Best VoIP for Small Teams: Grasshopper vs. Google Voice

Small business owners, solopreneurs, and freelancers are increasingly realizing that traditional business phones don’t work for them. VoIP phone systems, however, are a perfect fit.

VoIP systems allow business owners to download mobile apps on their cell phones and access a unique business phone number with professional custom greetings. They can automatically have it shut off outside of business hours, and it’s often much more affordable than having a second cell phone plan or landline.

Choosing the right VoIP provider is essential, however. Some providers focus exclusively on enterprise brands, coming in at a high cost with too many complex features that small business owners and solopreneurs just don’t need.

Grasshopper and Google Voice are two popular choices that can often meet the business needs of solo professionals and small business owners. In this post, we’re going to break down the differences between the two so you can determine which is best for you, or whether there’s another alternative that would benefit you more.

At a Glance: Grasshopper vs. Google Voice

Grasshopper and Google Voice are virtual phone systems that are marketed toward solopreneurs or small business owners. Both have pros and cons, depending on your business needs. Here’s a quick breakdown:

Feature	Grasshopper	Google Voice
Starting price	$14 per month, billed annually (1 number, 1 extension)	$10 per user per month (up to 10 users)
Free option	No	Yes (personal use only with Google account)
Voicemail transcription	✅	✅
Toll-free or vanity numbers	✅	❌
International numbers	❌	Yes (Premier plan only)
Shared phone numbers	❌	❌
Call recording	Yes (but requires setup)	Yes (Standard and Premier plans)
Team messaging	❌	❌ (Outside of text messaging)
Google Workspace integration	❌	✅
CRM or workflow integrations	❌	❌ (Only Google tools)
Fax support	Yes (but inbound only)	❌
24/7 support	✅	Google Workspace users only

Key Features

Both platforms target the same audiences, so either may be a good option for many small businesses or solopreneurs. When choosing a VoIP app and considering Google Voice vs. Grasshopper, it’s imperative to look at a direct comparison in functionality, pricing, and support capabilities.

Pricing & value

Google Voice and Grasshopper have completely different pricing structures, so take a close look to determine which best meets your business needs and budget.

Grasshopper is priced by account — not per user — with three plans ranging from $14 to $55 per month. Each includes a specific number of phone lines and extensions. Add-ons like additional numbers, greeting recordings, and Ruby Receptionist services cost extra.

Google Voice offers simpler per-user pricing ($10–$30 per month) but requires a Google Workspace subscription ($6–$18 per user per month). It can be a better value for individuals, but less flexible for teams.

Voice calling features

Voice calling features are important for small businesses that may want to scale in the future or who want to present a professional front.

Grasshopper supports call forwarding, call screening, custom hold music, and caller ID. You can use your existing number and mobile network. However, it doesn’t have shared numbers, and some features like call transfers are only available with higher-cost plans.

Google Voice offers on-demand and auto call recording, ring groups (Standard and Premier plans), and integrations with desk phones. It’s limited to one number per user and lacks toll-free options. Call management and call routing features are basic but often effective for small teams.

Voicemail & transcription

Both platforms offer voicemail transcription and voicemail-to-email conversion.

Grasshopper allows real-time alerts, includes per-extension voicemail boxes, and forwards audio or text to up to 15 emails.

Google Voice adds calendar-aware voicemail routing, up to 10 saved greetings, and voicemail spam filtering.

Auto attendants & routing

Auto attendants can greet callers, help them complete certain tasks like checking an account balance or paying a bill, and ensure they reach the correct number. Meanwhile, call routing can be essential to ensure that callers reach the right person to help them.

These features may not be necessary for solopreneurs, but are essential if you want to have the option to scale your team in size down the line.

Grasshopper offers a basic IVR auto attendant. Professional recordings cost extra, and multilevel menus are not available.

Google Voice includes multilevel auto attendants on Standard and Premier plans. Custom call flows, TTS greetings, and ring groups are included.

Business text messaging

Customers and teams alike are increasingly using texting to communicate with the companies they work with.

Grasshopper supports SMS and MMS from both local and toll-free numbers, including group texts and media sharing (which can be beneficial for team members and client communication). It charges a one-time $19 texting registration fee and $1.50 per month thereafter.

Google Voice provides unlimited SMS (not MMS) in the U.S. There’s limited support for group texts and message length, and it doesn’t support toll-free texting.

Analytics & reporting

Analytics and reporting may not be particularly essential for solopreneurs or freelancers. However, if you have a small or microbusiness and plan to scale, you’ll need call reporting and analytics data in the future.

Grasshopper provides three report types (usage, detail, and activity). However, it deletes data after 90 days, and there are no visual dashboards.

Google Voice offers basic call logs on all plans. It does have advanced reporting via BigQuery for Premier users.

Support & customer experience

No matter what size business you are or plan to be, you need a VoIP provider that offers high-quality calls, reliable customer support, and an easy-to-use interface on both desktop and mobile apps.

After all, a missed customer from a missed phone call can hurt a solopreneur even more than it would hurt a large organization.

Grasshopper includes 24/7 support across all plans. Reviewers praise its setup and ease of use, but criticize its lack of included features and occasional SMS sync issues. A few reviews noted poor call reliability.

Google Voice has self-help support for most users, with 24/7 live support only for Google Workspace customers. Reviews mention ease of use for existing Workspace customers, but weak customer service and occasional poor call quality.

Pros & Cons Summary

Just as with any VoIP service provider, both Grasshopper and Google Voice have distinct pros and cons. Some of these pros and cons overlap.

Both are affordable options for small businesses and solo business owners, at least if the starting prices work for you. And both have customer reviews complaining about occasional call quality issues or bad support experiences, and both have limited (if any) integrations and only basic functions.

That said, let’s take a look at the distinct pros and cons that may help you make a purchasing decision.

Grasshopper

Grasshopper’s phone service has unique pros and cons that may make it a good option for certain businesses.

Pros:

• Clean, intuitive interface.
• Toll-free numbers, local numbers, and vanity numbers.
• Multiple extensions available with higher cost plans.
• Live receptionist and pro greeting add-ons.
• Basic reporting.

Cons:

• No call recording or integrations.
• Expensive compared to competitors.
• Charges for standard features.
• Limited to the U.S. and Canada; international calling is only available with a deposit and can be costly.
• Basic VoIP features like call transfers and simultaneous call handling not available for the lowest cost plan.

Considering Grasshopper, but not sure it’s right for you? Check out our guide to Grasshopper alternatives.

Google Voice

Google Voice is a good, basic virtual phone system, especially if you’re already using G-Suite tools like Google Meet or Google Calendar.

These are the pros to consider:

• Low starting cost.
• Strong voicemail and spam filtering.
• Seamless integration with Gmail and Google Calendar.
• Call recording available.

And the cons include:

• No toll-free or vanity numbers.
• Limited texting and MMS capabilities.
• No integrations beyond Google.
• Weak support unless you’re on Workspace.

Want to see more about direct comparisons of Google Voice to other VoIP providers? Take a look at our guide on Google Voice alternatives.

Use Case Overview

Still not sure which business phone system may benefit you most when you’re exclusively focusing on Google Voice vs. Grasshopper?

You should choose Grasshopper if:

• You want toll-free or vanity numbers to boost your brand presence.
• You need multiple extensions for routing to contractors or small teams.
• You don’t need integrations, call recording, or team messaging.
• You’re okay paying extra for add-ons like virtual receptionists or greeting recordings if you want them.

You should choose Google Voice if:

• You’re a solo professional or freelancer already using Google Workspace.
• You need a basic, no-frills voice and SMS tool with voicemail transcription.
• You want international number support or integration with Gmail and Google Calendar.
• You can live without toll-free numbers or faxing.

Is There a Better Option?

Both Google Voice and Grasshopper are good entry-level tools, but they fall short for modern businesses that:

• Want integrated voice, SMS, and video communication options.
• Need shared numbers, team messaging, or CRM integrations.
• Expect call recording, AI summaries, or detailed reporting out of the box.
• Need dedicated, highly responsive support and great call quality for all plan levels.

If you want a reliable, scalable business phone system that has the option for advanced functionality, you may want to consider Nextiva instead.

Why Nextiva Wins for Growing Businesses

Nextiva is a powerful UCaaS platform that can serve enterprise businesses but also offers affordable VoIP plans for solopreneurs and small business owners, and it comes with exceptional call quality anywhere you can get Wi-Fi or cell service.

Here are some of Nextiva’s standout features:

• Unified communications: Call, video, SMS, and team messaging in one platform.
• Advanced features: Multilevel IVR, call recording, voicemail transcription, call monitoring, and more.
• Team collaboration: Shared numbers, extensions, and seamless handoffs.
• CRM integrations: Sync with HubSpot, Salesforce, Zendesk, and others.
• AI-powered tools: Call summaries, sentiment analysis, and automated alerts can help you understand how customers feel in real time.
• Scalable plans: Start with one user and grow to hundreds without switching systems with Nextiva’s transparent pricing plans.
• Award-winning support: 24/7 U.S.-based support with live onboarding and training.
• Exceptional call quality: 99.999% uptime for reliable call quality that you can depend on as you run and scale your business.

Whether you want to keep working as a microbusiness or you have plans to scale, Nextiva is here to help.

Learn more in our comparison between Nextiva vs. Grasshopper to see which may be right for you.