CMP-03 OPENPHONE
OpenPhone pricing in 2026: Quo plans, the OpenPhone alternatives, and what it costs per user
OpenPhone rebranded to Quo in 2026, and its pricing is $15 per user per month on Starter, $23 on Business and $35 on Scale when billed yearly, or $19, $33 and $47 billed monthly. Two things decide whether the $15 figure is the one you will actually pay. Phone menus, group calling, call transfers and the HubSpot and Salesforce integrations all sit on Business at $23, not on Starter, so most teams shopping for a phone system are really pricing the middle tier. And every plan now bundles an AI agent with 1,000 automation credits, roughly 10 AI-handled calls, after which you buy credit tiers running from $25 to $199 a month. The best OpenPhone alternatives in 2026 are Phoner ($15 to $29 per user, month to month, no seat minimum), RingCentral and Google Voice.
The full ranked field is in the guide to the best VoIP for small business, entry pricing for every provider sits yearly against monthly in the business phone system comparison, and Phoner's plans are listed in plain dollars on the pricing page.
01 · Pick your number
02 · Your phone menu
03 · Incoming call
Press a key to answer the menu yourself
Voicemail to text
transcribed · texted to you · 0:42
Call sheet
Today
This number can be yours in about 5 minutes.
Recording consent laws vary by state and country. You are responsible for lawful use.
WHERE OPENPHONE IS GENUINELY STRONG
OpenPhone (which rebranded to Quo in 2026, though most people still search for it by the old name) is the closest comparison to Phoner and a genuinely good product. Its shared-inbox approach to calls and texts is excellent, the apps are polished, pricing starts around $15 per user billed yearly, and its brand is strong with startups. If your team lives in threaded text conversations, it deserves a serious look.
WHERE PHONER FITS
Phoner puts the phone system itself first. The IVR phone menu is a visual builder you can inspect on the pricing page, not a settings screen you discover after signup. Recording ships with per-line consent announcement toggles, ring groups read like plain sentences, and pricing stays flat at $15-29 per user with no per-feature surprises.
In practice the deciding features are usually the visual IVR builder and business texting.
Phoner vs OpenPhone, line by line
| What you are buying | Phoner | OpenPhone |
|---|---|---|
| Price shape | $15-29/user/mo | $15-35/user/mo, yearly |
| Contract | Month to month | Month to month |
| IVR phone menu | Visual builder, Team plan | Phone menus, configured in settings |
| Team routing and ring groups | Yes, rules you can read | Yes, ring order + shared numbers |
| Business texting | Yes, Team plan | Yes, shared-inbox threads |
| Call recording + consent tools | Recording + consent announcements | Recording; consent tooling thinner |
| Toll-free and vanity numbers | Yes, $5/number/mo | Toll-free yes; vanity search limited |
| Number porting | Free, number stays live | Yes, free |
| Apps | iOS, Android, desktop, web | iOS, Android, desktop, web |
Swipe sideways for the full table
COMPETITOR FIGURES ARE PUBLIC LIST PRICES AND POSITIONING AS OF 2026. VERIFY BEFORE BUYING.
Phoner's side of the table starts at $15/user/mo on the Starter plan and $29 on Team, the plan most small teams pick, both month to month. Extra local or toll-free numbers are a flat $5/number/mo. Where the two products tie on a row, the difference is usually how visibly the feature is built: see the visual IVR builder page for exactly how Phoner does it.
OpenPhone pricing by plan, and what each tier actually unlocks
OpenPhone rebranded to Quo in 2026 and the pricing page moved with it. The figures below were read from Quo's own pricing page on August 11, 2026, priced both ways, because the gap between the annual and monthly column is where the real comparison lives: almost every roundup quotes the annual number and then compares it against somebody else's monthly one. The row that matters most is Business, because that is where the phone menu is.
| Plan | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | What the tier is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quo Starter (formerly OpenPhone) | $15 per user | $19 per user | One number per user, texting, voicemail transcripts, API, and the Sona AI agent |
| Quo Business | $23 per user | $33 per user | Adds phone menus, group calling, call transfers, HubSpot and Salesforce, auto recording |
| Quo Scale | $35 per user | $47 per user | Adds AI call tags, dedicated onboarding, and inbound phone support |
| Phoner Starter | $15 per user | $19 per user | A business number, voicemail to text, and the apps |
| Phoner Team | $29 per user | $35 per user | Adds the visual IVR builder, ring groups, texting, and recording |
Swipe sideways for the full table
QUO FIGURES READ FROM ITS OWN PRICING PAGE ON AUGUST 11, 2026 AND CHANGE OFTEN · ADDITIONAL NUMBERS $5 PER MONTH ON BOTH · QUO CHARGES $0.01 PER OUTGOING TEXT SENT VIA API, ZAPIER OR MAKE · PHONER FIGURES ARE OUR LIST PRICES · TAXES, REGULATORY FEES AND A2P 10DLC REGISTRATION ARE EXTRA ON BOTH · VERIFY BEFORE BUYING
What OpenPhone's AI agent costs once you pass the 10 free calls, and where each credit tier starts paying
Every Quo plan now includes the Sona AI agent with 1,000 automation credits, which its pricing page equates to 10 AI-handled calls. Past that, the AI is a metered product sitting on top of the per-seat price, and no comparison site prices it. The two columns on the right are ours: the effective cost per included call is the tier price divided by the calls it covers, and the break-even is the monthly call volume at which buying that tier costs less than staying on the tier below and paying overage. Worth noting honestly, because it runs against the pattern in this category: at every Quo tier the included rate is cheaper than that same tier's overage rate, so prepaying is a genuine discount rather than a premium for committing.
| Credit tier | Per month | AI calls included | Effective cost per included call | Overage per extra call | Break-even vs the tier below |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Included with every plan | $0 | 10 calls | Included | $1.00 | n/a |
| Tier 2 | $25 | 40 calls | $0.63 | $0.75 | About 35 calls a month |
| Tier 3 | $49 | 100 calls | $0.49 | $0.65 | About 72 calls a month |
| Tier 4 | $99 | 250 calls | $0.40 | $0.55 | About 177 calls a month |
| Tier 5 | $199 | 600 calls | $0.33 | $0.45 | About 432 calls a month |
Swipe sideways for the full table
TIER PRICES, INCLUDED CREDITS AND OVERAGE RATES READ FROM QUO'S PRICING PAGE ON AUGUST 11, 2026 · 1,000 CREDITS = 10 CALLS PER ITS OWN STATED CONVERSION · EFFECTIVE COST AND BREAK-EVEN ARE OUR ARITHMETIC FROM THOSE PUBLISHED FIGURES, SHOWN SO YOU CAN CHECK THEM · PHONER HAS NO AI RECEPTIONIST, SO THIS IS A ROW QUO WINS OUTRIGHT
What to check before you commit to either one
The name changed, so half the reviews you are reading are stale
OpenPhone became Quo in 2026 and openphone.com now redirects to quo.com. Most comparison articles still ranking for the old name were written before that, which means their pricing tables and screenshots predate the change. It is worth checking the date on anything you read about this product, including this page, and confirming the current plan names on the vendor's own site before you sign anything.
The phone menu sits a tier up on both products, at different prices
Neither product puts an auto attendant on its entry plan, so compare on the tier that actually has one. On Quo that is Business at $23 per user billed yearly, $33 monthly. On Phoner it is Team at $29 yearly, $35 monthly. Quo is the cheaper line item at that tier; Phoner gives you a visual builder you can inspect on our pricing page before you pay, rather than a settings screen you meet after signup.
Shared inbox and phone system are two different design centers
Quo starts from a conversation thread: calls and texts land in one inbox, teammates comment internally, and the interface rewards teams whose customers text. Phoner starts from the switchboard: a published number, a menu, ring groups, business hours, transfers. Both can do a version of the other job, and neither does it as well as the thing it was built for. Decide which half of your day is the real one.
The annual premium is roughly a quarter of the bill on both
Billed monthly rather than yearly, Quo Starter goes from $15 to $19 and Business from $23 to $33, and Phoner Starter from $15 to $19. That is a 27 percent premium at entry and 43 percent at the Business tier for the freedom to leave. If you are switching providers precisely because you got locked into something, paying the monthly rate for the first few months is usually money well spent.
Texting from a business number needs A2P 10DLC registration on every provider
This is not a difference between the two, it is a cost neither plan page leads with. Sending application-to-person texts from a US 10-digit business number requires registering your brand and campaign with the carriers, which carries a one-time fee and a small recurring charge at essentially every provider. Budget for it, and expect a few days before your first message sends cleanly.
Moving the number out later, in both directions
Porting into Phoner is free and typically completes in 1 to 2 weeks, with your existing number ringing on the old system until the cutover. Under FCC number portability rules a provider cannot hold your number hostage over an unpaid balance. Ask any vendor you are considering the same question before you buy rather than after: what does it cost me to leave, and how long does it take.
Who should pick which
PICK OPENPHONE IF
Pick OpenPhone if your team works out of shared-inbox texting all day: threads, internal comments on messages, and text-first customer conversations are where it shines. It is also the pick if you want an AI agent answering calls, which Phoner does not offer at any price.
THEIR LIST PRICE: $15-35/USER/MO BILLED YEARLY
PICK PHONER IF
Pick Phoner if calls come first: you want a phone menu you can build visually, ring groups with rules you can read back, and recording with consent announcements handled per line.
PHONER: $15-29/USER/MO, MONTH TO MONTH
Leaving OpenPhone does not mean a new number
Your number is yours and moves with you. Phoner's free number porting takes about 1-2 weeks, and the line keeps ringing on OpenPhone until the moment it switches over. Set up your phone menu and ring groups in Phoner while you wait, then the cutover is invisible to callers.
PORT ORDER · OPENPHONE → PHONER
Sign up for Phoner and submit the port with a recent OpenPhone bill.
Keep answering on OpenPhone. The number never goes dark.
In 1-2 weeks calls ring your Phoner apps. Cancel the old account.
PORTING FEE: $0 · DOWNTIME: NONE
Common questions about switching
Can I move my OpenPhone number to Phoner?
Yes. Porting to Phoner is free and typically completes in 1-2 weeks. Your OpenPhone number keeps ringing until the switch happens, so there is no gap in coverage.
How is Phoner different from OpenPhone if the prices are similar?
The emphasis. OpenPhone is built around a shared text inbox with calling attached. Phoner is built around the phone system: a visual IVR builder, ring groups, per-line recording consent toggles, and vanity and toll-free numbers, with texting included on the Team plan.
What happened to OpenPhone?
OpenPhone rebranded to Quo in 2026, and openphone.com now redirects to quo.com. The product and accounts carried over; the name and pricing page did not. Most people still search for it as OpenPhone, which is why comparison pages, including this one, still use the old name alongside the new one.
How much does OpenPhone cost per user?
Quo, formerly OpenPhone, publishes Starter at $15 per user per month billed yearly and $19 billed monthly, with Business at $23 yearly and $33 monthly, per its pricing page in July 2026. Phone menus sit on the Business tier rather than Starter, so compare on the plan that carries the feature you need.
What is the best alternative to OpenPhone?
For teams that want a real phone system rather than a shared text inbox, Phoner at $15 to $29 per user is the closest fit: a visual IVR builder, ring groups, business hours, and recording with consent announcements. Google Voice is cheaper for one person, and RingCentral is the heavier suite for a larger estate.
Does OpenPhone have an auto attendant?
Quo supports phone menus on its Business tier rather than the entry Starter plan. If a caller needs to hear options and be routed without a person answering first, price the Business plan at $23 per user billed yearly, not the $15 figure that usually gets quoted in recommendations.
How much is OpenPhone per month?
Billed monthly rather than yearly, Quo is $19 per user on Starter, $33 on Business and $47 on Scale. Billed yearly the same plans are $15, $23 and $35. The monthly premium is 27 percent at Starter and 43 percent at Business, so the plan you want and the billing term you accept move the real figure a long way from the $15 usually quoted.
What is the difference between OpenPhone Starter and Business?
Business at $23 per user billed yearly adds the features most teams are actually shopping for: phone menus, group calling, custom ring orders, call transfers, automatic call recording, analytics, and the HubSpot and Salesforce integrations. Starter at $15 covers one number per user, calling and texting in the US and Canada, voicemail transcripts and API access. If more than one person answers the same number, Starter runs out quickly.
Does OpenPhone have a free plan?
No. Quo, formerly OpenPhone, sells a free trial rather than a free tier, and the cheapest paid plan is $15 per user per month billed yearly or $19 monthly. Phoner has no free plan either. Among business phone systems only Google Voice offers a genuinely free personal tier, and it is a single-user product with no auto attendant, which is why businesses outgrow it fast.
Does OpenPhone charge extra for AI?
Past a point, yes. Every Quo plan includes the Sona AI agent with 1,000 automation credits, which its pricing page equates to 10 AI-handled calls per month. Beyond that you buy a credit tier at $25, $49, $99 or $199 a month, covering 40, 100, 250 or 600 calls, with overage from $1.00 per call down to $0.45. Budget for it separately from the per-seat price if you plan to let AI answer.
How much do extra phone numbers cost on OpenPhone?
Additional phone numbers are $5 per month on Quo, billed annually, which is the same as Phoner charges for an extra local or toll-free number. Each user plan already includes one new or ported number, local or toll-free. International calling and messaging are billed separately at per-minute and per-message rates by destination, drawn from credits.
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