Differences Between Hosted PBX & SIP Trunking

Telecom Business Review | Friday, October 22, 2021

Hosted PBX is a cloud-based phone system solution handled by a third-party service provider. SIP trunking connects existing on-premise PBX equipment to the internet.

Fremont, CA: It's essential to look at VoIP from all angles: finances, logistics, business expansion, and implementation. Let's Look at some essential information,

Hosted PBX Service:

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It's a telephone system managed entirely off-site by a third-party service provider. It connects straightly to the public switched telephone network (PSTN).

A company that adopts a hosted PBX solution doesn't have to own or maintain any infrastructure, equipment, or software to have a reliable voice communication solution.

You may also come through virtual PBX, cloud PBX, cloud phone system, or hosted VoIP, also called hosted PBX.

At a technical stage, hosted PBXs and SIP trunking rely upon the Session Initiation Protocol(SIP).

Benefits

Hosted PBX is deployed swiftly and easily, often within a day. Since it's provided by an Internet Telephony Service Provider (ITSP), all you need for hosted PBX to initiate using VoIP communications are:

• IP connectivity

• Internet connection

Hosted PBX is useless for on-premises PBX (Private Branch Exchange) equipment. As a result, you'll never have to worry about maintenance costs, PBX software upgrades, or service downtime.

Hosted PBX offers many advantages that extend to standard VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) services, such as:

• Managing and routing incoming calls

• Handling transfers and holds

• Call recording

• Conference calling

• Automated messages

• Voicemail

There's no high setup cost of modern hardware, equipment enhancement, or replacement. This provides cost savings and efficiency. In addition, hosted PBX allows small businesses to receive PBX service smoothly.

SIP Trunking:

SIP trunking is a VoIP service that joins your existing PBX to the internet. It allows you to use your company's on-premise hardware PBX. It's already installed & managed on-site by your own IT staff. A SIP trunk is a straight virtual connection between the two infrastructures: your PBX equipment & VoIP.

SIP trunking substitutes traditional landlines and offers huge versatility. For example, they don't just carry voice but also video, emails, and other data, all on the same line. This eradicates the need for extra lines you'd otherwise need to access the internet or send faxes.

Unlike hosted PBX, where a third-party provider manages all necessary equipment and software on their premises, SIP trunking requires one of two things:

• An IP-enabled PBX on-site, or

• A VoIP gateway to connect your conventional PBX to the cloud

This will rely on your current business phone system.

Benefits

Without SIP (Session Initiation Protocol), your business communications will rely on separate voice and data communication structures. Unfortunately, this old system can't handle large volumes of calls. As a result, you might be unreachable to your customers at crucial moments.

Therefore, you might see a company's continuity break down.

With SIP trunking, communication grows reliable and speedy. This includes:

• Immediate call routing & recording

• Multimedia messaging

• Video conferencing

• Immediate data exchange

If you already have PBX equipment, switching to SIP trunking is not just easy but recommended. You'll enjoy more quality and a better telephone service than traditional phone lines.

Differences 

Hosted PBX   

1) Initial cost of setup- Low if you have no PBX equipment on-premise    

2) Ongoing costs- $15-$50 per phone line per month

3) Maintenance and technical expertise- Handled by your provider        

4) Company size and expansion-Recommended for <20 employees, slow expansion      

5) Geographical flexibility- Flexible and self-reliant

6) Call quality- Great for a smaller number of concurrent calls

7) Security-Depends on the provider's security standards

SIP trunking

1) Initial cost of setup- Low if you already own PBX equipment on-premise

2) Ongoing costs- $20-$50 per user per month

3) Maintenance and technical expertise- Handled by your IT staff (internal expertise required)

4) Company size and expansion- Recommended for >20 employees, expansion to remote locations

5) Geographical flexibility- Often dependent on licensing and support of the PBX platform

6) Call quality- Great for a sizeable workforce and a high volume of calls

7) Security- Superior, more secure infrastructure

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