Hosted PBX Pricing Australia: What You'll Actually Pay Per User (2026)

Hosted PBX pricing in Australia ranges from around $15 to $60+ per user per month, but the advertised price may not reflect your total cost. This guide breaks down real per-user costs for Australian businesses in 2026: what is included at each price tier, what gets added on, setup and hardware costs, and total-cost-of-ownership examples for 5, 10, and 20 seat deployments. By the end, you will know exactly what budget to set and what questions to ask any provider before you sign.Before diving into numbers: some small businesses in Australia may still be using the green phone port on their ISP modem. That is an analog telephone adapter supplied and controlled by your NBN provider. It is not a business phone system. A basic ISP voice port is not a PBX and normally lacks call queues and auto-attendants; hold, call waiting, voicemail and missed-call display depend on the plan and handset. If you have ever been quoted $20/user/month for a cloud phone system and thought "that seems expensive compared to what I have now", factor in that what you have now is costing you in lost leads and customer friction. The pricing below reflects what a real business phone system actually costs.

Hosted PBX Per-User Pricing Tiers in Australia

Australian hosted-PBX pricing is not standardised: providers may charge per user, per device, per concurrent call or by bundled capacity, and some include the full feature set at every plan level. For businesses that make regular calls and need a professional call experience, a provider’s mid-range tier may offer a suitable balance of included calls and features, although plan structures vary. At $25-$40/user/month with unlimited local and national calls included, it replaces a traditional landline at comparable or lower cost while adding features that a landline never had. If your business makes regular calls and needs a professional call experience, budget for the Standard tier rather than trying to make Entry work.

What Is and Is Not Included: The Real List

Provider marketing pages list features in ways designed to look comprehensive. The honest breakdown is: the base plan covers the core call-handling capability. Anything that generates incremental revenue for the provider is almost always an add-on. Here is what to check line by line before comparing providers.

Setup and Provisioning Costs

Monthly per-user pricing is only part of the equation. Setup costs can add several hundred dollars to the first-year total for a small business. What you will actually encounter: (if you are still deciding whether hosted PBX suits your business at all, see our hosted PBX for small business guide)**Provisioning or activation fee:** $0-$200 depending on the provider. Some providers waive this entirely for self-provisioned setups. Others charge it as a flat business account setup fee regardless of seat count. Always ask before signing.**Per-seat setup fee:** Some providers charge $5-$20 per seat for provisioning. On a 10-seat deployment that is an additional $50-$200 on day one.**Number porting fee:** If you are bringing an existing business number across, budget $20-$80 per number. This is a one-off fee covering the porting administration. Some providers absorb this fee as part of a sign-up incentive.**Configuration and onboarding:** Self-service provisioning is free. Managed onboarding (where the provider configures your call flows, ring groups, and auto-attendant) is sometimes included at Standard tier and above, sometimes charged separately at $100-$500 for complex setups. If your call flow has multiple departments, after-hours routing, and a 1300 number routing through an IVR, a managed onboarding package is worth paying for.**Contract terms:** Contract terms and discounts vary by provider and plan: some providers offer month-to-month service, while others offer multiple commitment options. Under the Telecommunications Consumer Protections Code, telcos must make a CIS available for products supplied to consumers covered by the Code. For postpaid services it generally must be provided before purchase, but exceptions apply, and some enterprise business contracts fall outside the Code. Read it before signing. Exit fees on a 24-month contract for a 10-seat system can reach $500-$1,500 if you cancel early.

Hardware Costs: Desk Phones, Headsets, and Adapters

A hosted PBX does not require an on-premises PBX server, but it still requires a compatible internet connection, network equipment and endpoints; desk phones may need PoE or power adapters, and DECT handsets require a base station. If you are new to cloud phone system and want a primer on what a PBX actually is before working through the hardware costs, see our what is a PBX guide. Handset costs are a significant part of the first-year total cost that providers do not include in their per-user pricing. For most Australian SMBs, the Yealink T31P or equivalent entry phone handles the majority of staff needs. An office of 10 staff might use 6-8 desk phones at $100-$130 each plus 2-4 softphone-only licences for remote workers. That puts handset hardware in the $600-$1,000 range for a 10-seat deployment. See our SIP desk phone guide for specific model recommendations and our best VoIP phone system guide for provider recommendations alongside hardware options.Some providers offer phone rental or lease programs at $5-$15/phone/month. On a 24-month contract this often costs more than buying outright, but removes the upfront capital cost and includes warranty replacement. For cash-flow-constrained businesses, rental can be worth it. Do the maths: a $120 phone rented at $8/month over 24 months costs $192.

1300 and 1800 Number Costs

Treatment of 1300 and 1800 numbers varies: some providers include one in a PBX plan, while others charge separate number, connection and usage fees. Here is the structure:**Monthly service fee:** $10-$30/month to maintain the number. Some providers charge a one-off connection fee of $50-$150 on top.**Inbound call charges (1300):** The business pays for calls to a 1300 number when received from a mobile phone, typically $0.08-$0.12 per minute. Calls from landlines are usually free to the caller and low-cost to the business. Always check the inbound rate schedule.**Inbound call charges (1800):** 1800 calls are generally free to callers using standard Australian fixed-line and mobile services, although exceptions can apply. The business pays all inbound call costs, typically $0.03-$0.08 per minute from landlines and $0.08-$0.15 per minute from mobiles.For a business receiving 500 minutes of inbound calls per month on a 1300 number (about 125 calls per month, or roughly 6 calls per business day at a 4-minute average), the monthly call cost runs $40-$60 on top of the service fee. For detailed 1300 cost structures, see our 1300 number guide.

Total Cost of Ownership: Real Examples

Per-user monthly pricing is useful for comparison, but TCO is what you actually pay. These examples use Standard tier pricing ($30/user/month) with typical Australian SMB configurations. Year 1 total cost under $2,500 with no ongoing hardware cost from year 2. That is comparable to what many businesses paid annually for a legacy PABX maintenance contract, with substantially more capability.The 10-seat example reflects a realistic trade services or professional services business: 8 office staff on desk phones, 2 remote workers on softphones, a 1300 number for national presence. Year 1 under $6,000 all-in is achievable. Use our VoIP Cost Calculator to run your own numbers.

Australian Businesses: What You Need to Know

cloud phone system pricing in Australia is shaped by NBN realities, regulatory requirements, and contract protections that do not apply in other markets. Here is the AU-specific layer.

NBN Connection Quality and Call Costs

A hosted PBX runs over an internet connection, which may be NBN, business fibre or a suitable 4G/5G service. The quality of your NBN connection directly affects call quality, and poor call quality is a hidden cost that does not appear on any provider invoice. Each concurrent VoIP call requires 80-100 kbps of upload bandwidth and is highly sensitive to jitter (packet delay variation above 30ms causes audible distortion) and packet loss (above 1% causes clipping and dropouts).If your NBN plan delivers poor upload performance during business hours (FTTN and FTTC connections are most at risk), you may need to upgrade your NBN plan before a cloud phone system will work reliably. An FTTP or HFC connection at NBN 50 or above is generally sufficient for 5-10 concurrent calls. A standard business NBN plan may provide enhanced support without guaranteeing bandwidth. Ask the provider whether the service includes committed or priority bandwidth and what SLA applies; pricing varies materially. Use our VoIP Bandwidth Calculator to check if your connection can handle your call volume.

PSTN Copper Shutdown

Most legacy fixed-line services in NBN fixed-line areas have been progressively disconnected after NBN became available, but Australia did not complete a nationwide copper shutdown in 2025; copper services remain in some areas and further upgrades are ongoing. That adapter is controlled by your ISP: you cannot take the phone number and plug in a SIP phone. Moving to a cloud phone system means porting your existing number to the new provider and exiting the ISP's ATA service. See our hosted vs on-premise PBX guide for the full migration picture.

Number Porting Timelines

Porting an existing geographic business number to a cloud phone system company generally takes 8-15 business days under ACMA's Local Number Portability rules; complex ports can take up to 30 business days. During the porting window you are responsible for ensuring business continuity: your existing number will stop working on the old provider before it is fully live on the new one. A short cutover outage may occur during porting; temporary-number, diversion and other continuity arrangements vary by provider and should be confirmed in advance. Always confirm the porting handover procedure with your new provider before you submit the port request.

Australian Consumer Law and Telco Contracts

Under Australian Consumer Law and the Telecommunications Consumer Protections Code (TCP Code), all telco providers must provide a Critical Information Summary (CIS) before you sign a contract. The CIS must disclose: minimum monthly charges, contract term, early termination fees, and what happens to pricing after any promotional period. Read the CIS, not the marketing page. If a provider cannot or will not provide a CIS before you sign, that is a red flag.

000 Emergency Calling

Certain VoIP services support 000; confirm emergency-calling capability, configuration and service-location requirements with the hosted-PBX provider. Most NBN-based services will not work during a power outage without backup power and connectivity. However, if your NBN connection or power fails, VoIP calls including 000 calls will not connect. If your business has staff on site when the building is unmanned, or operates in environments where a 000 call during a power failure is a real scenario, you need a mobile phone as a backup for emergency calls. This is not unique to cloud phone system, but it is a regulatory and safety reality worth noting.

Sizing Your System: How to Right-Size Your Plan

Most businesses overpay on their cloud phone system because they size the system for worst-case assumptions rather than real call patterns. Here is a practical sizing framework.**Concurrent call capacity:** Do not equate user seats with concurrent calls. In per-user systems, each person who needs to make or receive calls generally needs a user licence; some providers impose a separate concurrent-call or channel limit. The remaining staff can have extension-only seats at a lower tier. Use our Phone System Sizing Wizard to work out the right seat count.**Call volume vs minutes:** If your team makes short, frequent outbound calls (e.g. a trade business scheduling jobs), you may burn through a capped minutes plan faster than you expect. Compare your actual call mix and PAYG charges with the unlimited-plan premium; call count alone does not establish the break-even point.**Remote workers:** Softphone users avoid desk-phone hardware costs, but their licence cost depends on the provider and may be the same as a desk-phone user. A hybrid office with 5 desk-based staff and 3 remote workers might need 5 Standard licences plus 3 entry/softphone licences.**Feature creep:** Call recording, advanced reporting, and CRM integration are worth paying for if your team actually uses them. If you are adding them because they sound useful, they will sit unused and inflate your monthly cost. Start at Standard and add features after a 90-day review.

Common Mistakes Australian Businesses Make with Hosted PBX Pricing

Buying a cloud phone system system is a 1-3 year commitment for most businesses. These are the mistakes that cost the most.**Mistake 1: Comparing headline per-user rates without checking what is included.** A $15/user/month plan sounds cheaper than $30/user/month until you discover the $15 plan caps call minutes, charges separately for voicemail to email, does not include the mobile app, and requires a $150 setup fee. The all-in cost of the $30 plan is often lower over 12 months. Always model the monthly spend including your actual expected add-ons before comparing providers.**Mistake 2: Ignoring hardware costs in the budget.** Many advertised PBX licence prices exclude handsets, although some providers bundle handset rental or subscription charges; confirm the hardware treatment in each quote. A business owner who budgets $300/month for a 10-seat system and then discovers they need $900 in desk phones on day one is not happy. Hardware is a legitimate first-year cost that should be in the budget from the start. Phone rental programs exist precisely for businesses caught by this.**Mistake 3: Signing a 24-month contract before testing the service.** NBN call quality varies enormously by connection type and ISP. Before committing to a long-term contract, run a month-to-month trial. Most providers offer month-to-month plans. The rate difference between month-to-month and annual contract is typically 10-20%. That is cheap insurance against a service that does not perform on your specific connection.**Mistake 4: Choosing the wrong seat count.** Oversizing means paying for licences that sit unused. Undersizing means callers hit a queue when all lines are busy and you have no visibility into it. Do a quick call audit: how many concurrent inbound calls does your business actually receive at peak? That number, plus one or two, is your seat count baseline.

Your Next Steps: How to Budget for a Hosted PBX

Follow this checklist before you request quotes or sign anything.1. **Count your seats correctly.** How many staff need to make or receive calls? Of those, how many are office-based (desk phone) vs remote (softphone app)? Separate the two groups. This is your licence count.2. **Check your NBN connection.** Run a speed test during business hours. There is no universal 5 Mbps minimum: allow roughly 80-100 kbps of upload and download bandwidth per concurrent G.711/G.722 call, plus headroom for other traffic, and assess latency, jitter and packet loss. Check jitter and packet loss (use tools like PingPlotter or Fast.com). If your upload speed is consistently below 5 Mbps or jitter above 30ms, address the NBN issue before or alongside the PBX decision.3. **List your required features.** Auto-attendant? Call recording? 1300 number? CRM integration? Be specific. Match required features to the tier that includes them and use that tier for all pricing comparisons.4. **Get the all-in monthly cost.** Ask providers for: base plan monthly fee, all add-ons you need, estimated call costs, and a 12-month projection. Then add hardware and setup as a one-off. That is your Year 1 cost.5. **Read the Critical Information Summary before signing.** Confirm exit fees, minimum charges, and what happens to pricing after any promotional period.6. **Start month-to-month if you are unsure about your NBN connection quality.** Move to annual after 90 days of reliable performance.For a recommendation matched to your business size and requirements, see Get a Recommendation. For a full look at the system types available, see our business phone system guide and our VoIP vs traditional phone comparison.

If you are not yet clear on what cloud PBX (or cloud phone system) actually is and how it differs from what you might have now, see Cloud PBX Australia: What It Is and Who Needs It before diving into pricing.

If your team already uses Microsoft 365 and you are weighing cloud phone system against Teams Phone, see Microsoft Teams Phone vs cloud phone system Australia for a direct comparison.

cloud phone system pricing often looks straightforward until you factor in setup costs, provisioning fees, and whether IT support is included or billed separately. Our Do I Need an IT Company for My Phones? quiz helps you assess whether DIY provisioning is realistic for your specific setup.

How much does cloud phone system cost per user per month in Australia?

cloud phone system pricing in Australia ranges from around $15/user/month at entry tier to $60+/user/month at advanced tier. Most small and medium businesses land on a Standard tier plan at $25-$40/user/month, which includes unlimited local and national calls, voicemail to email, auto-attendant, ring groups, and a mobile softphone app. Entry tier plans at $15-$25 typically cap call minutes and exclude some features. Always check what is included at each tier and model the total monthly cost including add-ons, not just the headline rate.

Is call recording included in the base plan?

Call recording inclusion varies by provider and plan, and cloud recording storage may be charged separately. It is typically included in Advanced or Premium tier plans ($40-$60/user/month) and charged as an add-on at Standard tier, usually $5-$15/user/month extra. If your organisation has a specific legal or contractual recording obligation, budget for it explicitly and obtain sector-specific advice on notice, consent, access, security and retention requirements. Confirm the retention period the provider offers before signing.

What does a 1300 number cost on a cloud phone system system?

A 1300 number is always priced separately from the cloud phone system base plan. Typical costs are: $10-$30/month service fee, $0-$150 one-off connection fee, and inbound call charges of $0.08-$0.12 per minute for calls received from mobiles (landline calls are usually low-cost or free to the business). Using the stated $10-$30 service fee and $0.08-$0.12 per-minute range, 500 inbound minutes would total about $50-$90 per month. For full details on 1300 number costs and regulations, see our 1300 number Australia guide.

Are there setup fees for cloud phone system in Australia?

Setup fees vary significantly by provider. Some charge nothing for self-provisioned setups. Others charge $50-$200 activation fee, $5-$20 per seat for provisioning, and $20-$80 per number for porting. Complex setups requiring managed onboarding (multi-level IVR, multiple ring groups, 1300 routing) may attract $100-$500 in configuration fees. Always ask for a complete first-invoice estimate that includes all setup charges, not just the monthly recurring cost.

Can I keep my existing business phone number?

Yes. Number porting allows you to bring your existing landline, mobile, or 1300 number to a new cloud phone system company. A geographic (landline) number generally takes 8-15 business days under ACMA rules and typically costs $20-$80 per number. Mobile ports are much faster (90% within 3 hours, 99% within 2 business days). 1300 numbers follow a separate transfer process and typically take several business days to two weeks. During the port, your provider should arrange call forwarding from your old number to maintain business continuity. Some providers absorb the porting fee as a sign-up incentive. Confirm the porting handover procedure before you submit the port request to avoid a gap in service.

How does cloud phone system pricing compare to on-premise PBX?

cloud phone system has lower upfront cost and higher ongoing monthly cost. On-premise PBX generally involves upfront hardware, installation and configuration costs, while ongoing costs for either option vary with existing equipment, licensing, SIP and support charges, redundancy, call volume and provider pricing. A cloud phone system may be more financially attractive over a 3-year period, particularly where the following advantages apply: there is no capital outlay, maintenance is handled by the provider, and the system scales without hardware upgrades. See our hosted vs on-premise PBX comparison for a full cost analysis.

What is the cheapest cloud phone system option for a very small business?

For a 1-3 seat business in Australia, an entry tier cloud phone system plan at $15-$25/user/month plus a single desk phone (~$79 for a Yealink T31P) is the lowest-cost starting point. Total Year 1 cost for a 2-seat setup with one desk phone and one softphone licence: approximately $500-$700 all in. Whether the setup supports two simultaneous inbound calls depends on the provider’s concurrent-call or channel limits; two user licences alone do not guarantee it. The setup also gives you voicemail and the ability to answer calls from mobile. If you are currently running on your ISP's ATA port and losing calls because a second caller hits an engaged tone, this is the most direct fix.

Do cloud phone system companies offer month-to-month plans?

Yes, most Australian cloud phone system companies offer month-to-month plans alongside annual contracts. Month-to-month plans typically cost 10-20% more per user per month than an equivalent annual contract. The trade-off is flexibility: you can exit without penalty if the service does not meet your expectations. If you are uncertain about your NBN connection quality or are trialling a provider for the first time, start on month-to-month and switch to annual after 90 days of confirmed performance.

Related reading:

• hosted vs on-premise PBX
• VoIP costs explained
• hidden costs of VoIP