Cloud PBX • Pricing

What a business phone system actually costs in South Africa

Published 2026 prices for Cloud PBX from every provider that lists one, the costs the per-seat headline leaves out, a worked example for a 10-extension office, and how to price an on-premise PABX against it.

New to hosted phone systems? Start with cloud PBX and hosted switchboards explained, or compare cloud PBX providers on scores, contract terms and setup fees.

Prices sampled August to October 2026 By the WhichVoIP editorial team 8 min read

From R49/extLowest published cloud seat, per month

R0–R1,500 setupOnce-off base fee, published range

3 cost layersSeat, calls and hardware

Month-to-monthNo lock-in is the norm on cloud

The short answer

How much does a business phone system cost in South Africa?

For a cloud PBX, the eleven South African providers that publish an entry price charge R49 to R79 per extension per month (median R65, mostly excl. VAT and month-to-month, sampled to 27 September 2026), and richer feature tiers are published up to R185 per extension. Setup runs from free (Switch, NoPBX) to a R1,500 base fee plus R65 per extension (Euphoria), and desk phones are optional: ISPAfrika lists handsets at R795, R995 and R1,850. An on-premise PABX works differently: you buy the hardware and pay for installation and a maintenance contract, and none of the providers we track publishes those prices, so every line has to be quoted.

Lowest published entry seat, R/ext/month

Top of the published entry band, R/ext/month

Richest published tier, R/ext/month

Highest published base setup fee, R

South African business owner reviewing a phone bill with a calculator and laptop — Headline seat prices are only one of three cost layers – the bill that matters is seat plus calls plus hardware over the contract.

Cloud PBX (hosted PBX / cloud PABX) cost per user in South Africa

Cloud PBX, hosted PBX and cloud PABX are the same thing priced the same way: a monthly fee per user (extension), plus calls. Among the eleven South African providers that publish a per-extension entry price, a seat costs R49 to R79 a month (median R65, sampled to 27 September 2026).

The table shows the entry price, excluding call charges, for every Cloud PBX provider on our comparison table that publishes a list price, in the same order as that table. Each figure is a dated fact from the provider’s own site; VAT basis is as the provider states it. Providers that only quote are left out.

Provider	Entry price	Notes
Switch Telecom	R36	per extension at 10 extensions, excl. VAT (R260 per 10-extension block on top of the SIP trunk; sold only in 10-extension blocks); calls billed separately, month-to-month, free setup
3CX	R11	per user at 40 users on a €285/yr licence; SIP trunk from your chosen partner
TRUENAV	R55	per extension (Basic Business), including the VoIP trunk, remote support and installation; 1–30 extensions, month-to-month
Microsoft Teams Phone	US$10	per user, Teams Phone Standard licence (Microsoft ZA list price, USD); calling plans extra, billed through M365
Innovo Networks	R49	per extension (Starter), excl. VAT; Custom R99 and Enterprise R149 per extension add call recording and a contact centre
Othos Telecom	R149	per month for 3 users (Starter); SMB R399 for up to 10 users, Enterprise R649 for 20; no setup fees, VAT basis not stated
Axxess	Free	VoIP number with no monthly fee; calls billed pay-as-you-go
Yeastar	R65	per user (Standard) via named reseller DSL Telecom; Enterprise R85, Ultimate R125, Ultimate X R185, month-to-month
United Telecoms	R65	per extension (Essential); Classic R85, month-to-month
Vox Telecom	R59	per user (OmniOne Core); Pro R79, month-to-month
NoPBX	R65	per extension (Pay As You Go, 200 minutes included) plus R90 a month PBX charge on multi-user systems, excl. VAT, month-to-month
Telkom Business	R69	per month flat, not per extension (PABX Cloud configurator, 36-month contract); R77 on 12 months, R0 once-off
SureTel	R60	per extension for 1–20 extensions, falling to R40 at 301+, excl. VAT; porting R40 per eligible number

Scores, contract terms, setup fees, quote-only providers and filters are on Compare phone systems. How hosted PBX works, and what to look for beyond price, is in our hosted PBX guide.

Read prices as entry points: these are starting figures and they move. The only number that matters for your business is a live quote on your seat count and call profile.

The three things you actually pay for

Quotes look confusing because providers split the cost differently. Almost every business phone bill comes down to the same three layers.

Get these three straight and you can compare any two quotes on a like-for-like basis, instead of being anchored on whichever headline number a salesperson leads with.

Where the money goes

The full cost of a cloud PBX

The per-seat figure is the headline; four other line items decide your real monthly spend.

Cost	Published range	When it applies
Per-extension subscription	R49 to R185 / month	Always; entry seats R49–R79, richer tiers up to R185
Call charges	Per-minute or bundled	Always; some plans bundle a free allowance
Once-off setup	R0 to R1,500 base	Free at Switch and NoPBX; Euphoria R1,500 base plus R65 per extension; United free for up to 10 users
Desk phones (optional)	R795 to R1,850 each (ISPAfrika)	Only if you want handsets over the free app
Connectivity / failover	From R379 / month (SureTel LTE/5G backup)	If you add backup internet for reliability

What drives the price up or down

Feature tierBasic extensions are cheap. Queues, IVR menus, call recording, live wallboards and CRM integration push you up the tiers.

Calls bundled or billedA plan with calls included is often cheaper in practice than a lower seat price that bills every minute. Compare the all-in monthly figure, not the seat alone.

Handsets vs softphonesThe free desktop and mobile app costs nothing extra; physical desk phones are a real once-off capital line.

Resilience add-onsA second internet path lets calls fail over to mobile data or a backup link, so an outage at one site need not take your numbers down.

Worked example: a 10-extension office

10 extensions at the median published entry price of R65 is R650 a month for the system (R490 to R790 across the published entry band, excl. VAT), before calls and handsets.

Calls are billed on top. At ISPAfrika’s published R0.30 a minute to local numbers, 1,000 local minutes is R300 a month, so the system at R650 plus R300 in calls comes to about R950 a month with no handsets if everyone uses the app. Buying 10 of ISPAfrika’s R995 desk phones adds a once-off R9,950, not a monthly cost.

✓

How we built this: every price comes from a provider’s own live pricing page, and any provider we could not verify at source is left out. Prices move, so each figure carries the date it was sampled.

The cheapest seat on the page is rarely the cheapest phone system. Price the whole stack – seat, calls and hardware – over the full contract.

WhichVoIP editorial view

On-premise PABX: what you have to get quoted

An on-premise system means you buy and own the hardware, then pay to keep it running. The money is front-loaded, and none of the providers we track publishes a price for it, so every line below is a quote.

Component	What to ask for in the quote
PABX hardware unit	Model, licensed extensions, and whether you own it outright or rent it
IP desk phones	Per-handset price and model (for reference, ISPAfrika lists handsets at R795 to R1,850)
Installation and configuration	A fixed fee, and exactly what it covers
Annual maintenance contract	Yearly fee, response-time SLA and what is excluded
SIP trunk lines	Monthly price per channel, and call rates
Hardware refresh	Expected life of the unit and the cost to replace it

For a fuller comparison of the two architectures, see our PABX vs PBX guide. Handset prices vary widely too; our best VoIP desk phones guide breaks the tiers down.

Cloud vs on-premise over three years: how to compare

Monthly headline prices hide the real difference, because on-premise front-loads its cost. Put both options on the same 36-month footing before you decide.

CloudYour all-in monthly figure (seats plus calls, as in the worked example) times 36, plus any setup fee and any handsets you buy.

On-premiseHardware and installation up front, plus three years of the maintenance contract, 36 months of SIP trunk channels and your call charges.

Then compareAsk on-premise vendors for their 36-month figure in writing, so you are comparing like with like rather than a monthly seat against a one-off invoice.

Cloud usually comes out ahead for small and mid-sized teams, because there is no capital outlay and seats scale up or down with headcount. On-premise can make sense for large sites that already employ IT staff and plan to keep the system for many years.

An IP desk phone beside a smartphone running a softphone app on an office desk — Starting on softphone apps keeps hardware out of the budget until you are sure desk phones earn their place.

Hidden costs to watch for

The sticker price is not the whole bill. Number porting, early-termination fees on your old service, per-minute overages, international-call markups, premium support and handset rental all sit in the fine print and decide what you actually pay over the contract.

Porting is a good example: ISPAfrika publishes R99 per number, and other providers price it differently or fold it into setup. We break each hidden cost down, with the questions that flush them out before you sign, in our dedicated guide: the hidden VoIP costs that turn a cheap quote expensive.

Watch-out: ask every shortlisted provider for a single all-in monthly figure that includes the seat, your expected call volume and any hardware. That one number is what you are actually buying.

The bottom line

For most South African businesses a cloud PBX is the lower-cost, lower-risk choice. Budget R49 to R79 per extension per month for an entry seat (up to R185 for the richest published tiers), plus calls, any setup fee and optional handsets. On-premise PABX still has a place at large sites with dedicated IT, but its hardware, installation and maintenance are all quoted, so price it over the same three years before you commit.

Our recommendation: decide your feature tier first, then get at least three quotes on the same seat count and call volume, and ask each provider exactly what is included before you compare on headline seat cost.

Get real Cloud PBX quotes, side by side

Tell us your seat count and call volume, and compare actual all-in prices from South African Cloud PBX providers, not “from” teasers.

Compare Cloud PBX quotes Compare phone systems

Frequently asked questions

How much does Cloud PBX cost per user in South Africa?

Among the eleven South African providers that publish an entry price, R49 to R79 per extension per month in 2026 (median R65, mostly excl. VAT). Richer feature tiers are published up to R185 per extension, and per-provider rates are on the phone system comparison.

What is the cheapest business phone system in South Africa?

A cloud PBX on the free softphone app, with no desk phones. The lowest published single-seat entry price is R49 per extension per month (Innovo Networks Starter); Switch Telecom works out at R36 per extension but sells only in 10-extension blocks. Switch and NoPBX publish free setup. See our cheapest VoIP providers guide for provider-by-provider pricing.

Is an on-premise PABX cheaper than cloud?

Rarely for small and mid-sized teams. On-premise needs hardware, installation and a maintenance contract up front, and none of it is published, so get it quoted and compare it over 36 months against your cloud total. It tends to make sense only for large sites with in-house IT and a long time horizon.

Is there a setup fee for Cloud PBX?

It depends on the provider. Switch and NoPBX publish free setup, United includes remote setup for up to 10 users (R1,500 once-off for 11–30), and Euphoria charges a R1,500 base fee plus R65 per extension. Confirm before you commit.

Do I have to buy desk phones?

No. Most Cloud PBX providers include a free softphone app for desktop and mobile. Physical desk phones are optional; ISPAfrika, for example, lists handsets at R795, R995 and R1,850 once-off.

What does the monthly seat price usually include?

On most cloud PBX plans the seat covers the softphone app, an IVR or auto-attendant, voicemail to email and, frequently, local and mobile calls. Higher tiers add call recording, CRM integration and analytics. Always confirm whether calls are included or billed per minute.

Are there hidden costs with VoIP?

Watch for number porting fees (ISPAfrika, for example, publishes R99 per number), early termination fees on your old service, per-minute overage charges, international call markups and the long-term cost of renting handsets. Ask each provider for a full all-in breakdown.

Are Cloud PBX contracts month-to-month?

Most of the providers we track publish month-to-month terms (Switch, Euphoria, NoPBX, United and Yeastar via DSL Telecom among them), which lets you scale seats up or down and switch if service disappoints. There are exceptions: Telkom’s PABX Cloud is sold on 12- to 36-month contracts, and Othos offers 20% off for a yearly option.

Keep reading

The same monthly price can cost you double: comparing quotes Phone system cost calculator The cheapest VoIP providers in South Africa Compare Cloud PBX providers PABX vs PBX: which should you buy? The best VoIP desk phones

Sources: WhichVoIP provider record (wv_provider_facts – each price a dated fact sampled from the provider’s own pricing page, 8 August to 13 September 2026), as rendered on Compare phone systems; ISPAfrika call, porting and handset prices from ispafrika.co.za/voip (sampled 8 September 2026); Innovo Networks Starter from innovonet.co.za (sampled 1 September 2026); Euphoria setup from euphoria.co.za/pricing (sampled 13 September 2026); Switch Telecom from switchtel.co.za (sampled 6 September 2026); TRUENAV from truenav.com (sampled 8 August 2026); Othos from othos.co.za (sampled 4 September 2026); SureTel from suretel.co.za (sampled 22 August 2026); Telkom PABX Cloud from its online configurator (sampled 1 October 2026). No provider we track publishes on-premise PABX prices, so they are shown as quote items only. Figures re-bound 4 October 2026.