GoTo Connect is one of the most popular VoIP services on the market. It has an easy-to-use interface and offers a wide range of features including unlimited calling, text messaging, and team collaboration functionality.
At the same time, some GoTo Connect users are looking for an alternative due to a limited feature set, few integrations, no 24/7 support, and other reasons.
In this article, we compare some of our favorite GoTo Connect alternatives, examining available features, pricing, user experience, and more.
Best Alternatives to GoTo Connect
Below is a detailed review of popular VoIP providers that serve as good alternatives to GoTo Connect.
Zoom
Zoom is a UCaaS solution that facilitates communication and collaboration through voice services, team chat, and video meetings. Although Zoom does not offer a guaranteed uptime like more established competitors, it has developed a solid stack of voice, video, and collaboration tools, making it a highly attractive option for SMBs and remote teams that need a reliable, cost-effective solution.
Pricing & Plans
Zoom One offers a free version as well as four paid plans:
- Basic Plan (Free): Includes video meetings (100 participants, 40-minute duration), in-meeting chat, and basic whiteboard
- Pro Plan ($149.90 per year/user): Includes video meetings (30-hour duration), 5GB cloud storage, and third-party integrations
- Business Plan ($199.90 per year/user): Includes video meetings (300 attendees), SSO, and Managed Domains
- Business Plus Plan ($250 per year/user): Unlimited VoIP phone service with one local number/user, and live meeting caption translation
- Enterprise Plan: Includes Zoom Rooms, webinars, and video meetings with up to 1,000 attendants
Standout Features
- Call Recording: All Zoom One users have access to on-demand or automatic meeting recording and transcriptions with archiving, playback, and retrieval (storage capacity varies by plan)
- Call Monitoring: Supervisors can silently listen to agent calls, talk to the agent without the other party hearing (call whisper), or turn the call into a 3-way conference call (call barge)
- Video Meetings: All Zoom One users can host video meetings with 100-1,000 participants, access virtual backgrounds and custom filters, use breakout rooms, and more. Zoom’s platform is highly secure with safeguards like meeting lock, waiting room, admin controls, and end-to-end encryption (E2EE)
- Whiteboard: Automatic syncing, smart connectors, sticky notes, commenting, and drawing
Why We Picked It
The main advantage Zoom has over GoTo Connect is its price, which is much more affordable. Zoom’s video conferencing platform is also superior to GoTo Connect’s platform. Zoom video meetings are more secure and more features are available. Users can also host up to 1,000 participants which is far more than GoTo Connect offers.
What Zoom is Missing
Zoom’s phone system is not as reliable as GoTo Connect’s and it does not offer as many VoIP features. For example, Zoom does not offer real-time analytics.
Nextiva
Nextiva is a business phone system provider that caters to small and medium-sized businesses. Their UC platform includes phone services, video calling, SMS/MMS texting, and team chat messaging. Nextiva prides itself on providing 24/7 live customer service and support for all users.
Nextiva’s platform is reliable and secure with a 99.999% uptime, end-to-end encryption, and SOC 2 compliance.
Pricing & Plans
Nextiva offers three pricing plans:
- Essential Plan ($18.95 per month/user, paid annually): Includes unlimited voice calling with basic auto attendant, video calling, internet fax, one local or toll-free number/user, and 1500 toll-free minutes/month
- Professional Plan ($22.95 per month/user, paid annually): Includes up to 3,000 toll-free minutes, voicemail-to-SMS, multi-level auto-attendant, and popular CRM integrations
- Enterprise Plan (32.95 per month/user, paid annually): Includes up to 12,500 toll-free minutes, call recording, voicemail transcription, and Single Sign-On
Standout Features
- Call Pop: Nextiva’s call pop feature automatically displays interaction history and key CRM data on agent screens for every incoming call
- NextivaONE Mobile App: (For iOS and Android smartphones) Inbound/outbound calling and video conferences, SMS texting, and call flip to switch between desktops and cell phones
- Automation: Nextiva users can automate repetitive tasks and workflows, ideal for appointment reminders, follow-ups, and tasks
- Call Analytics: Historical and live call data for insight into agent performance and business operations, access pre-made templates, and enable SLA push notifications
Why We Picked It
Nextiva is similar to GoTo Connect in that its platform is highly secure and reliable, and it caters to SMBs. Nextiva does, however, offer two plans that are less expensive than GoTo Connect. Another advantage to Nextiva is that it includes toll free minutes and unlimited internet fax in every plan, whereas GoTo Connect only includes these in its Standard Plan.
What Nextiva is Missing
Nextiva video meetings are limited to 45 minutes in all plans, whereas GoTo Connect offers unlimited video meetings. Nextiva only offers a limited number of integrations while GoTo Connect connects with 60+ third party apps.
RingCentral
RingCentral is a business VoIP, UCaaS and CCaaS provider. Its platform is highly secure, reliable, and packed with advanced features such as business analytics and whiteboarding.
Its unified communication solution, RingCentral MVP, combines message, phone, and video functionality.
Pricing & Plans
RingCentral offers three plans for MVP:
- Core Plan ($20 per month/user, paid annually): Includes unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada, texting, team messaging and video conferencing for up to 100 participants, 100 toll-free minutes, IVR, call logs, and on-demand call recording
- Advanced Plan ($25 per month/user, paid annually): Includes 1,000 toll-free minutes, unlimited internet fax, automatic call recording, 8-digit extensions, call whisper/barge, and Essential Business Analytics
- Ultra Plan ($35 per month/user, paid annually): Includes 10,000 toll-free minutes, up to 200 video participants, unlimited storage, device analytics and alerts, and real- time business analytics
Standout Features
- Team Messaging: Team chat space for internal/external users organizes conversations into folders and threads based on projects, topics, or teams
- Video Conferencing: Up to 200 participants, 24-hour meeting duration, AI-powered live transcription, noise reduction, meeting summaries, and video highlights
- Real-time Analytics: Custom reports with drag-and-drop KPI widgets, service level and QoS updates, agent performance tracking, etc.
Why We Picked It
RingCentral is priced similarly to GoTo Connect but it offers a higher level of security as well as several advanced features that GoTo Connect does not offer such as call monitoring (whisper, barge, etc.) and business analytics. RingCentral also offers over 300 integrations, more than any other competitor in the UCaaS space.
What RingCentral is Missing
RingCentral does offer a robust video conferencing platform, but it limits meeting participants to 200, while GoTo Connect allows for up to 250. RingCentral also has a more complex platform than GoTo Connect and can be difficult to install with a steep learning curve.
Vonage
Vonage is a flexible SaaS provider that is popular with startups and SMBs in need of a custom solution. Vonage offers both voice, messaging and video, as well as a unified solution.
Vonage’s flagship platform, Vonage Business Communication (VBC), combines the flexibility of APIs with the ease of use of an out-of-the box solution, offering voice, messaging, and video services in one unified space.
Pricing & Plans
Vonage offers three pricing plans for VBC outlined below. Several features are offered as add-ons, making Vonage’s platform customizable.
- Mobile Plan (starting at $14.99 per month/user): Includes mobile and desktop apps, unlimited calling and SMS, free phone number porting, and team messaging
- Premium Plan (starting at $24.99 per month/user): Adds on features such as unlimited video meetings for up to 100 participants, multi-level auto attendant, and CRM integrations including Hubspot and Zendesk
- Advanced Plan (starting at $34.99 per month/user): Adds on features such as call group, on-demand call recording, and visual voicemail
Standout Features
- Virtual Receptionist: Users pre-record menu options and call prompts to direct incoming calls to the appropriate agent, department, or voice mailbox without a live agent. Admins can set business hours and route calls according to individual agent schedules, skill sets, etc.
- Call Screening: Inbound callers are required to identify themselves by recording their name, then agents choose whether to answer, forward, or transfer the call
- Business Call Recording (Add-on, $49.99 per month): Allows users to create custom and automated call recording rules, download and email recordings, and search and replay recordings (500 hours of call recording storage included)
- Secondary Line Appearance (Add-on, $14.99/month): Enables users to answer and place calls from different extensions on a single desk phone, place calls on hold, join calls via extension
Why We Picked It
Vonage is less expensive than GoTo Connect and also offers users more flexibility with its APIs and many add-on features. Vonage is a better option for SMBs that need a custom solution.
What Vonage is Missing
Vonage does not allow for as many video participants as GoTo Connect, and video meetings are only included in the Premium and Advanced plans. Vonage also does not offer the same level of reliability that GoTo Connect does.
OpenPhone
OpenPhone is a business communication provider that offers affordable telephony and messaging services. OpenPhone’s minimalist platform includes features such as call routing, SMS texting, and call forwarding.
Pricing & Plans
OpenPhone offers three pricing plans:
- Standard Plan ($13 per month/user, paid annually): Includes unlimited calling and messaging, business hour routing, voicemail-to-text, and call recording (Limited to 10 users)
- Premium Plan ($20 per month/user, paid annually): Includes group calling, call transfers, round-robin call distribution, analytics/reporting, and priority customer support
- Enterprise Plan: Adds an audit log and a dedicated support manager
Standout Features
- Call Recording: Manual (on-demand) and rules-based (automatic) call recording
- Auto replies: The feature enables users to send automatic, trigger-based, and pre-written text replies for missed text messages, calls, or voicemail messages
- Call routing: Enables users to forward calls automatically to any U.S. or Canadian phone number or transfer them manually. Calls can also be forwarded to a group of numbers round-robin style
Why We Picked It
OpenPhone is much less expensive than GoTo Connect and is a great option for startups and small businesses that only need a basic business phone system.
What OpenPhone is Missing
OpenPhone does not offer video conferencing or team chat, and is missing many advanced features that GoTo Connect has such as real-time analytics.
8x8
8x8 is a cloud-based business phone system that combines unified communications and call center software. Its platform includes video, voice, messaging, and call conferencing capabilities at competitive prices.
Instead of offering separate UCaaS and CCaaS solutions, 8x8 has an all-in-one platform, with an increasing number of contact center features in each bundled plan. 8x8 also includes more international calling capabilities than many of its competitors, which makes it a great choice for global teams.
Pricing & Plans
8x8 offers 2 plans with phone system features only, and another three plans which add on contact center features:
- X2 Plan ($24/user/mo. annually): Includes unlimited calling in 14+ countries plus features such as hot desking, multi-level auto attendant, and HD audio and video conferencing for up to 500 active participants
- X4 plan ($44/user/mo. annually): Includes unlimited calling in 48+ countries and adds on supervisor analytics, call barge and call whisper
Standout Features
- Visual Voicemail: A voicemail dashboard allows users to return calls, share, or forward voicemail messages with an intuitive interface. Users receive voicemail transcripts and recordings automatically via email.
- Team Chat: Launch video and audio calls directly from a conversation, integrate with other collaboration apps such as Slack
- Multi-level Auto Attendant: Build multiple nested call menus, direct calls, create custom greetings, and add business hours with a drag-and-drop call flow design tool
- Video Conferencing: 500-participant maximum, end-to-end encryption, virtual backgrounds, meeting lock and lobby, dial-in access from 50+ countries, cloud recording, YouTube live streaming, audio sharing, branded meeting interface, desktop and mobile screen sharing
Why We Picked It
8x8’s platform is as secure and reliable as GoTo Connect’s. 8x8 also offers many of the advanced features that GoTo Connect offers such as video conferencing, team chat, and real-time analytics. Its pricing is also similar. 8x8’s video platform allows for twice as many participants as GoTo Connect so it is a great choice for large hybrid teams
What 8x8 is Missing
Although 8x8 is another good option for global companies, its international calling capabilities don’t include as many countries as GoTo Connect, and the cost of the X4 plan which offers international calling is expensive.
Dialpad
Dialpad is an all in one phone, video and messaging solution that caters to SMBs and leverages AI, machine learning and natural language processing to offer advanced features such as real-time voice transcription, and post-call summaries. Dialpad is highly reliable and offers a 100% uptime guarantee for Enterprise plan users.
Pricing & Plans
Dialpad offers three pricing plans:
- Standard Plan ($15 per month/user): Includes unlimited phone calls, video meetings, and text messaging, real-time analytics, live speech coaching, and automated post-call summaries
- Pro Plan ($25 per month/user): Includes international SMS, CRM integrations, and 24/7 live customer support
- Enterprise Plan (100-seat minimum, quote-based pricing): Adds on a 100% uptime guarantee, unlimited office locations, single sign-on, a dedicated support manager, and extensions
Standout Features
- Live Speech Coaching: Displays suggestions to agents during calls, reminding them to slow down or speak clearly
- Video Meetings: Dialpad’s allows for video meetings with up to 10 participants and up to 5 hours in duration. Features include screen sharing, whiteboarding, in-meeting chat, virtual backgrounds, and meeting waiting room
- Multi-Level Auto Attendant: Enables users to automatically route calls to the appropriate agent or department. Features include custom messages, business hours, call flow priorities, and routing methods such as longest idle, skills-based, and first available agent
- Team Messaging: Topic-based team messaging platform allows users to create dedicated channels, search by keyword, and share content with internal and external users
Why We Picked It
Dialpad is less expensive than GoTo Connect and comes with more advanced features, especially when it comes to AI. Features such as live speech coaching and real-time transcription are available on DIalpad but not GoTo Connect. Dialpad also offers a 100% uptime SLA.
What Dialpad is Missing
Dialpad does not include international calling like GoTo Connect does, a separate plan must be purchased. Dialpad limits video participants to only 10 on all plans. If larger video meetings are needed, Dialpad users can add on a Dialpad Meetings plan.
Intermedia
Intermedia is a business phone system and UCaaS provider. Intermedia’s Unite product combines video meetings, team chat, and telephony services with contact center capabilities.
Pricing & Plans
Intermedia offers 2 pricing plans:
- Unite Pro Plan ($27.99/user/mo. annually): Includes unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada, auto attendant, SMS/MMS texting, and video meetings for up to 100 participants
- Unite Enterprise plan ($32.99/user/mo. annually): Includes 200 GB of file backup, call monitoring/whisper/barge, video meetings with 200 participants
Standout Features
- Team Chat: Team messaging platform allows users to send individual or group messages to coworkers on a unified communication platform
- Video Conferencing: 720p HD video and audio, screen sharing, and interactive presentation tools
- Auto attendant: This feature enables users to direct calls to the right agent, play automatic greetings, and set business hours
- Hunt groups: Allows users to direct incoming calls to specific departments that share responsibility for answering them
Why We Picked It
Intermedia offers many of the same advanced features as GoTo Connect along with a comparable level of reliability. One advantage that Intermedia has over GoTo Connect is that unlimited calling to Puerto Rico is included in all plans.
What Intermedia is Missing
Intermedia has a lower video meeting participant cap than GoTo Connect and it is slightly more expensive.
What is GoTo Connect?
GoTo Connect is a cloud-based phone system and unified communications platform that provides call management, messaging, and video capabilities on one unified platform. GoTo Connect users can upgrade and add on other GoTo suite products like GoTo Contact Center or GoTo Webinar.
GoTo Connect is known for being highly secure and reliable with a 99.999% uptime guarantee.
It also offers many advanced features such as hot desking. GoTo Connect is a popular solution for global teams as it includes international calling in over 50 countries for free in its Standard pricing plan.
Benefits of GoTo Connect include:
- International Calling: Unlimited calling to 50+ countries (Standard Plan and above)
- Reporting and Analytics: Historical call reporting, real-time and predictive analytics
- Toll-Free Minutes: 1,000 toll-free minutes/month (Standard Plan and above)
- Video Conferencing: Host video meetings with up to 250 participants, access in-meeting features like screen sharing, meeting recording+transcription, breakout rooms
- Integrations: Integrates with dozens of third-party apps (Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, Zendesk, Google, etc.)
- Visual Dial Plan Editor: Call flow editing tool with a drag-and-drop interface enabling users to direct calls to specific extensions, departments, voicemail boxes
Where GoTo Connect Falls Short
GoTo Connect offers businesses many tools to streamline operations and improve customer service, but it’s not a perfect fit for every company.
Drawbacks to GoTo Connect include:
- SMS Limits: GoTo Connect plans come with a certain number of SMS and MMS credits, overage rates apply once those limits are reached
- Video Conference Limits: GoTo Connect Basic Plan video conferencing only allows 4 participants, Standard Plan expands to 250 participants but limits simultaneous webcams to 50
- Features: Some basic features are only included with the more expensive Standard Plan (voicemail-to-email, efax, and intercom)
- Price: GoTo Connect is priced higher than many of its competitors
Which GoTo Connect Alternative Should You Choose?
Choosing the right virtual phone system for your business is an important decision and requires careful research. Every business VoIP provider comes with its own advantages and drawbacks.
This list of GoTo Connect alternatives is not exhaustive. Honorable mentions include: Avaya, Ooma, and Cisco call control.
Here are some general guidelines:
- For enterprises and large businesses: Intermedia and 8x8 have highly secure and reliable platforms with plenty of advanced features. Both offer CCaaS platforms as well that can be added on as a business scales
- For startups and small teams: OpenPhone is affordable and reliable with many features.
- For SMBs: Nextiva and Dialpad are affordable, offer stellar customer service, and include many features.
- For remote teams: Zoom offers one of the best video conferencing platforms in the industry
