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How Do MetroFax and RingCentral Compare?

November 24, 2014/in Online Fax /by KateH

RingCentral and MetroFax consistently rank as two of the most popular Internet fax services. Both are affordable, offer solid support, and include good features. Here’s a closer look at how the two compare on value, features and ease of use as well as our bottom line on the comparison.

Value

MetroFax and RingCentral both offer tiered plans. RingCentral’s most cost effective plan includes 500 send or receive pages for $9.99 per month (or $95.88/ year if paid annually). MetroFax’s “Essential” plan includes 500 pages for $7.95/ month (or $79.50/ year if paid annually). Both also offer a 1,000-page plan, but MetroFax is only $12.95/ month (or $129.50 annually) while RingCentral’s plan is $17.99/ month ( or $155.88 annually). They both also offer 2,500 page plans, but MetroFax offers a much better price of $34.95/ month ($349.50 annually) versus and RingCentral’s $59.99 ($599.88 annually).

RingCentral also offers a corporate plan for $49.99 per month (or $479.88 annually) with two fax numbers and an option to add more fax numbers at $4.99 each, with “unlimited” pages included (fair use policies actually limit this to 10,000 pages per month). This plan is designed for businesses that do a lot of faxing and need multiple employees to have their own, dedicated fax numbers and administrative controls.

Both MetroFax and RingCentral give you the option of signing up for an 888, 877, 866 or 855 toll free number for not extra cost. However, only RingCentral offers a true “800” number option, for which they charge a $30 setup fee. MetroFax no longer offers 800 numbers.

MetroFax’s website offers a “Corporate” plan for companies needing multiple numbers, large fax volume and centralized admin, but people looking for this option will simply be referred to eFax Corporate (eFax’s parent company, j2 Global, bought MetroFax in 2013).

Features

Both MetroFax and RingCentral offer iPhone & Android apps, but only RingCentral offers an app for Blackberry. Both companies’ apps, allow you to send files from your phone’s camera roll and from services like Dropbox, but they do so in different ways. MetroFax is smoother for attaching photos from your camera, while RingCentral has better Cloud service integration. Both services also allow faxing to international numbers.

Neither service currently offers an e-signing feature, but RingCentral offers a setting that makes the service HIPAA compliant (necessary for people in the medical industry). However, RingCentral will not sign a “business associate agreement” for fax only customers. Business associate agreements are a further way to insure HIPAA compliance, but only a few HIPAA compliant fax companies offer this feature.

RingCentral recently eliminated phone support for their fax only customers, instead providing a “case management” system where customers can submit their issues online. Cases are responded to within 24 hours. MetroFax offers North American based phone support Monday through Friday from 8am to 9pm Eastern Time.

RingCentral also features two additional products that include fax services: RingCentral Office and RingCentral Professional. These services provide users with a complete business phone system as well as fax capabilities, and the prices for these services start at $9.99/ month depending on your needs.

Ease of Use

Both services make sending faxes very easy, and allow you to send through email, a web interface, and smartphone apps. Because RingCentral offers services beyond fax, their interface is more complicated than MetroFax, but it offers additional features like custom caller ID settings, call blocking, etc. Both services also allow users to receive faxes at multiple email addresses (30 for RingCentral and 10 for MetroFax).

Bottom Line

MetroFax is the better choice for non-medical professionals looking for fax capabilities. It is less expensive, simpler, offers better customer service and quality apps. For people needing HIPAA compliance that don’t need a business associate agreement, RingCentral is an excellent choice. Also, if you are interested in an easy to use, feature rich business phone system that includes faxing, RingCentral’s Office and Professional services are worth a look.

Top Online Fax Services With eSigning

August 21, 2014/in Online Fax /by KateH

If you run a small to medium-sized business, you may be on the hunt for an online fax service that doesn’t cost a lot. While it’s easy to find plenty of plans and services that offer low rates, it’s a little harder to find one that also includes good features. The ability to electronically sign (eSign) a document in particular is one feature that can add value to a plan. eSigning with an online fax allows you to respond more quickly and saves you the hassle of having to print, sign and scan a document that simply needs your signature. Here, we take a look at plans with low monthly costs that also let users eSign faxes.

eFax – Plus Plan

eFax’s Plus plan includes 150 inbound and 150 outbound pages at $16.95 per month. While all of eFax’s the services are both feature rich and reliable, that’s significantly pricier than other fax services.

eFax offers the ability to eSign documents and fax them back, and its services are HIPAA compliant. It also offers apps for iPhones and Android phones, as well as Microsoft Office integration and 24/7 phone support. eFax is the only company to include all of those features in one service.

HelloFax – Home Office plan

HelloFax’s primary selling point is their smooth eSigning capability. In fact, they also own HelloSign, which is a service that specializes in eSigning various types of electronic documents. HelloFax’s Home Office plan costs $9.99 per month, or $8.33 a month with an annual prepayment. That includes 300 pages inbound and outbound, unlimited storage of sent and received faxes, and unlimited users. This plan lets you eSign documents from your browser, and also gives a preview of faxes before sending.

Other notable features in this plan include tight integration with Google Drive and no startup fees. HelloFax offers local numbers in 42 states, and has U.S.-based (email-only) customer support. However, they do not offer phone support or any mobile apps, and also will not let you store contacts online. HelloFax will port your existing fax number into their service for $15.

(RingCentral No Longer Offers eSigning) ~~RingCentral – Fax 700~~

At $8.99 per month – or $7.11 per month with an annual prepayment – for 700 inbound and outbound pages, this RingCentral plan is a great value. The Fax 700 plan offers a host of features, including the ability to eSign documents from your browser, faxing to international numbers, iPhone, Android and Blackberry apps, 24/7 phone support, and bundled service options (like RingCentral Professional and RingCentral Office- business phone systems that include online fax capability).

~~The plan also includes a 30-day free trial, local fax numbers in 49 states, and unlimited storage of sent and received faxes. Porting a number is free, and the plan also includes contact books.~~

Top Online Fax Providers With Smartphone Apps

August 21, 2014/in Online Fax /by KateH

The advent of online fax services meant no more being tethered to a fax machine. Then smartphones came along, and furthered the mobility aspect of online faxing. Smartphone faxing apps turn your device into a fax machine on the go, allowing you to create, send, receive and manage faxes. Here, we take a look at the fax providers that offer apps for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry devices.

MetroFax: All three of the plans MetroFax offers include apps for iPhone and Android. Its Essential plan includes 500 total pages for $7.95 per month, the Value plan includes 1,000 total pages for $12.95 per month, and the Professional plan includes 2,500 total pages for $35.95 per month. All three plans come with a 30-day trial. MetroFax’s plans are a great deal, and are among the most competitively priced out there.

MetroFax has won praise for its very intuitive iOS and Android apps. The service also offers HIPAA compliance and Office integration, allowing you to fax directly from programs like Word, Excel, and Outlook. Its optional desktop software, MetroFax Printer, lets you print faxes automatically and sync with Yahoo! Mail contacts, among other features.

RingCentral: RingCentral is another feature-laden service with three tiers of plans. Its Fax 700 costs $8.89 per month and includes 700 total pages, the Fax 1000 plan includes 1,000 total pages per month for $17.99, and the Fax 2500 includes 2,500 total pages at $59.99 per month. Its 700 Plan is a fantastic deal, although its high volume plan is pricier than those of competitors. But RingCentral does provide very good reliability and support, and a wide range of features.

In addition to the smartphone apps for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry, RingCentral’s plans include electronic signatures (eSigning) and Microsoft Office integration.

eFax: eFax offers two plans, Plus and Pro. Plus includes 150 inbound and 150 outbound pages at $16.95 per month, and Pro includes 200 inbound and 200 outbound pages at $19.95 per month. While the services are both feature rich and reliable, that’s significantly pricier than other fax services.

eFax offers apps for iPhones and Android phones, and its services are HIPAA compliant. It also offers the ability to eSign documents and fax them back, as well as Microsoft Office integration and 24/7 phone support. eFax is the only company to include all of those features in one service.