Skip to content
AI Dialer

Alternatives · Legacy on-premise PBX

Looking for a ShoreTel alternative?

An honest comparison, including what ShoreTel does well, because if it fits your team you should stay on it.

Get early accessCompare pricing models

Reviewed by Sujan ThapaliyaLast updated

Why do people look for a ShoreTel alternative?

ShoreTel was acquired by Mitel in 2017 and the ShoreTel-branded lines have been progressively wound down in favour of Mitel's own platforms. Teams searching for an alternative are usually running ageing on-premise hardware, watching support windows close, and deciding where to move the numbers.
The pricing shape that usually drives people away from ShoreTel: a flat five-seat licence costs $750 a month no matter how much anyone calls, while metered calling at $0.020 a minute only reaches the same figure at 37,500 connected minutes — 6.25 hours of talk time per rep every working day. A realistic five-rep month sits near 3,600 connected minutes and about $86.
If your team genuinely dials past the crossover, a licence like ShoreTel's can be the cheaper option. Most do not.

ShoreTel

An honest read on ShoreTel

Written the way we would want a competitor to write about us.

Strengths

  • Genuinely durable systems — many ShoreTel installs ran for a decade or more with very little attention
  • Owned hardware means no per-seat monthly licence, which is why the economics looked good for so long
  • Full control of the PBX on your own network, with call paths that never leave the building

Trade-offs

  • The product line has been wound down since the Mitel acquisition, so support, spares and experienced engineers are a shrinking market
  • A hardware PBX cannot do modern outbound dialling, AI voice agents, or STIR/SHAKEN attestation on its own
  • Remote and hybrid staff need VPN or SBC work that cloud platforms do not require at all

Switching

When it is worth moving

TriggerWhat changes on AI Dialer
Hardware is at or near end of support and replacement parts are getting hard to sourceUsage pricing, owned numbers, and dialing in the base product.
The person who knew the system has left, and nobody wants to own a PBX in a cupboardUsage pricing, owned numbers, and dialing in the base product.
You want to keep every DID and drop the capital hardware, not renegotiate a suite licenceUsage pricing, owned numbers, and dialing in the base product.

The structural difference

AI Dialer vs ShoreTel

ShoreTel was capital hardware you bought and owned. Its natural successor is not a per-seat cloud licence that reintroduces a monthly cost per person — it is usage pricing on numbers you still own. Numbers port, so the DIDs staff and customers know keep working; what disappears is the hardware, the maintenance contract and the single point of failure in the building.

How to actually compare these

Ignore headline rates and do one calculation: total monthly cost ÷ conversations your team has. Per-seat pricing wins when every seat dials constantly; usage pricing wins when volume is uneven, seasonal, or spread across part-time staff, which describes most teams.

Frequently asked questions

Is ShoreTel discontinued?
ShoreTel as a brand no longer sells new systems. Mitel acquired the company in 2017 and has steered customers onto its own platforms since. Existing installs keep running — a PBX does not stop working on a date — but support windows, spares and expertise all get scarcer. Confirm your specific model's support status with your reseller before planning a date.
Can I keep our numbers when we move?
Yes, and it is the part to get right first. DIDs port to a new provider and keep working. Port them out before you cancel anything: a released number goes back to the carrier pool and is usually gone for good.
What happens to our handsets?
Standards-based SIP handsets can often be reconfigured to register against a new platform. Proprietary ShoreGear-era phones generally cannot, and are usually retired. Softphones on existing laptops and mobiles are the cheapest path, with desk phones added only where somebody genuinely wants one.

Sources

  1. Combating Spoofed Robocalls with Caller ID Authentication — Federal Communications CommissionThe STIR/SHAKEN framework, the attestation levels carriers sign calls with, and the mandate requiring providers to authenticate caller ID.
  2. 47 U.S.C. § 227 — Restrictions on the use of telephone equipment — Cornell Legal Information InstituteThe Telephone Consumer Protection Act itself — the consent requirements, calling-hours limits, and private right of action.
  3. ITU-T Recommendation E.164 — The international public telecommunication numbering plan — International Telecommunication UnionThe international number format, the 15-digit maximum, and how country codes and national numbers compose.

Try it against your own numbers

No contract and no seat licences, so there is nothing to unwind if it does not suit you. Port a number, run a week of calls, and compare cost per conversation directly.

  • Numbers port in
  • No subscription
  • Cancel anytime
Get early accessSee pricing