Cloud Phone System Provider Comparison 2026

What is a cloud phone system?

A cloud phone system replaces the traditional hardware PBX in the server room. The entire system runs in the provider’s data centre, and calls travel over the internet via VoIP, on a desk phone, softphone or app.

The switch is mandatory, not optional: ISDN has been phased out in Germany since 2018, with full retirement planned by 2030. Market data puts VoIP adoption among German companies above 85 percent, and the UCaaS market is growing around 15 percent in 2026. The question is not whether, but which provider.

One distinction matters: VoIP is the technology, the cloud phone system is the finished product on top of it. If you want to keep your existing PBX, you modernise only the connection with a SIP trunk instead. Our voice solutions overview sets out the full picture.

Provider comparison: Placetel, NFON, sipgate, 3CX and Teams

The German market is large and shaped by local, GDPR-compliant providers. The main names: Placetel (by Cisco/Gamma), NFON, sipgate, 3CX, STARFACE, easybell and Microsoft Teams Phone.

Roughly by profile: Placetel and NFON are strong in the mid-market, Placetel with around 150 features and good Teams integration, NFON with over 200 CRM integrations and an enterprise focus. sipgate from Dusseldorf suits smaller, flexible setups with monthly cancellation and a good API. 3CX targets IT-savvy teams and, since 2024, bills by simultaneous calls rather than by user. STARFACE is made in Germany and DATEV-certified, easybell the low-cost basic option.

The striking pattern: nearly every comparison online comes from a provider or a certified partner and, unsurprisingly, ends with that exact solution. A reliable comparison therefore needs a neutral view across providers, aligned with your IT strategy rather than one vendor’s portfolio.

What a cloud phone system costs

Cloud phone systems typically cost 5 to 20 euros per extension per month. The price follows the feature set, not simply the user count.

For a team of 20 users, three tiers are realistic: basic features without premium extras at roughly 100 to 200 euros a month, the UC package with queues, IVR and apps at 200 to 400 euros, and the enterprise variant with CRM integration, call recording and analytics at 400 to 700 euros. Add one-off setup costs of about 1,000 to 2,500 euros plus optional endpoints.

Compared with an old on-premise PBX, companies usually save 20 to 40 percent of total cost over five years. The key is not to compare the lowest base price, but the total cost including features, support and migration.

Connecting a cloud phone system to Microsoft Teams

Many companies want to call from the familiar Teams interface. There are two ways to do that, and they differ sharply in price.

The Microsoft Calling Plan is quick to start but bills a fixed rate per user. A SIP trunk via Direct Routing instead connects an external carrier, needs a Session Border Controller, but is usually much cheaper at higher volume. The Teams Phone licence applies either way.

Which route is cheaper depends on the specific user count and call volume, not on a blanket figure from a forum comparison. A Teams Phone licence runs around 8 euros per user, and with Direct Routing plus a carrier SIP trunk you typically land at 10 to 14 euros per user for pure telephony. The details are on our Microsoft Teams Phone page.

The underrated prerequisite: your internet line

The point almost every comparison skips: the best cloud phone system is worthless if the internet line cannot keep up. It is the real prerequisite that no provider comparison can paper over.

Each simultaneous call needs only around 100 kbit/s. That sounds trivial, but in practice jitter and packet loss matter far more than raw bandwidth. An overloaded or poorly prioritised underlay produces choppy calls, regardless of the provider.

So checking the connection belongs before the provider choice: a sufficiently stable line, properly configured QoS and, where needed, a redundant link for voice. This is where a partner who looks at telephony and voice architecture together with connectivity pays off.

Selection guide: five steps to the right provider

Choosing a provider becomes predictable when it follows a fixed order. These five steps lead reliably to the right cloud phone system.

• First: clarify requirements: user count, needed features (queues, IVR, call centre) and CRM integrations.
• Second: check the internet line: stability, QoS and, where needed, redundancy for voice.
• Third: decide the integration route: standalone system or connected to Microsoft Teams.
• Fourth: compare providers on total cost, feature set, support and contract term, not on base price.
• Fifth: plan porting and migration and secure a single point of contact for setup and operation.

If you would rather not run through these steps yourself, hand them to a vendor-neutral advisor. That saves time, keeps the decision transparent and prevents a wrong choice that gets expensive over the contract term.