Nowadays, Internet faxing services come with more or less the same features and price tags. Especially for the major players in the industry, the e-faxing plans are so alike that at certain point, I feel that it makes no sense to write a comparison guide.
But still, there are some small differences between these online faxing companies and here’s the checklist to assist you in choosing the service plan that fits you the best.
First and foremost, how many pages you need to fax per month? The number of fax pages decides which Internet service plan you should go with.
Do you send out faxes more; or do you receive faxes more? Some companies combine the pages you send and receive in your service plan, others segregate the pages sent and pages received. You will need to decide which option suits your needs the best.
Is the company charging reasonably as compare to its competitors? Avoid services that are charging too much or too low.
Most companies supply local numbers for limited countries. If you are living in United States, U.K., and major countries in Europe, this won’t be a major problem. However if you are living outside these countries like me in Malaysia, be very careful with the term ‘local numbers’ – the term local means local states number in United States; not local numbers in your country. I found eFax and MyFax cover most countries in the world when compare to others but I am not 100% certain.
How long do you wish to store your faxes in the company data server?
Does the company support fax-search features? If you need to retrieve back your fax record regularly, then a search function is very much needed. Go for those that provide search feature.
How many email addresses you wish to add to the faxing service? Some companies allow users to use unlimited email addresses to send and receive fax, others limit the email address to be added to the service.
Does the company encrypt the faxes? Do you need such security feature for your faxes?
Do you wish to keep your existing fax line. If yes, then you need to look for company (suggestions: eFax, MyFax, and Fax87) that provides number porting or call forwarding features.
It is critically important to know whether you will be allowed to fax from any physical locations – though most online faxing companies nowadays give you the ability to send right from your email account.
Does the company charge on setup fees? Most Internet faxing companies (including those very good ones!) do not apply setup fees these days so it’s pretty pointless to go with those that do.
Most companies charge more for international faxes. If you need to send a lot of faxes overseas, then further investigation on international fax rates is needed.
Run a quick check on the company’s reputation. Search for Internet faxing user reviews site (like this one); check company’s record with Better Business Bureau (BBB), Rip-Off Report, as well as Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
Do you need a dedicated fax line? If yes, check out if the company supplies one; and, at what cost?
Do you need an extra toll free line? If yes, check out if the company supplies one; and, at what cost?
Estimate the number of pages fax you need to send and receive monthly; run a quick sum of all the little fees – monthly subscription fees, overage fees, fees for extra email address, fees for a dedicated fax line, and setup fees (if there’s any); do some basic calculation and sort out the cost per fax page for each service provider.
Does the company provide smart phone apps for its service? If yes, Android or iPhone or both?
Here’s a few recommendation to get you started with your first online faxing.