Landline: per line and per feature
You pay for each physical line, for long-distance beyond a local area, and separately for any equipment that adds features. Growth means more lines and more hardware.
Educational comparison
VoIP or landline: which phone service fits your business?
A landline is a dedicated circuit to a fixed place. VoIP is phone service carried over your internet connection to wherever you are. The right choice depends on how your business answers calls, what you can tolerate during an outage, and what you want the phone to do beyond ringing.
- Cost drivers explained without invented numbers
- Outage behaviour and 9-1-1 considerations
- A decision table for both options
Example
Site A
Site B
Mobile
Your PBX or apps
3CTel SIP trunks
Call quality: HD
Carrier network
VoIP carries business calls over your internet connection and adds routing, apps, voicemail-to-email and texting on the same number, with costs driven mainly by users and features rather than physical lines. A landline is a dedicated copper or fibre circuit to one location that works independently of your internet but offers few features. VoIP fits most businesses; a landline still makes sense for a single fixed line where connectivity is poor or an alarm or lift requires it.
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What each one actually is
A traditional landline is a circuit from the carrier's exchange to a socket in your wall. One line carries one call. Adding a second simultaneous call means a second line. Features such as a menu or voicemail come from a box in your office or from the carrier, and changing them usually means a service call.
VoIP, short for voice over internet protocol, turns speech into data and sends it over your existing internet connection to a provider's platform. The number is not tied to a socket. It rings a desk phone, a desktop app or a mobile app, and the platform handles menus, ring groups, queues, voicemail and hours rules in software.
VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
Phone calls carried over an internet connection instead of a dedicated phone line.
Learn more: VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)PBX (Private Branch Exchange)
The private switch that connects a company's extensions to each other and to the outside world.
Learn more: PBX (Private Branch Exchange)Business VoIP
SIP calling that replaces landlines — or feeds the PBX you already own.
Learn more: Business VoIPCost drivers, in general terms
3CTel quotes pricing for your specific setup and bills nothing before activation. No general cost figures are given here because they depend on users, numbers and features.
VoIP: per user and per number
Cost scales with the number of people using the system and the numbers you hold. Calls within Canada are typically included; features live in the platform rather than in hardware.
Hardware is optional with VoIP
A softphone app costs nothing extra to run on a computer or phone you already own. Desk phones are bought only where someone needs one.
Internet is a shared cost
VoIP uses bandwidth you already pay for. Most business connections carry several simultaneous calls; a specialist checks yours during planning.
Features that change with VoIP
- A main menu and ring groups are configured in software, not installed as hardware.
- Voicemail arrives by email with a transcript, and can be checked from any device.
- The same business number can send and receive text messages.
- Business-hours rules change what callers hear at closing time without anyone touching a phone.
- Call logs and analytics show who called, when, how long they waited and who answered.
- Staff answer from home, a job site or another city on the same number, with the business number shown on outbound calls.
Call routing
Decide who answers, in what order, and what happens when they cannot.
Learn more: Call routingBusiness SMS
Text from the number customers already call — as a team, not from a personal phone.
Learn more: Business SMSCall Analytics
See what your phone traffic is actually doing — and staff for it.
Learn more: Call AnalyticsRemote work
Business calls on personal devices, without handing out anyone's cell number.
Learn more: Remote workReliability: power, internet and 9-1-1
A copper landline draws power from the exchange, so a basic corded handset usually keeps working in a local power cut. VoIP depends on your router, your internet service and any desk phones having power. In practice, the mobile app on a charged cell phone is the usual backup: the business number keeps ringing on cellular data while the office is dark.
Internet quality matters more than speed. Jitter and packet loss on an overloaded connection cause choppy audio. A router that prioritises voice traffic, or a separate connection for phones at a busy site, addresses most of this. Fibre and modern cable connections are rarely the bottleneck.
Canadian VoIP providers must provide 9-1-1 service and warn customers of its limitations. Because a VoIP number is not tied to one socket, the registered service address for each device is confirmed with you at setup and must be kept current when someone moves. A landline's address is fixed by the circuit.
Porting: keeping the number either way
The number is yours to move
Canadian business numbers can generally be ported from a landline provider to a VoIP provider and back. The number itself does not care how the call is carried.
The old line keeps working until the port completes
A port is scheduled for a confirmed date. Until then, calls continue to arrive on the existing line, and the new system is tested on a temporary number.
Check what else uses the line
Fax machines, alarm panels and lift phones sometimes share a landline. These are identified during planning so nothing is cut off by surprise.
Number porting
Moving an existing phone number from one provider to another without changing it.
Learn more: Number portingNumber porting
How a port works, what you need to provide, what causes delays, and what 3CTel does at each step.
Learn more: Number portingOnline Fax
Fax by email and web — without keeping a dedicated phone line alive.
Learn more: Online FaxDecision table
| Situation | Landline | VoIP |
|---|---|---|
| One fixed line at one desk, no menu or apps needed | Fits | Works, but adds features you may not use |
| Two or more people need to answer the same number | Needs extra lines and equipment | Fits: ring group on any device |
| Staff work from home, vehicles or several sites | Does not fit | Fits |
| Site has unreliable or very slow internet with no cellular coverage | Fits | Risky until connectivity improves |
| Alarm panel, lift phone or legacy fax must stay on a copper circuit | Keep for that device | Use VoIP for voice; keep the line for the device |
| You want voicemail by email, texting and call reports | Limited | Fits |
| You want to add or remove people without a technician visit | Does not fit | Fits |
Questions businesses ask before switching
Can a business keep a landline and add VoIP?
Yes, and it is a common transition. The landline stays for a device that needs it, such as an alarm panel, or as a fallback at a site with poor connectivity, while the main business number is ported to VoIP for everyday calls. 3CTel plans the split with you so nothing is disconnected by mistake.
Does VoIP call quality match a landline?
On a healthy business internet connection, yes; modern codecs produce audio at least as clear as a copper line. Quality drops only when the connection is overloaded or unstable, which shows up as gaps or robotic sound. Prioritising voice traffic on the router and checking capacity during planning prevents most of these problems.
Is VoIP harder for staff to learn than a desk phone?
Usually not. A VoIP desk phone works like any other handset. The desktop and mobile apps look like the calling apps people already use, with a dial pad, contacts and voicemail. The change most staff notice is that transfers, presence and voicemail are easier, not harder.
Related pages.
Business VoIP
SIP calling that replaces landlines — or feeds the PBX you already own.
Learn more: Business VoIPVoIP phone system
Business calling over your internet connection, with Canadian numbers and porting.
Learn more: VoIP phone systemBusiness Phone
Reliable calling with routing your team will actually use.
Learn more: Business PhoneSmall Business
One business number, answered properly, from anywhere you work.
Learn more: Small BusinessCloud PBX vs traditional PBX
Own the switch or rent it: ownership, maintenance, remote users and the path between them.
Learn more: Cloud PBX vs traditional PBXVoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
Phone calls carried over an internet connection instead of a dedicated phone line.
Learn more: VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)Frequently asked questions.
No. It runs on a standard business broadband connection. What matters is stability and enough capacity for your simultaneous calls, which a specialist checks during planning. A router that prioritises voice traffic helps at busy sites.
Calls can be routed to the mobile app on cellular data, to another site or to voicemail according to the rules you set. Many businesses configure this fallback in advance so an outage changes where calls ring, not whether they are answered.
Sometimes. Phones that already use SIP can often be reused, subject to a check during planning. Older analogue handsets need an adapter or replacement. Many businesses move to the apps and keep a handset only at reception.
The new system can be configured and tested within days. The port of your existing number depends on the current carrier's timeline, and the switch date is confirmed with you before anything changes.
Find out whether VoIP fits your site.
Tell a specialist how many people answer, where they work and what your internet is like. You will get a recommendation and a quote, including whether to keep a landline for anything.