A growing number of UK consumers are planning to move their home phone service away from their fixed line broadband provider and on to a dedicated Voice-over-IP (VoIP) provider, which may save money and give you one less thing to worry about when switching ISP. We take a quick look at the options and challenges involved.
At present the UK is going through a significant shift in digital communications services. In the past if you wanted a phone (voice) service then this would have often been provided as standard, using more traditional analogue methods (PSTN / POTS), with broadband being treated more as an optional add-on.
However, the gradual move to all-IP (Internet Protocol) networks and Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) infrastructure is changing all this. In the practical sense, this means that broadband is now the default service, while phone services are the ones being treated as an optional add-on. Openreach plans to have completely withdrawn PSTN by the end of 2025.
Most consumers who wish to retain a home phone service will probably continue to take one as part of a broadband bundle from their chosen ISP, albeit using the provider’s own digital / IP based voice product. But some consumers will no doubt see some benefit in completely separating their home phone number from their broadband (i.e. greater flexibility of calling, cost savings and less to think about when switching ISP).
At the time of writing, the UK continues to lack a smooth automated process for handling situations where, for example, consumers may want to move or split-out their existing landline phone number from their ISP – often delivered as part of a service bundle with broadband – to a separate VoIP platform, which makes life particularly tedious.
In addition, there’s still a risk of losing your phone number when switching between certain ISPs, which is yet another reason to consider moving it to a dedicated VoIP provider. The good news is that Ofcom are working on a solution to this, which might be ready in time for their new broadband-focused One Touch Switch (OTS) migration service – this is due to go live from April 2023 (delays expected).
However, the OTS process itself will introduce another useful change to fixed line number porting – the ‘Right to Port‘ (mobile operators already have this). In short, this requires ISPs to provide number porting to customers that request it for at least 30 days after the termination of a contract, unless the customer expressly agrees otherwise. This will make it harder for providers to shun their responsibility for lost numbers.
In the meantime, the only option is to go through more of a manual process (Number Port Application), which is initiated by your chosen VoIP provider, but this does come with big caveats. The first problem is that such migrations can take up to 10 working days and usually attract a small porting fee (often in the £15-£25 range). The losing phone provider may also charge a fee for the port, so check their terms (T&Cs).
The biggest risk is to those who are trying to port a number away from an existing broadband and phone bundle, particularly if that number has been provided via a copper-line based connection (e.g. ADSL, FTTC or G.fast). Experiences do vary, and you will need to ask your ISP and VoIP provider beforehand about the impact, but actioning a number port may well result in a loss of broadband when the number is transferred. Some ISPs can correct for this by assigning a new number to the line, but front-line support aren’t always very knowledgeable about all this.
Otherwise, the simplest approach is to wait until the opportunity arrives to adopt FTTP broadband and then have that installed first as part of a new connection (i.e. don’t “migrate” your old broadband and phone service). Then you can action a number port from the old service and cancel that package once complete (i.e. it doesn’t matter if the port screws up your old broadband because you’ve already got FTTP on another line). The catch being that this approach does add extra costs (i.e. for a little while you’ll be paying for two services). But this way does work, at least until number ports are automated.
The advantage of using a dedicated VoIP solution is that your home phone will become a lot more flexible and accessible. In simple terms, you’ll often be able to access related incoming or outgoing calls to your home number from almost any location where there’s an internet connection (VoIP calls don’t require a fast connection, thus speed is rarely an issue).
The other big advantage is cost, particularly for those who make very little use of their home phone but still want to keep the number for practical reasons. Quite a few VoIP providers will offer a Pay As You Go (PAYG) style solution, which often charges a very small monthly fee and you then pay for each call. But for those who do make lots of calls, you can also find plenty of packages with free and unlimited call bundles etc.
Now click over to page 2 to see the summary of VoIP providers..
Mark in your tips and notes section, item 5 about ADR; I believe this is a requirement under Ofcom’s General Conditions, Part C4.
I appreciate not everyone knows about the GCs but in theory every telephony provider operating in the UK should know and be be abiding by these.
From https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/information-for-industry/telecoms-competition-regulation/general-conditions-of-entitlement
“This condition also requires communications providers to be members of an independent alternative dispute scheme”
I agree it’s worth checking with a provider that they do have a published dispute policy and are registered with one of the 2 Ofcom recognized ADR agencies because despite the GCs, not everyone does.
True, but just like with ISPs and as you point out, not everybody follows the rules properly. In fairness, VoIP is somewhat of a global service, so it’s possible some of these providers may not even have a formal UK company base or even servers – this is something I couldn’t test without paying to try every single one.
Won’t providers have to stop charging customers for porting their number following the April regulation changes?
Thanks Mark, I was looking at changing my voip provider this list gives further food for thought.
Also some Voip providers provide a soft phone app, or if your techie enough to manually configure one via (as an example) zoiper, allows users to pick up landline IP calls on their mobile devices either at home, out and about, or overseas. Providing the phone is connected to the Internet.
This method may also negate the requirement to purchase any additional IP hardware, for the home.
I have used dial9 in the past – no problems they recommend software and give settings and it works well.
Hyperoptic provide a SIP based VoIP service for £3/month, but they firewall the SIP server to accept connections only from the Hyperoptic network which makes it impossible to use with a softphone eg. when on a cellular network away from home.
I spent many days with Hyperoptic CS trying to get to the bottom of why they were blocking connections from non Hyperoptic networks, and all they could suggest was that I should “try a static IP address on my router” (which I already had anyway) but which demonstrated they had no idea what the actual problem was I was asking them about.
After a few weeks of trying (and failing) to contact someone with a clue, I just gave up in the end.
If SIP server blocking is common with ISP-provided VoIP services, then be prepared to sign up for an independent third-party SIP account.
Other ISPs such as BT AFAIK don’t provide SIP details at all, at least not on domestic, you have to use their CPE.
One work around though in your case may be to use something like FreePBX as a proxy.
You’ve linked to the more expensive (and much more capable with 2 handsets etc.) Grandstream HT812 when maybe the cheaper single-handset Grandstream HT801 should be included as this is likely to be more suitable for most residential installations.
I have been using sipgate for years, not much use for it these to be honest, but since I have it, and it is not costing me anything I may as well keep it.
Guessing that’s the original sipgate basic plan? Sadly, it’s not available to new customers any more.
Be aware, Sipgate with at least myself and another were moved to a business plan without any prior warning.
The only notice we got was the email saying our plan ‘had been booked’, resulting in a nearly double price increase for myself as I had a call package addon.
I’m currently having to look around for another provider, preferably with a relatively low cost ‘unlimited’ plan like Sipgate had.
I’d suggest anyone who is on Sipgate basic starts researching an alternative provider.
@Mark Jackson, yes it was the basic plan, they have not contacted me about changing it, so I will keep it for as long as they don’t charge me. I use an old Linksys Pap2 adaptor, which have been working fine for years, the only thing I don’t like about it is the power adaptor as it is a two pin thing and I ad to use a adaptor for it, but it has been fine for 10 years
I’ve used Localphone for years, which is very suitable for occasional domestic use with no monthly charge and top-credit that does not expire. Audio quality generally good. Localphone do port in of existing numbers.
They don’t seem to be very transparent with porting details / processes and charges on their website. All I could find was a request to email and ask them, which is not consumer friendly.
Localphone don’t support emergency calls. It’s unclear to me why some providers support them and some don’t.
correction for your price list Mark, Vonage do an unlimited incomming and a free mobile app. with 1000 minutes calls to UK landlines
£6.99
/month inc VAT
1-yr contract required
Looks like they introduced that plan about 1-2 months after I finished the data collection for all this. I’ve added it now.
I realise this is highlighting available VOIP only services, but I believe the winners will be the ones offering a mobile/voip converged package, not just a landline replacement. Why have a landline service when you can have one phone number across mobile and VOIP, paying one provider for service.
There’s no reason why mobile providers couldn’t provide VOIP gateway access, for SIM only and contract customers, via secure home picocell to IP products available over the counter, or even over Wifi with an app on the phone, with the customer taking responsibility for their own battery backup and local connectivity. The mobile provider’s VOIP gateway access could offer an alternative to external cell connectivity, at no extra cost. The more mobile customers utilising home VOIP access, the less pressure on cell sites, so better external 4G/5G service for mobile only users.
Mobiles have a good battery life and a small UPS could power an ONT, Router and a Picocell if required. Battery backup wouldn’t be required for voice service where good 4G/5G signal is available. I suspect BT/EE may be considering this sort of thing as an offering, hence rebranding consumer to EE.
VOIP only providers may see their products becoming obsolete in a mobile/voip converged world.
Over the last few years there have been a few I’ve seen and tried who did this – and they were free. Might not be around but I recall one which let you dial from the mobile app using your data as well as on a computer. I will see if I can find it and if I can I will link it here. I seem to recall it was part of the same network as CardboardFish which if anyone remembers was awesome and free. They are still about as fish text but dropped the Voip.
What is a good soft phone for VoIP?
Android: Linphone
iOS: Groundwire
macOS / Linux: Blink
Or, for something a bit different – terminating on a mobile device as a cellular call, not as SIP – A&A’s SIP2SIM system.
As noted, either Groundwire or Acrobits Softphone are excellent and integrate using built-in iOS or Android push tech to give you a superior experience.
https://www.acrobits.net/sip-client-ios-android/
A nice list of providers, understandably some will be overlooked.
Flextel is another option, although their pricing might confuse some people perhaps and they do charge the recipient for incoming calls depending on the phone number they have with them. One of the reasons I use Flextel is because most withheld phone numbers are usually mostly revealed except for the last three digits. You can also block such phone numbers via their control panel or pressing a key on the phone without Flextel telling you what the complete phone number is.
@Ex Telecom Engineer. I agree.
In addition I think people considering voice options need to understand to differences going forward in the resilience and quality of the voice now in the future.
Many VoIP suppliers are using poor codec standards including G.729 which is below the standard G.711.
VoIP providers need to be clearer what quality they are providing and the consumer guided as not all VoIP is the same. The quality of the call is dependant on the networks used and the devices at each end. It may not make much difference to a line only used for say emergencies and the odd scam call but for regular use then there is a difference.
Mobile calls vary from AWB Narrow Band through to EVS depending on who you are calling, how far you are from the mast, congestion etc. WIFI Calling is dependant on the network quality but will drop to the most workable standard for the call.
The VoBB offered by the likes of BT, Sky and VM may be less flexible than basic VoIP but less technical, more secure and may be better network wise.
Then there is the OTT apps.
A mass exodus from PSTN to third party VoIP isn’t without issues and some apply high charges to port elsewhere if there are problems.
As always it may be down to cost and the devices available in the UK but there needs to be more guidance out there.
I only paid £15 at the end of November this year to port my landline number from Virgin to A&A, where did you get the £44.40 from?
I’ve put AAISP on a range now from £6 to £44.40 as they have various porting charges/options, rather than a single set fee.
Of course – many people forget Skype is very good at VOIP and gives you a number with minutes included for a (now much cheaper) monthly free. I thought it was worth an honourable mention as well
Recommend the grandstream units, been running one for 18 months and it’s rock solid. Plug it , setup and forget about it.
I moved my landline to voipify. Reliable and call quality excellent. Negatives are PAYG so need to remember to top up regularly. Also you can’t have calls for a number presenting on multiple end points simultaneously with one line charge. You need to setup and pay for a line for each endpoint.
I also use A&A, temporarily ported a mobile number to it whilst abroad for a year. Negatives, overseas call rates high so can’t forward it but just send to VM which then sends an email. SMS come through on email too. Also, T&C’s make you fully liable for any call costs incurred, even if your account is compromised so make sure you setup sip security and MFA on your account etc.
Thanks for the tip – I am going to get that voip handset I quite like it and I am getting sick of using software. Will also check out Voipify – thanks again
Sorry should have clarified I use the grandstream ATA to connect to analogue DECT basestation and handsets I already owned.
Sorry should have clarified I use the ATA to connect to analogue DECT basestation and handsets I already owned.
I understood and that was great info thanks – However for the cost which is about £8 more I am going to get the phone + a backup adapter in case there is a problem with the POE
When I recently had a line problem with my phone, Plusnet routed all my landline calls to my mobile. I understand there would probably be a charge for this service but surely it would enable us to keep our landline numbers.
Call Divert has to be ordered on BT’s wholesale system – not sure if that would even be possible as it’s still using the same kit as the landline works on – and with that gone..
It would be great for keeping numbers (landline or mobile) if there was a service that you could port the number to, which only offered diversion (and web-accessible voicemail and SMS text receive/send). Not full VoIP connect, just a virtual connection in the cloud with flexible routing and remote access.
I would be willing to pay a modest price for such a service, but haven’t found one yet–suggestions?
Sipgate still does the free plan for home use.
Loads of new features and all for free.
Only for people who already have it – it has been withdrawn for new signups.
https://www.sipgate.co.uk/prices-tariffs
I am really worried Sipgate start offering those ridiculous prices to current customers. Those prices are an extortion. I already ported mine and my families landline numbers over to it. So hope its easy to get out of them if they do.
Learn to read Phillip – existing customers keep the free one
“Learn to read Phillip – existing customers keep the free one”….From what I have been told its “for now”. I have been told by another user on this site there is a chance in 2023 we are kicked off it whether we like it or not
The Gigaset N300(A) is also a great choice for terminating several VoIP accounts + a traditional copper landline with DECT functionality.
The problem with this is, you cannot use a truecall call blocker device. You can on the Granstream and Cisco devices. Some people this is important
@Anthony – honestly haven’t had a spam landline call in probably a decade! Mobile originated spam calls have also reduced to zero since the mobile operators started properly acting on this. So have never personally had the requirement for Truecall but YMMV as they say
Quick question for the person who did the research. Incase I am needing to switch away from Sipgate. Which provider has the best spam call blocking? As in similar to BT call protect for regular land lines.
Hi Mark
100Kbps was 0.1Mbps last time I checked! 🙂
Having lost a landline number I have had for 40+ years during the switch from Sky to an Openreach ISP my main worry surrounding some of these smaller VoIP firms is them going bust and losing the number again.
It would be good to have some sort of proof-of-ownership system over UK landline numbers.
I did manage to get the number back later through technical support from the new provider. Sky were beyond useless and didn’t care.
I believe Ofcom have a process in place to deal with providers going bust. Read up on number rangeholders. A lot of them don’t run their own equipment either, using larger wholesale infrastructure providers, including BT, to host their numbers for them – I expect those providers would be asked to continue to host a defunct company’s ranges.
I’m sad to learn here about Sipgate as it appears reading the forum they seem to be in the process of shutting down the basic service (starter) at some point in 2023. I’ve had their service for almost 20 years and it’s been great, way back then I was using ata with an analogue switch, these days I’m fully digital using asterisk on a raspberry pi and Cisco handsets. I don’t make enough calls to justify keeping a service so I’ll be going mobile only. Anyone in the market for a few Cisco handsets?!
Yeah seems a shame, although voipify seem like a contender for only £3.50/month + VAT. Guess sipgate just can’t get enough money out of us low usage users, so just went after business instead.
Right so you’ve had it free for 20 years – and they are stopping it to new customers – and yet it’s unfair?
Jeez
Haha – I haven’t said it’s unfair, not sure why you’ve come to that conclusion? It’s perfectly fair and they are entitled to make this change, it’s a business decision, that doesn’t stop me being sad about it after all these years.
smd678822@email.com
The wholesale mobile call termination fee is less than 0.5p a minute. The retail markup on calls to mobiles is staggering, compared to the markup on landline calls.
Yep, allot of telecom companies seem to be living in the past.
Seems like there may be some errors with the Vonage pricing. I thought that the pricing seemed fairly reasonable but then checked their website that all calls have a 19p setup + the per min pricing. That’s a bit steep.
and to add to that – I’m very interested in finding a new provider because of my sipage basic service likely coming to an end. Even if it’s not free, a couple of quid and reasonable service quality / rates would do fine. Even better if it comes with a reliable phone app to receive the calls, but it seems like that isn’t going to happen.
If the Sipgate Basic service does come to an end, I think Andrews and Arnold (£1.20 a month for the number) plus the Bria Mobile app (99p per month to be able to use their push service [at least on iOS), meaning you don’t need to drain your battery with a constant SIP connection) looks like a decent option.
Hi, Thyagarajulu here. we are DOT& ISO-27001 certified VoIP service providers in INDIA & USA. You can use features: video, Audio, SMS, Conference, Chat, E-fax, CRM integration, employees monitor tools…Would you be interested in trying out a demo? thyagarajulu.r@voipoffice.com/2142259200/8046354008
I’ve got circle loop for my home / business phone. £6 per month for the base + another £2 for the additonal number> I’ve not got unlimited though as i never really require any outbound calls.
I think the pricing is fair enough and i use it on my mobile and a polycom handset i have in the home office.
Evening a newbie question if I may. We are just about to switch from TT to a FTTP provider. When we do we will loose our landline. Mention was made here of the option to use a number port (A&A) and then an app like Bria Mobile would this mean that when someone rings our number it will get routed through to the iPhone? Also how do you dial from the app as your landline number rather than using your mobile? Many TIA.
I currently have a landline service with Virgin Media. I am planning to cancel my Virgin Media service, and will not be switching to a new provider. I would like the number associated with my landline package to still be active in a virtual form, and redirect all calls to my mobile. Which of the services you list above would be best-suited?
I’ve just ported my Virgin Media landline number (ex BT number) into A&A and I am very happy with their set-up. The only issue is that they don’t offer HD calling, just g711, so call quality is like a good quality traditional PSTN call. The A&A people are UK based and they answer the phone when you call them and reply to emails, which is a new experience for me! Only negitive was that they charged me an extra £6 because I sent them a payment with the wrong reference number. I can see this caused them some extra work so I didn’t complain. I would in future avoid signing up for a number port when you are so tired that you are likely to fall asleep whilst setting up the bank transfer!
When you initiate the number port with A&A, the process takes about 10 working days. It’s very important not to cancel your Virgin Media account before the port is successful or your number might be lost. Best not even tell Virgin about it, just let A&A do their stuff.
One interesting fact about porting your number away from Virgin Media is that your Virgin broadband will actually keep going afterwards but without the cost of the phone package. I was out of contract when I did this. I am now going through the process of cancelling my broadband service with Virgin. This will probably involve paying for an extra month, due to their 30 day notice period.
Best of luck with your number port. Hope it all works out for you!
Any advice on a voip service for home that doesn’t have silly mobile call charges? I was going to go with Vonage and get their free ATA adapter, but then noticed the very high charges for mobile calls.
In the process of switching to A&A (which has been smooth so far) so I can break the link between my broadband and phoneline. They are porting my number as well, so as from next Monday I’ll have our old landline number on voip, and be able to use any service really.
I’m thinking Voipfone may be the answer really, perhaps their Voipfone 500 package (£10+vat per month). A little more than I wanted to pay, but the 500minutes do include mobile calls.
Number People have a minimum quarterly (90 day) charge of £5 so £1.66 per month even on the £1 package.
Port in was free.
Thanks Michael, I’ll take a look.
Just got this message from Sipgate “At this time we want to let you know that our sipgate starter product will be closed sometime in 2023. We unfortunately don’t have a timeline for this yet. This means that you’ll need to either port your number away again at that time, or switch over to using our sipgate business product” I’ll need to find another provider who allows worldwide use, can’t see why they wouldn’t.
Also whats not provided here is the cost to maintain your Local Ported number.
With VOIPStudio as an example … they port for free…. but its a £4.99 admin fee and an additional £4.99 per month for hosting the number… which makes them more expensive than noted above .
As I’m planning to move away from my copper landline to a fully Fibre connection provided by CityFibre I have been searching around for the best voip packages. I must say these providers do not make it easy or encourage you to sign up with them. I’m thinking of going with Zen for my internet, but we really don’t use our landline much and as such the £6/pm phone package is an unnecessary cost.
A&A look the most attractive for what we need right now, but I guess I will be doing a lot more reading before I make the final decision.
I’ve looked at all of these options but I also came across Virtual Landline which to me looks like it’s cheaper than most and UK based.
Has anyone used them or have any thoughts about them?
I found the information about dedicated home VoIP providers for UK consumers quite insightful. It’s interesting to see that more people are considering moving their home phone service to a separate VoIP provider, which can potentially save money and simplify the process of switching internet service providers. The blog post highlights the ongoing shift in digital communications services in the UK, where phone services were traditionally bundled with broadband packages. For those seeking more details on this topic, I recommend visiting Geekhq.co.nz, a website that offers valuable information and resources related to technology and telecommunications.