Virtual Phone number in India
Have your own phone number in India. 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 India 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 India 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 phone number in India here.
Different types of numbers
In India there are two types of numbers that you can purchase as virtual phone numbers.
- City numbers
These phone numbers are related to a city, such as 11 for New Delhi or 80 for Bangalore. - Toll free numbers
These numbers are free for the caller to call – as long as they are calling from within India. Toll free numbers start with 800. The owner of the phone number pays an extra per minute fee for all calls received.
Who can buy an India phone number?
Anyone in the world can buy an India virtual phone number – except local residents and businesses in India. Local regulations prohibits the use of virtual phone numbers for pure local use. The call to the local India number has to be forwarded out of the country.
What does it cost?
The cost for having a virtual India number is based on the following components.
- Monthly cost
From $32.89. - Calls and call forwarding
Incoming calls costs $0.160 per minute. Call forwarding of incoming calls 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 India phone number is to forward all calls to your regular mobile phone number or to a landline number – anywhere in the world.
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 virtual India phone 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 not supported on any virtual numbers in India.
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 when you subscribe to a phone number from India.
- Different subscription lengths
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 Raghu Nayyar, Naveed Ahmed, Tiago Rosado, Shubham Bochiwal, Nilotpal Kalita on Unsplash