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Nextiva Review and Pricing
Table of Contents
- Nextiva provides around-the-clock phone support and business-friendly web chat hours, including weekends.
- The platform’s omnichannel capabilities help small businesses manage customer expectations across e-commerce and social media channels.
- Companies can easily adjust call flows with Nextiva’s schedule-based, virtual receptionist and advanced routing options.
- Nextiva doesn’t offer a business phone-only subscription, which increases the starting price above most competitors.
- Integrations are add-ons for all plans; only the upper-tier packages come with digital faxing.
- Nextiva’s small business plans lack AI-powered voice and video summarization tools offered by cloud-based phone providers like RingEX and Dialpad.
Finding software vendors that offer expert customer service over the phone is challenging. That’s why we were impressed with Nextiva. Time and again, this voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) provider answered our calls and questions, easily earning its place as the best business phone system for customer support. Nextiva also bundles digital sales and social media channels with calling plans, helping small companies manage reviews, email and social media interactions through one vendor.
Nextiva Editor's Rating:
8.5 / 10
- Pricing/value
- 8.3/10
- Features
- 8/10
- Customizations, add-ons and integrations
- 7.8/10
- Ease of use
- 9/10
- Customer support
- 9.5/10
Why We Chose Nextiva for Customer Support
Reliable, knowledgeable support teams make a huge difference when problems arise. Although several of the best business phone systems offer live chat services, 24/7 phone support is less common. We love that Nextiva provides reliable customer service with patient, helpful agents. Whether setting up new phones or configuring call routing, they know what they’re talking about and will walk you through issues and processes step by step.
Aside from 24/7 phone support, Nextiva can be reached via live chat, ticketing and email. When submitting a ticket, you can select your preferred contact method (phone or email) and choose from 12 categories to ensure your request gets to the agent most equipped to handle the issue. Nextiva also offers paid customer success and implementation services.
Head to Nextiva’s support page to search the knowledge base or request assistance. Source: Nextiva
Ease of Use
We found Nextiva easy to configure and use. Administrators or small business owners can set up the business phone system through NextOS using Nextiva’s onboarding wizard. It takes less than 15 minutes to create teams, roles, voicemail greetings and extensions. We love that the setup process includes an offline call forwarding option, automatically routing calls to an external phone number if your office experiences an outage. You can toggle this feature on or off at any time.
The experience as an individual user was also straightforward. Employees can configure individual preferences, such as where the pop-up for incoming calls appears on their screen, whether they want to keep the NextivaONE window on top of other apps or launch the app at startup. We loved that we could import contacts into the built-in contact management tool from integrated Google or Microsoft calendars or use a comma-separated values file form (Nextiva provides a template). After all, putting contact details and conversations in one, intuitive app can help boost employee productivity.
Employees can look at all communication channels and hover over any contact to find personal notes or additional information. Source: Nextiva
However, a few of Nextiva’s administration features, like setting up call flows, fell short compared to those we tested for our review of Ooma, our top pick for small business owners. We also had some issues with Nextiva’s Android and iOS softphone applications. Sometimes, missed calls didn’t appear in the app’s call logs and we had to reinstall the apps more than once. When comparing RingEX to Nextiva, we felt RingEX’s mobile apps were more reliable. With that said, Nextiva responded to our concerns (and also replies to user reviews).
Nextiva Features
Nextiva’s customer experience (CX) platform offers business VoIP, brand management and contact center capabilities. Here are the tools we found especially valuable for small businesses.
Digital Interaction Management
Nextiva’s tools for managing customer relationships and small business reputations set its platform apart from most competitors, with only GoTo Connect offering similar features. Nextiva can route messages from multiple social media apps like X, Facebook and Instagram to a single team inbox, allowing teams to see messages or mentions and respond quickly. The CX platform also supplies a group email box with the option to assign and prioritize emails for help desk support.
In addition, we were impressed by the e-commerce and app store review management tools. These features can help small businesses save time when responding to online reviews across channels such as Amazon, Apple App Store, Yelp and more.
Small businesses can stay on top of social media mentions through a single inbox. Source: Nextiva
Brand Management Dashboards
Along with a unified digital inbox, Nextiva helps small businesses track the metrics that most matter to them. We were pleased that we could customize our dashboard from the onboarding menu, allowing us to align our teams around shared goals from the get-go. The user interface and process were simple and, after completing setup, you could view all trends and stats from one screen.
Prioritize the metrics that matter to your company by customizing your dashboard during onboarding. Source: Nextiva
Voicemail Transcription
Visual voicemail is popular, but some VoIP providers lock this capability behind higher-priced tiers. Nextiva includes artificial intelligence (AI) voicemail transcription, notifications and playback tools with all business phone licenses. Employees can receive alerts through text or email and scan transcripts in desktop or mobile apps.
Employees can scan AI-generated voicemail transcripts or click to listen from their NextivaONE apps. Source: Nextiva
Smart Call Routing
Most cloud-based public branch exchange systems, including Nextiva, allow small businesses to customize call flows. However, the setup process varies. We were impressed with Nextiva’s smart call routing options and found the standard selections easy to set up. Administrators configure settings through NextOS, such as basic schedules to route calls according to business hours. We liked that individual users or locations could have separate schedules.
Alternatively, Nextiva offers an auto attendant, which is a virtual receptionist that answers calls and lets callers press 1 for sales and so on. Other options include recording an announcement or extension dialing. As call volumes increase, businesses can use additional features in the Power Suite, such as priority and skills-based routing.
Configure individual or branch locations quickly by routing calls based on your business hours. Source: Nextiva
Team Collaboration Rooms
As with competitors, Nextiva provides team messaging spaces for co-workers to collaborate on group projects. However, not all cloud-based phone systems allow users to create public or private chat rooms. We appreciate that Nextiva Core and Engage plans support up to three public or private collaboration spaces. Employees can share files up to 100MB, start video meetings and chat without switching apps.
Nextiva’s team collaboration rooms help employees collaborate on group projects and access resources. Source: Nextiva
Video Conferencing
Most modern VoIP phone systems, like 8×8 and RingEX, support video conferencing, allowing business users to move seamlessly between messaging, voice and video conversations. Nextiva redefines expectations for competitors in this area with its recent update that eliminated usage and meeting limits for business voice subscriptions. We liked being able to start video calls from collaboration rooms, teammate profiles or our calendar.
However, we were disappointed that video recording wasn’t available to Core subscribers. Although Zoom Phone users can only meet for 40 minutes, they can record locally and RingEX includes video recording with all plans. [Compare RingEX vs. Zoom to see how their business voice and video features stack up to Nextiva.]
Teams can meet “face-to-face” with co-workers or choose audio-only to participate in company-wide meetings. Source: Nextiva
Reporting, Dashboards and Analytics
Like rivals, Nextiva makes basic call logs available to business phone administrators. The entry-level voice plan displays 90 days of call data and provides two dashboards for tracking key metrics. Nextiva’s Engage and Power Suite subscriptions come with voice analytics, wallboards and gamification features we typically see in the best call center services. Businesses can also add voice analytics to the Core package.
Use Nextiva’s voice analytics to learn more about your customers and find ways to improve your services and products. Source: Nextiva
Nextiva Pricing Plans and Subscription Costs
Nextiva pricing ranges from $25 to $75 per user monthly and paying annually can save you up to 20%. In addition, the vendor offers discounts for 12, 24 or 36-month contracts. However, the base plan doesn’t come with a VoIP number or calling services, making the cheapest package a better fit for digital-only startups or small e-commerce businesses.
The professional business communications system with voice, team chat, video, short message services (SMS) and multimedia messaging service costs $36 per user monthly, the most expensive phone service we reviewed. However, this package gives companies access to CX management features, similar to GoTo Connect’s midtier subscription, priced at $37 monthly.
Here’s a closer look at how these four subscriptions differ:
Key features
Nextiva service plan | Monthly pricing (per user) | |
|---|---|---|
Digital | $25 |
|
Core | $36 | Everything in the Digital plan, plus:
|
Engage | $50 | Everything in the Core plan, plus:
|
Power Suite | $75 | Everything in the Engage plan, plus:
|
Nextiva’s business phone plans integrate with several of the best customer relationship management software and project management solutions, including HubSpot and Microsoft Teams. However, in some cases, you may pay additional fees for implementation, setup or usage.
Before purchasing a multiline phone system through Nextiva, you must chat with a sales representative. You can submit a form, click to chat or call the toll-free number. They can help you choose the best package and answer questions about add-on fees.
Implementation and Onboarding
After purchasing your business phone licenses from Nextiva, you can have your basic configuration ready to accept calls in under 15 minutes, including any compatible VoIP phones. We used the NextOS onboarding wizard during our test run, which supports solopreneurs and companies with multiple locations. Nextiva recommends this option for setting up 10 or fewer employees. Larger teams can use the bulk import templates to ensure names, emails and settings transfer accurately.
The guided setup process was smooth from the moment we clicked the blue button. We loved that Nextiva shows all phone numbers with your plan and allows you to edit them. For example, it creates local numbers based on your ZIP code. But you can choose a virtual phone number to establish your brand in a different city. We were also able to record our voicemail and enter a call forwarding number in case of an outage.
Next, we added employee details. This step might take a little longer if you’ve never set up a phone system before, but it’s still straightforward. The onboarding wizard uses this information to set permissions and later, the system routes calls to the right teams, like sales or billing. Like the other steps, everything is labeled with easy-to-use drop-down menus. Plus, you can always go back and make changes later if needed.
Here’s the information you need to breeze through this section:
- Name and email address of the employee
- The employee’s phone system role (user or admin)
- Team (call or ring group) assignment, such as marketing, sales, service or support
- Location, if you have more than one
- License type if you have more than one
- Direct phone number, extension or both
Now, here’s a feature we like, though, to be fair, other providers offer it too. If you buy phones from Nextiva, they come preconfigured, making setup incredibly easy. Just check the back of the phone for the MAC address and match it with the one on your screen. Then, plug in the ethernet cable (and power cord if needed) and, within a minute or so, the employee’s name and number should appear on the phone.
If you’re using a compatible VoIP device, you can select it from the drop-down menu and follow the setup instructions, but it may take a few extra steps. Choosing the generic phone option is also possible, but Nextiva warns that this could limit functionality, making it feel more like using a landline vs. VoIP system.
Customer Support
Our repeated testing of Nextiva apps and features puts us in touch with various customer service representatives and our experience with each one rarely disappoints. We’re pleased that we can reach a live person on the phone around the clock and they’re friendly, even when you throw a tough problem their way. In addition to 24/7 phone support, Nextiva offers email, ticketing and web chat. These options are all available on the website support page.
However, we noted that during our evaluation period, Nextiva’s chat hours differed from those shown on the support site. This isn’t uncommon in customer service due to seasonal volume or scheduling fluctuations. However, it reduced weekend chat availability by seven hours daily, which could be a drawback for e-commerce businesses that rely on digital communication rather than phone support. While 24/7 phone support is still available, internet-based companies may find chat more convenient.
Nextiva’s support center provides videos, setup guides and tutorials. You can also register for live and on-demand webinars. These range from 15 to 45 minutes and cover various business phone features, voice analytics and brand reputation tools.
Limitations
Nextiva’s customer service sets it apart from competitors and we appreciate the social and brand management tools. However, we had some challenges understanding what we were getting with our service because Nextiva’s product pages, pricing descriptions and support documentation don’t use the same terms for features and nothing seemed to be updated for the newest subscription tiers. For businesses looking for standard features, this isn’t an issue. However, employees using CX features or looking for AI automation might feel frustrated because the knowledge base and search tools are limited.
In comparison, we found Dialpad’s knowledge base and AI features much more valuable for small businesses. Yet, you do sacrifice phone support on the entry-level plan and the platform isn’t quite as user-friendly. Check out our full Dialpad review to see the results of our research and testing.
We also found the platform less scalable than other services. For example, in our Nextiva vs. 8×8 comparison, we found that 8×8’s international phone numbers and calling options made it a better choice for businesses expanding globally. Learn more in our full 8×8 review.
Methodology
Our extensive research and testing for our Nextiva review involved demos and product trials. To determine the best phone system for customer support, we contacted Nextiva through voice, chat and ticketing channels. We received assistance with call routing configuration, troubleshooting mobile apps and related concerns. In addition, we evaluated user feedback and vendor responses across multiple platforms. Use our guide to selecting a business phone system to learn more about what to look for when choosing a service for your business.
FAQs
Bottom Line
We recommend Nextiva for …
- Companies looking for 24/7 customer support.
- E-commerce businesses that want a one-vendor solution for managing reviews, social media and voice communications.
- Sales and support teams that need multichannel tools, like advanced routing, live chat and shared inboxes to handle a growing volume of requests.
We don’t recommend Nextiva for …
- Financially-conscious solopreneurs or small teams seeking a dedicated business phone system with standard virtual faxing and call recording.
- Recruiters or sales agents looking for AI-generated summaries and transcripts.
- Businesses that need native integrations with productivity, marketing and collaboration tools.
