Comparison
UK Business Phone Systems
Compared, Feature by Feature
Nine providers, twenty-two features, one table. Every cell was checked against the provider's own UK pricing page, help centre or documentation, and anything they do not document is marked as not stated rather than guessed.
Updated · facts checked · prices per user per month, excluding VAT
In short
Of nine UK business phone systems checked against their own UK pages, AymexConnect is the only one we could verify that includes two-way SMS from a UK business number, team chat, video meetings, voicemail transcription, a native Linux app, a published pound price, no contract and a no-card free trial on its entry plan (£8.95 per user). Microsoft Teams suits Microsoft 365 shops, Zoom and Dialpad lead on included AI, Aircall suits CRM-driven call teams, RingCentral and 8x8 suit large multi-country estates, and bOnline suits small firms happy with a 12-month contract.
The full comparison
- Included
- Some plans
- Paid add-on
- Not available
- Not stated
| Feature | AymexConnect | RingCentral | Vonage | 8x8 | Dialpad | Zoom Phone | Teams Phone | Aircall | bOnline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price per user per month | £8.95 to £23.95 monthly, no contract (£7.45 to £19.95 billed annually) | £12.99 to £29.99 on annual billing; £17.99 to £33.99 paid monthly | £10 to £25, ex VAT, sold by quote | Quote only; no UK list price we could open | £12 to £20 on annual billing; £22 to £28 paid monthly | UK/Ireland regional plan; GBP price not published to us | About £18.50 (Microsoft 365 Business Basic £5.40 + Teams Phone with Domestic Calling £13.10) | £25 to £40 on annual billing, 3-licence minimum | £7 to £29.95 + VAT, 12 or 24-month term |
| Calling | |||||||||
| Unlimited UK landline & mobile calls | Some plans.Professional & Ultimate; 500 pooled min on Starter | Paid add-on.EMEA upgrade, 20+ users only | Some plans.Core (£15) and Max | Not stated. | Included.Unlimited calls within the UK | Some plans.UK/Ireland regional plan | Not available.Capped at 3,000 pooled minutes | Some plans.Professional (£40) and above | Some plans.Unlimited plan and above |
| Auto-attendant / IVR menus | Some plans.Ultimate, set up by our team | Some plans.Standard and above | Some plans.Higher plans | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included.With Teams Phone | Included. | Paid add-on.Advanced call flow, £3/mo |
| Ring groups / call queues | Some plans.Ultimate | Not stated.Queues Booster £28/mo listed | Some plans.Higher plans or paid app | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Paid add-on.Advanced call flow, £3/mo |
| Call recording in the plan price | Some plans.Professional & Ultimate | Some plans.Standard and above | Some plans.Higher plans | Included.30-day storage on X1/X2 | Included.Automatic on Pro and above | Included. | Included. | Included. | Some plans.Unlimited plan and above |
| 999 address per user or number | Included.Per number and per site | Included. | Not stated. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Not available.Address capture US/Canada only | Some plans.One site address per account |
| Messaging & meetings | |||||||||
| Two-way SMS from your UK business number | Included.Every plan; pay-as-you-go on Starter | Not stated.Not listed on UK plans | Some plans.Max only, from an eSIM mobile, not synced | Not available.Sending from UK numbers not supported | Paid add-on.UK SMS via sales, per message | Some plans.Regional plan, direct numbers only | Not available.US and Canada only | Some plans.UK mobile numbers only | Not available.Internal chat only |
| Team chat & channels | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Not available. | Some plans.Unlimited plan and above |
| Video meetings | Included.40-min cap on Starter | Some plans.Standard and above | Some plans.Core and above | Included. | Included. | Included.40-min cap on Basic bundle | Included. | Not available. | Included. |
| AI | |||||||||
| Voicemail transcription | Included.With an AI summary | Not stated. | Paid add-on.Visual Voicemail add-on | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Not stated. |
| AI call summaries | Some plans.Professional & Ultimate | Included.AI Assistant, no extra cost | Not stated. | Paid add-on.Conversation IQ add-on | Included. | Included. | Paid add-on.Teams Premium or Copilot | Some plans.Professional+; add-on on Essentials | Some plans.AI plans or £8/mo add-on |
| AI meeting recaps | Some plans.Ultimate | Some plans.Standard and above | Not stated. | Some plans.Beta, on request | Included. | Some plans.Limited on the lowest tier | Paid add-on.Teams Premium or Copilot | Not available.No meetings | Not stated. |
| AI writing help for chat & SMS | Included.50 uses per user on Starter | Included.AI Assistant | Not stated. | Included.Chat AI, off by default | Included.Early-adopter feature | Some plans.Team Chat only | Paid add-on.Copilot | Paid add-on.Email drafts, AI Assist | Not stated. |
| Background noise reduction | Included. | Not stated. | Not stated. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included. | Not stated. |
| AI receptionist / voice agent | Not available.Not offered yet | Paid add-on.£32/account/mo | Not stated. | Paid add-on.AI Studio, early access | Paid add-on.Dialpad Resolve, credits | Paid add-on.US$0.30 per minute | Paid add-on.Teams Phone Agent, credits | Included.50 min/month included | Some plans.AI Hero plan or £10/mo |
| Apps & devices | |||||||||
| Native Linux desktop app | Included. | Not available. | Not available. | Not available.Web app instead | Not available.Windows, macOS, ChromeOS | Included. | Not available.Web only | Not available. | Not available. |
| Calling from a web browser | Not available.Browser for meetings & admin; calls in the apps | Included. | Included. | Included. | Included.Chrome only | Included. | Included. | Included.Chrome only | Included. |
| Bring your own SIP desk phones | Some plans.Professional & Ultimate | Included.Manual setup, fewer features | Some plans.Compatible list | Included.5 free credentials | Some plans.Unverified phones lose 999 | Included.Enabled by support | Some plans.Certified models only | Some plans.Needs approval, limited | Not available.Yealink only |
| Terms, trust & data | |||||||||
| Monthly plan, no minimum term | Included. | Not stated.Initial commitment period | Not available.Minimum term with exit charges | Not available.No month-to-month | Included. | Included. | Not stated. | Not stated.Monthly billing, 3-licence minimum | Not available.12 or 24-month term |
| Self-serve free trial | Included.30 days, no card | Some plans.5 users, 50 min each | Not available.Not for phone plans | Not stated. | Some plans.14 days, card required | Not stated. | Not stated. | Some plans.7 days, capped | Some plans.7 days |
| Published prices in pounds | Included. | Included. | Included. | Not stated.Quote-based | Included.Via currency selector | Not stated.USD shown to us | Included. | Included.Annual prices only | Included. |
| Customer data stored in the UK/EU | Included.UK (AWS London) and EU | Not stated. | Not stated. | Not stated. | Not available.Stored in the US | Some plans.UK option for recordings & voicemail | Included.UK data-at-rest commitment | Some plans.EU for recordings; account & SMS in US | Not stated. |
| Fraud controls & spending limits | Included.Allowed destinations + daily spend cap | Not stated. | Not stated. | Some plans.International off unless enabled | Included.International on prepaid credits | Some plans.Country allow-list, no spend cap | Included.Dial-out policies, prepaid credits | Not stated. | Paid add-on.Paid fraud protection |
Scroll sideways on a phone; the feature column stays put. Select a provider name for its detail page and sources.
Where we lead
Six Things AymexConnect
Does Differently
Taken straight from the table above.
- 01
SMS from your UK business number
Two-way texting on every plan, on shared and direct numbers. 8x8 and Teams cannot send from UK numbers, bOnline is internal-only, and others restrict it to one plan or one number type.
- 02
Everything in one app, on Linux too
Calls, SMS, chat, meetings and AI in the same app on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android. Only Zoom also ships a native Linux app.
- 03
No contract, a real trial
Monthly plans you can leave at any time and a 30-day trial with no card. Dialpad's trial is 14 days with a card; Aircall's and bOnline's are 7.
- 04
Unlimited UK calling at any team size
From Professional, for one user or a hundred. RingCentral needs 20 users for unlimited calling and Teams caps at 3,000 pooled minutes.
- 05
UK and EU data, stated up front
Data stored in the UK (AWS London) and the EU. Dialpad stores customer data in the US; most others do not say.
- 06
A daily spending cap against toll fraud
Allowed destinations plus a hard daily spend limit. The others that document fraud controls offer country or destination blocking rather than a spend cap, and bOnline charges for it.
Being straight with you
Where Others Are Ahead Today
A comparison that never admits a gap is an advert. These are the places another provider may suit you better.
- AI receptionist: Aircall and bOnline include one and most others sell one; AymexConnect does not offer one yet.
- Auto-attendant menus and ring groups are on Ultimate only, where our team sets them up for you; Dialpad, Zoom, 8x8 and Aircall include them on every plan.
- Calling from a web browser: our web portal covers meetings, voicemail and admin, and calls are made in the desktop and mobile apps.
- Dialpad and Zoom include AI meeting recaps on lower tiers than our Ultimate plan.
Provider by Provider
Each page has the full price line-up, the two-column feature table, where that provider is the better choice, and where AymexConnect is.
Comparison
AymexConnect vs RingCentral
RingCentral RingEX vs AymexConnect for UK teams: prices from £12.99 vs £8.95, unlimited calling rules, UK SMS, AI, Linux app and contracts, feature by feature.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs Teams Phone
Teams Phone costs about £18.50 per user in the UK, caps calls at 3,000 minutes, has no UK SMS and charges extra for AI recaps. Compared with AymexConnect.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs Zoom Phone
Zoom Phone vs AymexConnect for UK teams: UK calling plan, SMS limits, included AI, AI receptionist pricing, UK data storage and trial, feature by feature.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs Dialpad
Dialpad costs £12 to £28 per user with strong AI, but UK SMS is a sales add-on and customer data is stored in the US. Compared with AymexConnect.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs Aircall
Aircall costs £25 to £40 per licence with a three-licence minimum and no team chat or video. AymexConnect starts at £8.95 with both. Feature by feature.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs Vonage
Vonage UK plans run £10 to £25 per user, sold by quote with a minimum term, with SMS only on the Max eSIM. Compared with AymexConnect, feature by feature.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs 8x8
8x8 X Series is sold by quote with no month-to-month option, and UK numbers cannot send SMS. AymexConnect publishes prices from £8.95 with no contract.
Updated
Comparison
AymexConnect vs bOnline
bOnline costs £7 to £29.95 per user on a 12 or 24-month contract, with no external SMS and Yealink-only phones. Compared with AymexConnect, feature by feature.
Updated
Questions People Ask
Of the nine compared, AymexConnect is the only one we could verify includes all of these on its entry plan: two-way SMS from a UK business number, team chat, video meetings, voicemail transcription, a native Linux app, a published price in pounds, no contract and a free trial without a card (£8.95 per user). Dialpad and Zoom include more AI on entry tiers; RingCentral and 8x8 offer larger enterprise feature sets at higher prices.
AymexConnect on every plan. Zoom Phone on its UK/Ireland regional plan for direct numbers, Aircall on UK mobile numbers, Vonage only from the Max plan's mobile eSIM, and Dialpad as a sales add-on. 8x8 and Microsoft Teams do not support sending SMS from UK numbers, and bOnline's chat is internal only.
AymexConnect Professional (£17.95), Dialpad, Vonage Core, Zoom's UK/Ireland plan, Aircall Professional (£40, three-licence minimum) and bOnline Unlimited (12-month term). RingCentral sells unlimited calling only to accounts of 20 or more users, and Microsoft Teams caps the Domestic plan at 3,000 pooled minutes.
Aircall includes 50 minutes a month of its AI voice agent; bOnline includes one on its AI Hero plan. RingCentral (£32 per account), Zoom (US$0.30 a minute), Microsoft (Copilot credits), Dialpad and 8x8 sell one as an add-on. AymexConnect does not offer an AI receptionist yet.
AymexConnect (monthly, 30-day trial, no card), Dialpad (monthly billing, 14-day trial with a card) and Zoom (monthly billing). Aircall and bOnline offer 7-day trials; bOnline requires a 12 or 24-month term and 8x8 does not offer month-to-month.
AymexConnect stores data in the UK (AWS London) and the EU. Microsoft Teams has a UK data-at-rest commitment and Zoom offers UK storage for phone recordings and voicemail. Dialpad stores permanent customer data in the US; Aircall holds recordings in the EU but account and SMS data in the US. The others did not state a location on the pages we checked.
Each provider's own UK pricing page, help centre or product documentation was checked on 4 November 2026. Every provider's detail page lists the exact sources. Where a provider does not document something we mark it "Not stated" rather than guess. Prices change often; verify before you decide.
Sources
Checked 4 November 2026. We are the vendor: the table states what each provider publishes, the verdicts are ours. Run a trial with your own numbers before you decide.
- RingCentral UK plans and pricing
- RingCentral AI Assistant (UK)
- RingCentral AI Receptionist pricing (UK)
- RingCentral downloads (UK)
- RingCentral UK emergency services
- Vonage UK pricing
- Vonage UK plan comparison
- Vonage desktop app
- Vonage Visual Voicemail
- Vonage UK business terms
- 8x8 X Series services table
- 8x8 Work SMS FAQ
- 8x8 desktop app requirements
- 8x8 contract renewal and buyout
- 8x8 third-party SIP devices
- Dialpad UK pricing
- Dialpad: sending messages (UK SMS add-on)
- Dialpad UK trust centre (data location)
- Dialpad app requirements
- Dialpad sign-up and trial
- Zoom Phone pricing
- Zoom Phone SMS availability
- Zoom UK infrastructure launch (June 2026)
- Zoom AI Receptionist pricing
- Microsoft Teams Phone (UK)
- Teams Calling Plans in the UK
- Teams SMS availability
- Teams intelligent recap licensing
- Teams clients (Linux support)
- Aircall UK pricing
- Aircall UK SMS
- Aircall supported platforms
- Aircall regional data hosting
- Aircall free trial limits
- bOnline pricing
- bOnline AI features
- bOnline in-app chat (no external SMS)
- bOnline compatible desk phones
- bOnline business terms
Try the One With Everything in One App Free for Thirty Days
A UK number, every app, SMS, chat, meetings and smart voicemail. No card, no contract.