Business Phone System Buyer’s Guide: Everything Australian Businesses Need to Know in 2026

THE AUSTRALIAN PHONE SYSTEM MARKET HAS NEVER BEEN MORE COMPLEX — OR MORE IMPORTANT TO GET RIGHT. Cloud PBX, SIP trunking, Teams Phone, on-premise, hosted, hybrid — the options are genuinely confusing. This guide cuts through it all. By the end, you’ll know exactly what type of system your business needs, what questions to ask every provider, and what it should cost. No jargon. No sales pitch.

The Australian telecommunications landscape hit a genuine turning point between 2019 and 2022 when NBN Co decommissioned ISDN services — the copper-based infrastructure that underpinned traditional phone systems for decades. Businesses that hadn’t already migrated were forced to act. Many rushed into decisions they’re still paying for.

In 2026, the market has matured significantly. Cloud phone systems have moved from ‘emerging technology’ to the default choice for 68% of Australian small businesses. On-premise PBX hardware is becoming genuinely difficult to maintain as parts dry up and technicians retire. And new categories — Teams Phone, AI voice agents, SD-WAN-integrated calling — have introduced options that didn’t exist three years ago.

This guide will help you make the right decision for your business — not the right decision for your provider’s margin.

68% of Australian small businesses now use cloud-based phone alternatives

30–50% typical reduction in monthly telecom spend after switching to VoIP

$4,500 average annual maintenance cost for on-premise PBX in mid-market firms

82% of Australian mid-market firms projected to be on cloud-native platforms by end of 2026

Step 1: Understand the three types of business phone systems

Before you evaluate a single provider, you need to understand what you’re choosing between. There are three main options for Australian businesses in 2026:

Option A: Hosted Cloud PBX

Your entire phone system lives in the cloud. No hardware on-site beyond handsets (optional). The provider manages everything — call routing, features, updates, security. You pay per user per month. This is the right choice for the majority of Australian businesses in 2026.

Option B: On-Premise PBX

A physical PBX cabinet sits in your server room or comms cabinet and manages all your call routing on-site. You connect it to the phone network via SIP trunks or (legacy) ISDN lines. High upfront cost, high control, high maintenance overhead. In 2026, this makes sense only for businesses with specific compliance, regulatory, or integration requirements.

Option C: SIP Trunking Only

You keep your existing on-premise PBX but replace your old ISDN or analogue lines with SIP trunks — internet-based connections to the phone network. Lower cost than full cloud migration, but you still carry the maintenance burden of your existing hardware. A good interim solution for businesses mid-migration.

Head-to-head: Hosted Cloud PBX vs On-Premise vs SIP Trunking

	Hosted Cloud PBX	On-Premise PBX	SIP Trunking Only
Upfront cost	✓ None	⚠ $15K–$30K+	⚠ $5K–$15K
Monthly cost	✓ Per-user OpEx	✓ Low (paid off)	⚠ Carrier + maintenance
Scalability	✓ Instant, digital	❌ Physical cards needed	⚠ Limited by trunk count
Remote work	✓ Full — any device	❌ On-site only	⚠ Partial
Maintenance	✓ Managed by provider	❌ Your responsibility	⚠ Shared
Microsoft Teams	✓ Native integration	❌ Complex workaround	⚠ Possible via gateway
Number porting	✓ Yes — all AU numbers	✓ Yes	✓ Yes
AI voice agents	✓ Built-in capability	❌ Not supported	⚠ Possible add-on
Disaster recovery	✓ Geo-redundant cloud	❌ Single point of failure	⚠ Depends on setup
Best for	Most AU businesses 2026	Regulated/legacy sites	Businesses mid-migration

✔  THE 2026 VERDICT For most Australian businesses — particularly those with fewer than 200 staff, a remote or hybrid workforce, or existing Microsoft 365 licences — Hosted Cloud PBX is the right choice. On-premise PBX still has a place in regulated industries or where specific legacy integrations can’t be migrated. SIP trunking is a sensible bridge if you’re not ready for full cloud migration yet.

Step 2: Know which features you actually need

One of the most common mistakes businesses make when buying a phone system is paying for features they’ll never use. Here’s how to think about it:

Core features — every business needs these

• Direct Inward Dialling (DID) — individual numbers for staff
• Auto-attendant / IVR — professional ‘press 1 for sales’ menus
• Call queues and hunt groups — route calls to the right person or team
• Voicemail to email — voicemails delivered as audio files to your inbox
• Call recording — for compliance, training, and dispute resolution
• Hold music and custom greetings — professional call experience
• Mobile app — staff make and receive calls on their business number from any device
• Number portability — keep your existing 02, 03, 1300, and 1800 numbers

Advanced features — valuable for growing businesses

• CRM integration — calls logged automatically to Salesforce, HubSpot, or your CRM
• Microsoft Teams integration — make and receive external calls directly in Teams
• Call analytics and reporting — wait times, call volumes, agent performance
• AI voice agents — handle routine inbound enquiries without human involvement
• Video conferencing integration — one platform for calls and meetings
• Multi-site management — multiple offices under one unified system
• 4G/5G failover — calls continue if your primary internet drops

Enterprise features — for larger or complex operations

• Contact centre functionality — ACD, skills-based routing, supervisor dashboards
• SD-WAN integration — voice traffic prioritised over your entire WAN
• Geo-redundancy — calls failover to a secondary data centre automatically
• AUSTRAC / AML compliance tools — call logging and audit trails for regulated industries
• Custom API integrations — connect your phone system to bespoke software

💡 PRO TIP Write down the five things that frustrate you most about your current phone system. Those are the features to prioritise. Don’t let a sales conversation talk you into features you didn’t know you needed before you walked in.

Step 3: Understand what it should cost

Australian business phone system pricing is notoriously opaque. Here’s a realistic breakdown of what you should expect to pay in 2026:

System type	Monthly cost range	Setup / porting cost
Hosted Cloud PBX (per user)	$15 – $45/user/month	Low – nil with managed providers
SIP Trunking (per channel)	$10 – $25/channel/month	Nil – low
Teams Phone (Direct Routing)	$10 – $20/user/month + MS licence	Nil – low with managed providers
On-Premise PBX (maintenance)	$300 – $500/month ongoing	$15K – $30K+ upfront hardware
AI Voice Agent add-on	$50 – $200/month	Setup fee varies

Watch out for: per-minute call charges on top of monthly fees, contract exit penalties, hardware lease costs presented as ‘included,’ and offshore support bundled into cheap-looking plans. Always ask for total cost of ownership over 36 months, not just the monthly headline rate.

Step 4: The 10 questions to ask every provider

Before signing anything, get written answers to all of these:

About the system

☐  Is this a genuine cloud-hosted system or on-premise hardware presented as cloud?

☐  What is your guaranteed uptime SLA — and what compensation do I receive if you breach it?

☐  Which data centres host my system, and are they located in Australia?

☐  Does your system natively integrate with Microsoft Teams, and how — Direct Routing or a softphone workaround?

About costs

☐  What is the total monthly cost per user, including all features I’ve specified?

☐  Are there per-minute charges for local, national, mobile, 1300, or 1800 calls?

☐  Is there a separate equipment lease or rental agreement, and what are the exit terms?

☐  What is the minimum contract term and what are the exit fees?

About migration and support

☐  Do you manage number porting end-to-end, and what is the typical porting timeframe?

☐  Is your support team based in Australia, and what are the support hours?

⚠  RED FLAG Any provider who can’t give you a written answer to all ten of these questions before you sign is not ready to be your provider. Walk away.

Step 5: What a good migration looks like

Switching phone systems doesn’t have to be painful. A well-managed migration follows this structure:

• Week 1–2: Audit — your new provider inventories all existing numbers, handsets, and call flows. You agree on the target configuration.
• Week 2–3: Configuration — your new system is built and tested in parallel with your existing system. No disruption to live calls.
• Week 3–4: Number porting — your Australian numbers are ported to the new provider. ACMA governs this process; expect 10–20 business days for complex numbering plans.
• Go-live: Traffic switches to the new system. Your old system stays live as backup for an agreed period.
• Post-migration: Staff training, call flow fine-tuning, and first billing review to confirm accuracy.

A reputable provider manages every step of this process. You should not be making calls to your old carrier, submitting porting paperwork yourself, or losing calls during transition. If a provider can’t commit to zero-downtime migration, keep looking.

Why Australian businesses choose Broadconnect

Broadconnect has been delivering business phone systems across Australia for over 30 years. Here’s what makes us different from the market:

• 100% Australian-owned and operated — your data stays in Australia, your support team is in your timezone
• Hosted Cloud PBX, SIP Trunking, and Microsoft Teams Phone — all delivered under one roof
• Microsoft-certified Direct Routing — genuine Teams integration, not a softphone workaround
• End-to-end number porting management — we handle everything from your old carrier to go-live
• 4G/5G backup internet available — your calls stay live even during an outage
• NSW Government-listed supplier — independently verified standards and service levels
• AI voice agent integration — ready for the next generation of business communication
• Zero-downtime migration framework — refined over 15 years and thousands of business migrations

Ready to choose the right phone system for your business? Book a free 20-minute consultation with our team. We’ll ask the right questions, assess your current setup, and give you an honest recommendation — even if that recommendation isn’t us. Call 1300 880 330  |  broadconnect.com.au

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between VoIP and a hosted PBX?

VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) is the underlying technology that transmits voice as data packets over the internet. A Hosted PBX is a complete phone system management platform built on top of VoIP — it handles call routing, ring groups, IVR menus, voicemail, and all the features of a business phone system. Think of VoIP as the engine and the hosted PBX as the entire vehicle.

Can I keep my existing phone numbers when switching systems?

Yes. Australian number portability is governed by the ACMA, and all local, 1300, and 1800 numbers can be ported to a new provider. A reputable provider manages this process end-to-end. Porting typically takes 10–20 business days depending on the complexity of your current numbering plan.

How much bandwidth do I need for a cloud phone system?

Business-grade VoIP requires approximately 100 kbps of dedicated bandwidth per concurrent call. A business making 10 simultaneous calls needs at least 1 Mbps dedicated to voice traffic. Your provider should conduct a bandwidth assessment before deployment to confirm your internet connection is adequate.

What happens to my phone system if my internet goes down?

With a 4G/5G backup internet connection configured for automatic failover, your calls continue over the mobile network within seconds of your primary connection dropping. Without failover, inbound calls can be forwarded to mobile numbers via pre-configured rules. Broadconnect offers 4G/5G backup internet as part of our business connectivity solutions.

How long does it take to set up a cloud phone system?

For most small to medium businesses, a cloud phone system can be configured and ready within 5–10 business days of sign-off. The main variable is number porting, which depends on your existing carrier. A managed provider handles the entire process; you don’t need to coordinate with your old carrier.

Do I need to replace my existing desk phones?

Not necessarily. Many SIP-compatible handsets can be reconfigured to work with a new cloud PBX. Broadconnect audits your existing hardware as part of onboarding and advises exactly what, if anything, needs to be replaced. In many cases, the answer is nothing — or only one or two handsets.

What is a 1300 number and can I keep mine?

A 1300 number is a shared-cost number that routes to your business — callers pay a local call rate regardless of where they’re calling from in Australia. 1300 and 1800 numbers can be ported to a new provider and connected to your cloud phone system like any other number. Broadconnect supports all Australian number types.

Statistics sourced from IBISWorld, Broadconnect internal data, IDC, and publicly available Australian telecommunications industry reports. Pricing figures are indicative ranges as of April 2026 and are subject to change. This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute advice. Broadconnect is an Australia-wide business phone and internet provider — call 1300 880 330 or visit broadconnect.com.au.