Toll-free number

What is a toll-free number?

Toll-free numbers are telephone numbers that allow customers to call you free of charge instead of paying a fee or “toll”. The owner of the number (that would be you, the business owner) is billed for incoming and outgoing calls.

Toll-free numbers always start with a three-digit code. The most well-known prefix is 800, the original code released way back in 1966. That’s why many people refer to toll-free numbers as “800 numbers.”

800 isn’t the only choice, though. Due to demand, 888 was launched in 1996. Since then, five more toll-free prefixes have been created: 877, 866, 855, 844, and 833. All of them work exactly the same way: with you footing the bill for your customers’ calls.

And if it sounds expensive, that’s actually not always the case! Many companies (both large and small businesses) buy toll-free numbers as part of a unified communications platform, which can drastically reduce call costs. (Pricing varies, but usually, toll-free numbers count as local phone calls in the US and Canada.)

Dialpad makes it really easy to add a toll-free number. You just log into your account and go to “Add a number” in your settings. No IT help needed: