Custom phone number

Get a custom phone number to suit your business as just one of the many benefits of RingEX from RingCentral. Choose toll-free, local, or vanity numbers to support your teams and delight your customers.
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Written by SanYee Dieh
Manager, Product Marketing
Reviewed by Esther Yoon
VP, Product & Industry Marketing
Updated: 15 March 2025
Gone are the days of signing up for a business phone service and having to settle for the first random digits you’re assigned as a phone number. In the past, traditional telephone carriers made it difficult and expensive to choose custom phone numbers. Today, with VoIP, it’s easier than ever to choose a specific phone number for your business.
Custom telephone numbers are available through VoIP service providers such as RingCentral. So, let’s look at how to get a custom phone number and why your business may want to.

What is a custom phone number?

A custom phone number is a unique sequence of numbers and/or letters, designed to be easy for people to remember and dial. The letters can spell out a word, such as the name of your business. Or, you could use a sequence of repeated numbers.
For organizations, an easy-to-remember business phone number helps to improve your credibility and brand recognition. Virtual phone numbers also allow users to make “local” calls from wherever they are, by choosing a phone number with a specific area code or country code.
A man with earbuds making a phone call on his mobile phone
A woman making a phone call in her kitchen

How to get a specific phone number: Understanding the types of custom phone numbers

If you want to get a specific phone number to suit your business, you must first understand the different types of custom numbers available. The type of number most suitable for you will depend on the unique demands and needs of your business and your customers.
A allows your customers to call you free of charge. The original toll-free prefix is 800, but the following prefixes have been added to meet demand:
  • 888
  • 877
  • 866
  • 855
  • 844
Another way to customize a phone number and make it memorable is with the easy-dial option, which uses patterns of repeated or alternating digits instead of a random sequence.
They’re available with toll-free and local prefixes. For example, if you’re a small business that only operates in your local area, you may opt for a local number such as (612) 555-5555.
A business with regional offices may use the same number with different area codes for each. One office may have the number (712) 555-5555, while another has (906) 555-5555. 
Incoming calls can be routed to one location through a local phone number, so you could have a single call center managing calls for multiple locations.
Vanity phone numbers are custom numbers that are easy to remember and can form part of an effective marketing strategy. These numbers use a word or phrase that customers enter into their keypad after a local or toll-free prefix (in that case, they’re also known as vanity toll-free numbers). 
For example, you may have heard of 1-800-FLOWERS. This famous vanity number tells customers what the business does, as well as how to get in touch. If you’re wondering about how to create your own phone number from scratch, this is probably the type of custom number you’d choose.

How to create a phone number

If you do choose to create a phone number tailored to your business and its customers, it’s important to take the process seriously. The number will become a key part of your brand image and while the right number can effectively support your branding, the wrong one can do the exact opposite. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you create your own phone number:
  • Relevance: The point of a custom vanity number is that it tells customers something about your business as well as giving them a way to reach you. Make sure that any words spelt by your number are as relevant as possible.
  • Memorability: How easy is your custom phone number to remember? You’ll want to choose a number that will stick in customers’ minds and that they’ll be able to use even if they haven’t got you saved in their contacts.
  • Usability: If you’re going to create a custom phone number with wording, make sure people can easily spell the words involved. Don’t choose complicated words or those that have complex spellings which people may not necessarily remember.

Why buy a custom phone number?

When you buy a custom phone number it offers a wide range of benefits to your business. Better still, when you get custom numbers as part of a business phone system like RingEX, you can leverage all the advantages of VoIP and create a surefire way to connect with your potential and existing customers. Consider the following benefits of a custom phone number:
Any of the custom phone number types we discussed earlier give your business instant credibility. Toll-free, easy dial, and vanity phone numbers show that you took the time to craft your professional image all the way down to your contact details. It gives the impression of an established, trustworthy company.
Custom phone numbers boost brand image and awareness, as customers will not only recognize you by your business name but also by its number. When they see a unique number in your marketing material, they’ll remember it for later—even if they don’t get in touch immediately.
Memorable and toll-free numbers are convenient for customers, which makes them more likely to contact you. When you call prospects, they’re more likely to answer if the call appears to come from an area that’s local to them. With a virtual phone number, you can even reach people with free international calling. It also makes your team reachable wherever, whenever. You no longer need to give out your mobile number to take business calls when you’re not in the office.
are increasingly becoming the choice of businesses, with most understanding that traditional phone lines no longer cut it. With landlines, you’re pretty much limited to standard features like caller ID. You’re also at the mercy of the long-distance and international calling rates of a traditional phone company. With VoIP phone service providers, you can leverage all the best features, like:
  • Voicemail transcription
  • SMS text messages
  • Phone number porting
  • Auto attendant
  • Call forwarding
  • Click to call
  • Call recording
  • Video conferencing

How to get a custom number with RingCentral

With RingEX, you have access to one of the largest databases for custom phone numbers. As a RingCentral customer, you can easily port your existing numbers or add a new number directly from your account. 
Here’s how to set up a custom phone number:
  1. Log in to your RingCentral online account.
  2. Go to the Home page.
  3. Click on Phone Number > Add Number.
  4. Under Number Type, select Vanity, International, Toll-free, or Local.
  5. Once you have chosen a number, click Add Numbers, then click Next.
  6. Now you need to assign where the number will be routed. You can send incoming calls to an:

    • Auto-attendant (this uses IVR to route your calls to the appropriate team member)
    • Extension (you can have the number added as a direct number to a selected extension)
       
  7. Make your choice, and then click Next.

Pricing and setup fees

Getting custom phone numbers is more affordable than ever. With RingCentral, there’s a one-time setup fee of $30 plus taxes, which will be billed to your account once you decide on a new number. Then, you just have to pay a small subscription fee in order to own your number.
The call recap feature of RingEX

Custom phone number FAQs

Decide whether you want the number to be toll-free, vanity, or local—think about your business goals and which type of number would help you the most.
Consider availability, too. If you’re going for a toll-free number, you’ll have more choice if you use a prefix other than the super-popular 800. For vanity numbers, literal descriptions of your service (such as 833-ROOFING) will probably already be taken, so use your unique business title or get creative. That said, the point is to make it memorable, so avoid hard-to-spell words and awkward combinations of numbers and letters.
Not at all! You can use your virtual number to get all your business phone calls to your personal cell phone via the RingCentral mobile app. There’s no need to charge and carry around two separate devices.
Your new number will be activated in five business days as long as:
  • RingCentral was able to reserve the number for you (a number can be reserved by other telecom carriers as well).
  • Your account is in an active and paid subscription.
You won’t be able to have ownership of the number until you have a paid subscription.
Most VoIP services provide a business phone number as part of the package, but if you want to customize your number with words, toll-free prefixes, or easy-dial sequences, you’ll usually have to pay. If someone is offering you a custom phone number for free, make sure you read the small print because there may be hidden charges!

Get a custom phone number with RingCentral today.

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