices for their service and features, but they’re not the best you can find. Ooma comes in three packages:
- Ooma Office: $19.95 per user per month
- Ooma Office Pro: $24.95 per user per month
- Ooma Enterprise: $27.99 per user per month
You get a pretty good deal with Ooma Office, with 35 call features for your business. However, it also leaves off some features that most companies offer with more basic packages. When you’re paying per user, you want to get as many features as possible in the cheapest package.
Without these features, you might find that your company has more restricted communication. You also only get the following features when you upgrade to Office Pro:
- Desktop app
- Enhanced call blocking
- Voicemail transcription
- Call recording
Once you get to Ooma Enterprise, you can use its analytics features, along with customizable call flows and APIs with only a small price jump.
However, if you’re looking to get more features at a better price, try Vonage Premium. They have many of the same offerings as Ooma but for a lower price, including video conferencing. You might also consider magicJack, which starts at $39 per year.
Ooma Mobile and Remote Features
With so many people working from home, remote features and mobile apps for VoIP systems have become vital in running a business. Without this feature, you leave out a significant portion of your demographic. It also makes it more difficult for your team members to do their jobs and connect with customers.
Ooma gives you mobile features using data or Wi-Fi to support remote workers alongside in-office teams. Remote employees can also use the desktop app to make calls from their computers.
You can forward calls and voicemails to mobile devices, making it easy to transfer calls on the go and doesn’t restrict any employee to one location. Plus, with virtual extension, multi-ring, and 2-phone-in-1, you can separate your business and personal numbers.
The mobile app isn’t unique to Ooma by itself, but it’s a feature that you’ll need to grow your business and keep it flexible. Ooma’s remote features give you everything you need to do that.
Ooma Basic Calling Features
While Ooma doesn’t offer as much in the way of advanced features to regular Office users, it has several basic features that make it a worthy choice for large and small businesses. It comes with features like:
- Virtual receptionist
- Mobile app
- Call log
- Call transfer
- Multi-device ring
- Call forwarding during outages
- SMS messaging
- Intercom
That’s a lot more features than Vonage’s lowest-priced package. While Vonage is the closest comparable VoIP service to Ooma, its Premium package gives you some of what you’re missing from Ooma’s Office package while leaving out others. For example, Vonage doesn’t come with a virtual receptionist. Whether you prefer Ooma, Vonage, or another service depends on which features you’ll use most for your business.
Ooma Customer Support
Ooma offers 24/7 customer support for all its packages, which doesn’t come with every VoIP service out there. Many services only offer priority support with more expensive packages.
You can look at that in two ways. First, you get better customer service with the basic Office package. But if you get Office Pro or Enterprise, the bump in price doesn’t include a bump to the front of the line if something goes wrong. In other words, no priority support. You wait just as long as someone who bought the cheapest package.
If priority customer support is important to you, try RingCentral. They earned the #1 spot for customer support, so you’ll know you’re getting the best care.
Ooma International Calls
International calling features should expand your company’s reach and let you collaborate with international businesses, suppliers, and customers. Not having this feature can limit your business’s growth.
Ooma does have international calling, but it’s more expensive than options like RingCentral. However, Ooma comes with international numbers and serves global companies as well as US-based ones, earning them a reputation for worldwide service.
Ooma offers almost the exact same international calling features as Vonage. Both allow outgoing calls to 60 countries on landlines and 10 countries for mobile numbers.
Though Ooma has a more expensive international calling service than magicJack, magicJack has its own limiting feature. The company only allows you to call other international magicJack users, limiting the number of businesses you can reach across the world. But if you need a cheaper option with unlimited international calling, you’ll find it with magicJack, as long as you don’t mind its restrictions.
Ooma Ring Groups
Ring groups ensure that someone is available for every caller. Ooma’s ring group feature means that when someone calls your business, the call goes to multiple lines until someone answers it. That can mean a group of customer service or sales representatives, as well as several people within a particular department.
The call might ring on multiple phones at once. Alternatively, it may ring on one phone, and if the first person doesn’t answer, the call will go through every phone in that specific ring group until someone picks up.
Ring groups lower the risk of customer calls going unanswered or going to voicemail. They also help you create a better overall customer experience when customers feel that someone is always available to help them.
Ooma Video Conferencing
We’ve already talked a little about Ooma’s video conferencing feature in that it only exists for Office Pro and Enterprise packages. But if you get Pro or higher, you get a high-quality system with an intuitive interface.
Video conferencing with Ooma gives you a click-to-join meeting system along with more advanced features, including:
- Password protected meetings
- Chat features
- Mute options
It lets two or more people share their screens at the same time, making collaboration and visualization easier for team projects.
You can have up to 25 participants on video conference meetings. You can also create recurring meetings and view and search for your sessions on the platform all in one place. The features Ooma offers with its video conferencing make it worth springing for the Office Pro package.
Ooma Call Recording
Call recording features work well if you need to take notes to remind yourself of what was said during customer conversations. They also allow you to check the accuracy of the information and analyze conversations after they happen.
This feature comes with Ooma Office Pro. It puts your recordings in call logs to keep them all organized and saved in one convenient location, so you have access whenever you need them. The system is set up so you can listen and delete the recordings when you no longer need them.
Call recording is a must for communication systems. It means you don’t miss a beat, never have inaccurate information, and you can always reference customer and business calls at any time.
VoIP Phone Systems
VoIP phone systems come with more features and versatility than your typical handset. They’re also more cost-effective and function better for your business because they store everything in one place.
Ooma’s VoIP communication service can make calls from Android and iOS, so you’re not tied to your desk. It works well if you’re a small business that needs a Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) cloud-based system.
It’s also great for businesses that need to modernize and use better technology to meet customer needs. In other words, if you want to scale your business, you need a VoIP system.
Ooma’s VoIP service allows you to do work remotely. It offers features like:
- Voice calling
- Chat
- Video
- Fax
Ooma’s VoIP system has the features you need to meet customer expectations and keep your team running efficiently. Plus, with its mobile tools, you can connect your phone system to your mobile device and have access from your computer with the desktop app.
Hosted PBX Solutions
With this cloud-based system, you can add and remove lines as your business grows. That way, you don’t have to worry about clunky systems or spending extra time to make your system’s capability match your business’s size.
Ooma’s PBX solutions offer a quick and easy setup that Ooma helps you with, so you get everything up and running fast. Once it’s all in place, you’ve got a low maintenance system, and Ooma takes care of most of it for you.
PBX solutions work best for enterprise businesses. You get email, a mobile fax app, and a desktop app, along with all the usual features you would expect from your communication service. The UCaaS platform keeps your team cohesive.
With unlimited extensions, you don’t have to worry about your business getting too big for your phone system. You also enjoy free upgrades with no extra costs and no interruptions to your business operations. Ooma’s PBX solutions allow for efficient global communications, no matter who you need to reach.
Summary
Among the top-rated business phone systems available, Ooma gives you a versatile interface to make customer service operations simple for your team. With over 35 features in the Office package, it’s not hard to find everything you need with this system.
Office Pro and Enterprise only sweeten the deal with more advanced features. However, if you prioritize features like video conferencing, check other companies for cheaper packages that include it.
That said, Ooma has reasonable pricing, excellent call quality, and plenty of mobile and desktop features that allow you to call domestically and internationally. The company has solutions for both small businesses and large enterprises. No matter where you do business, Ooma can help you improve the way you communicate.
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