A Phone System Built for How Freelancers Actually Work.
A NYC business phone number on the cell you already carry. No office, no desk phone, no second device. Plans from $19.99 a month, designed around solo professionals.
Why this matters for freelancers
The number you carry on your personal cell was supposed to be temporary. It was the number you gave the first client because you didn't have anything else, and now it's also on your website, your business cards, and three Slack groups full of leads. Your personal calls and your business calls share the same ringer, the same voicemail, and the same caller ID.
The problem isn't just inconvenience. It's that your business looks smaller than it is. A prospect who hears your kids in the background when they call your "business line" makes assumptions you wouldn't choose to make for them. A client who texts your personal number at 9pm on a Saturday isn't being rude, they just don't have any other channel. And if you ever decide to step back or hire someone, that number is welded to your identity.
A real business line fixes all of that for about $20 a month.
What freelancers actually need from a phone system
Forget the feature lists national VoIP brands push at enterprise teams. As a solo professional you need a tight, specific set of things:
- A real NYC business number. Local 212, 718, 347, 646, 917, 929, or 718 area code so you sound like the local that you are. We register your business name on the caller ID so the other side sees you, not "WIRELESS CALLER."
- Softphone on your existing cell and laptop. The business line rings through an app on the same phone you already carry. No second device, no second SIM, no extra hardware to remember to charge.
- Auto-attendant that doesn't sound corporate. A clean, brief greeting that routes callers to voicemail, billing, or you. Optional. Some freelancers prefer a direct "you've reached Jane, leave a message" and that's fine too.
- Business voicemail with transcription. Voicemails arrive in your email as audio plus a text transcription. You can read them in line at a coffee shop without taking out your AirPods. Voicemail-to-email is available as a per-line add-on.
- Quiet hours. Mute the business app outside work hours so calls go directly to voicemail. Your personal cell stays on for family. No "let me check what time it is in NYC" while on a date with your spouse.
- Privacy at the system level. If a prospect turns into a problem, block them from the business line without touching your personal phone. If something goes wrong, change the business number without rebroadcasting a new personal one.
Common setups by sub-niche
Most NYC freelancer setups fall into one of five patterns. None of these are mutually exclusive, and we configure to your specific use case:
Consultant / Coach
Single business number, auto-attendant that routes to voicemail or to you. Mobile and desktop softphone. Most consultants run on the $19.99 Standard plan.
Solo Attorney
Standard plan plus e-fax add-on for sending documents to county clerks and opposing counsel. Call recording (Business plan) for client phone consultations. NY one-party consent.
Therapist / Counselor
Standard plan plus e-fax for referral docs. Privacy-first defaults (no call recording, no transcription unless you opt in). Optional dedicated intake line.
Designer / Photographer / Freelance Creative
Standard plan, softphone only. Most creatives never need a desk phone. Custom hold music if you want callers to hear something on hold during client calls.
Contractor / Tradesperson
Standard plan with optional desk phone in the workshop. Mobile softphone for in-the-field calls so the business number rings even when you're on a job site without WiFi.
Real Estate Agent (Solo)
Standard plan with NYC business number, professional auto-attendant for buyer and seller routing. Most solo agents pair this with their broker's CRM through email forwarding.
A solo NYC consultant we onboarded last quarter had been giving out her personal cell for three years. Her clients texted her at all hours, her family screened her business voicemails, and she was worried about giving the number to a new high-value prospect.
Setup took about a week. New 646 business number, softphone on her iPhone and laptop, auto-attendant with a 10-second greeting that named her practice. Voicemails now route to her business email. After hours she mutes the business app on her phone.
Her exact words two weeks in: "I should have done this when I started freelancing." Total cost: $19.99 a month.
Pricing at a glance
Two paths, depending on whether you want a physical phone:
Softphone only. The right pick if you work from your cell, laptop, or coworking space without a dedicated phone closet.
- NYC business number (212/646/718/347/917/929)
- Softphone for iOS, Android, desktop
- Auto-attendant with custom greeting
- Business voicemail (transcription as add-on)
- Unlimited US and Canada calling
- Number porting from previous provider included
Adds a desk phone and call recording. The right pick if you have a home office, a coworking dedicated desk, or do enough call volume to want a real handset.
- Everything in Standard, plus
- Yealink desk phone, provisioned and shipped
- 500 minutes of call recording per month
- Advanced features (CRM hooks, hold music)
- Priority install scheduling
Setup, porting, and configuration are included on both plans. No setup fees for typical solo professional deployments. Full pricing page →
Freelancer FAQ
How is a business VoIP line different from a second cell number?
A second-line app gives you another number on the same device, but the call routing, voicemail, and caller ID are still attached to your personal carrier account. A business VoIP line gives you a real business number on a separate account, with business voicemail, professional caller ID, auto-attendant routing, call recording, and the ability to forward to a coworker or transfer to a teammate when you eventually hire one. Tax-wise, it's a clean business expense. Operationally, it's a business phone system, not just a second number.
Can I use my existing cell, or do I need a new device?
Use your existing cell. The softphone app runs on iOS and Android alongside your normal phone app. Calls to your business number ring on your cell through the app, with business caller ID. Calls you make from the app show your business number to the other side, not your personal one. You can mute or pause the business app during off hours so calls don't ring after you've clocked out.
Do I need a desk phone?
No. The $19.99 Standard plan is built around the softphone. Most NYC freelancers run softphone-only on their cell and laptop. If you have a dedicated home office and prefer a real desk phone, the $29.99 Business plan includes one Yealink phone per line. You can also start on Standard and add a desk phone later if your situation changes.
Can I keep my number private if I'm publishing it online?
Yes, that's a primary reason freelancers move to a business line. You can publish the business number on your website, business cards, LinkedIn, directory listings, and so on, without exposing your personal cell. If a stalker, harasser, or pushy salesperson starts hammering the business line, you can block them at the system level without touching your personal phone. If something goes really wrong, you can change the business number without changing your personal one.
What does the auto-attendant do for a solo professional?
The auto-attendant is the friendly menu that greets callers when they dial in. For a solo professional it sets a tone of being established and organized without overselling. Example: "Thank you for calling Jane Doe Consulting. Press 1 to leave a voicemail, press 2 for billing questions, or stay on the line to be connected." Callers route appropriately, voicemails arrive in your email inbox with a transcription, and you sound substantially more professional than "Hi, it's Jane" on a personal voicemail.
What if I need to send and receive faxes?
E-fax is available as an add-on. You send faxes from your email (attach the PDF, send to a fax-out address) and receive incoming faxes as PDF attachments in your inbox. No machine, no dedicated line. This is useful for solo attorneys, solo therapists, real estate agents, and accountants who occasionally need to send a HIPAA-compliant fax or a signed document to a county clerk.
Can I record calls for my own protection?
Yes, the Business plan includes 500 minutes per month of call recording. New York is a one-party consent state, meaning you can record your own calls without notifying the other party. Useful for documenting client agreements verbally, capturing dispute-prone conversations, and protecting yourself in industries where verbal commitments matter. We help configure this during setup. Note: if you do business across state lines, some states require two-party consent, so know the rule before you record.
What happens if I hire someone later?
Add another line. The new hire gets their own extension, business voicemail, and softphone access. Your existing number stays as the main line, calls can hunt-group to both of you, and the auto-attendant menu can route to your specific extension or your hire's specific extension. No starting over, no number changes. We've onboarded a handful of NYC solo operators who later added their first employee onto the same system without disruption.
What does it cost?
Standard is $19.99 per line per month. That includes the business number, softphone for iOS, Android, and desktop, auto-attendant, business voicemail, and unlimited calling to the US and Canada. Number porting from a previous provider is included. Business is $29.99 per line per month and adds a Yealink desk phone, advanced features, and call recording. Most NYC freelancers stay on Standard.
Stop giving out your cell.
Tell us a bit about your practice and we'll spin up a real NYC business line, softphone, and auto-attendant in days, not weeks. Standard plan is $19.99 a month, no contracts, no setup fees.
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