RingCentral is a global provider of cloud-based communication and collaboration solutions. Based in Belmont, California, the company was founded in 1999 by Vlad Shmunis and Vlad Vendrow and received its first round of VC investment in 2006.
After completing its IPO in Sep 2013, RingCentral raised $39.8 million in a follow-on offering in Mar 2014. It has secured over $45 million in capital investment since its founding. In 2021, RingCentral had 2,363 employees and reported a 35% increase in revenue to $1.6 billion, up from $1.2 billion in 2020. Its subscriptions revenue surged 36% to $1.5 billion, representing over 90% of total revenue. [1]
RingCentral expanded its platform and services through acquisitions. The company acquired Glip in Jun 2015, Dimelo in Oct 2018, Connect First in Jan 2019, and DeepAffects in Dec 2020. These acquisitions bolstered RingCentral’s team collaboration, Omnichannel contact center, customer engagement, and intelligence-assisted speech recognition.
In Mar 2021, RingCentral purchased Tel Aviv-based Kindite to strengthen its encryption service. The platform now offers RingCentral Office and Fax, RingCentral Professional, and RingCentral Meetings. But the company faces stiff competition from Microsoft, Zoom, Google Chat, Nextiva, GoToConnect, and Vonage. [2]
Here is an in-depth analysis of RingCentral’s top 10 competitors and alternatives:
1. Microsoft Teams
Year founded: 1975
Headquarter: Redmond, Washington
Microsoft Teams is an innovative communication and collaboration solution offered by Microsoft Corp. More than 75 million people use Microsoft Teams daily to streamline internal and external business interactions. In 2021, Microsoft had 182,268 employees and generated $143.02 billion in revenue.
The main competitive advantage for Teams over RingCentral is its integration with other Microsoft solutions, including Azure, Outlook, and 365 Office. In Mar 2022, Microsoft introduced a new add-on for Teams that provides real-time translation during video meetings.
This functionality is enabled by Interprefy, a cloud-based translation solution that integrates into Microsoft Teams. The tech giant also offers Azure Communication Services and GitHub, used by over 50 million developers. Microsoft Teams is the top RingCentral competitor and alternative. [3]
2. Zoom Meetings
Year founded: 2011
Headquarter: San Jose, California
Zoom Meetings is a videotelephony software offered by Zoom Video Communications. Millions of individuals and businesses relied on Zoom Meetings to adapt to the challenges of 2020. In 2021, Zoom Video Communications had 6,269 employees and reported a 55% increase in revenue to $4.1 billion. [4]
Zoom is an intuitive, scalable, and secure platform for large enterprises, SMBs, and individuals. It offers a free plan that lasts for 40 minutes and allows up to 100 participants. This option is enough for most SMBs.
Businesses with more participants or need more time can upgrade by subscribing to a paid plan. The app runs on PCs and smartphones and comes with easy-to-use features for chat, whiteboarding, and document sharing. Zoom’s free plan makes it the best RingCentral alternative for individuals and small businesses.
3. Google Chat
Year founded: 1998
Headquarter: Mountain View, California
Google Chat is an instant messaging platform for teams offered by Google to replace the defunct Google Hangouts. The platform provides robust features that rival RingCentral’s offering. In 2021, Google had around 119,000 employees and generated $160.7 billion in revenues.
Both Google Chat and RingCentral enhance communication and team collaboration. But Google Chat is integrated with Gmail and enables content sharing to and from Google Drive.
The platform provides direct messages, team chat rooms, and group messaging. Google Chat is one of the best RingCentral alternatives for instant messaging and collaboration. [5]
4. Nextiva
Year founded: 2006
Headquarter: Scottsdale, Arizona
Nextiva is a business communications company with a valuation of $2.7 billion. The company generates around $250 million in revenue annually. In 2021, Nextiva raised $200 million in its first external funding round led by Goldman Sachs.
Nextiva offers cloud-based communications software used by over 100,000 businesses globally. Its Nextiva Office system fulfills the telephony needs of companies with multiple office locations.
In 2022, Nextiva will use the $200 million raised from Goldman Sachs to accelerate innovation in its tech platform, develop AI and automation, and expand its global footprint. Nextiva is one of the best RingCentral alternatives for organization-wide communication. [6]
5. Dialpad Talk
Year founded: 2011
Headquarter: San Francisco, California
Dialpad is a cloud-based VoIP provider that offers communication solutions for businesses. Users can set up business VoIP phone services, web conferences, or sales call centers. In 2021, Dialpad Talk had 895 employees and reached $125 million in annual recurring revenue. The company raised $170 million in Dec 2021, doubling its valuation to $2.2 billion. [7]
Dialpad offers four communications products; Dialpad Talk, Dialpad Sell, Dialpad Support, and UberConference. Dialpad Talk is a cloud-based phone system that connects teams across existing devices.
This platform offers voice, text messaging, and video with real-time call transcription. Users can access Dialpad via any Internet-connected device and combine its features in different ways to attain the most cost-effective package. Dialpad is one of the best RingCentral alternatives. [8]
6. Vonage
Year founded: 2001
Headquarter: Holmdel, New Jersey
Vonage is a leading CPaaS company that offers Vonage Business Communications (VBC). It provides an all-in-one system that combines voice telephony, SMS, team chat, fax, social media, and video conference in a single solution.
In 2021, Vonage had 2,400 employees and generated $1.4 billion in revenue. Its communications revenue increased by 22% to $1.12 billion. [9]
Vonage is a market leader for API solutions, with over 1600 carriers in 200 countries. Its VBC system offers voice alerts, bulk SMS, live web-chat, and voice APIs for IVR, P2P, A2P, A2A, and text-to-speech.
Over 114,000 developers and brands use VBC, including Siemens, Domino’s Pizza, Glassdoor, Zipcar, and DHL. Users complete about 5 billion API calls annually via Vonage’s platform. Vonage is one of the best RingCentral alternatives.
7. 8×8 Inc.
Year founded: 1987
Headquarter: Campbell, California
8×8 Inc. is a leading provider of Voice over IP products. Its 8×8 X Series solution helps users communicate seamlessly over the web through the shortest, highest-quality channel feasible. In 2021, 8×8 Inc’s revenue increased by 19.3% to $532.3 million. [10]
8×8 offers several business solutions, including cloud-based voice, contact center, video, mobile, and unified communications. These products compete against RingCentral Office, RingCentral Video, and RingCentral Meetings. In 2020, 8×8 launched a CPaaS that leverages programmable apps and APIs to streamline communications in work-from-home scenarios. 8×8 Inc. is a worthy competitor for RingCentral.
8. Cisco
Year founded: 1984
Headquarter: San José, California
Cisco is a tech company that offers networking and communications solutions for businesses. Its Webex Calling software competes with RingCentral’s video meeting tools. In 2021, Cisco had around 76,000 employees and made $49.3 billion in revenue.
Both Cisco and RingCentral provide robust communication solutions for business. Cisco recently launched more than 400 Webex innovations and features to boost meeting productivity.
In 2021, Cisco acquired Sedona Systems and Socio Labs to bolster Webex Events. Cisco Webex is one of the best RingCentral alternatives for large companies. [11]
9. GoToConnect
Year founded: 2003
Headquarter: Boston, Massachusetts
GoToConnect is a unified communication solution offered by LogMeIn. Its parent company also owns Jive Communications, Citrix GoTo, and the Grasshopper virtual phone system. In 2021, LogMeIn had 3,500 employees and about 2 million customers globally.
GoToConnect is an all-in-one cloud-based VoIP platform that delivers call center solutions, phone, videoconferencing, and messaging. The platform integrates with over 180 desk phone models and leverages MFA, encryption, and Meeting Lock to secure business communications.
Users can also bundle GoToConnect with LogMeIn online security solutions, such as LastPass. GoToConnect is an innovative RingCentral alternative. [12]
10. Twilio
Year founded: 2008
Headquarter: San Francisco, California
Twilio is a cloud-based CPaaS platform with a fully-editable API. The platform makes it easier for businesses to add customer outreach channels and communicates with the target market. In 2021, Twilio had 7,867 employees and posted a 61% increase in revenue to $2.84 billion. [13]
Twilio has more than 208,000 active customer accounts. The platform processes text messages, voice calls, and videos for innovative brands, including Uber, Airbnb, Lyft, and Yelp.
Its product portfolio includes SendGrid, Electric Imp, Segment, and Zipwhip, acquired in 2021 for $850 million. Twilio is one of the best RingCentral alternatives in the cloud communications market. [14]
References & more information
- RingCentral Inc (2022, Feb 23). RingCentral Announces Fourth Quarter 2021 Results. Yahoo Finance
- McHugh, M. (2021, Mar 23). RingCentral Acquires Cloud Security Startup Kindite. UC Today
- Khalili, J. (2022, Mar 11). The New Microsoft Teams app eliminates an obvious advantage for Zoom. TechRadar
- Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (2022, Feb 28). Zoom Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2022 Financial Results. Globe Newswire
- Krasnoff, B. (2022, Feb 10). How to activate and use Google Chat. The Verge
- Blye, A. (2021, Sep 14). Nextiva raises $200M from Goldman Sachs in first-ever outside funding. Business Journal
- Sawers, P. (2021, Dec 12). Unified business communications platform Dialpad nabs $170 million. Venture Beat
- Yonatan, R. (2022, Jan 24). Dialpad Pricing & Plans: The Complete Breakdown. Get VoIP
- Vonage (2022, Feb 24). Vonage Reports Fourth Quarter 2021 Financial Results. Globe Newswire
- 8×8, Inc. (2021, May 10). 8×8 Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2021 Financial Results. Yahoo Finance
- Narcisi, G. (2021, May 19). Cisco Security, Webex See ‘Record-Breaking’ Growth; Software Run-Rate Soars Past $14B. CRN
- Nagro, A. (2021, Dec 15). GoToConnect Business Phone System Review and Prices. US News
- Twilio (2022, Feb 10). Twilio Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2021 Results. Yahoo Finance
- Twilio (2021, Jul 14). Twilio Completes Acquisition of Zipwhip. Yahoo Finance
- Featured image by Dylan Ferreira
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