Getting a working business number takes four steps, and most people finish in under 15 minutes.
Sign up to RingEX today and get business phone numbers, advanced calling features, and a whole lot more. Contact a RingCentral expert today to learn more about how RingEX can uplevel your business communications.
Getting a working business number takes four steps, and most people finish in under 15 minutes.
Activate your account and unlock a free business phone number for every user you add. RingEX offers three pricing plans based on team size and feature needs. Pick the one that matches your headcount and sign up with your business email.
This decides how customers reach you and what shows up on their caller ID. You can select:
Confirm your identity and turn your new number on for real inbound and outbound calls. RingCentral asks for basic business details during setup, which helps keep your number active and compliant.
Put your business number on the phone, laptop, or tablet your team already carries. Install the RingEX app, log in, and your number works the same whether you're at your desk or working from a coffee shop with wifi.
The right number type depends on how customers find you and where your team operates. RingEX includes all three at no extra cost on every plan, so you match the number to how you actually do business instead of settling for whatever a provider assigns you.
Weighing your options against every number type on the market? See our guide comparing all business phone number options side by side.
These are simply numbers with an area code attached to a specific location. If this is the only type of number you need, it’s easier to get a business number that’s completely free.
Because virtual and VoIP phone numbers are independent from a location, these phone systems allow you to choose an area code that’s separate from your actual premises. You might want to do this because customers are more likely to call a local business or answer the phone to a local number.
RingCentral gives you access to more than 200 US area codes to ensure you can meet the needs of your customers.
Toll-free numbers are free for your customers to call, and show them that you care about being approachable. They’re also easy to add to your RingCentral RingEX plan.
You can choose the instantly recognizable 800 prefix, or opt for 888, 877, 866, 855, and 844 numbers. Whichever you select, you’re removing a cost barrier that would otherwise be between you and your customers.
A vanity number is a customized telephone number that spells out a memorable word or business name. Adding vanity numbers to your RingEX plan is quick and easy, but they are subject to availability.
A free calling app feels like an easy fix, until a customer needs to reach you and your number doesn't work the way a real business line does.
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) notes that VoIP providers that don't fully interconnect with the public telephone network aren't currently required to comply with its 911 and E911 rules. That gap matters the moment an employee needs to make an emergency call from a number that only exists inside an app.
Free VoIP/calling app | Real business phone number (RingEX) | |
|---|---|---|
E911 compliance | Not required to meet FCC E911 rules if not fully interconnected with the public network | Fully interconnected, FCC E911-compliant |
Real, portable number | Often app-only—can't be ported or used outside the app |
A RingEX number connects to the full public telephone network from day one, so customers reach you whether they’re on a landline, a cell carrier, or a different VoIP phone system entirely. It's also yours to keep: port it to a different provider later, and it moves with you, unlike a number that only functions inside a single app.
Handing your personal cell number to customers blurs the line between work and everything else in your life. It also puts your business on the wrong side of a data point worth paying attention to.
TransUnion found that nearly eight in ten consumers, 78%, say phone calls matter for how they communicate with businesses, even as they screen calls from numbers they don't recognize. If your business calls come from your personal number, there's a good chance customers let them go to voicemail.
A dedicated business number fixes that. Customers see a consistent, recognizable number tied to your business instead of a random cell digit they've never seen before. Your team answers as your business every time, without handing out a personal line that follows them home after hours.
A RingEX number moves with you instead of tying you to one phone. Share the same number across your desk phone, laptop, and mobile device, so a call routes to whoever's available instead of ringing a phone sitting on an empty desk.
Already have a number that customers know? Port it into RingEX and keep it, rather than starting over and asking every customer to update their contacts.
None of this requires new hardware or a second physical line. Your team logs into the RingEX app on devices they already use, and the number works the same in the office, at home, or on the road. That flexibility is what separates a real business phone service from a personal cell number pressed into service for work calls.
Juggling a separate app for calling, another for texting, and a third for video meetings slows your team down and scatters customer conversations across tools that don't talk to each other.
RingEX pairs your free per-user business number with a single AI-first platform for calling, SMS, video, and messaging, so your team stops switching vendors for each channel.
That single platform turns into outcomes your team feels every day:
RingEX backs every plan with a 99.999% uptime service-level agreement (SLA) and connects to more than 500 business tools, including Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, and Google Workspace, so your phone system works inside the tools your team already relies on. Plans start at $29.99 per month for a single user, with your free business number included from the first bill.
A free business phone number solves the immediate problem: a professional way for customers to reach you. RingEX solves the bigger one, backing that number with calling, texting, video, and messaging on a single platform instead of a patchwork of disconnected apps.
Your team doesn't need more apps. It needs one number and one platform that works everywhere they do.
See RingEX plans and pricing to find the number and features that fit your team.
Want a look at what a complete system can do for a growing team? Take a deep dive into what a world-class business phone system can do for a fuller picture of the payoff.
When you sign up to any of the three RingCentral RingEX plans each of your users get a business phone number free of any extra charge. Wherever they access RingEX, they can use that number to make and take calls, send and receive SMS, and whatever else they need to do to keep your business running smoothly.
No, you don’t need any specific—or expensive—hardware to use virtual phone numbers like those you get with RingEX. Instead, you can access your numbers and all the other advanced features of the solution simply by logging into your account online or via the desktop or mobile app.
Yes. Toll-free numbers, including the 800 prefix and the other toll-free prefixes, come included on every RingEX plan at no extra charge. They go through the same verification step covered in the how-to section above.
Real number, portable across devices and if you switch providers |
Network | Closed network, often only connects to other app users | Connects to the full public telephone network |
|---|
Business features | Limited to basic calling/texting | Auto-attendant, call queues, SMS, video, and more in one plan |
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A free calling app is often closed-network and isn't required to meet FCC E911 rules if it doesn't fully interconnect with the public telephone network. A real business number, like the one included with RingEX, is portable, FCC E911-compliant, and works across every device your team uses.
Yes, RingCentral makes it easier than ever to access local phone numbers your customers are sure to recognize. You can choose from a selection of over 200 US area codes and boost both pickup rates and customer trust.
Yes. Your RingEX business number runs alongside your personal cell without replacing it. You access it through the app or your device login, not a second physical phone.
Signing up and choosing your first number typically takes minutes. For specialized and toll-free numbers, you may need to wait up to 72 hours. Number porting, identity verification, and number selection are the most common reasons your business phone number setup takes more than a few minutes.
Business phone numbers come included free with every RingEX plan, starting at $29.99 per month for a single user. That price covers your choice of local, toll-free, or vanity number, so there's no separate fee for the number type you pick.
