Options and tariffs from MTS for profitable international calls

Internet calls continue to gain popularity. For this purpose, IP telephony is used, which is characterized by fast connection and cheap tariffs. You can call anywhere - to mobile and landline numbers, throughout Russia and abroad. International calls via IP telephony are really cheap; depending on the operator, the cost per minute is from 0.1 rubles.

• How cheap internet calls work
• Paid and free calls to any city in the world
• Internet services for free international calls
• Mobile applications for calling abroad
• How to choose the cheapest way to call abroad

To become an IP telephony subscriber, you will need a computer and Internet access. The subscriber will not need to enter into a contract, receive a SIM card or purchase additional equipment. The connection is made through IP telephony operators - there are quite a lot of them in Russia to quickly find a suitable option. It is telephony that will be discussed in our review:

• Let's talk about operators;
• We will give recommendations for connection;
• Let's talk about the cheapest ways to call abroad.

Find the latest information on cheap international calls.

Why are calls abroad via IP telephony cheaper?

Why is it that international calls over IP telephony are cheaper than over a mobile or landline telephone network? There are at least two reasons for this:

• Equipment costs. Mobile and landline telecom providers spend much more on infrastructure maintenance than VoIP service providers. After all, the latter require the Internet to operate; there is no need to create your own geographically distributed physical networks; only expenses are required to ensure the functionality of SIP servers.
• Channel capacity. Everything is simple here - VoIP providers charge in quantity. In a unit of time, larger amounts of information can be transmitted via the Internet than over a fixed or mobile network (including 3G, LTE, etc.). Accordingly, the amount of information transmitted per unit of time affects the price of services: more people can make calls at the same time.

So why hasn’t IP telephony completely replaced mobile and fixed-line communications? For “comfortable” VoIP calls, a data transfer speed of at least 512 kbit/s is required in both directions. This cannot yet be achieved everywhere. So, all these three technologies are used in parallel. And there is a demand for each of them.

How to make international calls via IP telephony

Thanks to the variety of options/uses of IP telephony, anyone can make international calls cheaply. This can be done using:

• An ordinary "traditional" phone. How to make international calls from your home phone? Easily. To do this, you will need an IP gateway (adapter for VoIP telephony), which will help “connect” a regular phone via the Internet. The cost of such a device is from 2000 rubles. Considering the reduction in the cost of calls abroad (in some cases up to 30 times or more), such an investment will pay off quickly. Gateways can be single-channel (great for home) or multi-channel (can be used for the office or shared with housemates to save even more).
• A special SIP telephone. Many vendors are involved in the production of such phones. Among them are Cisco, AddPac, D-Link, QTECH and others. Some models of such telephones are even cheaper than IP gateways. For example, a Grandstream GXP1610 VoIP phone can be purchased for an average of 2,800 rubles.
• SIP softphone. This is specialized software that can be installed on a computer, mobile phone or tablet. There are a lot of SIP phones. Some of them are universal (“friendly” with different IP telephony providers), others are developed and supported by specific telecom operators and work only with them.

In general, if desired, anyone can use IP telephony for international calls. Just choose the method that suits you, connect to the Internet at a speed of at least 512 kbit/s in both directions, connect to a SIP telephony operator and call abroad on favorable terms.

What about the operators offering such services? Let's look at several providers through which you can make profitable international calls.

Connecting the service

Please remember that to activate this option you must have funds in your phone account balance. At the moment of connection, the monthly fee for its use in the amount of 50 rubles is immediately debited. You can activate the option in three ways:

• By visiting your MTS Personal Account, which you can enter on the company’s public website login.mts.ru.
• Using a USSD request from a mobile phone, enter ✶111✶902# on the dialing screen and select “Connect”.
• Or send an SMS message with code 902 to the single operational number 111.

Telfin - international calls from 60 kopecks per minute

The operator offers a comfortable and transparent “Per-minute” tariff , for which there is no subscription fee when connecting. The cost per minute here depends on the country you are calling to. Calls to Canada and the USA are the cheapest (60 and 75 kopecks, respectively). Those who do business with Chinese partners can also consider IP telephony for international calls from Telfin . The cost of a minute of conversation with the Celestial Empire here is only 2 rubles.

As for the European direction, here are the costs of calls to some European countries:

A complete list of Telfin tariffs for calls to different countries of the world can be found on the operator’s official website.

The company has been working in this field for more than 17 years. This operator offers ready-made integrations with more than 500 software products from various partners developing automation solutions for various fields (housing and communal services, construction, auto business, tourism, medicine, etc.). There is also an API, thanks to which telephony from Telfin seamlessly integrates with almost any third-party solutions.

Telfin also has another attractive offer for those who make a large number of calls abroad. This is the “Unlimited World” tariff. For 1900 rubles per month per subscriber you get unlimited calls to 55 countries. Plus, 500 free minutes per month in Russia. The solution is only compatible with SIP phones or landline phones connected to the network via a SIP adapter.

This option is basic, that is, it is initially included in the package of any contract. The only exceptions will be proposals for business. You can check whether the function is active on your SIM card through your personal account or by calling a call center specialist. If it turns out to be disabled. Then you can connect it using:

• Ussd combinations *111*2157#;
• Personal account or mobile application;
• SMS messages to number 111. In the text you must write the combination 2157.

The service makes it possible to receive and send SMS messages and calls in 112 countries. A detailed list can be found on the official page of the MTS company.

The offer has no subscription fee and is activated free of charge.

Tariff “International” from SIPNET

SIPNET is the first IP telephony operator in the Russian Federation. This provider has been operating since 1996. Among the clients using the services of the telecom operator are such giants as Mercedes-Benz, eBAY, Raiffeisen BANK, 20th Century Fox, LUKOIL and others. The company provides services based on the CommuniGate PRO platform. Among its features is the rejection of relational databases and all operating system dependencies. Due to this, it is possible to achieve high reliability and fault tolerance of telephony. Experts also often note as an advantage of this platform the ability for subscribers to control call routing.

SIPNET subscribers who need cheap international calls have no choice. For these purposes, only one tariff is offered - “International”. One of its key features is the absence of a subscription fee. You pay for the number of minutes. But there is also a small drawback - the unavailability of a virtual PBX for the tariff. Regarding its connection, it is necessary to separately resolve the issue with the sales department.

Another feature is a specific approach to tariffs. The cost of the first and every fifth minute of conversation here differs from the rest.

SIPNET tariffs for popular international destinations are as follows:

More information about tariffs can be found on the company’s website.

The tariff schedule of this provider is very voluminous. One country may have several tariff options, depending on the type of room. For example, for the same Austria, 5 price options are offered, depending on the type of phone you are calling: Corporate, Shared Cost, Vienna, landline and mobile numbers. This telecom operator does not provide bonuses or free minutes. In addition, this provider is focused on corporate clients and its conditions for individuals are not entirely comfortable.

Zadarma: for one time and for a long time

The telecom operator Zadarma , which has been working in this area since 2006, has one interesting feature. Each new subscriber is given a bonus of 20 minutes. So, with its help you can actually call abroad for free. At the same time, you won’t have to install specialized software or buy equipment—the call can be made directly from the website (there is a simple online SIP phone here).

For those who are focused on “long-term relationships,” the provider offers fairly comfortable terms of cooperation. A nice bonus is per-second charging for international calls. In addition, when choosing the “Standard” tariff, the operator’s clients receive 100 free minutes to popular destinations, including foreign ones: USA, Poland, Canada, Spain, Germany, Great Britain.

Prices for IP telephony for calls abroad are also quite attractive. Here are some examples of prices for popular destinations:

As in previous cases, the cost per minute when making international calls here depends on the type of number you are calling.

This provider is an excellent option for both individuals and legal entities. The only caveat is that the cost of services is tied to the dollar. If you are “sensitive” to exchange rate fluctuations, it makes sense to consider something else.

Which operator and tariff is the cheapest and most profitable for travel?

Based on the listed tariff plans, it turns out that MTS and MegaFon are leaders in this list. Beeline provides the most expensive opportunities, justified by the large amount of traffic and minutes provided. With Iota and Tele2, things are much murkier. Detailed information can be obtained directly from the operators themselves, indicating the country of future stay.

The cheapest roaming abroad is offered by Megafon and MTS operators, but sometimes it is irrational for a person to change a number for the sake of such savings.

Popular instant messengers are another option for making international calls cheaply

If you use Skype, you can also make IP telephony calls abroad. For example, when purchasing a Mir subscription for $13.99 per month, Russian Skype users can call mobile and landline phones in 63 countries. You don't have to buy a subscription. By simply depositing money into your domestic account, you can call for as little as $2.3 per minute, depending on which country you are calling.

Users of the Viber messenger can also call landline and mobile numbers in other countries. There are no packages or tariffs for international calls here. You simply deposit money into your account and call. The cost per minute is from $2.1.

It can be seen that the prices for calls abroad via instant messengers are quite high. Before calling, we recommend comparing the cost per minute for a specific country from the same Skype or Viber and from your mobile operator or fixed-line service provider. In some cases, IP telephony via messenger can be more expensive.

Thus, thanks to the rapid development of SIP telephony, there are many options for inexpensive international calls. Choose the one that suits you based on the list of services and cost and use it. Moreover, we considered only a small part of the proposals. When looking for services, you can consider other options such as Evaphone, Flag2Voip, or FreeCall.

Disabling the service

Do not forget that the service will be active until you disable it yourself. Monthly usage fees will be deducted from your phone account balance, regardless of whether the service is used or not. Disabling is done in three ways:

• Log in to your Personal Account on the MTS website in the “Management of connected services” section. Find “Best international calls” in the list and send a request to disable it.
• Use the USSD request on your phone, enter ✶111✶902# in the dialing field, then select the “Disable” menu item.
• You can also send an SMS to the single operational number 111 with code 9020.