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According to our research, Vonage is a better VoIP provider than MagicJack, offering an all-around better platform when it comes to features, software integrations, and communication channels.
In fact, Vonage beats MagicJack in almost every research category. Where MagicJack only scored 2.8 in our basic call management feature category, Vonage scored a 4.1. Vonage also trumped MagicJack on key functions such as security and training features.
In this guide, we’ll explain how these two top VoIP providers match up on everything from external connections to pricing plans, so you can make the right decision for your business. And given the big gap between these two providers, the decision should be an easy one.
For an in-depth look at these and other VoIP providers, check out our VoIP quotes comparison form to get more information.
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MagicJack vs Vonage: Key Differences
Our research found that Vonage and MagicJack are very different VoIP providers. For example, MagicJack only offers one pricing plan, which is more affordable than the three pricing plans from Vonage. Additionally, Vonage has far more external connections than MagicJack, offering integration with CRM and web conferencing software.
You’ll also find MagicJack lacking compared to Vonage when it comes to features, since Vonage offers extensive call management features, including a virtual receptionist. That, combined with the fewer communication channels available, makes Vonage the clear choice, even at the higher price.
Here are some other key differences between the two options, which should help you narrow down which one is a better choice for you and your business.
- Vonage has more features than MagicJack
- MagicJack is more affordable than Vonage
- Vonage has more software and hardware integration options than MagicJack
- MagicJack has fewer communication channels than Vonage
- Vonage has better training features than MagicJack
- MagicJack has worse customer support than Vonage
Now that we understand how these two VoIP providers match up on the basics, let’s take a deeper look at MagicJack and Vonage on their own, so you know what you’re getting into.
MagicJack Review
Our research found that MagicJack isn’t really the best option when it comes to VoIP providers. In fact, it scored lowly in many of the key categories our research investigated, due to its notable lack of features, its non-existent software integration options, its lack of communication channels, and its poor training features.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom with MagicJack. Given its fewer offerings, it does take care of the basics, providing unlimited domestic and international minutes in its single pricing plan. Additionally, it offers this at a lower price than most other VoIP options at $15.99 per user per month, making it a surprisingly good value if you just need the basics.
Still, if you’re a larger business, or even a small business with plans to grow, MagicJack just isn’t going to provide the features, integrations, communication channels, or security you need to get to the next level.
Check out our MagicJack alternatives guide for more information on other options
magicJack for Business
In Short
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Pros
- Simple pricing options
- Comprehensive mobile app
- Great value for call management features provided
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Cons
- Limited features, so it’s not an all-in-one communication solution
- Does not provide tools to aid in training new employees
- Few integrations are provided
Pricing
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One pricing plan: $9.99/line/month
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Add-ons available for around $5-$10/month
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Hardware starts from $54.99 per handset
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MagicJack may not update its software often. Its most recent YouTube video is three years old, while its Twitter/X account has only posted three times since 2022. In fact, MagicJack’s most recent initiative is two years old: It introduced its “Business Referral Program” in October 2023, which awards customers with a $25 credit for each new referral who signs up for the service.
Vonage Review
Whether you’ve seen their commercials or just love VoIP software, you’ve almost certainly heard of Vonage before. The robust VoIP provider offers a lot, which secured its spot in the top four of our best VoIP provider research, and for good reason.
Vonage scored highly in all our research categories (particularly compared to MagicJack). When it comes to communication channels and security, Vonage scored 5/5 across both, thanks to its massive feature catalog of advanced tools for businesses, including significant call management tools.
Its weakest point, however, is its pricing. Our research found that while the Premium and Advanced plans offer great value to larger businesses in comparison to competitors, smaller businesses considering the Mobile plan should look elsewhere. For example, competitors Ooma Office and RingCentral both offer a ‘Ring Group’ function on their lowest price plans, where Vonage does not, and Ooma Office even records a lower starting price.
Check out our full Vonage review for more in-depth analysis of the provider.
Vonage
In Short
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Pros
- Great central hub for collaborating, with team messaging on all plans
- Great training and management features, perfect for sales and customer service teams
- Lots of big-name integrations means minimal changes for your team
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Cons
- Analytics features are quite primitive, making it difficult to get actionable insights
- Lots of features include additional fees, so it’s hard to get a good gauge of your final price
Pricing
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Mobile: $13.99/user/month
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Premium: $20.99/user/month
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Advanced: $27.99/user/month
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Vonage’s main VoIP offering hasn’t changed much recently, but the larger business continues evolving. Most recently, Vonage has been updating its VCC Intelligent Workspace, an AI-powered omnichannel interface, to suit the needs of its Contact Center software. As part of its latest press release, Vonage has also announced many other developments, including the ability to pause and resume screen recordings and an enhanced security page.
Best Value for Money: MagicJack
When it comes to value, we looked at the price of a provider and whether or not it offered effective communication channels and significant call management features.
While MagicJack has a lot of shortcomings as far as features are concerned, it offers the basics for a cheaper price than Vonage, and could still therefore be a good choice for a smaller business with simple call management needs.
Still, when it comes to value, it’s important to understand exactly what you need before making a decision. While MagicJack may be cheaper, our research concluded it’s definitely not the best choice for everyone. Take a look at the two pricing options for MagicJack and Vonage below to get a better idea of what you’re working with.
MagicJack for Business pricing
MagicJack for Business pricing is pretty simple compared to Vonage. The VoIP provider offers only one pricing plan, compared to three from Vonage, so you don’t have to do too much research to find out which one is the right fit for you.
The MagicJack for Business pricing plan costs $15.99 per user, per month, which is a bit less expensive than Vonage’s least costly option. You get all the basic features you should expect from a VoIP provider. Call management features include caller ID, call queue, ring groups, and call forwarding. You’ll also have unlimited domestic and international minutes.
This plan is a great option for these basic features, but it’s worth remembering that MagicJack offers almost none of the advanced features found with Vonage, so be wary of going for the cheaper option here.
There are features like auto-attendant, virtual fax, and toll-free numbers, but they’ll cost you between $5 per month and $10 per month extra.
Vonage pricing
Vonage pricing is more varied than MagicJack for Business, offering three different pricing plans to choose from: Mobile, Premium, and Advanced, rather than just one plan from MagicJack. Here are the plans, broken down by price:
- The Mobile plan costs $19.99 per user, per month.
- The Premium plan costs $29.99 per user, per month.
- The Advanced plan costs $39.99 per user, per month.
On top of all that, some of Vonage’s training features will cost you extra, including call monitoring, call queue, call barge-in, and call whisper.
Vonage is a pretty good value, scoring a 3/5 in our research, due to its slightly higher price but bountiful offerings for the cost. It’s definitely more expensive than MagicJack, with even the least expensive plan costing more than the single MagicJack plan, but it offers so much more that we think it’s a better buy.
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$13.99/user/month |
$20.99/user/month |
$27.99/user/month |
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Unlimited |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
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Vonage vs MagicJack: Head-to-Head
If you haven’t guessed by now, our research shows that Vonage is absolutely a better VoIP provider, outscoring MagicJack in almost every category that we measured. Read on for an in-depth look at each category, so you know why we deem Vonage to be the better option of the two.
Best for Call Management Features: Vonage
As with most categories, this one isn’t even close between Vonage and MagicJack. Our research found that Vonage scored an impressive 4.1/5 for call management features, whereas MagicJack netted a mere 2.8/5, which should concretely show you that one is better than the other in this regard.
The problem is that MagicJack is geared towards smaller, more basic needs for VoIP. It offers call routing only as an add-on, and it lacks call screening functions such as automatic screening, voicemail screening, and voicemail transcripts. Likewise, features such as call recording, call monitoring, and call barge that could be effective for businesses wanting to train employees on the phone, are unavailable in MagicJack.
Even worse, many of the inbound communication features cost extra, which is why we have to give Vonage the edge.
Best for Communication Channels: Vonage
With a business tool as important as VoIP, you’re going to want to have access to many different communication channels in order to stay on top of your business and its needs. Subsequently, you’ll want to opt for Vonage over MagicJack, as the provider offers substantially more options to connect and collaborate.
For one, Vonage offers team messaging, video conferencing of up to 200 participants, SMS, and call conferencing, whereas MagicJack offers only call conferencing, and both offer e-fax as an add-on. While Vonage certainly trumps MagicJack in this category, it is important to note that team messaging and video conferencing are only available on the Premium and Advanced plans.
In short, Vonage – with a score of 4.5/5 – has the clear edge for communication channels over MagicJack, which scored 0/5 for the category.
Best for External Connections: Vonage
No doubt you’ll want your VoIP system to integrate with the other tools installed at your business. Subsequently, you’ll want to choose a provider that offers a lot of external connections to both other software and hardware.
Simply put, MagicJack can’t integrate with CRM, Helpdesk, email or calendar software, which Vonage absolutely can, including to Salesforce, Zoho CRM, Office 365 and Google Workspace. However, again, these integrations are only available on Premium and Advanced users of Vonage. So, if you’re looking for integrations on a lower-priced plan, you may want to check out another top VoIP provider.
In terms of hardware, Premium and Advanced users of Vonage can enjoy connections to Polycom, Yealink, and Panasonic phones, whereas MagicJack can only support Yealink phones.
How Do Vonage and MagicJack Compare to Other VoIP Providers?
Vonage and MagicJack obviously aren’t the only VoIP options on the market. In fact, the industry is filled with plenty of excellent choices that could be a better fit for your business.
Our top choice in our research was RingCentral, thanks to robust customer support, lots of features, and unmatched scalability. 8×8 and Zoom Phone were two other options that we found competitive in the space, while Ooma has customer service to rival Vonage. Take a look at the table below to see how all these VoIP providers match up against each other.
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RingCentral |
Vonage |
magicJack for Business |
8×8 |
Zoom Phone |
GoTo Connect |
Ooma |
Nextiva |
Net2Phone |
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$20/user/month |
$13.99/user/month |
$15.99/user/month |
Custom |
$10.50/user/month |
Custom |
$19.95/user/month |
$20/user/month |
$19.99/user/month |
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Integrations |
Training features |
Smaller businesses |
24/7 customer support |
Call management features |
Unifying internal communications |
Customer experience |
Professional services |
Great for international businesses |
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Large variety of helpdesk and CRM integrations |
Staff improve on the job, due to top training and management tools |
Basic, affordable option for smallest businesses |
Integrates with various other communication tools |
Affordable pricing |
Provides call management features at low cost |
Crystal-clear call quality |
Unlimited calls in US and Canada |
Integrates with Microsoft Office, Google, and others |
How We Compare VoIP Providers
There’s no doubt that Vonage is better than MagicJack, but how did we come to that conclusion? At Tech.co, we’re all about thorough research that gives you a clear picture of how one provider differs to another. Here are the metrics we used to compare, rate, and rank VoIP providers for your business:
- Value – How affordable a provider is, while still offering basic call management features.
- Features – How large the feature catalog is for a particular provider, in particular, call management and training features.
- External connections – How many hardware and software integrations are available?
- Customer support – What hours are they available, and through which channels?
- Security – Whether a platform has advanced security features like multi-factor authentication, encryption, and password rules.
- Customer score – How customers feel about the platform, based on app reviews and customer feedback.
If you want to learn more about our process, take a look at our in-depth research guide to understand how we rate and rank all business software.
Our research shows that Vonage is better than MagicJack, providing more call management features, more external integration options, more communication channels, and an overall better offering, even for the slightly higher price.
MagicJack is really only a viable option for smaller businesses that don’t need a lot of features, whereas Vonage is a complete package that can grow with your business.
If you’re in the market for VoIP software, be sure to check out our VoIP quote comparison page for more in-depth information about pricing, and check out our top VoIP providers guide to see what other products are out there.
Frequently Asked Questions
According to our research, most VoIP providers are better than MagicJack, as it offers a limited set of features, minimal scalability, poor security, and weak customer support options. Generally speaking, unless you’re a very small business that really needs to cut costs, there are plenty of other options that will likely be a better fit, like RingCentral, 8×8, or Vonage.
Our research found that RingCentral is the best VoIP provider, offering a top-tier feature list, plenty of customer support, and robust scalability features, so the platform can grow with your business.
Vonage is not going out of business, but the service did do away with its Vonage Mobile service in late February 2020.
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