Grasshopper
Grasshopper is a virtual phone system that adds a professional business line to your personal mobile device, allowing you to manage calls and texts through a dedicated mobile app.
Ribbon SBC
Ribbon SBC provides secure, high-performance session border controllers that protect your voice and video communications across cloud, enterprise, and service provider networks while ensuring seamless multi-vendor interoperability.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Grasshopper | Ribbon SBC |
|---|---|---|
| Website | grasshopper.com | ribboncommunications.com |
| Pricing Model | Subscription | Custom |
| Starting Price | $14/month | Custom Pricing |
| FREE Trial | ✓ 7 days free trial | ✓ 30 days free trial |
| Free Plan | ✘ No free plan | ✘ No free plan |
| Product Demo | ✘ No product demo | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2003 | 1997 |
| Headquarters | Boston, USA | Plano, USA |
Overview
Grasshopper
Grasshopper provides you with a professional phone system that runs entirely on your existing personal devices. Instead of buying expensive hardware, you simply add a business line to your smartphone or desktop. This allows you to keep your personal and professional lives separate while maintaining a polished image for your clients through custom greetings and automated extensions.
You can manage your business communications from anywhere using the mobile or desktop apps. The platform handles everything from toll-free numbers and vanity lines to business texting and virtual faxing. It is specifically designed for solopreneurs and small teams who need to stay connected on the go without the complexity of a traditional office PBX system.
Ribbon SBC
Ribbon SBC (Session Border Controller) helps you secure and manage your real-time communications, whether you are using Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or traditional VoIP systems. It acts as a specialized firewall for your voice and video traffic, protecting your network from cyber threats like toll fraud and denial-of-service attacks. You can connect disparate communication platforms and ensure high-quality calls across your entire organization.
The platform scales to meet your needs, offering everything from software-only versions for small businesses to high-capacity hardware for global enterprises. By using Ribbon, you can migrate to the cloud at your own pace while maintaining your existing carrier relationships and hardware investments. It simplifies the complexity of modern unified communications so you can focus on staying connected with your team and customers.
Overview
Grasshopper Features
- Business Texting Send and receive professional text messages using your business number to stay responsive to your clients.
- Custom Greetings Create a professional first impression by recording custom greetings that welcome your callers and direct them appropriately.
- Virtual Extensions Set up multiple extensions for different departments or team members to route calls to the right person.
- Simultaneous Call Handling Ensure your callers never hear a busy signal by routing multiple calls to different phones at once.
- Voicemail Transcription Read your voicemail messages as text delivered straight to your email so you can stay updated discreetly.
- Instant Response Automatically send a text message to new callers when you can't answer, so you never miss a lead.
Ribbon SBC Features
- Microsoft Teams Direct Routing. Connect your existing phone lines and legacy hardware directly to Microsoft Teams to make external calls without expensive per-user licenses.
- Robocall Mitigation. Protect your employees from annoying and dangerous spam calls using integrated STIR/SHAKEN compliance and advanced identity verification tools.
- Cloud-Native Deployment. Deploy your security layer instantly in AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud to support your remote workforce without buying physical hardware.
- Intelligent Call Routing. Route your calls through the most cost-effective paths and ensure high availability with automatic failover if a connection goes down.
- Advanced Encryption. Secure your voice and video traffic with industry-standard encryption to prevent eavesdropping and keep your private conversations truly private.
- Interoperability Testing. Bridge the gap between different vendors like Cisco, Avaya, and Zoom so your entire tech stack communicates without friction.
Pricing Comparison
Grasshopper Pricing
- 1 phone number
- 1 extension
- Unlimited users
- Business texting
- Call forwarding
- Voicemail transcription
- Everything in True Solo, plus:
- 3 phone numbers
- Unlimited extensions
- Call transfers
- Custom greetings
- Mobile and desktop apps
Ribbon SBC Pricing
Pros & Cons
Grasshopper
Pros
- Extremely easy to set up on existing personal phones
- Separates personal and business calls effectively
- Professional sounding automated greetings and menus
- Reliable mobile app for remote work flexibility
Cons
- Lacks advanced features like call recording
- International calling requires a pre-paid deposit
- Texting is limited to US and Canadian numbers
Ribbon SBC
Pros
- Certified for seamless integration with Microsoft Teams and Zoom
- Highly scalable from small offices to massive carrier networks
- Exceptional reliability with carrier-grade uptime and failover capabilities
- Flexible deployment options across hardware, virtual, and public cloud
Cons
- Initial configuration requires significant technical expertise and training
- Documentation can be overly technical for non-specialist IT staff
- Pricing structure is complex and requires a formal sales quote