Toll-free number
A toll-free number makes you more accessible and approachable to your customers. RingCentral RingEX makes getting 800 numbers, 1800 numbers, and more quick and easy.
What is a toll-free number?
A toll-free number is a phone number that’s free for callers. The person placing the call—let’s say, your customer—doesn’t have to pay a thing. Instead, the call is charged to the recipient or owner of that number. In other words, companies are essentially paying for customers to call them.
Using toll-free numbers is a great way of encouraging people to call and engage with your company, ask questions or get advice. It also boosts your business’ reputation, giving you a professional appearance and creating the impression that you are a large, national company instead of using local numbers.
800 Number vs 1800 number for business: Understanding toll-free number prefixes
When people talk about toll-free numbers, they often call them 800 numbers or 1800 numbers. So, what’s the difference? In short, there isn’t one, it’s just two ways of describing the same thing.
Like other numbers, toll-free telephone numbers have a single digit national identifier. The USA’s is “1”. What follows that initial number is a three-digit prefix. This prefix can be an area code—specific to a geographic region—or, a prefix which reveals the type of number.
There are a number of toll-free number prefixes which let people know that their calls will be free, and which are easy to remember. By far the most popular and recognizable is “800”.
In the US, then, toll-free business numbers mainly start with 1-800, where 1 is the country code and 800 is the free national prefix. If you’re calling within the USA, however, you don’t need to include the “1” country identifier at the start.
Thus, an 800 number and a 1800 number is one and the same—a US toll-free number with the most common and oldest three-digit prefix. There are other prefixes that also denote toll-free numbers, too.
Beyond 800 numbers: Other toll-free prefixes
Toll-free numbers have only existed since 1967. They were first introduced by AT&T as a way to cut down on “collect calls” which required a live operator and were, therefore, both labor- and cost-intensive.
In the early years, all toll-free numbers used the 800 prefix. As time passed, however, demand for the numbers grew and a further six prefixes have now come into use for toll-free numbers.
Today, toll-free numbers in the US may also start with 888, 877, 866, 855, 844, and 833. 844 was the most recently released prefix, in 2017, and there are also nine further prefixes that have been reserved for use as toll-free numbers in future.
What are toll-free numbers elsewhere in the world?
Outside of the USA, toll-free numbers are equally popular with businesses and organizations. Often, the format and prefixes of the numbers are fairly similar the world over. For example:
- Mexico uses the same 800 prefix, but with 52 as the country code.
- 0800 is the most recognizable toll-free number prefix in the UK, with 0808 close behind
- 1800 denotes toll-free numbers in Australia
- In France, it’s either 0800 or 0805
- Germany used to use 0130, but more recently switched to 0800. 0801 has also been reserved for future use.
The different types of toll-free numbers
So, you’ve got an idea of what numbers are toll-free, but there are also different types of toll-free numbers.
There are your standard toll-free numbers, which are the ones starting with the 800, 888, 877, 866, 855, 844, and 833 prefixes, followed by seven further digits. This is the most common type of toll-free number and offers an easy, cost-free way for customers to reach US businesses.
Vanity toll-free numbers spell out the name of your company or a keyword relevant to you, such as 1-800-FOOD. Using a custom business phone number makes it instantly recognizable, easy to remember, and helps your business stand out from the crowd.
Local toll-free numbers allow you to have a presence in a local area, using a familiar area code to create a sense of community connection while still being toll-free for callers within that region.
For businesses with an international presence, international toll-free numbers allow customers from different countries to call without incurring international charges. This means no matter where your customers are in the world, there is always a way for them to get in touch with you free of charge.
How do toll-free numbers work?
Dialing the toll-free number
Routing the call
Forwarding to the destination
Taking the call
Benefits of a toll-free number for business
They make it easy and affordable to reach you
The easier you make it for customers and prospective customers to call you, the more likely they are to get in touch. A toll-free business phone number makes calling an easier and more attractive option as it doesn’t cost them anything to make it.
This removes any barriers and encourages more frequent interactions. This benefit of toll-free business numbers extends across your departments and teams, too.
When it comes to customer service and support, it shows that you care about the customer experience. Rather than suggesting that you’re trying to make a buck out of customer queries, a toll-free number creates an entirely different impression. It will help convince customers that you want to help them and are genuinely committed to helping them get the most from their interactions with your brand.
The benefits of toll-free numbers can extend to marketing and sales, too. If you’re putting time, effort, and resources into campaigns encouraging inbound leads, you don’t want potential call charges to put prospects off.
Someone looking to reach out to a business off the back of an ad or marketing communication, is likely to want to be able to make a toll-free call. So, giving them that chance could mean more sales leads and higher conversion rates.
They build trust
There’s no denying that companies with toll-free numbers appear more credible and trustworthy.
At a basic level, the fact that you’re offering free, accessible customer service will reassure customers that they’re not being scammed. It will give them the knowledge and comfort they need to invest in your company.
On a psychological level, too, toll-free and especially 800 numbers for business help create an even greater sense of credibility.
In years gone by business toll-free numbers were typically only owned and operated by the largest organizations. That association with scale and reliability remains, even though a business phone system like RingEX makes toll-free numbers for businesses far more accessible.
Having a toll-free number for small business, therefore, can still instill a sense of scale and trustworthiness in the minds of your customers.
They're perfect for national or international expansion
Using local numbers may give you a sense of familiarity and a local presence, but it can put off customers calling from outside that area. A 1800 number for business doesn’t have that limitation.
Rather, a toll-free national or international number gives your callers peace of mind that you are an established business, and they won’t have to worry about any international call charges.
Being able to create this professional image is an important benefit no matter what size business you are, and gives you credibility as you start to scale up.
Beyond this, it’s also possible to get a toll-free number for business that specifically targets new audiences in certain areas. If you get a virtual local toll-free number from a VoIP provider like RingCentral, you can build a local presence in areas where you don’t have a physical premises and make it free for customers in those areas to call you.
Added benefits of virtual toll-free numbers for business
All of the above are general benefits of any toll-free number. Many modern businesses choose to set up and use virtual toll-free numbers offered by VoIP providers like RingCentral.
These virtual toll-free numbers offer a few notable further advantages:
With a virtual toll-free number, you can receive calls on almost any device that can connect to the internet. No longer are toll-free calls from your customers only able to be answered in the office. You can pick them up on your smartphone, tablet, laptop, and more.
By setting up a toll-free number, you’re committing to shouldering the cost of calls so your customers don’t have to. That doesn’t mean, however, that you want to pay more than you have to.
VoIP providers can include a number of toll-free call minutes as part of an affordable monthly subscription. Even if you do choose to add additional numbers or a greater number of minutes, charges are usually more reasonable than with a traditional phone system.
How to get a toll-free number
There are a few steps involved if you want to get a toll-free number for business inquiries, so let’s take a look at what you need to do:
1. Research regulations
Toll-free numbers in the US are regulated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). This organization oversees the allocation and management of toll-free numbers, ensuring that numbers and Responsible Organizations conform to regulations and don’t hoard numbers they’re not using.
Responsible Organizations are certified by the FCC, and act as intermediaries between businesses and the FCC.
2. Choose a Responsible Organization
Responsible Organizations manage the assignment, distribution, and routing of toll-free numbers.
Research toll-free number providers and ensure they are certified Responsible Organizations, making sure they meet your needs in terms of features, pricing, scalability, customer service, and so on. They should be able to answer any questions you may have about how to get a toll-free number for your business.
3. Select a toll-free number
Now you’re signed up with a Responsible Organization, it’s time to choose your toll-free number. Your initial instinct may be that you want an 800 number for business use, but don’t neglect the other prefixes. They may not be quite as recognizable but there are generally more of them to go around.
Providers may offer a selection of standard toll-free numbers, or you can work with them on a custom vanity number aligned to your business’ branding. The best toll-free number service for small businesses will make sure you’re happy with the number before setting it up.
4. Reserve the number
As soon as you’ve got the right number for you, the Responsible Organization will reserve the selected number with the SMS/800 Toll-Free Number Registry and ensure the number can only be used by your business.
5. Activate and test
Once the Responsible Organization has activated your toll-free number, you can start testing and checking that any call routing, transfers and other features are working correctly.
6. Go live
If everything is working as it should, now is the time to go live and wait for the calls to roll in!
Your toll-free number provider should help you manage the line long-term by updating call routing as needed, ensuring compliance with the FCC, adding new features, and whatever else you need.
7. Additional note: Porting toll-free numbers
The above are the steps to take to get a new toll-free number. If you’ve already got a 1800 number for business use and want to keep it, that’s also perfectly possible.
Fortunately, FCC rules mean toll-free numbers have to be portable. That means you can move numbers from one Responsible Organization to another, if desired.
You can port any toll-free number into RingCentral, but it is advisable to check any agreements with your current provider first.
RingCentral makes getting toll-free numbers easy
If you’re wondering how to get a toll-free number for your business with the minimum of fuss, RingCentral’s got you covered. When you sign up to RingEX, you get a virtual number free of charge as part of your subscription, and can choose a toll-free alternative if you like.
What’s more, it couldn’t be simpler to add extra RingCentral toll-free numbers, too. All you need to do is:
- Head to your RingCentral online account, got to the Home Page > Phone Number > Add Number
- Under Number Type choose the Toll-Free Number option, select from the available numbers listed, and select Add Numbers and then Next.
- Decide how to assign the number, with options including assigning it to as a company number or to a specific extension.
- Review the details of the transaction, click the checkbox to acknowledge and authorize any charges, and then select Next.
It’s as easy as that.
RingCentral offers a variety of toll-free numbers so customers can phone your business free of charge.
You can choose the instantly recognizable 800 number prefix or choose from 888, 877, 866, 855, and 844 numbers. You can also create a custom vanity phone number to reinforce your company branding. Vanity numbers often spell out words, such as 1-800-GREAT-BIZ, making them easier for you and your customers to remember.
RingCentral numbers are competitively priced, so you can use them for all of your business needs. Minute bundles range from 1,000- to 100,000-minute sets to satisfy even the highest-volume users. Additional minutes are available for automatic purchase.
Why choose RingCentral as your toll-free number service?
When you sign up with RingCentral you get a lot more than just the best toll-free number service. RingEX is a holistic unified communications solution powered by AI that can help you boost productivity across your teams and which works seamlessly with RingCX, an omnichannel contact center solution.
That said, RingCentral still excels as a toll-free number provider, too:
Hassle-free number transfers and affordable
- Seamlessly and quickly transfer your existing toll-free numbers from other providers to RingCentral. Don’t lose that 800 number that your customers already know and trust.
- Available with every RingEXTM edition, RingCentral toll-free numbers are competitively priced. So you can have dedicated 800 or vanity numbers for different business or marketing needs.
- Toll-free minutes come in bundles, with packages that can accommodate every budget. If you exceed your bundle limit, you can purchase additional minutes to eliminate service interruptions.
Enhance your company's visibility with custom vanity 800 numbers
- Choose a unique phone number from RingCentral's large inventory or create your own custom vanity 1800 number.
- Reinforce brand recognition with 800-number services. Make it easier for prospects and customers to remember your company phone number.
- Increase marketing effectiveness by adding an easy-to-recall vanity 1800 number on billboards and online advertising.
- Your vanity number can be used for both voice calls and faxing.
Deliver exceptional service
- Gain national reach with 800 numbers to instantly expand your business with minimal additional overhead.
- Reduce sales barriers by offering toll-free service—prospects and customers can call your company from anywhere in North America without incurring toll charges.
- Assign a dedicated 800 number for the duration of a marketing campaign, so target customers can reach you directly and you can better track campaign success.
- Never miss an important customer call. You can route calls to your numbers anywhere in the world at any time. When you’re traveling, you can set answering rules to send calls to your smartphone, any office location, or even several devices at once.