Your team is stretched thin, juggling calls, follow-ups, and everything else that keeps your business running. So, when it’s time to log call details into your CRM, the last thing you want is to copy and paste information manually.
One missed detail, like forgetting to note a client’s special request or inputting the wrong follow-up date, can snowball into confusion, miscommunication, or even lost business.
These problems can become a regular occurrence if you choose Google Voice as your business phone provider. While the platform is fine for basic calling, it falls flat when you need integrations with non-Google tools. Without those connections, workflows become clunky, teams overwhelmed, and cracks in your processes inevitable.
In this article, we’ll get into why the lack of Google Voice integrations might hold your business back. We’ll also look at nine more of its limitations and provide a better alternative.
What Google Voice integrations are available?
Unfortunately, Google Voice doesn’t offer third-party integrations. It’s only compatible with other Google apps — tools like Google Meet, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts. While these integrations are helpful if you’re embedded in Google Workspace, it can be a major roadblock if you’re not.
The reality is that without third-party integrations, you can’t connect Google Voice to other tools in your tech stack, such as Slack or your CRM.
This means your team has to manually input call logs, notes, and other data — wasting time and increasing the likelihood of mistakes that could damage customer relationships.
9 more Google Voice limitations that can hurt your business
Google Voice may seem like a simple business phone system, but its hidden limitations become obvious as your team’s needs grow. Here are nine more shortcomings to keep in mind:
1. There’s no API
Not surprisingly given the lack of integrations, there’s no Google Voice API. As a result, you can’t automate specific text touchpoints or any other repetitive tasks. What if you want to try to bypass this limitation with workarounds? Well, you risk violating Google Voice’s Acceptable Use Policy and Google Workspace Service-Specific Terms, which could lead to your account being terminated.
2. You can’t schedule customer texts
If you’re looking to queue up texts at a specific time, Google Voice doesn’t let you schedule texts, forcing your team to send messages manually.
This increases the risk of forgetting to send them and can lead to messages being sent outside business hours, potentially violating Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) regulations and risking hefty fines.
3. Google Voice doesn’t provide auto-replies
When a customer texts your business, they expect a response right away — even if it’s just an acknowledgment. Unfortunately, there’s no option to set up auto-replies in Google Voice. So, outside of your set business hours or during busy periods, your customers are left in the dark, which can harm their trust and lead to dissatisfaction.
4. Toll-free numbers aren’t supported
Google Voice doesn’t support toll-free numbers, which can be a dealbreaker for businesses that want to offer a way for customers across North America to easily reach out to them. Without toll-free numbers, customers may have to pay to call or text your business — a hurdle that can lead them to call a competitor.
5. You can’t save time with snippets (pre-saved templates)
Your team already has enough on their plate without having to type the same message repeatedly. Whether it’s confirming appointments or answering FAQs, Google Voice forces your team to manually write out each response, wasting valuable time that could be spent on higher-priority tasks. Look for alternatives that provide snippets to help with repetitive communication.
6. You can only send texts to US customers
If your business has or plans to have international customers, Google Voice is not a realistic option. Its text messaging capabilities are restricted to US numbers, limiting your ability to engage with a global audience and potentially cutting off growth opportunities.
7. You can’t use a desktop app
While many business phone systems offer desktop apps, Google Voice does not. This means your team has to rely on browser tabs and constantly switch between tools and applications, which can slow down productivity and cause frustration.
8. Ring groups require an upgrade
Google Voice’s ring groups, which allow multiple team members to share responsibility for answering incoming voice calls, are only available on Google Voice’s Standard Plan. This plan costs $20 per user per month on top of a Google Workspace subscription (more on this below).
9. You have to pay for two subscriptions
To use Google Voice for business, you need a Google Voice subscription and a Google Workspace account (which costs an extra $6 per user per month). The double subscription requirement quickly increases costs, especially for larger teams. While Google Voice might initially seem budget-friendly, these pricing plans can make it far less reasonable than other options.
Each of these limitations restricts your ability to scale and streamline operations, especially as you look to integrate your phone system with the rest of your tech stack. But there’s good news: OpenPhone offers a more modern business phone solution that eliminates these barriers, giving your team the tools it needs to communicate efficiently and grow effectively.
Thousands of ways to integrate OpenPhone with your tech stack
If you want direct connections to tools in your tech stack, OpenPhone offers native integrations with some of the most popular platforms:
- HubSpot and Salesforce: Log calls, texts, and contact details directly in your CRM, giving your team a complete view of each customer and improving data accuracy.
- Slack: Get instant notifications in specific Slack channels for missed calls, voicemails, or messages, helping your team respond faster and keep communication flowing.
- Email: Automatically forward voicemail transcripts to your email so your team can easily get context on customer conversations without switching platforms.
- Gong: Automatically sync call recordings to Gong, which will provide transcriptions separated by speaker that you can analyze to find actionable insights. This improves sales coaching and collaboration by providing your team access to customer conversations.
- Google Contacts: Sync your OpenPhone contacts with Google Contacts to keep your address book updated and accessible.
- Zapier and Make: Build custom workflows to automate repetitive tasks, such as creating reminders, logging interactions, and sending follow-ups, without requiring any coding knowledge.
- OpenPhone API: Build custom workflows and integrations tailored to your business needs and tech stack, giving you even more control over your processes.
With OpenPhone, integrations are just the beginning. Beyond connecting to your favorite tools, you get access to business features that help your business thrive and take work off your plate:
- Automatically or manually record calls: Keep a record of important conversations for reference, training, or compliance purposes.
- Schedule texts: Make sure that messages are sent at the right time to improve response rates while staying professional.
- Set business hours: Organize when you’re available so clients know when to expect a response and give you a better work-life balance.
- Ring groups: Share incoming calls with your team so the right person can answer, reducing missed opportunities.
- Use shared phone numbers: Collaborate easily by sharing numbers across your team so everyone stays aligned on customer communication.
- Call views: Quickly see which calls are missed, require follow-up, or need immediate action.
- Send auto-replies: Let clients know you’ve received their message with automatic responses, improving customer satisfaction even when you’re unavailable.
- Free calls and texts to US and Canadian numbers: Communicate with customers as much as you need without worrying about limits or extra costs.
Whether you’re automating follow-ups, centralizing customer data, or collaborating with your team, OpenPhone has everything you need to simplify your processes and scale your business.
OpenPhone: The best Google Voice alternative
Whether you’re looking to integrate your phone system with your tools, save time on manual tasks, or provide a better customer experience, OpenPhone has you covered. Start your 7-day free trial today and see how OpenPhone can transform your business.
FAQs
No, Google Voice integrations do not include Microsoft Teams.
For businesses that rely on Teams for collaboration, OpenPhone has integrations through Zapier that can streamline communication workflows.
Google Voice does not integrate with Slack.
However, OpenPhone offers a direct Slack integration, enabling real-time notifications for calls and texts within your Slack channels.