Hosted vs On-Premises Business Phone Systems

Business phone systems can be hosted by a provider or operated using infrastructure controlled by the organization.

Hosted systems reduce local infrastructure

With a hosted service, much of the phone platform is operated by the provider. The business still needs reliable endpoints, networking and Internet connectivity.

On-premises systems provide more local control

An organization operating its own system can have greater control over configuration and integration, but it also takes responsibility for maintenance, updates, backups, security and availability.

Neither model is automatically better

A small business may prefer a hosted system because it reduces the amount of infrastructure it needs to maintain. Another organization may have integration, control or operational requirements that make a locally managed solution appropriate.

Look at the whole environment

Consider users, locations, Internet connectivity, phones, integrations, call routing, support requirements and business continuity.

The right phone system is the one that fits the organization rather than the one with the longest feature list.