--- title: "8x8: a cloud phone system and contact centre for your business | StartCloud" description: "8x8 puts your business phones, video, team chat and a full contact centre in the cloud, on one number across every device. StartCloud explains what 8x8 does, how it compares to Microsoft Teams Phone, honest pricing, and when it is the right fit for a Perth business." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": [ "LocalBusiness", "ProfessionalService" ], "@id": "https://startcloud.au/#business", "name": "StartCloud", "legalName": "Start Technologies Pty Ltd", "alternateName": "StartCloud Australia", "identifier": { "@type": "PropertyValue", "propertyID": "ABN", "value": "17 676 121 449" }, "slogan": "Go Beyond", "description": "StartCloud is Perth's cybersecurity-first AI MSP: managed IT, Essential Eight security, Microsoft 365 and cloud, networking, and practical AI for Australian businesses with 5 to 50 staff.", "url": "https://startcloud.au", "logo": "https://startcloud.au/og-image.png", "image": "https://startcloud.au/og-image.png", "telephone": "+61862850001", "email": "web@startcloud.com.au", "priceRange": "$$", "currenciesAccepted": "AUD", "paymentAccepted": "Invoice", "foundingDate": "2023", "contactPoint": { "@type": "ContactPoint", "telephone": "+61862850001", "contactType": "customer service", "areaServed": "AU", "availableLanguage": "English" }, "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "Ground Floor West, 6 Gibberd Road", "addressLocality": "Balcatta", "addressRegion": "WA", "postalCode": "6021", "addressCountry": "AU" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": -31.8648813, "longitude": 115.8095638 }, "openingHoursSpecification": [ { "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification", "dayOfWeek": [ "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday" ], "opens": "07:00", "closes": "16:30", "description": "General support hours" }, { "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification", "dayOfWeek": [ "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday", "Sunday" ], "opens": "00:00", "closes": "23:59", "description": "Security Operations Centre (SOC) with 24/7/365 threat monitoring" } ], "areaServed": [ { "@type": "City", "name": "Perth" }, { "@type": "State", "name": "Western Australia" }, { "@type": "Country", "name": "Australia" } ], "serviceArea": { "@type": "GeoCircle", "geoMidpoint": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": -31.8648813, "longitude": 115.8095638 }, "geoRadius": "50000" }, "knowsAbout": [ "Cybersecurity", "Managed Security Services", "Essential Eight", "Microsoft 365", "Microsoft Azure", "IT Support", "Network Security", "Disaster Recovery", "Compliance Management", "Microsoft Copilot", "AI Readiness", "AI Governance", "AI Agent Development" ], "hasOfferCatalog": { "@type": "OfferCatalog", "name": "IT and Cybersecurity Services", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Cybersecurity Services", "url": "https://startcloud.au/cybersecurity" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Managed IT Services and Support", "url": "https://startcloud.au/technology" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Microsoft 365 and Cloud Solutions", "url": "https://startcloud.au/cloud" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "Managed Networking", "url": "https://startcloud.au/networking" } }, { "@type": "Offer", "itemOffered": { "@type": "Service", "name": "AI and Automation", "url": "https://startcloud.au/ai" } } ] }, "sameAs": [ "https://www.linkedin.com/company/startcloudau", "https://www.facebook.com/startcloudaus/", "https://www.cloudtango.net/providers/12375/startcloud", "https://clutch.co/profile/startcloud", "https://abr.business.gov.au/ABN/View?abn=17676121449", "https://www.yellowpages.com.au/balcatta-wa/bpp/startcloud-581735301", "https://www.truelocal.com.au/balcatta-wa/tlp/startcloud-581735301", "https://www.google.com/maps/place/StartCloud/@-31.8648767,115.8069889,739m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x2a32a5b5d9e864b5:0x9f02690968f0e50c!8m2!3d-31.8648813!4d115.8095638!16s%2Fg%2F11vzbgtytj" ] }, [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://startcloud.au/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Resources", "item": "https://startcloud.au/resources" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Deep Dives", "item": "https://startcloud.au/resources/deep-dives" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "8x8", "item": "https://startcloud.au/resources/deep-dives/8x8-cloud-communications" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the difference between 8x8 Work and 8x8 Contact Center?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "8x8 Work is the business phone system: numbers, extensions, voicemail, calling from a desk phone, laptop or mobile. Contact Center adds the machinery for teams whose job is answering calls, including queues, skills-based routing, wallboards, supervisor monitoring and reporting on wait times and abandonment." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "When does 8x8 beat Microsoft Teams Phone?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "When calls are the business rather than an accessory to it. Reception-heavy operations, service desks, dispatch, multi-site teams sharing queues, and anyone who needs real reporting on call handling. If the requirement is just a number for each staff member, Teams Phone is usually simpler and cheaper." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Can 8x8 work alongside Microsoft Teams?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes. 8x8 offers integration with Teams so staff can keep Teams as the app they live in while calls run over the 8x8 platform underneath, which suits businesses that want the contact centre depth without asking people to learn a second app." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Can you keep your existing phone numbers?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes. Australian numbers port to 8x8 the same way they port between carriers. Porting takes planning and a cutover date, and it is the part of a phone migration most worth getting right, because a number that fails to port on the day is a business that cannot take calls." } } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebPage", "url": "https://startcloud.au/resources/deep-dives/8x8-cloud-communications", "speakable": { "@type": "SpeakableSpecification", "cssSelector": [ ".deep-dive-question", ".deep-dive-answer" ] } }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BlogPosting", "headline": "8x8: a cloud phone system and contact centre for your business", "description": "How 8x8 replaces an on-prem PBX with a cloud phone system and contact centre, on one business number across desk phone, laptop and mobile, and when it beats Microsoft Teams Phone.", "author": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "StartCloud", "url": "https://startcloud.au" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "StartCloud", "url": "https://startcloud.au", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://startcloud.au/startcloud-logo.png" } }, "datePublished": "2026-07-15", "dateModified": "2026-08-13", "image": "https://startcloud.au/og-image.png", "inLanguage": "en-AU", "isAccessibleForFree": true, "timeRequired": "PT11M", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://startcloud.au/resources/deep-dives/8x8-cloud-communications" }, "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "8x8" } } ] ] --- [![StartCloud](/assets/StartCloud-Logo-ByZE1kzP.svg "StartCloud: Cybersecurity-First Managed IT Services Perth")](/ "StartCloud | Managed IT Services Perth") - Cybersecurity - AI Solutions - Cloud - Technology - Networking - Explore [Contact Us](/contact "Contact StartCloud, Perth IT Support") Open menu Deep Dive Short Answer TL;DR What It Is Features vs Teams Phone Pros & Cons Pricing Use Cases Five Moments In Practice How We Deploy Pitfalls Verdict FAQs Related References A long-form deep dive into 8x8 cloud communications for Australian small and mid-sized businesses. Covers 8x8 Work (cloud phone system, video, chat) and 8x8 Contact Center (IVR, queues, omnichannel routing), the XCaaS combined platform, replacing an on-prem PBX or copper, one business number across every device, a fair comparison with Microsoft Teams Phone, indicative AUD pricing, the network and internet requirements for good call quality, and how StartCloud scopes and deploys it. [Home](/)[Resources](/resources)[Deep Dives](/resources/deep-dives)8x8 Product Deep Dive Recommended for Perth businesses retiring an old PBX or running a support team # 8x8: a cloud phone system and contact centre for your business Your phone lines do not need to live in a box in a cupboard anymore. 8x8 moves your business numbers, extensions, voicemail, video meetings and even a full call centre into the cloud, on one number that follows your team to any device. StartCloud Published 15 July 2026 Last updated 13 August 2026 11 min read The short answer ## Is 8x8 better than Microsoft Teams Phone for an Australian business? 8x8 is the stronger choice when calling is central to how the business earns money, because its contact centre features like queueing, skills-based routing, call recording and supervisor tools are far deeper than Teams Phone, while Teams Phone usually wins for a team that simply needs a phone number attached to the Microsoft 365 they already run. StartCloud's verdict: A strong fit for heavy-calling and multi-site teams TL;DR ## The short version **8x8 is a cloud communications platform.** It has two sides. 8x8 Work is your phone system in the cloud: business numbers, extensions, voicemail, video and team chat on a desk phone, a laptop or a mobile. 8x8 Contact Center is a full omnichannel call centre with IVR menus, queues and agent routing. 8x8 markets the two together as XCaaS. It replaces an ageing on-prem PBX or copper lines, keeps one business number across every device, and comes with a 99.999% uptime SLA. It integrates with Microsoft Teams and common CRMs. It is not a Microsoft product, so think of it as a specialist alternative or complement to a Microsoft phone setup. If your calling needs are heavy, or you need a real contact centre, 8x8 often fits better than Teams Phone. If you just need light calling inside Teams, Teams Phone may be enough. 8x8 has largely moved to quote-based pricing and no longer publishes clear list prices for every tier. Any figures in this guide are indicative AUD ranges only, current as of July 2026 and subject to change. We would scope the right plan for your team. What it is ## Your phone system, minus the box in the cupboard For decades, a business phone system meant a physical PBX: a box wired into copper or ISDN lines, sitting in a comms cupboard, that a technician had to visit whenever you wanted to add a phone or change a setting. **8x8 moves all of that into the cloud.** Your numbers, extensions and call logic run on 8x8's platform, and calls travel over your internet connection instead of copper. There are two halves to it. **8x8 Work** is unified communications: the cloud phone system, video meetings, team messaging, SMS and presence. **8x8 Contact Center** is a proper call centre: IVR menus, call queues, skills-based agent routing, plus chat, email, SMS and social all in one place, with reporting and quality management. 8x8 sells the combined platform as XCaaS, one platform for both sides. ### 8x8 Work (unified communications) The cloud phone system. Your business numbers, extensions, voicemail, video meetings, team chat and SMS all live in the cloud. Staff make and take calls on a desk phone, the desktop and mobile apps, or a browser, all on the business number. This is what replaces an old on-prem PBX. ### 8x8 Contact Center A full omnichannel call centre. Call queues, IVR menus, skills-based routing, voice plus web chat, email, SMS and social, live wallboards, reporting and quality management. Built for support and sales teams that handle real call volume, not just a handful of internal extensions. ### Old on-prem PBX vs 8x8 in the cloud Before: on-prem PBX Copper / ISDN lines On-prem PBX box in the comms cupboard Desk phones, wired to the office only Tied to the office. A technician for every change. Copper being switched off. move to cloud After: 8x8 cloud phone system 8x8 platform in the cloud Desk phone Laptop / desktop app Mobile app Browser One business number, reachable anywhere with internet. Changes done in a web console. What it does ## The features that matter Here is what 8x8 actually gives your team, split across the phone system and the contact centre, without the marketing gloss. ### 8x8 Work: the phone system side ### Cloud PBX and business numbers Extensions, hunt groups, auto-attendant, voicemail and call transfer, all managed from a web admin console. No physical PBX in a comms cupboard. Add or remove a user in minutes rather than booking a technician. ### One number, every device The same business number rings a desk phone, the laptop app and a mobile at once. Staff answer wherever they are and calls go out showing the business number, not a personal mobile. Move a call between devices mid-conversation. ### Video meetings Built-in video meetings for internal catch-ups and client calls, with screen sharing and recording. On the higher tiers, meetings scale to hundreds of participants. It sits alongside Teams rather than trying to replace it. ### Team chat, SMS and presence One-to-one and group messaging, business SMS to customers, and presence so you can see who is on a call before you transfer to them. Handy for reception and small support teams working across sites. ### Global and interstate calling Unlimited calling zones covering a set list of countries, so interstate and international calls do not blow out the bill. The number of included countries scales up on the higher plans, which matters if you deal with overseas suppliers or offices. ### 99.999% uptime SLA 8x8 publishes a platform-wide 99.999% uptime SLA, which works out to roughly a few minutes of downtime a year. For a business where a dead phone line means lost sales, a written uptime commitment is a real selling point over an ageing on-prem box. ### 8x8 Contact Center: the call centre side ### IVR menus and skills-based routing Build the 'press 1 for sales, press 2 for support' menus, then route each caller to the agent best placed to help based on skills, language or priority. Callers stop being bounced around and reach the right person faster. ### Queues and agent management Callers wait in a proper queue with position and estimated wait time, hear on-hold messages, or request a callback instead of holding. Supervisors see who is available, who is on a call and who is wrapping up. ### Omnichannel (voice, chat, email, SMS, social) One agent workspace handles phone calls, web chat, email, SMS and social messages together. A customer can start on chat and move to a call without repeating themselves, and it all lands in the same reporting. ### Reporting and quality management Live wallboards and historical reports on call volumes, wait times, abandonment and agent performance. Call recording, screen recording and quality scoring help you coach the team and prove service levels to clients. ### How a contact centre call is routed Customer calls your business number IVR menu: 'press 1 for sales, 2 for support' Call joins the right queue Routed to the next available skilled agent Skills-based routing means the caller reaches the agent best placed to help, not just the next free phone. A callback option means nobody has to sit on hold. The fair comparison ## 8x8 or Microsoft Teams Phone? If your team already lives in Microsoft Teams, this is the honest question to ask before you commit. Both put calling in the cloud. The right answer depends on how much you call and whether you need a real contact centre. 8x8 also integrates with Teams, so it is not strictly either-or. Consideration 8x8 Microsoft Teams Phone Best when You make heavy calls, need a proper contact centre, or work across multiple countries. Your calling is light to moderate and the team already lives in Teams all day. Contact centre Full omnichannel CCaaS built in: IVR, queues, skills-based routing, reporting, quality management. Basic call queues and auto-attendant; a real contact centre needs a third-party add-on. Devices and apps Desk phones, dedicated desktop and mobile apps, browser. One number everywhere. Runs inside the Teams app you already use; desk phone support is more limited. International calling Generous unlimited calling zones covering many countries on the higher plans. Calling plans are per-region and can get fiddly for multi-country teams. Vendor and billing A separate vendor and bill, though it integrates back into Teams. One vendor, one Microsoft bill, one admin stack. Uptime Published 99.999% platform-wide uptime SLA. Covered by the wider Microsoft 365 service level commitments. Short version: pick **Teams Phone** when calling is a side activity and simplicity wins. Pick **8x8** when calling is core to the business, when you need queues and routing for a support or sales team, or when you deal across borders. We are happy to walk through both with you honestly, we are not tied to either. The honest take ## Pros and cons ### What works well - One system for phones, video, chat and a contact centre. You are not stitching together three vendors for calling, meetings and a call queue. - Genuine device freedom. The same business number works on a desk phone, laptop and mobile, so hybrid and multi-site teams keep one identity wherever they work. - A real contact centre when you need it. IVR, queues, skills-based routing and omnichannel are proper features, not a bolt-on. Good for support and sales teams with actual call volume. - 99.999% uptime SLA. A written availability commitment that an ageing on-prem PBX or a copper line simply cannot match. - Retires the on-prem PBX and copper. No box to maintain, no ISDN to worry about as carriers switch it off. Moves and changes are done in a web console. - Integrates with Microsoft Teams and CRMs. 8x8 offers Voice for Microsoft Teams and a Contact Center for Teams, plus links into Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot and others. ### Where to be careful - Call quality lives and dies by your internet and network. Poor bandwidth, a cheap router or no QoS and calls will drop or crackle. This is the single biggest risk with any cloud phone system.This is exactly where our [managed internet](/networking/internet) and [firewall](/networking/firewall) work matters, we set QoS so voice gets priority. - Porting your existing numbers takes planning and time. Moving numbers off your current carrier is a scheduled process measured in weeks, not an afternoon. It needs to be run carefully so you never lose a call. - The contact centre is overkill for a small office. If you just need a handful of extensions and voicemail, the CCaaS features are more than you will ever use, and you should not pay for them. - Per-user costs add up. Every seat is a monthly fee. For a larger team, or one where only some staff need contact centre features, the licensing needs to be scoped carefully so you are not over-buying. - It is another vendor outside your Microsoft stack. Even though it integrates with Teams, it is a separate platform with its own admin console and billing. If your team already lives in Teams all day, weigh that against Teams Phone before deciding. What it costs ## Pricing, honestly Here is the honest situation: 8x8 has largely moved to quote-based pricing and no longer publishes clear public list prices for every tier. The historical plan names ran X2 and X4 for the phone system, and X6 through X8 for the contact centre. The ranges below are indicative only, to give you a feel. We would scope the exact plan and get you a real quote. Plan family Indicative AUD cost Who it suits 8x8 Work (unified comms, e.g. X2) Indicative ~AUD $30 to $45 / user / month Cloud phone system, one number across devices, video meetings, team chat, SMS and a generous unlimited-calling zone. The right fit for most offices that just need modern phones. 8x8 Work higher tier (e.g. X4) Indicative ~AUD $45 to $65 / user / month Everything above plus wider international calling zones, advanced call analytics and supervisor-style monitoring. For teams that make heavy outbound or international calls. 8x8 Contact Center (e.g. X6 to X8) Indicative from ~AUD $110+ / agent / month Omnichannel contact centre: IVR, queues, skills-based routing, voice plus digital channels, quality management and analytics. Priced per agent and scoped to how many channels and features you need. A few things move the price: how many users versus contact centre agents you need, how many countries you call, the contract length (multi-year deals are usually cheaper), and whether you need desk phone hardware. Do not pay for agent seats for people who just need a phone. Indicative AUD ranges only. 8x8 pricing is quote-based and public list prices are limited. Figures current as of July 2026 and subject to change. Confirm the current price and plan when you scope a deployment. Real-world use cases ## Who gets the most from it ### Replacing an old on-prem PBX or copper If your phone system is a physical box that a technician has to visit, or you are still on ISDN and copper that the carrier is retiring, 8x8 is a clean replacement. The PBX moves to the cloud, calls run over your internet, and moves and changes happen in a web console instead of a service call. ### Hybrid, remote and multi-site teams When staff split their week between home, client sites and two or three offices, a location-bound phone system stops making sense. 8x8 gives everyone the same business number on whatever device they are using that day, so a customer calling reception reaches the right person regardless of where they are sitting. ### A support or sales team that needs a real queue If customers currently ring a mobile or a single desk phone and get voicemail when it is busy, you are losing calls. A proper contact centre with an IVR, a queue and skills-based routing means calls are answered, tracked and reported on, and you can actually see how the team is performing. ### Interstate and international calling For businesses with offices, clients or suppliers interstate or overseas, the unlimited calling zones keep the bill predictable and let staff dial as if everyone were local. One number and one platform across locations beats juggling separate systems per site. ### Businesses that want fewer moving parts Rather than one supplier for phones, another for video and a third for a call queue, 8x8 puts calling, meetings, messaging and the contact centre on one platform with one bill. Fewer vendors to chase when something needs changing. Five moments every business faces ## What happens with and without 8x8 These are the everyday situations where your phone system either keeps the business running or quietly costs you calls. They happen in every organisation. The question is which column you are in when they do. Situation On an old PBX or single line With 8x8 in place A staff member works from home for the day Calls to their desk phone ring out at an empty desk. Customers get voicemail, or the staff member gives out their personal mobile and loses the business number. The same business number rings the laptop and mobile apps. They answer from home exactly as they would at their desk, and outbound calls still show the business number. Your ISDN or copper line is being retired You scramble to find a replacement before the cutoff, often under time pressure, and risk a gap where the phones simply do not work. The phone system already runs over your internet. There is no copper to retire, so the carrier switch-off is a non-event for your business. The support line gets slammed at 9am One phone rings hot, callers get engaged tones or voicemail, and you have no idea how many people gave up and rang a competitor. Callers join a queue with a position and wait time, can request a callback, and are routed to the next skilled agent. You can see the whole picture on a live wallboard. You open a second office You buy and configure a separate phone system for the new site, with its own numbers and no easy way to transfer calls between locations. New staff are added in the web console and share the same system, extensions and internal dialling. Transferring a call between sites is the same as transferring down the hall. The internet drops at the office An on-prem PBX might keep internal calls alive but external lines still depend on the same failing service, and there is no easy fallback. Calls automatically fail over to the mobile apps on 4G or 5G, or forward to another number, so the business stays reachable while the connection is fixed. This assumes the network has been set up for it. A staff member works from home for the day Old PBX or single line Calls to their desk phone ring out at an empty desk. Customers get voicemail, or the staff member gives out their personal mobile and loses the business number. With 8x8 The same business number rings the laptop and mobile apps. They answer from home exactly as they would at their desk, and outbound calls still show the business number. Your ISDN or copper line is being retired Old PBX or single line You scramble to find a replacement before the cutoff, often under time pressure, and risk a gap where the phones simply do not work. With 8x8 The phone system already runs over your internet. There is no copper to retire, so the carrier switch-off is a non-event for your business. The support line gets slammed at 9am Old PBX or single line One phone rings hot, callers get engaged tones or voicemail, and you have no idea how many people gave up and rang a competitor. With 8x8 Callers join a queue with a position and wait time, can request a callback, and are routed to the next skilled agent. You can see the whole picture on a live wallboard. You open a second office Old PBX or single line You buy and configure a separate phone system for the new site, with its own numbers and no easy way to transfer calls between locations. With 8x8 New staff are added in the web console and share the same system, extensions and internal dialling. Transferring a call between sites is the same as transferring down the hall. The internet drops at the office Old PBX or single line An on-prem PBX might keep internal calls alive but external lines still depend on the same failing service, and there is no easy fallback. With 8x8 Calls automatically fail over to the mobile apps on 4G or 5G, or forward to another number, so the business stays reachable while the connection is fixed. This assumes the network has been set up for it. In practice ## What 8x8 looks like day-to-day For most staff, 8x8 just feels like a nicer phone that happens to work everywhere. The clever routing and reporting sit in the background for the people who need them. Who Their experience A staff member in the office Uses a desk phone or the desktop app on the same business number. Nothing feels different from a traditional phone, except moves and new extensions happen without a technician visit. A staff member working remotely Answers and makes business calls from the laptop and mobile apps. Customers see the business number, and the staff member keeps their personal mobile private. A contact centre agent Works from a single screen that shows the queue, live calls, chats and emails together, with customer context and call recording built in. A supervisor or team lead Watches a live wallboard of queue depth, wait times and agent status, pulls historical reports, and reviews recorded calls for coaching and quality. StartCloud (managed deployment) Scopes the right plan, sizes and tunes your internet and firewall for voice, manages the number port, sets up the IVR and call flows, and supports the platform after go-live. How StartCloud deploys 8x8 ## From old PBX to cloud phones, without the drama A cloud phone system is only as good as the network under it. The order of these steps matters. Get the internet and firewall right first, scope the plan properly, then port numbers carefully. That is the difference between a rollout people love and one they complain about. ### Step 1. Network and internet readiness check Before anything else, we check your internet is up to the job: enough bandwidth for the number of concurrent calls, low latency and jitter, and a firewall that can prioritise voice traffic. This is the step most cheap deployments skip, and it is why some cloud phone rollouts sound terrible. ### Step 2. Scope the right plan (and only the right plan) We work out who genuinely needs a full contact centre seat versus a standard phone user, how many concurrent calls you run, and which countries you dial. That stops you paying for X8 agents when most of the team just needs X2. ### Step 3. Design call flows and the IVR We map how calls should flow: which numbers ring where, the auto-attendant menu, hunt groups, out-of-hours handling and the contact centre queues and routing rules. Getting this right up front avoids callers getting lost in menus later. ### Step 4. Plan and run the number port We handle porting your existing numbers off the current carrier, scheduled carefully so there is no window where calls are lost. New numbers can be provisioned immediately while ports are in progress. ### Step 5. Provision users, devices and Teams integration We set up each user, ship or configure desk phones, roll out the desktop and mobile apps, and connect 8x8 to Microsoft Teams and your CRM where it makes sense so staff are not app-hopping all day. ### Step 6. Cut over, train and support We schedule the switch-over, train reception, agents and supervisors on the apps and consoles, and stay on hand through the first days. After go-live we manage the platform, the network underneath it and any changes you need. The network side is the part cheap installers skip. Our [business communications](/networking/communications), [managed internet](/networking/internet) and [firewall](/networking/firewall) services exist so your calls sound clear on day one and stay that way. If something does go wrong, our [IT support](/technology/it-support) team is local and picks up. Watch out ## Common pitfalls - Rolling out cloud phones without fixing the internet first. Voice is unforgiving of a poor connection. If bandwidth is tight or there is no QoS, calls will drop and crackle, and everyone will blame 8x8 when the real problem is the network. Our [managed internet](/networking/internet) and [network](/networking/network-security) work is designed to prevent exactly this. - Leaving the number port to the last minute. Porting is a scheduled process that can take weeks and needs a clear cutover plan. Rush it and you risk a gap where customers cannot reach you. Start it early. - Buying contact centre seats for people who just need a phone. The CCaaS features are powerful and priced accordingly. A receptionist and a few office staff usually need a standard user plan, not an agent seat. - Designing an IVR that annoys callers. Deep menus, too many options and no easy path to a human make customers hang up. Keep the menu short and always offer a way through to a person. - Treating Teams Phone and 8x8 as the same decision. They are not. If your calling needs are light and you live in Teams, Teams Phone may be enough. 8x8 earns its place when you need heavier calling, a real contact centre or multi-country reach. - No firewall prioritisation for voice. Without QoS on the firewall, a big file upload or a video call can starve your phone calls of bandwidth mid-conversation. Voice needs to be prioritised at the network edge. We handle this as part of a managed [firewall](/networking/firewall) setup. The verdict ## Is 8x8 right for your business? **Yes, if calling is core to how you work, or your current phone system is on borrowed time.** If you are retiring an on-prem PBX, staring down an ISDN or copper switch-off, running a support or sales team that needs a real queue, or juggling multiple sites and hybrid staff, 8x8 solves those problems well. **Maybe not, if your needs are light and you already live in Teams.** A small office that just wants a handful of extensions and voicemail may be better served by Microsoft Teams Phone, without adding another vendor. Be honest about whether you will actually use the contact centre features you are paying for. The one thing that decides whether 8x8 is brilliant or frustrating is the network underneath it. Good internet, a firewall set up to prioritise voice, and a carefully planned number port make it feel effortless. Skip that groundwork and no cloud phone system will sound good. That is the part we take care of. ### Where StartCloud fits in The platform is one piece. The network under it, and getting the plan right, is where we come in. [ Scope and deploy a cloud phone system Business communications ](/networking/communications)[ Get the internet ready for clear calls Managed internet ](/networking/internet)[ Prioritise voice at the network edge Managed firewall ](/networking/firewall)[ Secure the network your calls run over Network security ](/networking/network-security)[ Local team when something needs fixing IT support ](/technology/it-support)[ Talk to the Perth team Get in touch ](/contact) Common questions ## 8x8: the questions we get asked ### What is the difference between 8x8 Work and 8x8 Contact Center? 8x8 Work is the business phone system: numbers, extensions, voicemail, calling from a desk phone, laptop or mobile. Contact Center adds the machinery for teams whose job is answering calls, including queues, skills-based routing, wallboards, supervisor monitoring and reporting on wait times and abandonment. ### When does 8x8 beat Microsoft Teams Phone? When calls are the business rather than an accessory to it. Reception-heavy operations, service desks, dispatch, multi-site teams sharing queues, and anyone who needs real reporting on call handling. If the requirement is just a number for each staff member, Teams Phone is usually simpler and cheaper. ### Can 8x8 work alongside Microsoft Teams? Yes. 8x8 offers integration with Teams so staff can keep Teams as the app they live in while calls run over the 8x8 platform underneath, which suits businesses that want the contact centre depth without asking people to learn a second app. ### Can you keep your existing phone numbers? Yes. Australian numbers port to 8x8 the same way they port between carriers. Porting takes planning and a cutover date, and it is the part of a phone migration most worth getting right, because a number that fails to port on the day is a business that cannot take calls. Keep reading ## Related guides [ Networking ### Business communications: phones that work wherever your team does How StartCloud sets up and manages cloud phone systems for Perth businesses, and the network work that makes them sound good. Service ](/networking/communications)[ Microsoft 365 ### Microsoft 365 Business Premium: a deep dive for Australian SMEs The Microsoft licence most SMBs run on, and where Teams Phone fits if your calling needs are light. 12 min read ](/resources/deep-dives/microsoft-365-business-premium)[ Microsoft 365 ### SharePoint and OneDrive: where your business files should actually live The other half of the modern workplace: files in the cloud, reachable from the same devices your phone now follows you onto. Deep Dive ](/resources/deep-dives/microsoft-sharepoint-onedrive)[ Automation ### Microsoft Power Automate: quietly removing your team's busywork Automate the repetitive tasks around your comms and CRM so the team can spend more time actually talking to customers. Deep Dive ](/resources/deep-dives/microsoft-power-automate) ## Thinking about cloud phones? Whether it is retiring an old PBX, standing up a contact centre, or working out whether 8x8 or Teams Phone is the right call, StartCloud scopes it properly and gets the network right so your calls actually sound good. [Book a phone system chat](/contact) No obligation. Straight answers. Perth-based team. Sources ## References 1. 8x8 (official site) [https://www.8x8.com/](https://www.8x8.com/ "Visit source: 8x8 (official site)") 2. 8x8 Contact Center product page [https://www.8x8.com/products/contact-center](https://www.8x8.com/products/contact-center "Visit source: 8x8 Contact Center product page") 3. 8x8 for Microsoft Teams [https://www.8x8.com/products/8x8-for-microsoft-teams](https://www.8x8.com/products/8x8-for-microsoft-teams "Visit source: 8x8 for Microsoft Teams") 4. 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams [https://www.8x8.com/products/integrations/8x8-voice-for-microsoft-teams](https://www.8x8.com/products/integrations/8x8-voice-for-microsoft-teams "Visit source: 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams") 5. 8x8 pricing breakdown (CloudTalk, 2026) [https://www.cloudtalk.io/blog/8x8-pricing/](https://www.cloudtalk.io/blog/8x8-pricing/ "Visit source: 8x8 pricing breakdown (CloudTalk, 2026)") 6. 8x8 pricing, plans and features (GetVoIP) [https://getvoip.com/blog/8x8-pricing/](https://getvoip.com/blog/8x8-pricing/ "Visit source: 8x8 pricing, plans and features (GetVoIP)") Document prepared July 2026 by StartCloud (Start Technologies Pty Ltd), last reviewed August 2026. 8x8 pricing is quote-based and plan details change, so any figures here are indicative only and current as of the date of preparation. 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