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VoIP provider Mitel has a well-established reputation in the cloud communications and UCaaS space. With millions of international customers, a recent partnership with RingCentral, and Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader recognition for 5 years, the VoIP provider clearly has a loyal user base.

That said, current and former customers consistently mention several issues with the provider that have made them look for Mitel alternatives.

We researched popular Mitel competitors and narrowed it down to the 10 best solutions.

Learn more about what we found out about pricing and plans, features, user experience, and more for the solutions below.

The below table provides a quick overview of the top Mitel alternatives we cover in more detail in this post.

 

At A Glance Comparison of Mitel Alternatives

Provider Pricing Key Features Best For
Nextiva $20-$60/user/mo.
  • Live chat
  • Video conferencing
  • Review management
SMBs looking for telephony combined with reputation/brand management features
GoTo Connect $26-$80/user/mo.
  • Social media and SMS campaigns
  • AI chat analysis
  • Free calls to 50 countries
Global teams that need omnichannel service
RingCentral $20-$35/user/mo.
  • Auto call recording
  • AI-powered video meeting transcription
  • Adoption and usage analytics
Large businesses and enterprises that need a high level of security and advanced analytics
8x8 Quote based
  • Hot desking
  • Barge, monitor, whisper
  • Speech analytics
Remote teams that require team collaboration and international calling capabilities
Dialpad $15-$25/user/mo.
  • AI-powered transcriptions
  • Real-time analytics
  • SMS, MMS, and team messaging
Startups and SMBs that need high-quality call and video transcription
Grasshopper $14-$55/user/mo.
  • Instant response
  • Business texting
  • Virtual fax
Entrepreneurs and partnerships with a low call volume
Avaya $20-$35/user/mo.
  • 8 digit extensions
  • Real-time analytics
  • Document sharing
Businesses that need to collaborate with clients and contractors
Ooma Office $19.95-$29.95/user/mo.
  • Call recording
  • Virtual receptionist
  • Caller info match
Small in-office or hybrid teams that need basic inbound and outbound call center functionality
Zoom Phone $10-$22.49/user/mo.
  • AI post call summaries
  • Voicemail transcription
  • Barge/Monitor/Whisper/Takeover
SMBs that need a robust video conferencing platform as well as telephony
Vonage $13.99-$27.99/user/mo.
  • Team messaging
  • Video conferencing
  • Call recording
Tech-savvy SMBs that need a flexible and customizable solution

 

 

Why Look For A Mitel Alternative?

Below are some reasons businesses might switch away from Mitel:

  • Price: With plans that start at $20.99 per month, Mitel is expensive compared to its competitors
  • Poor quality of customer support: Several customers complain that Mitel customer service is slow and sometimes closes support tickets without resolving them
  • Limited integrations: Mitel integrates with Salesforce, Outlook, and NetSuite, but integration options are limited compared to competitors.
  • Lack of advanced features: Mitel does not offer advanced VoIP features such as real-time analytics, call summaries, etc.
  • Subpar video conferencing: Mitel’s video conferencing tool, Mitel Meetings, lacks advanced features like an online whiteboard, and has lower limits on maximum meeting participants and durations than competitors

 

How We Ranked Alternatives in This Article

We selected and ranked the UCaaS providers in this article based on several factors:

  • Features: Does the provider offer advanced features like AI-powered routing, virtual assistants, and IVR?
  • Pricing: Does the provider offer tiered, bundled plans for a variety of budgets? Are there volume/annual pricing discounts? Does the provider offer a good value for the price?
  • Ease of use: How easy is it to set up and use the VoIP service? Does the provider offer user-friendly dashboards?
  • Customer support: Is the provider’s customer support team easy to reach and responsive? Are service issues resolved in a timely manner?
  • Security/Reliability: Is the provider’s service reliable and secure? Does the provider have security certifications like HIPAA or GDPR compliance? Is there an uptime guarantee? Are data encryption, two-factor authentication, and other VoIP security features included?

 

Best Mitel Alternatives

The following list of alternatives to Mitel offers improved features, more competitive pricing, and enhanced flexibility for businesses of all sizes.

 

Nextiva - Best For Value-Focused SMBs

Nate Reviews Nextiva

Nextiva is a cloud-based unified communications platform that lets hybrid or fully remote teams connect and collaborate on a variety of channels within one dashboard, the Nextiva App interface.

While Mitel focuses on telephony capabilities such as auto attendant, routing, and hot desking, Nextiva offers a more well rounded customer experience management platform with self service tools, customer video and screen share, and customer to team SMS chat.

Nextiva also allows users to view incoming reviews from websites like Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Facebook in real time and respond from the unified dashboard or mobile app. Alternatively, Mitel only offers these capabilities via third party integrations.

 

Nextiva is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • Secure platform: Nextiva offers superior security to Mitel with features such as single sign on (SSO) and an uptime guarantee of 99.999%
  • Efficient customer service: Nextiva invests heavily in customer support, offering 24/7/365 live customer service on all plans–while Mitel has set business hours for live support
  • Omnichannel support: Nextiva enables agents to respond to feedback across channels under one pane of glass

 

Key Features

  • Toll-Free Minutes: Nexitva plans include up to 12,500 monthly toll-free minutes
  • Integrations: Nextiva integrates with popular third-party apps like Google Workspace, Salesforce, and Microsoft Teams
  • Call Recording: Nextiva offers on-demand, custom, and automatic call recording with advanced analytics and recording storage
  • Auto Attendant: Nextiva’s auto attendant feature lets enables users record a greeting and automatically direct callers to the ideal person/department

 

Pricing & Plans

Nextiva offers four paid plans from $20 to $60 monthly, per user when paid annually. Month to month pricing is available for $25 to $75 monthly per agent. Mitel does not list its pricing online but it is estimated to be similar to Nextiva with prices ranging from  $20.99 to $38.49 monthly, per user.

For more information, pleasee our Nextiva pricing guide.

 

Nextiva Pros:

  • Customer service: Nextiva provides 24/7 access to live customer support for all users
  • Onboarding: Users report that the Nextiva onboarding process is very thorough, with superior on-demand end users tutorials
  • Reliable: With a 5-nine (99.999%) uptime guarantee, Nextiva is one of the most reliable VoIP providers

Nextiva Cons:

  • Limited hardware options: Nextiva is not compatible with many popular desk phone models
  • User interface: Several users dislike Nextiva’s confusing, overcrowded interface
  • Lack of transparency in pricing: Some advanced features such as intelligent virtual agents, real-time dashboards, and wallboards are only offered as add-ons

 

GoTo Connect - Best For Communication and Collaboration 

Nate Reviews GoTo Connect

GoTo Connect is a popular cloud phone system and meetings platform from LogMeIn. GoTo Connect includes unlimited international calling to over 50 countries for all users, while Mitel customers must pay per minute for international calls. This makes GoTo Connect a better option for global teams.

GoTo Connect also includes a free toll free number for each account as well as 1,000 toll free minutes while Mitel charges a one time fee for toll free numbers and does not include minutes.

Although Mitel and GoTo Connect both offer video conferencing, GoTo Connect has a higher participant limit of up to 250 attendees, compared to Mitel’s limit of 100. GoTo Connect’s video meetings platform also includes more advanced features such as end to end encryption, AI meeting summary, and Smart Notes- a feature that enables users to take notes directly in the meeting dashboard and save or share them.

 

GoTo Connect is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • International calling capabilities: GoTo Connect’s Standard plan includes unlimited calling in over 50 countries
  • Video conferencing: GoTo Connect includes a robust HD video conferencing platform on all plans
  • Improved customer engagement: GoTo Connect offers digital channel add-ons including social media, outbound SMS, and live chat

 

Standout Features

  • Extensive Desk Phone Compatibility: Over 180 desk phones integrate with GoTo Connect
  • Video Conferencing: GoTo Connect’s video conferencing platform allows for up to 250 participants and includes advanced features like smart notes and whiteboards
  • Instant Response: Enables users to automatically text back first time callers when lines are busy
  • Custom dial plans: Users can build custom call flows using a drag and drop editor

 

Pricing & Plans

GoTo Connect is priced higher than Mitel with three paid plans ranging from $26 to $80 monthly, per user. Month to month pricing is $29 to $86 monthly, per user.

For more information, see our GoTo Connect pricing guide.

 

GoTo Connect Pros:

  • Robust video conferencing platform: GoTo Connect allows for a higher number of video participants than competitors and offers lots of advanced video conferencing features
  • Customer support: GoTo Connect offers 24/7/365 customer support and users report that customer service is responsive
  • Advanced reporting and analytics: GoTo Connect includes real-time and predictive analytics powered by AI

GoTo Connect Cons:

  • SMS is not unlimited: The Standard plan includes only 80 SMS credits/month, then charges users for all additional text messages
  • Call quality: Some users have reported issues with GoTo Connect’s call quality
  • Price: GoTo Connect is expensive compared to competitors and lacks scalability with only 2 plans

 

RingCentral - Best Full-Suite Solution

Nate Reviews RingCentral

RingCentral is a well-rounded UCaaS platform with tons of native features and integrations. RingCentral and Mitel announced a strategic partnership in 2021, when RingCentral became Mitel’s “exclusive UCaaS partner”.

Despite the partnership, Mitel has continued to improve upon its own UCaaS platform- MiVoice Business. The main difference between RingCentral’s RingEx and Mitel’s MiVoice comes down to communication priorities and scalability.

Mitel excels in offering affordable telephony and SMS services including auto attendant and team collaboration, and is a solid choice for small teams and freelancers. RingCentral on the other hand, offers better security, more integration options, a more robust and user friendly mobile app, and more advanced AI-powered features and analytics. RingCentral is also easier to scale due to bulk discounts and its full featured CCaaS platform, RingCX. RingCentral is therefore a better option for large businesses, enterprises, and rapidly growing SMBs.

 

RingCentral is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • Security: RingCentral has a high level of security with end-to-end encryption, SSO, multi-factor authentication, etc.
  • Integrations: RingCentral offers over 300 out-of-the-box integrations–one of the largest integration ecosystems in the UCaaS space
  • Advanced analytics: RingCentral offers real-time and historical reporting and analytics

 

Key Features

  • In-Meeting Collaboration: Teams easily collaborate during meetings with features like whiteboarding, breakout rooms, and whiteboarding
  • One-Click Scheduling: RingCentral has one-click scheduling for multiple calendar integrations such as Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook, Zoho
  • Task Management: Agents and admins can use RingCentral’s native task management during projects or install its Asana, Slack, and Microsoft Teams integrations.
  • Call Monitoring: Allows managers to listen in on agent calls in real time, give coaching and feedback, or take over the call

 

Pricing & Plans

RingCentral pricing is similar to Mitel pricing with three paid plans ranging from $20 to $35 per month per user when paid annually, and from $30 to $45 per month, per user when paid on a month-to-month basis.

For more information, see our RingCentral pricing guide.

 

RingCentral Pros

  • Robust video conferencing: RingCentral’s video conferencing platform is highly secure and includes AI-powered live transcription and meeting insights
  • Reliable: RingCentral has a high level of call quality with 99.999% uptime guarantee and E2EE for all users
  • IVR: All RingCentral plans include multi-level auto attendant and IVR

RingCentral Cons

  • Price: RingCentral is expensive compared to competitors
  • Support: Some users say RingCentral’s customer service team is difficult to reach
  • Steep learning curve: RingCentral’s platform is highly customizable, but can be difficult to onboard

 

8x8 - Best For International Companies

Nate Reviews 8x8

8x8 is the leading VoIP platform for global communications due to its international reach on all X Series plans. 8x8 includes unlimited calling to up to 48 countries, while Mitel charges per-minute for international calls.

8x8 also offers a superior video conferencing platform compared to Mitel. 8x8 allows users to host meetings of up to 500 participants on all plans, while Mitel caps participants at 8-100 depending on the plan. 8x8 also includes advanced video features that Mitel does not offer, such as breakout rooms and live streaming.

While both Mitel and 8x8 offer call reporting and activity and analytics, only 8x8 also offers supervisor analytics such as employee status, call queue analytics, and ring group reports.

 

8x8 is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need: 

  • Large video meetings: 8x8 users can host video conferences with up to 500 participants
  • Scalability: 8x8’s X-series includes plans with both UCaaS and CCaaS functionality
  • Advanced call routing: 8x8 offers a plethora of routing features including intelligent IVR (IIVR), skills-based routing, and CX journey mapping

 

Standout Features

  • Real-Time Analytics: 8x8 has a strong analytics dashboard that gives admins a company-wide view of historical and real-time data
  • AI-powered workflow builder: 8x8’s AI-powered insights utilize machine learning, creating workflows that optimize day-to-day operations
  • Full featured video conferencing: Video features like screen sharing, live streaming, and presentation mode
  • Team messaging: 8x8 includes a team messaging platform with document sharing

 

Pricing & Plans

Like Mitel, 8x8 does not publish its current prices, but in the past 8x8 has offered two plans from $24 to $44 per user, per month. 8x8 also offers paid ons including speech analytics, quality management, and auto dialer.

For more information, see our 8x8 pricing guide.

 

8x8 Pros:

  • Unlimited international calling: International calling is included in all plans (14 countries for X2 users and 48 countries for X4 users)
  • Feature rich: 8x8 offers a number of advanced features including voicemail transcription, hot desking, and supervisor analytics
  • Secure and reliable: 8x8 offers a 99.999% uptime guarantee along with SSO on all plans

8x8 Cons:

  • Support: Users have complained that 8x8 customer service is difficult to reach and unreliable
  • Expensive: 8x8 is expensive compared to competitors and features like auto dialers must be purchased as paid add-ons
  • Difficult to set up: Some users report that the initial set up is complicated with many options and customizations

 

Dialpad - Best For Small Teams

Nate reviews Dialpad

Dialpad combines cross-platform compatibility with affordable pricing, making it a solid choice for small teams or startups.

Both Mitel and Dialpad offer voicemail transcription, but only Dialpad provides call transcription in real-time with its cutting edge, AI-powered transcription tool. Dialpad’s transcriptions are also more accurate than Mitel’s.

Although both providers cater to SMBs, Dialpad offers enterprise-grade security with SSO, and a 100% uptime SLA. Mitel only provides SSO via a third party integration and does not offer an uptime guarantee.

 

Dialpad is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • An inexpensive communication solution: Starting at $15 per user/mo., Dialpad is one of the most affordable cloud-based phone systems
  • Improved productivity: Dialpad offers a number of AI-powered tools to lessen strain on employees such as automatically generated call summaries
  • Reliability: Dialpad is one of the only VoIP providers that offers a 100% uptime SLA

 

Key Features

  • Free Meetings: Dialpad users get Dialpad Meetings for free, so users can host video conferences with up to 10 participants
  • Conference Recording: Dialpad lets users record video conferences, so those not present at a meeting can catch up
  • Team messaging: Dialpad includes a team messaging platform with file sharing on all plans
  • Gamified Analytics: Dialpad gamifies its analytics by implementing a leaderboard that displays KPIs for each user

 

Pricing & Plans

Dialpad offers three paid plans from $15 to $25+ per user, per month, which is significantly less than Mitel charges. Month to month pricing is $27 to $35 per user, per month.

For more information, see our Dialpad pricing guide.

 

Dialpad Pros

  • AI-powered tools: Dialpad’s natural language processing features such as live transcription are some of the best in the UCaaS space
  • Affordable: Dialpad is an excellent value with secure voice, text, and video for $15/month/user
  • Analytics: Real-time reporting and AI-powered analytics are included for all users

Dialpad Cons

  • Low limit on video participants: Without adding on Dialpad Meetings, video meetings are capped at 10 participants
  • Support: Live agent support is only offered to Pro and Enterprise plan users
  • Interface: Some users have complained that Dialpad’s interface makes it difficult to use search and filter

 

Grasshopper - Best VoIP Calling Platform

Nate Reviews Grasshopper Phone System

Grasshopper is a scalable solution that forgoes extra features in favor of staying affordable. Having fewer features and integrations also makes it easier for new users to figure the platform out from the get-go.

Grasshopper does not offer video conferencing or team chat, while Mitel does via integrations with MiCollab and MiTeam Meetings. However, Grasshopper is far less expensive than Mitel, with plans starting at $14 per month–and no per-user fees. Grasshopper is a better option for entrepreneurs, partnerships, and small startups that don’t need a lot of extras and have a low call volume.

While Mitel lacks transparency in its pricing and plans, Grasshopper has upfront flat monthly pricing. Grasshopper does not have a full auto attendant like Mitel does, but it still includes a lot of the standard phone features Mitel has such as call forwarding, voicemail transcription, and on-hold music. Grasshopper also has a unique feature called “Instant Response” that will automatically send a text message to new callers when their call cannot be answered.

 

Grasshopper is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • A phone system for a startup or entrepreneur: Grasshopper has flat monthly rates with no per-user fees
  • A voice and text only system: Grasshopper does not have video conferencing or advanced routing features
  • A user friendly solution: Grasshopper’s minimalist user interface is quick and easy to set up and use

 

Key Features

  • Custom Phone Numbers: Grasshopper’s call-centric business model lets users create local, toll-free, and vanity numbers
  • Mobile Apps: Agents can communicate with customers no matter where they are, thanks to Grasshopper’s mobile apps for Android and iOS
  • Segmented Storage: All Grasshopper SMS and call recordings from your Grasshopper number are stored separately from the rest of the logs on your device.
  • Voicemail Transcriptions: Voicemails are transcribed and sent to users via email (voicemail-to-email)

 

Pricing & Plans

Grasshopper has a different pricing structure than Mitel and offers three paid plans from $14 to $55 per month with no per user fees. All features are included in all plans. The difference in the pricing tiers is the number of included phone numbers and extensions, which range from one phone number and one extension to four phone numbers and unlimited extensions.

For more information, see our Grasshopper pricing guide.

 

Grasshopper Pros

  • Easy to use: Grasshoppers platform is simple and straightforward
  • Inexpensive: Grasshoppers flat monthly rate pricing model is unique is the VoIP space
  • Toll free numbers: Users can select local or toll free VoIP numbers

Grasshopper Cons

  • No video conferencing: Grasshopper does not offer any video meeting capabilities
  • No team messaging: Grasshopper does not have any team messaging features
  • Security/reliability: Grasshopper does not have advanced security features or an uptime guarantee.

 

Avaya - Most Scalable Option

Avaya is a popular choice for large companies looking to purchase hardware and software from the same provider. Like Mitel, Avaya offers its own line of hardware including desk phones, portable DECT phones, and accessories. Unlike Mitel, however, Avaya also includes toll-free numbers and minutes in its business phone plans.

Avaya offers more team collaboration functionality than Mitel, with video conferencing for up to 200 participants, native team messaging that allows for communication between both internal and external users, and task assignment. Mitel, conversely, only offers team collaboration through its MiCollab product– a collection of integrations with third-party apps like MS Teams, and Outlook.

Avaya has a flexible infrastructure and allows users to choose from on-premise, private cloud or public cloud solutions, while Mitel only offers a public cloud-based platform.

 

Avaya is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • Remote team solution: Video meetings and team messaging with file sharing is included on all Avaya plans
  • Toll free calling: Avaya includes 1,000 to 10,000 toll free minutes depending on the pricing plan
  • Scalability: Avaya can scale up to as many as 250,000 users per plan, and Avaya’s robust servers already facilitate 15 million calls per minute

 

Standout Features

  • Smart devices: Avaya’s smart device support lets users leverage interactive virtual assistants like Alexa
  • Always-on conferencing: Avaya users can convert physical workspaces into video conferencing rooms with Avaya Cloud Office Rooms
  • Visual voicemail: Avaya users can access voicemail messages (audio or transcriptions) from a desk or mobile phone, email, desktop app, or online account
  • Real time analytics: Avaya analytics dashboards display real-time reporting measures with agent and queue details (wait time, abandoned calls, etc.)

 

Pricing & Plans

Avaya has similar pricing to Mitel with three paid plans from $20 to $35 per user, per month. Month to month pricing is $25 to $40 per user, per month. Users can also purchase extra toll free or international numbers a la carte.

 

Avaya Pros

  • Reporting and analytics: Avaya includes advanced analytics capabilities such as real time reporting along with keeping track of hundreds of KPIs
  • Video conferencing: Avaya includes video conferencing in all plans and it has a high user and duration limit compared to competitors
  • Call and screen recording: Avaya includes both manual and automatic call recording and screen call recording in its Premium plan

Avaya Cons

  • Lengthy set up process: Several users have complained about a lengthy setup and onboarding process
  • Lack of integrations: Avaya does offer some CRM integrations such as Salesforce and Service Now, but not nearly as many as other competitors
  • Reliability: Avaya does not offer an uptime guarantee and several users have complained about the app’s responsiveness

 

Ooma Office - Best For Small and Blended Teams

Nate Reviews Ooma

Ooma may have paved its road to success with the residential VoIP-in-a-box product, but they’ve since expanded into business communications. Ooma Office is a UCaaS platform with over 50 features and unlimited calling in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Mitel, alternatively, only includes unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada.

Ooma Office and MiVoice Business both offer essential call management features like call routing, hot desking, and auto attendant, but Ooma alone includes both virtual faxing functionality and analog fax machine support. Mitel users that require efax must add on MiCloud Connect Fax.

Ooma also offers some office-centric features that Mitel doesn’t have, such as IP phone paging and intercom, making Ooma a good option for in-office or hybrid teams. Additionally, Ooma includes a progressive auto dialer in its Pro Plus plan, making it a better choice than Mitel for blended inbound/outbound calling centers.

 

Ooma is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • Unlimited calling in Mexico and/or Puerto Rico: Ooma is one of the few VoIP providers that includes unlimited calling to Mexico as well as in the U.S. and Canada
  • Employee engagement tools: Ooma offers employee engagement and performance gamification tools like call leaderboards
  • Healthcare features: Ooma is HIPAA-ready and offers pre-built features for healthcare practices, including its NexHealth integration

 

Key Features

  • Mobile apps: The Ooma Office mobile app lets users check their voicemail inbox, update account information, and make/receive phone calls on-the-go
  • Virtual receptionist: Ooma comes with a virtual receptionist feature that lets users transfer calls to a specific expectation, add caller menus, or set custom greetings
  • Ring groups: Ooma users can have phones in a ring group ring simultaneously or one at a time, and can direct where calls are transferred if no one in the Ring Group answers
  • Video conferencing: Ooma Meetings allows for up to 100 participants and includes features such as hand raising, screen sharing, and whiteboard

 

Pricing & Plans

Ooma Office is slightly less expensive than Mitel and offers three paid plans from $19.95 to $29.95 per user, per month.

For more information, see our Ooma pricing guide.

 

Ooma Pros:

  • Customer support: Users report that Ooma customer service is responsive and effective
  • Ease of use: Ooma’s user interface is intuitive and quick to set up
  • Affordable: Ooma’s pricing starts at $19.95 per user/month, low compared to competitors

Ooma Cons:

  • Video conferencing: Ooma’s video conferencing tool, Ooma Meetings, is only included in Pro and Pro Plus plans
  • Spam blocking: Without the advanced spam blocking feature only included in the Ooma Office Pro plan, users complain that many robocalls come through
  • Reliability: Ooma does not offer an uptime guarantee and some users complain of dropped calls

 

Zoom - Best For Video Conferencing

Nate Reviews Zoom Phone

Zoom exploded in popularity during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic and became a household name in the video conferencing world. Now, it offers an extremely affordable UCaaS platform called Zoom Phone.

Zoom offers several AI-powered features that Mitel does not have, including post call summaries, voicemail prioritization, and task extraction. Zoom Phone seamlessly integrates with Zoom Workplace, giving users access to whiteboards, team chat, and, of course, Zoom’s innovative video conferencing platform. Mitel’s collaboration tool, MiCollab, simply cannot compare as it lacks the advanced features and enterprise grade security that Zoom has.

Depending on the plan, Zoom video meetings include multi-language automated captions, branding, remote keyboard and mouse control, and more.

 

Zoom is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • Advanced collaboration features: Zoom offers a plethora of cutting edge collaboration features such as whiteboarding, digital avatars, team chat, and webinar tools
  • Enhanced security: Zoom is one of the few video conferencing platforms that has end to end encryption
  • A solution for a shoestring budget: Zoom has some of the most affordable UCaaS pricing plans available as well as a robust free plan

 

Key Features

  • In-Meeting Features: Whether it’s custom backgrounds, live transcription, mid-meeting polling, or cloud recording, there are lots of advanced meeting features to tinker with. The only downside is the 40-minute time limit for freemium users, which incentivizes paid upgrades.
  • Recording And Transcription: Switching to a paid plan removes the time limit and also yields a few other premium perks like social media message transcripts, recording transcripts, and 1 GB of cloud storage (unlimited for enterprise users.)
  • Large Meeting Capacity: Zoom’s Large Meetings add-on for $600/year increases capacity to 500-1,000 people. Plus, the famed Zoom App Gallery includes Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, Dropbox, MailChimp, and over a thousand other integrations.

 

Pricing & Plans

Zoom is much more affordable than Mitel and offers some of the lowest prices in the VoIP space. Zoom Phone offers four paid plans from $10 to $22.49 per user, per month. Zoom meetings must be purchased separately and other add-ons include call queue analytics and international calling.

For more information, see our Zoom pricing guide.

 

Zoom Pros

  • Scalable: Zoom has expanded to provide not only webinar services, but contact center software as well
  • Flexible: Zoom users can choose between a voice only Zoom Phone plan, or a Zoom One plan combining phone service with video conferencing, team chat, and more
  • High quality audio and video: Many users raved about the quality and reliability of Zoom’s service

Zoom Cons

  • Lots of add-ons: Some essential features such as premium customer support, toll-free numbers, and advanced analytics are only available as add-ons
  • Limited VoIP features: While Zoom offers many advanced video features, it does not offer AI-powered phone features such as sentiment analysis
  • Limited integrations: Zoom Phone only has 5 CRM integrations which is much less than most competitors offer

 

Vonage - Best Cross-Platform Experience

Nate Reviews Vonage

Vonage Business Communications is a highly customizable UCaaS solution that offers a variety of add-ons to enhance the customer experience–without forcing businesses to pay for features they don’t need. Mitel conversely, is a relatively inflexible solution that can only be customized with a limited number of third party integrations. Mitel does not offer international texting service, while VBC does.

Vonage also allows for larger video meetings than Mitel, with a participant cap of 200, and includes a native team messaging platform that allows users to initiate a video call with a colleague with a click.

 

Vonage is a Good Alternative to Mitel if You Need:

  • A custom solution: Vonage offers voice and video APIs as well as many out of the box integrations, allowing users to create a completely custom platform
  • Flexible pricing: Vonage pricing starts at $19.99/user/month, but they generally offer rates as low $13.99/user/month if no advanced features are needed
  • Reliability: Vonage has a 99.999% uptime guarantee along with several advanced security features such as single sign on

 

Standout Features

  • Unified Dashboard and Mobile Apps: Admins can manage recordings, queues, call groups, and other features through the same portal
  • Visual Voicemail: Vonage’s voicemail transcripts are surprisingly accurate with only occasional, minor errors that don’t impact readability
  • Extensive App Gallery: Vonage has a large app gallery, but users must upgrade to the Premium plan for advanced integrations
  • Virtual receptionist: Allows users to manage the company’s phone menu, routing rules, and outgoing messages directly through the app

 

Pricing & Plans

Vonage pricing is more flexible than Mitel, as Vonage offers low monthly plans starting at $13.99 per user, per month, and gives users the option to add on advanced features as they need them. Mitel offers only quote based pricing and is not transparent about how its pricing structure works. Vonage offers three paid plans from $13.99 to $27.99 per user, per month.

For more information on Vonage pricing, check out our Vonage pricing guide.

 

Vonage Pros

  • International calling: Vonage Business Communications (VBC) offers several affordable global calling plans
  • Integrations: Vonage offers several free integrations such as Zendesk, GSuite, Microsoft Dynamics, etc.
  • Clean interface on all platforms: Vonage users have praised the product for its intuitive interface across video, voice, SMS and chat platforms

Vonage Cons

  • Expensive onboarding support: Onboarding support and system setup add-ons can get pretty expensive, with some bundles costing up to $6,000
  • Basic features as add-ons: Vonage has very affordable plans but there are many basic features such as conference bridge and call recording that are only offered as add-ons
  • Hard to reach customer support agents: Vonage users report that reaching customer support is difficult and representatives often close out the chat before their issue is resolved

 

Should you Choose Mitel or an Alternative?

Which UCaaS solution should you choose–Mitel or an alternative?

 

When to Use Mitel

  • If you need a “no-frills” solution: Mitel’s phone system is minimalistic and user- friendly without a steep learning curve
  • If your business is in the healthcare industry: Mitel offers a HIPAA-compliant cloud healthcare communications solution with scheduling and mass messaging tools
  • If you need an economic platform: Although there are less expensive options, Mitel’s prices are more affordable than most UCaaS providers

 

When to Use a Mitel Alternative

  • If you need a full suite of communications channels: Mitel’s platform focuses on voice features and offers only a limited number of digital communication channels
  • If you need scalability: Mitel doesn’t offer contact center software or advanced video conferencing tools. Businesses needing these tools should opt for GoTo Connect or 8x8
  • If you need a high level of security: Mitel does not offer advanced security features or an uptime guarantee. RingCentral is a better choice for security

 

The best phone system for your business will depend on several factors including budget, needed features, access to IT support, scalability, and the level of security needed. Each provider offers their own strengths and drawbacks and there is no "one-size-fits-all" solution. Mitel is a solid option for businesses with a tight budget, but it won't be a perfect for every company and may even end up costing more in the long run for some. Fortunately there are numerous UCaaS options to choose from.