Top 9 Vanity Phone Number Providers in 2022 (Ultimate Guide)

If we asked you to name three telephone numbers for businesses, we’re willing to bet that a few numbers from familiar commercial jingles would instantly pop into your head.

But it’s not just the catchy tunes that make these business phone numbers memorable. It’s also that these phone numbers contain the names of the companies themselves or relevant words. 1-800-FLOWERS, 1-800-CONTACTS, and 1800-CALL-ATT are all examples of vanity 800 numbers.

Because these 800 numbers are so popular, only limited numbers are available as a part of a virtual phone system — and when they are, they’re expensive. Alternative number prefixes like 887, 866, and 855 were created to meet market demand for toll-free numbers.

Toll-free vanity phone numbers have been around since 1967, but the fact that AT&T was the only company offering them until 1984 meant that these numbers were only accessible to well-established companies that could pay the highest price.

Should your business get a vanity number, and how does the process work?

Let’s take a look at these features — and what to consider when choosing a provider — now.

Table of Contents

1. Which Vanity 800 Number Provider Has the Highest Rating?
2. What to Look For in Toll-Free Service Providers
3. How We Determined the Top Vanity Phone Number Providers
4. The Top 9 Vanity 800 Number Providers
5. Why Vanity 800 Numbers Still Matter in 2020
6. Frequently Asked Questions

Which Vanity Number Provider is the Highest Rated? 

Based on our criteria, the below table ranks the providers’ scores out of 5.00, from lowest to highest.

Provider	Our Rating	Vanity Number Highlights
Visit 800.com	3/5 Our review	Call recording Voicemail to email and SMS Call notes
Visit GoDaddy	3.2/5 Our review	Voicemail to email and SMS Contact communication history Specific number ringtones
Visit UniTel	3.8/5 Our review	Faxing Virtual auto attendant  Call scheduling/after-hours mode
Visit eVoice	4/5 Our review	International calling Call recording Simultaneous and sequential ringing
Visit GoToConnect	4.1/5 Our review	Ring strategies and call rules DID directory Auto-attendant
Visit AVOXI	4.2/5 Our review	International Calling Call Recording Advanced call routing options
Visit Grasshopper	4.3/5 Our review	Per-extension call forwarding rules Custom voice greetings User tracking/reporting
Visit RingCentral	4.5/5 Our review	Unlimited faxing Unlimited audio conferencing Call parking and call flipping
Visit Phone.com	4.7/5 Our review	HIPAA compliance SMS texting Click-to-call

What to Look For in Toll-Free Number Services

Over 70% of consumers remember a vanity number correctly after a 30-second ad, while 30-second ads featuring standard numbers had only a 5% recall rate.

We’ll speak more later on about why you need a vanity number, but first, let’s talk providers.

When choosing your provider, don’t go with the first option that you see has the number you want available in their searchable database. Below, we’ll break down the features any provider worth their salt will offer — and the average costs of a toll-free vanity number.

Overall Phone Number Availability

Providers must offer a variety of toll-free number prefixes, aside from the most popular — and therefore most expensive — 1-800 option.

Ensure they have 888, 877, 866, 855, 844, and the most recent, 833, prefixes available. This means you’ll be much more likely to get the number and word combination you want.

A top provider will also offer available vanity numbers for toll-free and local options

Consider whether or not you’ll need multiple business numbers right away, or if you can get along with one main number with numerous user extensions for the time being.

Essential Calling Features

All cloud phone system features should allow for multiple extensions (sometimes called users) per number and basic features like call routing and forwarding, voicemail, and WiFi calling.

However, it’s reasonable to assume high-quality providers will also offer:

• Automated attendants
• Voicemail-to-email
• Basic call history information
• Missed call notifications
• SMS text messages
• Virtual faxing
• Caller ID

Reasonable Cost

Some providers offer unlimited minutes per month but have a higher monthly flat fee, while others include a set number of minutes per month with a lower flat monthly fee.

International calling is generally not included in basic 800 number plans, but can often be added for an additional monthly fee. The cost per minute depends on the countries you’ll be communicating with.

Our research found that the average cost of a monthly plan with unlimited minutes is $20.00/user per month.

Number Control and Security

A number porting scheme, or “port-out scamming,” occurs when, using basic information like your name and number, a criminal can call your provider and steal your number by porting it over to another service. This is especially common with 1-800 number prefixes.

Things like two-factor authentication and security questions, as well as outright owning your 800 number, can prevent these scams.

How We Determined the Top Vanity Number Providers 

We’ve developed a 1-5 rating system for the most important decision-making factors, with 1 being the lowest rating and 5 being the highest. 

Before we dive into the top vanity number providers, let’s discuss the criteria we used to develop this list. 

The below factors were taken into consideration when ranking providers:

• Overall Cost: How close is the cost of the most popular plan to an average of $20.00?
• Number Availability: Does the provider offer local, long-distance, and international numbers with all available number prefixes?
• Number Control and Security: Do users own the number after purchasing it, can numbers be ported in/out to/from other providers, and does the provider offer strong security measures to prevent port-out scamming?
• User Experience: How intuitive is the interface, how high is the overall user satisfaction based on user reviews?
• Overall Features: What features are offered?

The Top 9 Vanity 800 Number Providers 

The below vanity number providers meet all of the above criteria, and offer unique features that set them apart from competitors.  

#9 – 800.com

800.com primarily provides 800 vanity numbers, but it also offers basic calling features. 

These features include caller ID, call notes, call forwarding, blocking, and recording, and call notifications. 

Users can easily search the available number database or port in existing numbers. Voicemail transcriptions can be accessed within the 800.com interface or forwarded to your email or sent via SMS message.

Each vanity number purchased incurs a one-time $35.00 setup fee, while additional standard toll-free or local numbers incur a $25.00 setup fee. If users go above the set number of minutes, an overcharge fee is incurred. 

The below pricing table reflects the costs on an annual basis, which provides a 20% savings. 

#8 – GoDaddy SmartLine

(Image Source)

A SmartLine Toll-Free Number from GoDaddy is the right choice for solopreneurs or any company that primarily relies on a singular office telephone number, but wants to offer employees another phone number to offer clients instead of their personal smartphone numbers. 

It is the most beginner-friendly and basic option on this list. 

Choose from 800, 833, 844, 855, 866, 877, and 888 vanity numbers. 

SmartLine offers voicemail to email and SMS texting transcription, but displays all of your communication history with the contact, including the message transcriptions and texts. This is especially helpful for users that have consistent communication with a smaller number of the same clients. 

Additional features include: 

• Android and iOS mobile app
• Send/receive texts to/from any US-based smartphone
• Number blocking
• Number porting in/out
• Number profile photos and specific ringtones 
• Custom voicemail greetings 
• Caller ID and call forwarding
• Email and text push notifications
• Customized greetings and set business hours

SmartLine offers separate pricing for local and toll-free business numbers, but each option offers only one plan. However, SmartLine offers a one-month free trial, one of the longest ones on this list. Plans are billed on a monthly basis only. 

#7 – UniTel Voice

Unitel Voice is a cloud-based VoIP phone system that also gives users the option to add a toll-free or local vanity phone number.

It is specifically geared towards entrepreneurs and startups that need the look of a more established business. 

Choose from a 1-800, 855, 844, 888, 877, 866, or 833 toll-free number, or a local phone number in the city/area code of your choice. 

Users will own their new toll-free number, and can port them to new carriers without having to pay a fee to UniTel. Your phone number also serves as a send/receive fax line, with faxes emailed to you as a PDF. 

Additional features include: 

• iOS and Android mobile app
• Call forwarding and call transferring
• Voicemail and faxing
• Virtual auto attendant 
• Call announcement announces the extension the incoming caller chose 
• Hold music and Do Not Disturb mode
• Unlimited call handling (unlimited concurrent calls with an automatic redirect to voicemail)
• Call scheduling/after-hours mode plays a different voice recording to customers after the close of the business day
• Browser-based dashboard
• Voicemail-to-email and/or voicemail to mobile app
• Call log storage
• Call blasting
• Dial-by-name directory 
• Call blocking
• 3-way conference calling
• Caller ID display
• Missed call push notifications 
• WiFi calling
• Call recording

Users can set up their own accounts or take advantage of UniTel’s free concierge setup. You can record your own greeting or voicemail message, or use their free Voice Talent Studio to have a professional do it for you. 

There are three available plans, outlined below. Every plan applies to just one telephone number, but unlimited users (phone extensions) and unlimited minutes available on the most popular plan.

Users can also create additional UniTel business numbers for $4.99/per month. Every plan offers all of the features listed above or add-on features, with the only differentiating factors being the number of users, devices, and minutes. 

Note that 1-800 numbers come with a $99.00 one-time set-up fee, while custom vanity numbers carry a one-time $15.00 set-up fee. UniTel offers a 30-day guarantee.  

Feature Add-on Costs

#6 – eVoice

eVoice offers local and toll-free vanity 800, 888, 877, 866, 855, 844, and 833 business phone numbers. 

It includes over 30 features that allow for advanced calling rules, but is also the best option for companies who aren’t yet sure whether or not they truly need a vanity number. The 30-day free trial lets users create their first phone number for free and test out all their features., which makes deciding on which paid plan you need much easier. 

It also lets users create their own Internet phone numbers, allowing you to have multiple business numbers with a variety of area codes within a single eVoice account. 

Internet phone numbers allow you to This means you’ll have specific phone numbers for departments or customer service, just as a more established company would. This also helps you to avoid giving out your personal cell number. Plus, with so many different business phone numbers, you’ll never have to worry about needing to give out your personal cell number. No matter what device you’re calling from, if you’re making calls within your eVoice account, only your business number will show. 

It provides additional calling features like: 

• Advanced local and international call forwarding, call routing, screening, and queuing 
• Call recording
• Voicemail, voicemail-to-email, and voicemail-to-text
• Online faxing and text messaging
• Caller ID and call blocking
• Virtual PBX cloud-based phone system
• Do Not Disturb
• Call scheduling and call rules
• Conference calling
• Advanced reporting and analytics
• After-hours greetings
• Hold music
• Simultaneous and sequential ringing 
• Dial-by-name directory
• Real-time call notifications
• Auto-attendant with extensions or a live receptionist 

eVoice is compatible with any phone hardware or smartphone and has Apple iOS and Android mobile applications. Users can port in current toll-free numbers or port them out to another provider if needed. 

eVoice also recently debuted eVoice Meet, its fully encrypted, no-download video conferencing tool. As of this writing, eVoice is offering access to its web conferencing tool for free.

eVoice is unique in that, though it offers only one standard paid plan with the option to add on more advanced features, it also allows users to completely customize their own plan based on the specific features they need. 

Below, we’ve outlined the features of the Elite Monthly Plan and included information about the cost of add-on features. The Elite Monthly Plan can be paid for on an annual or monthly basis. 

If you customize your plan, however, you’ll receive a specific quote from eVoice. 

#5 – GoToConnect

GoToConnect offers local, toll-free, and vanity phone numbers as a part of your standard business VoIP plan with the provider. 

Users can also port in any existing phone numbers to their GoToConnect account.

GoToConnect is an ideal option for large-scale enterprises and call centers that have a high number of daily inbound calls. 

The pricing for each phone number is quote-based, and influencing factors include number prefix, type, and country. Minutes are charged at a rate of $0.19/minute for all incoming calls. All of the five available GoToConnect plans have the same standard set of features. The only things that shift from plan to plan are the number of users allowed and the monthly price. 

Each GoToConnect plan includes: 

• Caller routing/forwarding, caller ID, Do Not Disturb
• Find Me/Follow Me
• Ring strategies and rules
• Wait time announcements
• Unlimited call queues
• International calling
• Custom hold music
• Auto-attendant 
• Dial-by-name directory
• Virtual fax
• Hot desking
• Phone number extensions
• SMS messaging
• Virtual voicemail

The below table reflects the base pricing (more specific pricing can only be obtained via direct quote) and the maximum number of users for each available plan.

#4 – AVOXI

AVOXI is a virtual business phone number provider offering toll-free vanity numbers, local numbers, non-geographic numbers, and Universal International Freephone numbers (UIFN) in more than 170 countries. 

Popular phone prefixes include 800, 888, 877, 866, 855, and 844 numbers. AVOXI also offers DID numbers. 

AVOXI is a good fit for medium to large-scale companies that need virtual phone numbers with a robust set of features — even if VoIP telephony isn’t their main communication channel. It’s also an ideal option for companies with a large global presence. 

Because AVOXI also offers a contact center platform, companies that may need more advanced inbound/outbound calling features in the future (like CRM integrations, custom dispositions, and more) should also consider AVOXI. Users can enjoy a free trial of AVOXI’s contact center solution when they purchase virtual phone numbers. 

Users can port in their existing vanity numbers or create new ones, and BYOC is available for businesses using enterprise contact center licenses. AVOXI does not require users to sign a long-term contract, and there are no setup fees. 

Each AVOXI number plan comes with more than 20 included VoIP calling features, including call logging, voicemail-to-email, and a virtual auto attendant. Additional features include: 

• SMS text messaging
• Hold music
• Custom greetings
• Voicemail
• Unlimited storage
• Automated call forwarding 
• ACD  and IVR
• Call logging and tracking
• Customizable ring rules
• Round robin and time-based call routing
• Set call failover routes 
• Call logs call traffic, number used, cost per call, view in portal or download and sent in email
• Customer caller ID
• Global audio conferencing solutions 

Feature Add-On Costs

#3 – Grasshopper

Grasshopper is specifically designed for small businesses that need to have a way to communicate with and be responsive to customers 24/7 — without having to be “on-call” all the time. 

Thanks to features like automated instant message responses for missed calls and access to both virtual auto attendants and a live Ruby Receptionist agent, someone will always be there for your customers. 

The number lookup tool allows users to search available vanity numbers with 1800, 877, 855, 866, 833, 888, and 844 prefixes. Grasshopper also offers free number porting for existing vanity phone numbers.

Grasshopper is especially unique in that unlimited SMS business text messaging is included when you sign up for a Grasshopper phone number.

It also includes voicemail-to-email transcription, and users can have the transcripts sent to multiple email addresses if needed. 

Additional Grasshopper features include: 

• Simultaneous call handling
• iOS and Android mobile apps
• VoIP and WiFi calling
• Virtual faxing
• Virtual voicemail
• Unique call forwarding rules per extension
• Caller ID
• Call transfers and forwarding
• Hold music
• Custom voice recordings for greetings, voice mailbox, and after-hours away messages (Voice Studio message recording professionals available for a fee)
• Three available user reports/tracking metrics

As of this writing, a 7-day free trial is available, and all Grasshopper plans can be billed either monthly or annually. Additional phone numbers can be added for $10.00/month each. 

#2 – RingCentral

RingCentral cloud phone system, RingCentral Office, lets users add toll-free vanity numbers and local phone numbers from over 200 area codes.  

Additional numbers can easily be added in the all-in-one admin portal. Extensions, call forwarding rules, and number porting is managed in the portal, as well. It also offers shared lines, an auto-receptionist feature, and automatic voicemail transcription. 

RingCentral Office has a robust amount of features for advanced call management including call screening, agent presence status, call parking, and call flipping. 

RingCentral provides a set number of toll-free minutes within each service plan, and users can purchase additional minutes when needed. Vanity phone numbers come with a one-time set up charge of $30.000, and each local or toll-free vanity phone number costs $4.99/month. 

RingCentral’s pricing is tiered based on the number of users, with the Premium plan being the most popular of the available four. 

The below table outlines RingCentral Office pricing and plans. 

#1 – Phone.com

Users needing a toll-free vanity number provider with a high number of business communication features should choose Phone.com as their provider. It has the most extensive amount of overall features out of all the providers on this list, and the majority of them come standard with every plan. 

Phone.com also frequently updates their software and adds new features regularly. It works with numerous carriers, provides 24/7 customer support, and uses multiple POPs to offer an exceptionally high call quality. 

Admins and users create dialing rules in a browser-based admin control panel and can choose from local, toll-free, and international numbers. Phone.com supports large-scale audio conferences of up to 500 participants and allows you to record all of your calls or select calls from specific sources automatically. 

It also provides SMS text messaging and group texts, Additional features include: 

• Bulk Number porting in/out
• Virtual faxing
• Softphone, IP phone, smartphone, and traditional phone compatibility
• Push notifications for virtual phone numbers
• Call scheduling, do not disturb, call blocking
• Voicemail to text and email
• Automatic and human-done voicemail transcription
• Call handling rules 
• Call forwarding, transfer, waiting, and Caller ID
• Call logs, click-to-call, dial by name directory
• HIPAA compliance
• IVR menus
• Custom greetings

Phone.com offers three different plans, and the Base plan comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. All plans can be billed on an annual or monthly basis, with the annual billing offering a bit of a discount. Some features come standard with specific plans, while others must be added on for an extra fee regardless of the plan you choose. 

Why Vanity 800 Numbers Still Matter in 2020

Because vanity numbers are now so much more accessible than they were in the past, does your company really need one to stand out? 

You’re also concerned that customers might see an incoming call from an 800 number and decline it, thinking it’s spam. Don’t most consumers today dial business phone numbers directly from apps like Yelp or Google My Business, anyway? 

Plus, vanity numbers were originally invented to give customers a chance to call businesses without incurring a charge. Doesn’t everyone get unlimited local and long-distance calls on their cell phone plans now? 

While these are all valid questions, your business needs a 1-800 number for three main reasons:

1. To improve consumer trust and legitimize your business
2. For marketing purposes
3. To access additional features traditional phone numbers don’t offer

If the majority of today’s companies — large-scale corporations and small businesses alike — have toll-free numbers, consumers will likely wonder why you don’t.

Having an 800 number legitimizes your company and makes it much easier for consumers to trust you. 

Remember earlier in this post, when we asked you to think of a few business phone numbers you know by heart? Those jingles — and phone numbers — are likely still in your head now. The same thing will be true for your customers.

Even without a catchy jingle, it’s much easier for customers to remember one or two words than a random string of numbers. 

Finally, 800 numbers include features that improve customer service and increase agent productivity. 

Other benefits include: 

• No need to purchase expensive hardware
• Keep your personal phone number private
• Works with any type of office phone or smartphone
• Increases employee flexibility, provides the ability to “work from anywhere”