Pricing for business phone systems is genuinely confusing. You get quotes that talk about per-user fees, per-minute rates, setup costs, SIP trunks, hardware bundles — and it's not always clear what you're actually paying for or how it compares.

This post cuts through that. Here's how business phone systems are actually priced in South Africa, what to watch out for, and how to work out whether you're getting a fair deal.

The three types of business phone systems — and how each is priced

Before you can compare costs, you need to know which type of system you're looking at. There are three main options, and they work very differently.

Traditional PBX (on-premise)

This is the old-school system. A physical box installed in your office, connected to PSTN or ISDN lines, usually supplied and maintained by Telkom or a hardware reseller. The cost model is front-heavy: you pay a large upfront amount for the hardware and installation, then ongoing monthly line rental, maintenance contracts, and call charges on top.

Upfront costs for a traditional PBX system in South Africa typically run from R15,000 to R80,000 or more, depending on the number of extensions and features. That's before you've made a single call.

Hosted / Cloud PBX

With a hosted PBX, the system runs in the cloud — you access it over the internet and pay a monthly per-user fee. No hardware to buy (beyond IP phones if you want them), no large setup cost, no maintenance contracts. The provider handles everything on the infrastructure side.

This is what most South African SMEs are switching to, and it's what Othos provides.

VoIP trunking (for businesses with existing infrastructure)

Some larger businesses already have a PBX system they want to keep, but want to replace their Telkom lines with cheaper VoIP call routes. In this case, they purchase SIP trunks — virtual phone lines — from a VoIP provider. You pay a monthly fee per trunk plus call rates, but you're not replacing your whole system.

What does a Cloud PBX actually cost in South Africa?

For a hosted Cloud PBX — the option most relevant to SMEs — pricing in South Africa generally falls into two parts:

Monthly per-user fee: This covers your number, your extension, access to the system, and usually a bundle of features (auto-attendant, call recording, voicemail-to-email, mobile app). Expect to pay somewhere in the range of R70 - 200 per user per month depending on the provider and what's included. Some providers charge more for features that should be standard.

Call costs: Depending on your plan, local and national calls may be included or billed separately. Calls to mobile numbers and international destinations are typically charged per minute, though many plans include a generous bundle.

At Othos, our pricing is straightforward: a flat monthly per-user fee that includes all the core features. No per-feature charges. No surprises when the invoice arrives. See current pricing →

Hidden costs to watch out for

This is where a lot of businesses get caught out. The headline per-user price looks fine — until you read the fine print.

Setup and porting fees. Some providers charge for provisioning your numbers and porting your existing business number across. These can run into thousands of rands. Ask upfront.

Hardware costs. Cloud PBX doesn't require desk phones, but some providers push hardware aggressively — sometimes bundled into a contract you can't exit. If you don't need physical IP phones, you shouldn't have to pay for them. Softphone apps on laptops and mobiles work perfectly well for most businesses.

Long-term contracts. Some providers lock you into 12- or 24-month agreements with penalty clauses for early exit. If you're not confident in a provider, month-to-month is worth paying a small premium for.

Per-feature pricing. Call recording is a feature. Voicemail-to-email is a feature. Some providers charge for each of these separately, so the base price looks attractive but the real cost climbs as you add what you actually need. Make sure you're comparing like-for-like.

Support costs. Free during business hours, charged after? Included only on premium tiers? Find out what happens when something goes wrong and who you'll be speaking to.

What affects how much you'll pay?

Number of users. Most Cloud PBX pricing scales per user, so a 5-person team costs less than a 50-person team. Some providers offer volume discounts once you cross certain thresholds.

Call volume. If your business makes a lot of outbound calls — sales teams, call centres, high-touch client services — call costs add up. Make sure you understand what's included and what's billed per minute.

Features required. Basic plans cover the essentials. If you need call centre functionality, detailed reporting dashboards, CRM integrations, or a high number of concurrent calls, you may need a higher-tier plan.

Number of locations. One office or five? Cloud PBX handles multiple locations easily — your staff can be anywhere and still share the same system. But if you need a local number for each city, that affects the cost.

Load shedding resilience. This matters more in South Africa than anywhere else. A proper cloud-hosted system on enterprise infrastructure will keep routing your calls even when the lights go out at your office. If a provider can't clearly explain how their system handles power outages at your end, that's worth knowing before you sign up.

Is it cheaper than what you're paying now?

Here's a quick way to think about it.

Add up what you currently spend on phone-related costs in a typical month: Telkom line rentals, call charges, maintenance on any on-site hardware, and any IT support time that goes into managing your phone system. Don't forget to factor in the cost of downtime when the system fails — or when load shedding takes your landlines down.

Then compare that total against a per-user Cloud PBX figure for your team size.

For most small and medium businesses, the switch to a hosted system reduces monthly costs. The savings are often significant enough to offset even the cost of new IP phones within a few months — and that's before you factor in the operational benefits of having a system that doesn't require a technician every time you need to make a change.

How Othos pricing works

We keep it simple.

One monthly fee per user, billed on a month-to-month basis. No setup fees. No hardware you didn't ask for. No separate charge for features that should be standard.

We're ICASA licensed, we run on AWS infrastructure in South Africa, and we've been working with local SMEs long enough to know that what businesses actually need is a system that works reliably — especially when load shedding hits — without a confusing bill at the end of the month.

See our pricing and what's included →

Ready to see what it would cost for your business?

Every business is different. The best way to get a real number is to tell us a bit about your setup — how many users, what you currently spend, and what features matter to you — and we'll put together a quote with no obligation.

Get a personalised quote from Othos →

Related reading: What Is Cloud PBX? A Plain-English Guide for SA Businesses · VoIP for Small Business in South Africa: Everything You Need to Know

Othos Telecom provides Cloud PBX and VoIP solutions to South African businesses. ICASA licensed. Based in Cape Town. Explore our features →