Wanatel Review
Wanatel is a Cape Town cloud PBX operator that publishes a full three-tier rate card from R225 a month for five extensions, bills calls per second, and holds its own ICASA network and service licences. It suits a small business that wants to see the whole price and be running within the week, and it has almost no public review record to show how support performs.
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Is Wanatel worth shortlisting?
Yes, if a published price matters more than a public track record. Wanatel puts its whole rate card on the website, from R225 a month for five extensions, bills calls per second, and holds its own ICASA network and service licences, which is rare at this size. The trade-off is that only ten Google reviews exist, most of them years old, and support hours are office hours. Ask for two current reference customers of your size before you sign.
- Registered asWanatel Africa (Pty) Ltd
- Trading since2009, ICASA IECS and IECNS licences since March 2009
- Based inBuitengracht Street, Cape Town
- NetworkOwn licensed network; cloud PBX platform white-labelled
- Starting costR225 per month for five extensions on Standard, free setup
- Public rating4.1 on Google from 10 reviews, unclaimed listing
The most complete small-business rate card in the category, with almost nobody reviewing it
Wanatel publishes three tiers across six bundle sizes, from five to fifty extensions, with setup free on Standard and Advanced and the effective rate falling as the bundle grows. Per-second billing and free calls between branches are standard, deployment is promised inside 72 hours, and the company holds both an ICASA network licence and a service licence in its own name, which most suppliers of this size do not. A white-label programme lets resellers sell the same platform.
The gap is evidence of service. Ten Google reviews in seventeen years, most from 2016 to 2019, on a listing the business has never claimed, say nothing reliable about how support performs today, and the site publishes office hours only, Monday to Friday. Features are solid for a standard office but thinner than the voice specialists on integrations.
Commercially this suits a small business that wants to see the price, sign, and be running within the week.
Is Wanatel likely to suit you?
Tick what applies to your business.
Pros and watch-outs
What Wanatel does well, and where to push back at quote stage.
- A full three-tier rate card from five to fifty extensions on the website, with free setup on two of the three tiers
- Per-second billing on outbound calls and free calls between your own branches on every tier
- Own ICASA network and service licences, with the numbers published on its site
- Deployment promised in under 72 hours, with handset auto-provisioning
- A white-label reseller programme for partners who want to sell the platform under their own brand
- Ten Google reviews in seventeen years, mostly from 2016 to 2019, on a listing the company has not claimed
- Support hours are Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm, with no after-hours or tiered support published
- Premium, the only tier with foreign provider access, starts at twenty extensions and carries a R950 setup fee
- The cloud PBX is a white-labelled platform with no native CRM dialler integrations
- No per-minute call rates and no VAT basis on the pricing page, and no published uptime figure
Score breakdown
Five categories that decide whether Wanatel earns a slot on your shortlist; four are scored here and re-weighted to 100%. The headline is the weighted sum, so you can check the arithmetic.
Published three-tier rate matrix from R225 a month for five extensions, free setup on Standard and Advanced, pure per-second billing and free inter-branch calling – one of the most complete rate cards in South African cloud PBX, re-verified at source on 4 September 2026. Held back only because per-minute call rates and the VAT basis are not on the page.
The Wanatel Cloud PBX three-tier feature matrix covers Standard PBX through Call Quality Analysis and the Billing Module to Foreign Provider Access at Premium. Modest breadth versus voice specialists with deeper integrations.
Not scored. The Google listing carries 4.1 across only ten reviews, re-read 6 September 2026, below the 30-review floor the rubric requires before a rating carries the dimension, and the HelloPeter aggregate is not readable. The other four dimensions are re-weighted to 100%.
Holds dual ICASA licensing – both IECS and IECNS – with the licence numbers published on its own site. Owning the network licence rather than reselling is strong reliability evidence; held below 9.0 for the absence of a published contractual uptime figure.
Published office hours are Monday to Friday 08:00–17:00 with no weekend or tiered support hours on the site, and the sparse Google evidence does not validate current service quality. Scored low on absence of evidence rather than demonstrated poor support.
Pricing and call rates
Wanatel publishes its full Cloud PBX rate matrix on the public site – rare in the SA Cloud PBX category. All figures monthly recurring as published at wanatel.co.za, re-verified 4 September 2026; the pricing page does not state its VAT basis.
Wanatel Cloud PBX three-tier rate matrix (monthly bundle pricing)
| Extensions | Standard | Advanced | Premium | Standard /ext |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ext | R225 | R275 | N/A | R45.00 |
| 10 ext | R425 | R525 | N/A | R42.50 |
| 15 ext | R600 | R750 | N/A | R40.00 |
| 20 ext | R750 | R950 | R1,200 | R37.50 |
| 25 ext | R875 | R1,125 | R1,350 | R35.00 |
| 50 ext | R1,625 | R1,950 | R2,400 | R32.50 |
Standard tier setup is FREE. Advanced setup is FREE. Premium setup is R950 once-off. Minimum extensions: Standard 5, Advanced 5, Premium 20. Maximum extensions on every tier: Unlimited. Per-second billing on outbound calls. Free inter-branch calling within South Africa. Call Recording is optional on every tier. Foreign Provider Access available only on Premium. Source: wanatel.co.za/subscribe-to-the-cloud, verified 18 May 2026.
Cost-area summary with buyer questions
| Cost area | Published rate | Buyer question | Risk level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard tier (10 ext) | R425/month (R42.50/ext effective) | Does Standard cover the integrations and analytics your team actually uses? | Clear signal |
| Tier upgrade premium | Advanced R525, Premium R1,200 at 20 ext | Is the Billing Module (Advanced) or Foreign Provider Access (Premium) actually required for your operation? | Map to features |
| Setup fee | FREE on Standard / Advanced; R950 once-off on Premium | Does the free setup include number porting and on-site configuration, or is that quoted separately? | Confirm scope |
| Call rates | Per-second billing; free inter-branch calls within SA | What are the per-minute rates for SA mobile, national and international, and are they competitive for your call mix? | Confirm rates |
| Call recording | Optional on every tier | What is the monthly cost per extension and the default retention window? | Ask explicitly |
| Deployment time | “Less than 72 hours” per Wanatel’s pricing page | Does the 72-hour clock include number porting, or only PBX provisioning? | Confirm scope |
| Reseller (KEVO programme) | White-label reseller terms scoped per partner | For channel partners: what’s the margin structure and how is billing managed? | Reseller-only |
What real customers say
Unedited Google reviews from Wanatel’s Cape Town listing, which averages 4.1 across 10 reviews, read on 6 September 2026.
“Wanatel are a tiny company, with no support, constant constant issues with their services. After having a huge blow out with them this last week because on both occassions that I needed support their was no one on the support line…”
“I never really find the time to post reviews but having googled Wanatel to check their site I was dismayed to see the previous persons comments. I’ve worked with Wanatel for over 4 years after having gone through numerous other VoIP…”
“Thought I will do a review on this company. Have been with the The main phone company for years. I had to make the switch to Voip…”
Read the sample with its shape in mind. Ten reviews over seventeen years is not a record, it is an absence of one, and the three quoted are the newest available. The listing is unclaimed, so Wanatel has never answered a review publicly. Treat the rate card as verified and the service quality as unverified: ask for reference customers of your size and a written support response time.
The Wanatel product line
What you can actually put on the contract.
Entry Cloud PBX
Standard PBX features and handset auto-provisioning. Free setup. Minimum 5 extensions, unlimited maximum. R45/ext at 5 seats, scaling to R32.50/ext at 50 seats.
Adds the Billing Module
Everything in Standard plus the Call Quality Analysis Tool and the Billing Module for organisations that need per-department or per-project call accounting. R55/ext at 5 seats, R39/ext at 50 seats. Free setup.
Adds Foreign Provider Access
Everything in Advanced plus Foreign Provider Access for organisations routing international call traffic through alternative carriers. R60/ext at 20 seats (minimum), R48/ext at 50 seats. R950 once-off setup.
Choose Wanatel if
- You want to see the whole price before you speak to anyone
- You have several branches and want calls between them free
- A supplier that holds its own network licence is on your tender checklist
- You are a reseller looking for a platform to white-label
Consider another if
- You need someone answering the support line at night or on weekends
- Your sales team needs a native dialler inside Salesforce, HubSpot or Zendesk
- A current, sizeable public review record is a requirement for your shortlist
- You are past fifty extensions and want a published rate at that scale
Alternatives to compare
WhichVoIP partners in Cloud PBX — paying sponsors, independently scored on the same rubric as Wanatel. Worth a quote alongside it.
Centracom
Hosted PBX (Cloudcall) on own Tier 1 voice carrier network. Listing · Review
Kinetix Connect
3CX Hosted PBX and Dedicated Cloud PBX, with SIP trunks. Listing · Review
Innovo Networks
Hosted PBX, contact centre and Teams Direct Routing. Listing · Review
Peers scored on the same rubric sit side by side on Compare phone systems and Compare VoIP providers.
South African essentials
Four local signals to verify before signing.
Wanatel publishes its own IECS and IECNS licence numbers, both issued March 2009. Ask that they appear on the quote, since the PBX platform itself is white-labelled.
Porting costs R150 per number once-off and takes 10 to 15 working days; 086 and 087 numbers cannot be ported. Ask for the porting date in writing before you cancel the old line.
Support is 021 200 0400, Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm; nothing after hours is published. Ask what happens to a fault logged on a Friday evening.
Monthly bundles with free setup on Standard and Advanced; no minimum term or notice period is published. Have both, and any clawback on early exit, written into the quote.
How this score was built
Scores are editorial guides, not guarantees. Wanatel’s 7.5 is the weighted sum of the four scored dimensions above, re-weighted to 100% because the public rating is too thin to score: 0.3125×8.5 + 0.3125×7.0 + 0.1875×8.5 + 0.1875×5.5. Wanatel is not a sponsor, and sponsorship does not move a score.
- Pricing value, 31.25%Rate transparency, setup friction, contract flexibility
- Feature set, 31.25%Controls, analytics, integrations, admin usability
- Reliability and uptime, 18.75%Infrastructure ownership, hosting location, published uptime evidence
- Support quality, 18.75%Support hours, location, and what customer reviews say about resolution
FAQ
Short answers for the questions buyers typically ask before requesting quotes.
How much does Wanatel’s Cloud PBX cost?
Wanatel’s product page quotes “starts at R49 per month per extension”; its bundle matrix works out slightly lower. Standard tier starts at R225/month for 5 extensions (R45/ext) and scales to R1,625/month at 50 extensions (R32.50/ext). Advanced tier adds the Billing Module and starts at R275 for 5 extensions. Premium tier adds Foreign Provider Access and starts at R1,200 for 20 extensions (minimum). All rates monthly recurring, exclusive of VAT.
What’s the difference between Standard, Advanced and Premium?
Standard covers core Cloud PBX features and handset auto-provisioning. Advanced adds the Call Quality Analysis Tool and a Billing Module for per-department or per-project call accounting. Premium adds Foreign Provider Access for routing international traffic through alternative carriers and has a 20-extension minimum.
Is Wanatel ICASA-licensed?
Yes, on both licensing categories. Wanatel holds an Individual Electronic Communications Service (IECS) licence (No. 0308IENS/MAR/09) plus an Individual Electronic Communications Network Service (IECNS) licence (No. 0308IECNS/MAR/09), both since March 2009. The dual-licence combination is rare at the SMB tier and signals that Wanatel operates its own infrastructure rather than reselling someone else’s.
How fast can Wanatel deploy a new Cloud PBX?
“Less than 72 hours” per Wanatel’s published pricing page. That timeframe typically covers PBX provisioning; confirm whether number porting is included in the same window or scoped separately at quote stage.
Why are there so few Google reviews for Wanatel?
The Wanatel Africa Google Business Profile shows 10 reviews across 17 years of operation, and the business has not formally claimed the listing. Most of the visible reviews are six to nine years old. The public-review signal is therefore thin for current service quality. Ask Wanatel for two or three reference customers in your headcount band at quote stage.
Does Wanatel work with channel partners?
Yes. The KEVO white-label reseller programme allows SA channel partners to build their own VoIP offering on Wanatel’s dual-licensed network. Margin structure and billing terms are scoped per partner agreement.
Sources, disclosure and what changedWhere this review’s facts come from, how WhichVoIP gets paid, and the update history
- Wanatel Subscribe to the Cloud pageUsed for the three-tier Wanatel Cloud PBX rate matrix (5 to 50 extensions, Standard / Advanced / Premium), feature inclusions per tier, setup fees and deployment time. Verified live 18 May 2026 and re-read 4 September 2026. Open source →
- Wanatel homepageUsed for the 17-year operating history, dual ICASA IECS plus IECNS licensing claims and the KEVO white-label reseller programme. Open source →
- Google Business ProfileUsed for the 4.1 rating across 10 reviews and the three verbatim quotes; the listing is unclaimed. Read 6 September 2026. Open source →
Wanatel is not a WhichVoIP sponsor. This review was researched and written by WhichVoIP’s editorial team using primary sources (provider website, Google Business Profile, and ICASA register). WhichVoIP may receive a referral fee when you request quotes through our platform. Read our full editorial policy.
- 6 September 2026Quote-request links re-routed to the phone-systems quote form after the primary-category decision; no other change.
- 6 September 2026Page rebuilt in the updated review layout. Google listing re-read: 4.1 across 10 reviews unchanged, listing still unclaimed. Alternatives expanded to three with reasons, South African essentials rewritten to the four standard checks with the published porting fee and timeline, journey rail and collapsed sources block added. Rate card unchanged from the 4 September re-read; score unchanged at 7.5.
- 4 September 2026Re-scored on the five-dimension rubric: Customer reviews is marked Not scored because the Google listing has only ten reviews, below the 30-review floor, and the other four dimensions are re-weighted to 100%. The headline moves from 7.3 to 7.5. The three-tier rate matrix was re-verified at wanatel.co.za today and is unchanged.
- 18 May 2026Re-verified the full three-tier Wanatel Cloud PBX rate matrix at primary source via Chrome MCP. Live GBP rating confirmed (4.1☆ / 10 reviews – stable, but sparse and stale). Score held at V6’s 7.4 with explicit dimension breakdown.
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