Google Voice Alternatives: 6 Options Compared (Free and Paid)

The right Google Voice alternative depends on why you’re leaving Google Voice. For another free number to call and text from, apps like TextNow and TextFree do the same job. For a number outside the US, or one that receives verification codes from apps that refuse Google Voice, you need a different kind of number.

Here are six alternatives to Google Voice, free and paid. We run one of them, PVADeals, so we’re not neutral: everything below comes from each provider’s own website, checked on 27 October 2026.

Why people look for a Google Voice alternative

Google Voice “gives you a phone number for calls, texts, and voicemails,” and its basic plan is free. People look elsewhere for four reasons:

• It’s US-only. Google’s single-user plans “are only available in the US”, and so are their numbers. Google Workspace plans, for businesses, cover 14 countries and regions.
• Signing up takes another phone number and an ID. The free plan “requires a phone number to forward calls”, and Google says “Users who request a new Google Voice number cannot send or receive messages or calls until they complete identity verification,” with a government-issued ID. See our guide to a temporary phone number for Google Voice.
• Many apps refuse it for verification codes. OpenAI says “Landlines, VoIP numbers, Google Voice numbers, and premium numbers aren’t supported”. Credit Karma can’t send codes to “non-fixed VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) numbers, like Google Voice or Skype.” Snapchat advises against “a temporary or disposable phone number (i.e. Google Voice, TextNow)”.
• Unused numbers are taken back. Google may reclaim a number that isn’t used for calls or texts for 3 months.

Google Voice alternatives compared

Prices change, so check each provider before you buy.

The alternatives, one by one

TextNow

TextNow calls itself “a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service that allows users to text and call any number in Canada & the USA.” The app is free, paid for by ads, and you pick a US or Canadian number, so it’s the closest free match for Google Voice. Codes are the catch: TextNow says you’ll “receive most verification codes by activating a TextNow SIM card or purchasing one of the following recurring subscriptions”, Lock In Number or Ad-Free+. Free numbers that go unused are recycled.

Not the best fit if you live outside North America: TextNow “is currently only available to be downloaded and used within North America.” See our TextNow alternatives.

TextFree

TextFree gives you a free US or Canadian number for calls and texts, and says it “uses Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology to connect calls and texts over the internet instead of a traditional cellular line.” Verification codes come “only with a TextFree Plus paid subscription”, at $9.99 a month, which also stops your number “expiring after 30 days due to inactivity.”

Not the best fit if you’re outside the US or Canada: TextFree is “specifically designed for use within the US and Canada only”.

Hushed

Hushed sells private numbers for calls and texts in the US, Canada and the UK, the only calling app here with UK numbers. Unlimited local calls and texts cost $6.99 a month on a US or Canadian number and $9.99 on a UK one, and a prepaid 30-day number costs $7.99. Hushed numbers “work over the internet”, and Hushed is frank about codes: they “are NOT guaranteed to work with third-party verification due to blocks implemented by certain services”.

Not the best fit if you need verification codes, or you live where Hushed’s app isn’t available: its list includes India, Nigeria and the Philippines.

Burner

Burner gives you “a real second phone number on the phone you already have, for calls, texts and picture messaging.” One number costs from $7.99 a month on burnerapp.com ($9.99 through the app stores), with a 3-day free trial for eligible new users who sign up in the app. Burner says “Most verification systems accept Burner numbers without issue,” and sells a separate Verified Number, $9.99 a month, for “a number that behaves more like a traditional mobile one”.

Not the best fit if you need to call or text outside the US and Canada: Burners “can only interact with US/CA numbers”.

A second SIM or eSIM

The only option here that’s a full mobile line for both calls and texts. Apple says “Dual SIM enables you to have two active phone numbers or SIMs to make and receive calls and text messages,” and Google says Pixel 3a and later phones can use “one physical SIM card and one eSIM.” Some carriers also sell a second number on your existing line: on 27 October 2026, Verizon’s Second Number cost $10 a month with its latest plans, plus taxes and fees.

Not the best fit if you want it free: you pay for a second plan.

PVADeals

PVADeals rents real non-VoIP US and UK numbers for receiving verification codes, per website, for 20 minutes (from $0.09) or 3 to 30 days (from $0.70, renewable). They’re real mobile lines from carriers, so a website sees an ordinary mobile number. Codes appear on your dashboard, so you need no second phone or SIM, and the numbers work from any country. If an eligible number receives no SMS during the rental, its cost comes back to your balance automatically as store credit.

Not the best fit if you want to make or take calls: PVADeals numbers receive SMS only.

Which Google Voice alternative fits you?

• Free calls and texts in the US or Canada: TextNow or TextFree. Use the number often, or you can lose it.
• A private line without ads: Hushed, which has UK numbers too, or Burner.
• Calls, texts and codes on one number: a second SIM or eSIM.
• Verification codes from apps that refuse Google Voice: a real mobile number, such as a PVADeals rental from $0.09. See VoIP vs non-VoIP numbers.
• Outside the US: Hushed for a UK number to call from, or PVADeals for US and UK numbers that receive codes wherever you are.

Whichever you pick, check the number before you rely on it for codes: a free carrier lookup shows whether it’s a mobile line or VoIP.

How to get a number for verification codes from PVADeals

1. Create a free PVADeals account and add credits: crypto from $3, or a card through Stripe from $5.
2. Choose the website you need a code from, and the country: the United States or the United Kingdom. If the website isn’t listed for your country, rent an All services number, which works on any website for a month: $12.99 in the US, $6.99 in the UK.
3. Pick a rental. Short-term lasts 20 minutes, from $0.09, with unlimited SMS. Long-term lasts 3, 7, 14 or 30 days, from $0.70, with auto-renew, and keeps the same number while it’s active.
4. Enter the number on the website and ask for the code by text message.
5. Copy the code from your dashboard, where it appears as soon as it arrives.

For an account you need to keep, such as a bank, a payment app or anything with 2-step verification, a 20-minute number is the wrong tool. Rent long-term on auto-renew or take an All services plan, and use an authenticator app where the website offers one.

More ways to get a second number

See our US phone numbers and UK phone numbers, or read how to get a second phone number for more options.