Canadian phone number
Have your own phone number in Canada for a few dollars per month. Incoming calls can be forwarded anywhere worldwide at the cost of a local call.
In this article we will explain how it works and how you can get a virtual phone number in Canada now.
A virtual number is a real phone number
A virtual phone number is actually a normal, real phone number. The only difference is that a virtual number isn’t connected to any physical phone line or to any SIM-card.
You can make and answer calls with free apps for Android and iOS or your laptop.
People calling your Canadian virtual phone number will have the same experience as if calling a regular local number.
When you make calls from your number – people you call will see your number before answering.
You can get your Canada phone number here.
Different types of numbers
In Canada there are two type of numbers that you can purchase as virtual phone numbers.
- City numbers
These phone numbers are related to a city, such as (647) NNN-NNNN for Toronto or (438) NNN-NNNN for Montreal. There are many area codes in Canada. - Toll free numbers
These numbers are free for the caller to call – as long as they are calling from within Canada. Toll free numbers start with 800 or 888, 855 or similar. The owner of the phone number pays an extra per minute fee for all calls received.
Who can buy a Canadian phone number?
Anyone in the world can buy a Canada phone number. You do not need to be a Canadian citizen or live in Canada to buy one.
Try free
You can try a Canada number for a couple of days for free by starting a free trial now. If you like the way it works, you can keep it.
If you take no action, the number will be removed automatically and there is no cost for you
What does it cost?
The cost for having a virtual Canadian number is based on the following components.
- Monthly cost
From $1.79 - Calls and forwarding
Costs as a local call. - Optional add on services
Voice response, call recording requires that you have a paid plan (starts at $9.95 per user and month). This includes free calls, call forwarding and free phone numbers.
Answer calls
The easiest way to answer incoming calls to your Canada phone number is to forward all calls to your regular mobile phone number or to a landline number.
When you receive a forwarded call, you can see the number of the caller – or the virtual number they called – dependent on your settings.
Call forwarding worldwide costs like a regular local call.
There are many other options available for call forwarding, such as answering calls with voice response, sending calls to team members etc.
Make calls
You can make calls from your Canadian number by using our free Android , iOS or web app. You can import your regular mobile contacts into the app and call anyone you know with a click.
The person you call can see your number. You can chose if you want to show one of your Sonetel numbers or your regular mobile number.
You will be charged local call rates for the calls you make.
SMS
SMS is supported – but only on city number. Toll free numbers do not support SMS. You will get incoming SMS delivered by email to your email address.
Voice response
If you want to add voice response to your phone number (“For sales, press one…”.) you need to have a paid plan. This gives you access to the “Voice apps”.
You can easily create menus for callers, announcements or voicemail boxes.
Text-to-speech can be used to create the messages to be played to callers. Simply type in the message you want converted into an audio message. You can also upload audio files or record new messages with your phone.
Call recording
Call recording is available if you have a paid plan.
Only use call recording if you can do it without breaking any laws in the country of the phone number, or in the countries where you – and the person you are talking to – is in.
Subscription options
Here are the options.
- Free with Plans
Premium and Business are optional “all-inclusive” plans that are charged per user and month. They include free phone numbers for every user in your team. - Pay for it
You can subscribe with monthly renewal, or 1-year or 3-years. The longer the subscription – the lower the monthly cost. You pay in advance for the entire subscription period. You can turn off auto-renewal whenever you want.
Are there any limitations?
Yes, there are different limitations, dependent on what type of subscription you have.
Photo by John Lee, Mike Benna and Ali Tawfiq on Unsplash