A Virtual Number for Incoming Calls — the Inbound Truth

A number for incoming calls is exactly what the published products here are: 1300 numbers, 1800 numbers and Phonewords are inbound business numbers — customers dial them, and the calls land on the answering point you nominate at sign-up. If "virtual" in your search meant app-based dialling or SMS capability, that is not part of the published range, as the virtual number page explains.

How incoming calls work, as published

The dial: a customer calls your published number — digits or word.
The connection: the signup flow asked for the number the service will connect to; that answering point receives the call.
The cost: shared cost on a 1300 (caller pays a local call cost, business pays the remainder) or caller-free in the stated Australian 1800-number context on an 1800, with the business paying the call charges.
The handling: the published options beyond the answering point are the three add-ons — Call Tracking Numbers ($5 per month), an IVR Keypress Menu ($35 per month, routing callers by keypress) and a Postcode Prompter ($250 per month, routing by the caller's postcode).

What the incoming-call story does not include

Three honest limits. Outbound calling — using the number to call out — is not described in the published pages, so this page does not claim it. After-hours behaviour — voicemail, announcements, call-backs — is likewise not published. And the pages do not describe device behaviour beyond the answering-point step: which phone receives calls is your arrangement, confirmed with the team on 1300 327 934 if it is unusual.

Choosing between the inbound prefixes for incoming calls

The incoming-call experience differs by prefix in one published way: what the caller pays. A 1300 number asks the caller for a local call cost, which suits frequent, short, practical calls; an 1800 number removes the caller's charge entirely in the Australian context, which suits support and sales lines where nothing should discourage the call. Both plan families start at $10 per month. Pick by the calls you want, not by habit — the rate tables on the pricing page make the difference concrete.

Why inbound-only suits most business needs

The reason businesses want a separate number is that customers call in: enquiries, bookings, support. Every published feature here serves that direction — the published contact point, the caller-cost arrangement, the answering point, the keypress routing. A number that never dials out is not a limitation for that job; it is the shape of the product.

Related reading: the virtual numbers for business overview or the business calls page for the call-handling detail.

Incoming-call questions

Can I make outgoing calls from this number?

The published pages describe inbound service — calls arriving at your answering point. Outbound calling is not part of the published material, so this page does not claim it.

Where do incoming calls actually land?

On the answering point you nominated at sign-up — the flow asks for the number the service will connect to. Beyond that step, device behaviour is not published.

Can callers be routed by keypress?

Yes — the IVR Keypress Menu add-on ($35 per month) is published as an auto-attendant that routes callers by keypress. Full behaviour is on the pricing page.

What does an incoming-call number cost?

Plans start at $10 per month for 1300 and 1800; a Phoneword word adds a component from $40 per month, priced on availability and desirability.