How would you like to save an extra $500 a year without making any sacrifices? If you haven’t made the switch to VoIP (internet phone service) yet, you could be missing out on a lot of extra savings. For less than the price of a dial tone with traditional phone service, VoIP service normally includes unlimited local and long distance calling and every calling feature (voicemail, call waiting, caller ID, etc…) imaginable. On average, most people save around $500 a year just by switching to internet phone service.

Internet phone service has been around for over 10 years now, but it hasn’t been recommended for use as primary telephone service until fairly recently. Huge advances have been made with VoIP (voice over internet protocol) technology over the past few years and internet telephony is now a viable replacement for traditional “land line” telephone service.

Residential VoIP service costs between $17 and $40 per month for unlimited local and long distance calling, depending on which internet phone service provider you choose. The highest cost VoIP service providers are cable companies. To fully reap the savings that VoIP offers, my recommendation is to get internet phone service from a true VoIP provider like Sunrocket, Vonage or Packet8.

The only requirement for internet phone service is a broadband internet connection. Residential VoIP service replaces your traditional land line phone, so you need to have an “always on” internet connection with enough bandwidth to assure good voice quality. Although internet phone service will work over a DSL connection, many telephone companies require you to pay for a telephone line in order to get DSL internet through them. This defeats the purpose because it’s the expensive land line phone service you want to replace. If you can get DSL internet service without paying extra for basic phone service, great! This will save you even more money because DSL internet is usually the cheapest broadband you can get.

For most people (myself included), cable internet is the only choice for broadband internet service if you want to also use VoIP internet phone service. Although you’ll pay more for cable internet, the savings you’ll achieve by switching to VoIP will more than make up for it.

Once you’ve got your broadband internet service in place, get on the internet and find a VoIP provider that offers the best internet phone service plan for your particular needs. There are many internet phone service providers out there, but my recommendation is to choose a VoIP company that is well established and has a huge customer base.

You want to be sure you get high quality VoIP service, and that the VoIP provider offers outstanding customer service and technical support. You also need to make sure the VoIP provider you choose offers E-911, which registers your internet phone to your local 911 network. My recommendations for VoIP service providers are:

Voip.com – If you want the cheapest VoIP service you can get without sacrificing quality, Voip.com’s $199/year annual unlimited plan is a real money-saver. Packet8 – At $24.99 per month for unlimited local and long distance calling, Packet8 offers excellent voice quality and service. Lingo – For $21.95 a month, Lingo offers unlimited long distance that also includes most of Europe.

By: Debbie Jacobsen