Dialpad is a cloud-based business communication platform that combines phone calls, video meetings, and team messaging into a single app, with artificial intelligence built into every layer. Instead of juggling separate tools for your phone system, video conferencing, and chat, Dialpad handles all three while using AI to transcribe calls in real time, track customer sentiment, and generate post-call summaries automatically.
Core Communication Tools
At its foundation, Dialpad replaces a traditional office phone system with a cloud-based VoIP service. VoIP simply means your calls travel over the internet rather than through copper phone lines, so you can make and receive business calls from a laptop, smartphone, or desk phone anywhere you have a connection. The platform provides business phone numbers, virtual numbers, and unlimited calling within the U.S. and Canada on every plan.
Beyond basic calling, Dialpad includes features you’d expect from a full business phone system: call forwarding, call routing, call recording, an auto attendant (the automated menu that greets callers and directs them to the right department), and visual voicemail. Video conferencing is built in as well, with HD video calls, screen sharing, and web conferencing that works without requiring a separate subscription to a tool like Zoom. Team messaging rounds out the package, letting employees chat in real time, send business text messages, and keep conversations organized alongside their calls.
How Dialpad’s AI Works
The feature that sets Dialpad apart from most competitors is its AI engine, which runs during live conversations rather than just analyzing them after the fact. During any call or meeting, Dialpad transcribes the conversation in real time, so participants can follow along with a running text version of what’s being said. After the call ends, the system compiles a searchable transcript, action items, and notes into a summary email, so nobody has to dig through recordings to remember what was discussed.
The AI also automatically detects the purpose of a call and tags it into one of 25 categories, including billing questions, complaints, order status, tech support, refund requests, and appointment scheduling. For teams handling high call volumes, this categorization eliminates manual logging and makes it easy to spot patterns in what customers are calling about.
Several AI features are specifically designed for managers and supervisors. Live sentiment tracking monitors the tone of a conversation as it happens, flagging when a customer sounds frustrated so a manager can step in if needed. Custom Moments let you track specific keywords or phrases across all calls, useful for monitoring whether reps mention a new promotion or follow a required compliance script. AI Scorecards automate quality assurance by scoring calls against criteria you define, and AI CSAT (customer satisfaction) scores every call automatically rather than relying on post-call surveys that most customers skip.
Specialized Products for Sales and Support
Dialpad offers its core communication platform (called Dialpad Connect) to any business, but it also sells two specialized products built for specific teams.
Dialpad Support is a contact center solution designed for customer service teams. It pairs human agents with AI-powered voice and digital agents that can handle high-volume, routine interactions on their own, then hand off to a live person with full context when the situation requires it. During live calls, AI Live Coach cards pop up on the agent’s screen with relevant help articles and suggested responses based on what the customer is saying. The system also includes workforce management tools, contact center analytics, and post-call automation to reduce the administrative work agents do after hanging up.
Dialpad Sell targets sales teams. It automates outreach playbooks and provides real-time coaching during sales calls, helping reps handle objections and follow best practices without a manager listening in on every conversation.
Integrations With Other Software
Dialpad connects with the tools most businesses already use. It integrates with Salesforce and Zendesk for CRM workflows, so call data and customer records stay in sync without manual entry. It also plugs into Google Workspace (surfacing relevant emails, calendar events, and enabling click-to-call from Gmail) and Microsoft Teams. The Pro plan and above include open API access and webhooks for custom integrations.
Pricing and Plan Differences
Dialpad Connect, the core platform, comes in three tiers. The Standard plan costs $27 per user per month, or $15 per user per month if you pay annually. It includes unlimited U.S. and Canada calling, AI transcription, video meetings, team messaging, call recording, SMS/MMS messaging, a multilevel auto attendant, and live web and chat support. For a small team that just needs a modern phone system with AI built in, Standard covers the essentials.
The Pro plan runs $35 per user per month ($25 billed annually) and requires a minimum of three seats. It adds phone support, local numbers in more than 70 countries, hold queues, CRM integrations, Microsoft Teams integration, global SMS, and support for up to 10 office locations. This tier is built for growing companies that operate internationally or need their phone system connected to a CRM.
The Enterprise plan has custom pricing and requires at least 100 seats. It includes a 99.9% uptime service level agreement, unlimited ring groups and office locations, single sign-on, a dedicated account manager, priority support routing, and data retention policies. One detail worth noting across all plans: outbound SMS and MMS messages are capped at 250 free messages per user per month, and your company needs to register with The Campaign Registry (TCR) to use business texting.
Pricing for Dialpad Support and Dialpad Sell is separate from Connect and varies based on the number of agents and features required.
Who Dialpad Is Built For
Dialpad fits businesses that want to consolidate their communication tools into one platform and get practical value from AI without bolting on extra software. Small teams benefit from having phone, video, and messaging in a single app at a competitive per-user price. Mid-size and enterprise companies get more from the AI layer, particularly if they run a contact center or sales floor where real-time coaching, automated call scoring, and sentiment tracking can measurably improve performance. If your team mostly communicates through email and rarely makes phone calls, Dialpad’s strengths won’t matter much. But for any organization where phone conversations are a daily part of doing business, the platform turns those calls into searchable, analyzable data automatically.