A hosted phone system (also called hosted VoIP or hosted PBX) is a cloud-based business telephone system where all the call-handling technology is managed in secure data centres rather than on your premises.
With a traditional on-premise PBX, you need expensive hardware installed in your office, ongoing maintenance contracts, and specialist engineers for any changes. A hosted phone system eliminates all of that – your provider manages the infrastructure, software updates, and security, while you simply connect IP phones or softphones to your internet connection.
Hosted VoIP vs on-premise PBX:
- Upfront cost – Hosted: minimal (phones only). On-premise: thousands for PBX hardware
- Maintenance – Hosted: included by your provider. On-premise: your responsibility
- Scalability – Hosted: add/remove users instantly. On-premise: may need new hardware
- Remote working – Hosted: built-in. On-premise: requires additional configuration
- Disaster recovery – Hosted: automatic failover. On-premise: single point of failure
- Updates – Hosted: automatic. On-premise: manual and often costly
For most UK businesses, a hosted phone system offers better value, greater flexibility, and future-proof technology. Compare hosted VoIP packages with Connection Technologies.