Phone Systems
What Is Simultaneous Ring?
Simultaneous ring is a phone setting that makes two or more of your devices ring at the same time when someone calls your number. Your desk phone, your cell, and your tablet all ring together, and you answer on whichever is closest. It makes sure you never miss a call just because you were away from one device.
Key Takeaways
- One call rings all of your devices at once.
- You answer on whichever device is handy. The rest stop ringing.
- It solves "I was at the truck when the office phone rang."
- It does not help when you are busy on every device at once.
How Simultaneous Ring Works
You tell your phone system which devices belong to you: a desk phone, a cell, maybe a softphone app on a laptop. When a call comes in to your number, the system sends it to all of them at the same time. They all ring. You answer on one, and the others go quiet.
It is a per-person feature. The goal is not to spread calls across a team, which is what a ring group does. The goal is to make sure you, specifically, can answer no matter which device is in reach.
Example of Simultaneous Ring
A solo electrician has a desk phone in his home office and a cell in his pocket. He turns on simultaneous ring. A customer calls at 9 am while he is in the office; he picks up the desk phone. Another calls at 2 pm while he is wiring a panel; his cell rings in his pocket. Both callers dialed the same number. Neither had to guess which phone to try.
At 2:30, a third customer calls while he is still holding two wires. Both devices ring, and he cannot answer either one. The call goes to voicemail. Simultaneous ring fixed where he was. It could not fix what he was doing.
What People Get Wrong About Simultaneous Ring
Owners turn it on and think they have solved missed calls. They have solved one kind of missed call: the one where you were reachable but on the wrong device. They have not solved the bigger kind: the one where you were busy. For a tradesperson, busy is the normal state. Simultaneous ring catches the calls between jobs. It cannot catch the calls during them.
The other mistake is ringing devices you will not answer. A desk phone in an office you are never in just adds noise for whoever is there.
Simultaneous Ring vs. Find Me vs. Ring Group
- Simultaneous ring rings all of one person's devices at once.
- Find me rings one person's devices one at a time, in order.
- A ring group rings several people's phones at once.
Pick simultaneous ring when speed matters and you do not care which device you answer on. Pick find me when you want a preferred order. Pick a ring group when the whole team should be able to answer.
Why It Matters
Simultaneous ring is one of the easiest wins in a business phone system. It costs nothing and removes a whole category of missed calls. But it only helps a person who is free. For the calls that come in while you are on a ladder, under a sink, or already on the phone, the fix is a fallback that answers for you. Set simultaneous ring for the calls you can take, and route the rest to an AI receptionist with conditional call forwarding. See our guide to the best business phone systems for a mobile workforce.
The Bottom Line
Simultaneous ring makes all of your devices ring at once so you can answer wherever you are. It is free, simple, and worth turning on. It fixes the "wrong device" missed call, not the "too busy" one, so pair it with something that answers when you cannot.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the difference between simultaneous ring and call forwarding?
- Call forwarding sends the call somewhere else. Your desk phone does not ring; your cell does. Simultaneous ring sends the call everywhere at once. Both phones ring, and you pick. Forwarding is for when you know you will not be at the desk. Simultaneous ring is for when you might be anywhere.
- What is the difference between simultaneous ring and a ring group?
- Scope. Simultaneous ring is usually one person's devices ringing together. A ring group is several people's phones ringing together. The mechanics are the same. The difference is whether you are making sure you can answer, or making sure someone on the team can.
- Does simultaneous ring cost extra?
- Usually not. Most VoIP and virtual phone systems include it as a standard setting, and many cell carriers offer a version of it. Check your phone system's admin panel for "simultaneous ring," "ring all," or "multi-device ring."
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