Grasshopper Pricing Explained: Plans, Features, and Costs

Grasshopper’s phone system is marketed to small businesses and entrepreneurs who want to have professional business phone numbers. The simple interfaces and relatively low starting costs for Grasshopper pricing plans are also appealing to small brands that only need basic systems.

However, there are limitations to Grasshopper that you should know. The platform is more limited than other VoIP service providers, especially when it comes to advanced functionality, and the costs of add-on features can become costly fast. In some cases, these limitations cause potential customers to consider Grasshopper alternatives instead.

So, if you’re wondering if Grasshopper is right for you, keep reading. This post will examine the advantages of the Grasshopper platform, the actual costs after considering add-on features, and whether you may benefit from a different business phone system instead.

What People Like About Grasshopper

Grasshopper has relatively good customer ratings. It continues to appeal to small businesses and solopreneurs for a few key reasons:

• Simple setup: Signing up takes minutes thanks to the platform’s user-friendly interface, and no hardware or IT experience is required.
• Clean mobile and desktop apps: Useful for remote teams or businesses on the go.
• Professional presentation: Toll-free numbers, vanity numbers, local numbers, and features like custom greetings help solo businesses look more established.
• US-based support: 24/7 support is available with every plan.
• Ruby receptionist add-on: Live call answering can help small businesses look more professional.
• Reliable service: Customer reviews frequently mention good call quality and reliable service.

Grasshopper Pricing Overview

Grasshopper offers multiple pricing plans, and discounts are available when you pay annually instead of monthly. Your plan determines how many phone numbers, extensions, and users have access to your service.

Here’s a breakdown:

Plan Name	Annual Price (Monthly Avg)	Monthly Price	Phone Numbers	Extensions	Users
True Solo	$14/month	$18/month	1	1	1
Solo Plus	$25/month	$32/month	1	3	Unlimited
Small Business	$80/month	$92/month	4	Unlimited	Unlimited

Common features across all plans

While pricing changes depending on the number of users, extensions, and phone numbers you want added to the plan, there are a few features available across all plans:

• Mobile and desktop apps, including mobile apps for iOS and Android.
• VoIP and Wi-Fi calling for those with a reliable internet connection.
• Voicemail transcription to create written transcripts of voicemails.
• Virtual fax features that allow users to receive or send faxes digitally.
• Custom greetings that customers hear when they call your business.
• Auto-attendant to provide navigational support to callers, transferring them to the right department.
• Call forwarding to ensure that callers can reach the correct department.
• Business texting is available in the US and Canada for internal or external purposes.
• 24/7 customer support, including an option to call the support team.

Grasshopper’s Hidden Fees That Add Up

While Grasshopper’s starting costs and flat-cost plans seem competitive, it’s important to account for additional add-on features that can become expensive quickly. A $25 Solo Plus plan can easily cost you $60–100 a month once basic add-ons are applied.

Let’s look at the add-on features that can ramp up the VoIP cost of a Grasshopper business phone system.

Call blasting

Call blasting allows you to ring multiple phones simultaneously. These simultaneous calls can reduce agent wait times and improve productivity. Call blasting costs $9 per month.

Additional extensions

If you’re using the True Solo or Solo Plus plans and want additional extensions, you’re looking at $3 per month for each added extension.

Additional phone numbers

Just like the extensions, if you want to add additional phone numbers to your plan, it will cost you $9 per month for each new number.

Professional greetings

Professional greetings can be a valuable asset to business calls, as they can help you make a strong first impression. You can get recordings in English, Spanish, and French. If you want to create professional greetings with Grasshopper’s experienced voice actors, it’s a $75 one-time fee per recording.

Ruby live receptionist

Ruby is a live receptionist service that ensures that your business never misses a call. If someone from your team doesn’t answer, callers can speak to US-based receptionists. According to Ruby’s site, pricing starts at $245 for just 50 call minutes.

International calling

You’ll incur additional costs for international calling, with call rates that cost up to 95¢ per minute of talk time. This is significant for anyone who may be interested in doing business internationally or who may work with international vendors. International calling is only available to customers who have been with Grasshopper for over 60 days.

Key Limitations of Grasshopper

While Grasshopper has solid basic features, it doesn’t have the advanced functionality that some customers expect from a modern VoIP phone service. Let’s look at the key limitations of Grasshopper.

Limited integrations

Grasshopper has some integrations. For example, you can integrate with Skype for an additional cost. However, compared to most platforms that connect with powerful CRMs, sales tools, and communication platforms, Grasshopper’s integrations are incredibly limited. Other tools can integrate with major platforms like Salesforce, HubSpot, and Slack to help your team better track customer interactions, sales processes, and more.

There are processes to connect your phone numbers to some of these tools, but they’re manual rather than having native integrations. While this may not be a dealbreaker for solopreneurs, it’s a major disadvantage for businesses with growth goals.

No shared numbers or inboxes

Some VoIP systems allow specific teams to share a single “department” number or inbox. This can facilitate collaboration, lower customer wait times, and make it easier for teams to forward calls to the right person quickly. Grasshopper does not offer this feature, which makes it a poor fit for wide-scale collaboration or large teams.

Basic analytics

Many VoIP systems come with advanced analytics, but Grasshopper doesn’t. It lacks the advanced call insights and reporting that other tools offer, which is invaluable for those carefully tracking and optimizing for call volume, customer sentiment, and other KPIs.

Outdated interface

Grasshopper’s interface is simple, but it’s also relatively outdated. This can result in UI frustrations, with some users noting that limited configuration options have prevented them from customizing the interface according to their needs. If you’re considering Grasshopper, make sure you take advantage of the free trial to make sure that it meets your standards.

No AI or automation

While some of the leading platforms are implementing advanced VoIP features centered around AI or automation, Grasshopper isn’t.

It doesn’t offer any smart features like voicemail tagging, automated call summaries, or predictive routing. While these may seem like they’re only nice-to-haves, scaling businesses can benefit immensely from automated workflows and improved customer experiences that come from AI features.

No real team collaboration tools

Collaboration potential is low with Grasshopper’s features. There isn’t any functionality to assign calls, forward texts, or manage shared inboxes between team members. This can make call handling and resolving customer issues more difficult, especially when team members are working together on a single case.

How Nextiva Compares

If you’re looking for the best VoIP system for your business and feel like Grasshopper may be too limited or too expensive once you account for the add-ons, you may want to compare Nextiva vs. Grasshopper.

Nextiva is an all-in-one communication solution that works for small businesses but can scale as you grow to service a mid-sized business or even a large enterprise company. Let’s look at how Nextiva measures up.

Transparent, per-user pricing

While Grasshopper charges per phone number and for add-ons, Nextiva keeps it simple with per-user pricing starting at $15 per month. There are no hidden fees or surprise charges — Nextiva’s costs are simple and straightforward.

Shared phone numbers & inboxes

Grasshopper doesn’t offer shared lines or collaboration tools.

Nextiva, however, enables shared numbers and team inboxes so your team can work together seamlessly on customer calls and messages. When a customer is trying to reach the billing department, for example, the call will ring on available representatives’ phones so they can be helped quickly.

Full omnichannel communication

Grasshopper is voice and SMS only, with service included for the US and Canada.

Nextiva, however, includes voice, text messaging, email, video conferencing, and team chat in one UCaaS platform. This is invaluable for providing the modern, multichannel support that customers are increasingly expecting.

Deep CRM integrations

Unlike Grasshopper, which currently requires manual processes for features like call tracking with third-party tools, Nextiva integrates natively with Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho, and more. This enables you to connect seamlessly with your CRM to track and access customer interactions, giving your teams access to 360 customer views for more personalized interactions.

Built-in AI capabilities

Grasshopper is designed to be a simple tool and is not focused on delivering cutting-edge technology, like automation or AI features. Nextiva couldn’t be more different, having invested heavily in AI-powered functionality and automation.

From voicemail transcription to AI-powered call summaries and coaching tools, Nextiva brings intelligence to every interaction. Your team can gain new insights, become more productive, and ultimately create a superior customer experience.

Advanced call analytics

While Grasshopper provides basic call metrics, Nextiva provides detailed real-time reporting, dashboards, and customer journey tracking. Nextiva’s analytics and reporting capabilities are also powered by AI and include real-time feedback, emotion detection, and auto-transcription.

Call recording & storage

Call recording is an important feature for most businesses. It’s essential for quality assurance purposes, but it can also help you identify training opportunities and even protect your business against potential liabilities.

Grasshopper requires a Solo Plus or a Small Business plan to access call recording. Nextiva, meanwhile, includes call recording on all business plans.

International calling

Grasshopper offers per-minute rates up to 95¢ and an initial $500 deposit for international calling. You also need to be a customer for at least 60 days before international calling becomes available.

That’s not the case with Nextiva, which offers international calling options with no hefty deposits. Nextiva makes it easier to get started quickly.

Team collaboration tools

Teams can access the Nextiva dashboard to tag each other in threads, assign calls, chat internally, and manage everything in one place. Collaboration is much more accessible, allowing teams to handle complex customer inquiries more effectively. In comparison, Grasshopper offers no collaborative features.

Award-winning 24/7 support

While both platforms offer around-the-clock support, Grasshopper’s customer service has mixed customer reviews. Nextiva, meanwhile, is consistently recognized for top-tier customer service and onboarding assistance. It offers support through live chat, phone, and email.

Get the Best Value From Your Phone System With Nextiva

When you’re choosing a VoIP provider, it’s important to look at the big picture. One option may come at a lower cost, but it may also have limited features or significant add-on costs that are worth considering.

Grasshopper is a great example of this. While it is a great introductory solution for solopreneurs and small businesses that don’t plan to grow long-term, it doesn’t allow most businesses to scale efficiently — especially once you account for the hidden cost of add-ons.

A freelancer running their own business could benefit from a plan like Grasshopper, for example, if they just want a basic phone system that allows them to keep business and personal calls separate. Startups, meanwhile, should look for more advanced solutions that can deliver the functionality they need as they grow quickly.

Nextiva isn’t just designed for solo operators; it was created with scaling teams in mind. It can scale up and down alongside your business needs, because it’s more than just a phone system; it’s your all-in-one communications hub.

When choosing your service provider, make sure that the system you choose will be able to scale alongside your business, both in terms of how many phone numbers you’ll need and the functionality that you could benefit from.

Looking for a system that can grow with your business? Learn more about Nextiva’s VoIP solution today.