A shared business phone number for small teams, with an AI agent named Sona that answers calls around the clock on every plan.
Communication comparison
Quo (formerly OpenPhone) vs RingCentral
Pricing, pros, cons, and ideal use cases — side by side.
RingCentralPaid
The cloud business phone incumbent, now with an agentic AI Receptionist sold standalone or as a $39 add-on to RingEX — the cheapest entry point to voice AI for teams already on RingCentral.
At a glance
| Quo (formerly OpenPhone) | RingCentral | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | PaidStarter $19/user/month monthly, $15 annual. Business $33/month, $23 annual. Scale $47/month, $35 annual. The Sona AI agent is included on all plans with 1,000 automation credits per month (roughly 10 calls); AI call summaries and transcripts cover Sona-handled calls on Starter and all calls on Business and Scale. AI call tagging is Scale-only. | PaidAI Receptionist (AIR) standalone starting at $49/month including 100 minutes; as a RingEX add-on starting at $39/month with 100 minutes; overage $0.50 per minute, rounded up and billed in 30-second increments; 14-day free trial — as read on the vendor's AI receptionist pricing page in early October 2026. RingEX seats (1–5 users, as rendered on the vendor's plans page, which renders prices client-side): Core $20/user/month paid annually ($30 month-to-month); Advanced $25/user/month paid annually ($35 month-to-month); the two AI Customer Engagement Bundles that include AIR are contact-sales. Budget the seat plus the add-on. |
| Category | Communication | Communication |
| Ideal for | Solo operators and teams under about 20 peopleBusinesses that run on texting as much as callingAgencies and consultancies needing a shared client-facing numberAnyone who wants published pricing instead of a demo call | Businesses already on RingEX that want after-hours answering from the same vendorSmall offices with modest call volume testing AI answering for the first timeMid-market teams consolidating phone, video, and messaging on one platformRegulated practices that need a phone vendor designed to support HIPAA compliance |
Pros & cons
Quo (formerly OpenPhone)
Pros
- Full price ladder published — no demo required to evaluate
- AI phone agent included on every tier, not an add-on
- Shared inbox for calls and texts across the team
- Sub-$20 entry point on annual billing
- Connects to Claude and ChatGPT for analysing calls and contacts
Cons
- Included AI credits cover only about 10 calls a month — high call volume needs a different tool
- Full transcripts and summaries require Business or above
- Not a contact center: no advanced routing, queueing, or workforce management
- Recent rebrand means older documentation, integrations, and reviews still say OpenPhone
RingCentral
Pros
- Lowest entry price for a voice agent from a major phone vendor
- Answers, routes with context, captures leads, and books appointments
- Customizable persona, voice, and routing
- Designed to support HIPAA compliance, with HITRUST on the platform underneath
- No new vendor if you already run RingEX
Cons
- Only 100 minutes included — overage at $0.50/minute is the real cost
- Reviewers report it interrupting callers and failing to end calls
- Struggles beyond basic FAQs and sometimes ignores uploaded documents
- RingEX contracts auto-renew with early-termination fees
- RingEX seat price plus AIR add-on is the real bill — Core starts at $20/user/month on annual billing, $30 monthly
Which should you choose?
Quo (formerly OpenPhone) is built around solo operators and teams under about 20 people; RingCentral leans more toward businesses already on ringex that want after-hours answering from the same vendor. Shortlist the one whose strengths line up with your biggest constraint.
Still deciding between Quo (formerly OpenPhone) and RingCentral?
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