10 best VoIP and SIP apps for Android

We are becoming less and less dependent on mobile networks. You can get a data signal almost everywhere that you can get a mobile signal and most of us are around WiFi most of the time anyway. Technology has progressed to the point where we can now talk over the Internet almost as easily as we can talk on the phone. If you’re ready to make the switch because it’s cheaper, easier, or more efficient, then we’ve got a list of the best apps for VoIP and SIP calls for you.

Try the native solutions first

Before we begin the list, it’s important to note that Android has native SIP support and has for a very long time. In addition, many wireless carriers allow for Wi-Fi calling on iPhone and on Android without any special setup. We recommend you first try using the native solutions before using the alternatives listed below. You can find Google’s tutorials for setting up SIP and Wi-Fi calling by clicking here. Please note that some devices may have slightly different placements for those settings if it uses an OEM customization instead of stock Android.

Discord

Price: Free / $4.99 per month

Discord is an excellent tool for chatting over the Internet. You can do direct calls to another user or engage in server-based group chat. Gamers use this app all the time for communication purposes and it works quite well as a Steam chat alternative on PC. However, you can find (or create) servers for any reason. We use it for the Android Authority podcast and you can find anime, games, lifestyle, and other types of servers there as well. The call quality is usually quite good and you can change the servers if it’s not. The app is entirely free to use. There are some extras you can buy, but they’re solely cosmetic components.

Facebook Messenger

Price: Free

Facebook Messenger is an above-average app for VOIP calls. It’s primarily for text messages. However, the app also includes support for video calls, voice calls, and SMS text messages. The quality is, of course, determined by your Internet connection speeds. Other than that, it works well enough. The app is a quite heavy on resource usage. Thus, we don’t recommend it on older or lower spec’d devices. Messenger Lite is another option. It allows only calls and texts, but it’s also much lighter on system usage. Given its popularity, you can’t go wrong either way. This app can also manage your SMS messages too if you want it to. Of course, WhatsApp, another Facebook-owned solution, works well here too.

Google Duo is Google’s latest video calling app. It also supports just regular voice calls as well. Like most VOIP apps, everyone has to be on Duo for the calls to work. However, the app has excellent quality in both voice and video. It’s actually quite simple. There is no extra stuff, no bloat, and it’s all free. You just get your friends to sign up and get going. It also works with iOS devices. This may even come pre-installed on some newer Android devices.

Grandstream Wave

Price: Free

Grandstream Wave is a free SIP app. It lets you link your business or residential SIP account to any Android device with mobile data or WiFi. It’s a fairly simple app with plenty of features. You get support for a bunch of different codecs, various security features, and it supports up to six SIP accounts overall. We honestly didn’t test this one for a super long time because it seems to work as advertised without much variance. It’s a solid overall option aside from a few bugs.

magicApp

Price: Free / $9.99 per year

magicApp is one of the most popular VOIP apps or SIP apps out there. It uses an actual phone number. The app also features cross-platform support, support for calling landlines, and even SMS support. The service isn’t free, it costs $9.99 per year. That gets you unlimited calls to US and Canada, unlimited texts to any US phone number, and an actual phone number to use. It works fairly well on both mobile and PC. There isn’t a lot to the app, but aside from some bugs, most people seem to like it.

MizuDroid SIP VOIP Softphone

Price: Free

MizuDroid is one of the few regularly updated SIP apps on Google Play. It does require an existing SIP account already. However, it does support multiple SIP accounts, call diversion, VoIP tunneling and encryption, voicemail capabilities, and IM. The UI is a little older than we’d like. The app is still quite functional and simple. Best of all, the app is completely free with no in-app purchases.

Skype

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Skype is one of the most popular VOIP apps right now. It has a vast user base, direct support with Microsoft and Facebook, and it’s fairly easy to use. The app is capable of voice calls, video calls, and text messages. It also supports landline calls with a nominal fee. The mobile app isn’t as good as the desktop app, but it’s not horrible either. This one has cross-platform support with multiple PC and mobile devices. It’s not the hottest or most popular option these days, but it’s actually still among the best for VOIP calls. The app is under constant construction, though, so that is something to take into consideration.

Signal Private Messenger

Price: Free

Signal Private Messenger is one of the best VOIP apps for privacy. It follows the trend of supporting text as well as voice calls. It doesn’t have an overly huge list of features. However, it does have above-average security, encryption, and privacy features. It also integrates with your existing phone number and contact list. We liked that a lot. Telegram is a little better for text. Signal is still better for voice and extras like that. It’s also completely free with no in-app purchases.

Viber

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Viber doesn’t have a huge user base in places like the United States. It’s intensely popular around the rest of the world, though. The app features a full-fledged chat service, voice call service, and video calls. It also includes public chats, stickers, file attachments, and more. People in the U.S. may not know much about Viber. However, it is quite popular in other countries. You can also engage in chat rooms and other social features. There are stickers and such that you can purchase with in-app purchases. Otherwise, the app is entirely free. It’s a solid, cross-platform option in the VOIP and SIP space.

Zoiper IAX SIP VOIP Softphone

Price: Free / $8.49 + in-app purchases

Zoiper is unique in that it’s one of the few VOIP and SIP apps left. It focuses primarily on phone call features. It includes Bluetooth support, the ability to make decent calls even over bad Internet connections, IAX support, and support for a variety of other protocols. If you go gold, you can also get video calling support, call transferring, and even better audio. It’s one of the few good SIP apps. It’s also great for those who want to mostly focus on voice calls and such. Thankfully, the design and UI are still updated regularly, even if this is relatively old technology.