How Much Does a Toll Free Number Cost?

Posted by Tollfreenumber.ORG  at November 23rd, 2013

The cost of a toll free number and service depends largely on which provider you choose to go with. Before beginning service with any provider, you will want to first ask a few questions:

Will I be able to own the toll free number?

• Most companies do not allow you to own a toll free number yourself. If they keep ownership of the number, they can entitle you to be on a lengthy, strict contract. As well, they increase their own profits by allowing more than one party to use a toll free number in different areas at the same time. For instance, you may be using it in Texas but someone in California, New York, Florida, etc may be using it as well – the routing would be set up depending on ‘where’ someone was calling from.

• If you choose to own the number, you should expect to pay a fee to own it, depending on demand, and likely ranging between $50 up to the $1,000’s for a premium number.

• Renting a number (borrowing it from the provider and likely sharing it) will cost you a ‘set-up’ fee to start, generally ranging from $20-$50. Studies show that paying a little bit more to own your own number will save you money from the additional costs associated with renting a number including contract terms, excessive minute costs, monthly rental amounts, lost revenue from not being able to conduct business nationwide.

How much will you be using it each month?

• Sadly, most companies won’t tell you all the costs involved in having a toll free number because, legally, they don’t have to! If you’ve ever done research on toll free numbers you’ve likely seen that most sites will tell you one price but, once you dig deeper, you’ll find a lot that they aren’t telling you upfront. For instance, they may tell you that you can get so many minutes free each month for a ‘low price’ but fail to mention that they’ll also tack on charges for their rental agreements (why owning a number is a particularly good idea), double minute billing, taxes, non-use, etc. Other providers try to draw you into their site by saying they offer something like ‘Unlimited Service’ for a ‘too good to be true’ price. First off, a small-medium business doesn’t need unlimited service (million dollar corporations with VERY large call volume are different and are likely to spend 10s of thousands of dollars a month on a service like that) and secondly, any provider suggesting you can get this sort of ‘deal’ is leaving out the fact that they probably want you to buy a bunch of extra equipment, have multiple users, and actually put a cap on the usage!

• Realistically, ask yourself whether your usage will be super low (less than a few hundred minutes a month) or will fit into the category between 300-500 minutes each month, 1000 – 2000 minutes used each month, or 3000+. Providers will include several things in their fee structure: Cost of usage itself (6+ cents each minute, less for a package, generally), cost to maintain the service on their network/taxes (approximately $10/mo), and if you do not own the number, extra fees to rent the number – gotta read the fine print!

When choosing a toll free service provider you should first and foremost choose one that’s honest and will tell you all the costs without tippy-toeing around the FULL costs. Don’t fret! You don’t need to pay a lot for service – a small-medium business can estimate a cost around $20 each month for a big chunk of usage, at it’s full cost without extra fees involved. Many people don’t want the extra expense but if you think about it, it’s an asset you’re acquiring for your business and is SO WORTH IT! I guarantee that you’ll spend little for a toll free number compared to what you’ll make off of it (in extra sales, reputation, and professionalism)!

Get started on a new toll free number today!