Account basics
A service fee of $9.99/month and at least one admin user at $9.99/month: your IT contact, who gets direct support from our engineers.
Pricing
Honest, itemized pricing.
You pay for the phones, numbers and calling you actually use, with no long-term contract. Taxes and government fees are shown separately and estimated up front.
Three building blocks
Every Pylon bill is made of the same simple parts.
Phones and people
Phone or device $4.99, user/extension $4.99, voicemail $0.99, phone number $1.49. Plus fax, conference rooms and 911 locations as you need them.
Calling
Shared channels with unlimited minutes each, or simple per-minute rates. Our estimator picks the cheapest mix for how you call.
What common things cost
Per month, before taxes and fees.
- $9.98 Classroom or hallway phone Phone + extension
- $12.46 Office line Phone, extension, voicemail, direct number
- $4.99 Email-to-fax box Send and receive faxes by email
- $11.48 Analog fax machine Fax adapter + a fax number
- $2.99 911 location Address and description for 911
Sample setups, all in
Computed by our estimator with typical calling in California, including estimated taxes and government fees. Open any of them and change the numbers to match yours.
Elementary school
About 60 staff, 1 building, California, typical calling
$708 /month
- Service, before taxes
- $540.67
- Estimated taxes and fees
- $167.41
- Per user, all in
- $16.86
- Phones and devices
- 43
Small school district
About 150 staff, 3 buildings, California, typical calling
$1,704 /month
- Service, before taxes
- $1,296.10
- Estimated taxes and fees
- $408.29
- Per user, all in
- $16.71
- Phones and devices
- 105
Nonprofit, one site
75 staff, 1 site, California, typical calling
$1,190 /month
- Service, before taxes
- $866.52
- Estimated taxes and fees
- $323.21
- Per user, all in
- $20.87
- Phones and devices
- 57
Nonprofit, two sites
150 staff, 2 sites, California, typical calling
$2,280 /month
- Service, before taxes
- $1,656.67
- Estimated taxes and fees
- $623.62
- Per user, all in
- $20.18
- Phones and devices
- 113
Estimates. Taxes and fees vary by service address and appear exactly on your invoice. Prices as of October 14, 2026; tax rates as of October 14, 2026.
Channels or per-minute?
A channel is room for one outside call at a time, with unlimited minutes. When every channel is busy, extra calls don’t get a busy signal; they’re billed per minute instead ($0.0059 incoming, $0.0099 outgoing).
Schools call in bursts: morning attendance, lunch and dismissal. A channel pays for itself when it’s busy enough during those peaks. Our estimator models your day in 15-minute slots and picks the cheapest mix.
For a 60-staff school with typical calling, one incoming and one outgoing channel costs about $61 a month for calling, versus about $90 paying per minute.
The full price list
These are list prices before taxes and government fees. They match our standard agreement’s price schedule.
| Item | Price | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Service fee | $9.99 per account / month | One per account. Covers administrative costs; it isn't a government or regulatory fee. |
| Admin user (support contact) | $9.99 per admin / month | Your IT people who can change the system and get direct email and phone support. At least one. |
| Item | Price | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Phone or device | $4.99 per device / month | A desk phone, softphone, mobile app or paging adapter. |
| User / extension | $4.99 per user / month | A person, position or place that has an extension: staff, the front desk, Room 12. |
| Voicemail box | $0.99 per box / month | For a person, or shared by a department or program. |
| Phone number | $1.49 per number / month | A number that receives calls and shows as caller ID. |
| Toll-free number | $5.99 per number / month | Free for callers. Incoming toll-free minutes are always billed per minute. |
| 911 location | $2.99 per location / month | The address and description sent to 911. Extra detail such as a room number can be included. |
| Conference room | $0.99 per room / month | A dial-in conference bridge for a person or a team. |
| Item | Price | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Fax machine adapter (ATA) | $9.99 per device / month | Connects an analog fax machine through an adapter configured for faxing. |
| Email-to-fax box | $4.99 per box / month | Send and receive faxes by email and apps, no fax machine needed. |
| Item | Price | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Incoming channel | $9.99 per channel / month | Unlimited incoming minutes for one outside call at a time. |
| Outgoing channel | $29.99 per channel / month | Unlimited outgoing minutes for one outside call at a time. |
| Two-way channel | $34.99 per channel / month | Unlimited incoming or outgoing minutes for one outside call at a time. |
| Incoming minutes beyond channels | $0.0059 per minute | Outside calls coming in while your incoming channels are busy (or if you have none). |
| Outgoing minutes beyond channels | $0.0099 per minute | Outside calls going out while your outgoing channels are busy (or if you have none). |
| Toll-free incoming minutes | $0.0219 per minute | Every minute on a toll-free number. Channels don't apply. |
Prices as of October 14, 2026. Prices can change with 30 days’ notice. Desk phones aren’t included; buy them from us or use compatible phones you already have.
Optional setup services
Pylon is built for IT teams to run themselves. If you’d rather hand off the work, add either service, one time. Each is optional, and both can be paid over 12 months.
Pre-Service Configuration
$3.00 each device, user and voicemail box
We build your system before cutover day: users, groups, voicemail boxes, phones and other devices, call menus, temporary numbers, caller ID and 911 locations.
Or do it yourself: Your IT team builds it in the admin portal after training.
Scheduled Cutover Installation
$43.05 per device
On cutover day we install your phones and test incoming, outgoing and internal calls and 911. If a number transfer is delayed, we forward your numbers to temporary ones and test again.
Or do it yourself: Your team plugs in the phones and runs the tests with our checklist.
Phones and equipment
Buy phones from us, or use compatible phones you already have. Most Yealink phones set themselves up (zero-touch). Poly, Obihai, Htek, Grandstream and Cisco phones work through DHCP options, and so does nearly anything SIP-compatible.
Phones bought from Pylon come with a 5-year advanced replacement warranty.
One-time prices, before any sales tax. Can be paid over 12 months.
Every phone needs a network cable and power (PoE or an adapter). Network requirements
| Model | What it is | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Yealink T44U | Desk or wall phone | $108.00 |
| Yealink T44W | Desk or wall phone with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth | $120.00 |
| Yealink T53W | Desk phone with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth | $140.00 |
| Yealink T54W | Desk phone with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth | $167.00 |
| Yealink T57W | Desk phone with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth | $238.00 |
| Yealink W76P | Wireless (cordless) phone | $177.00 |
| Yealink wall plate | Wall mount for a desk phone | $7.36 |
| Yealink power adapter | For ports without PoE | $10.32 |
| Yealink EHS36 / EHS40 | Headset adapter | $67.20 |
Taxes and government fees, explained
Like most phone services, government taxes and fees are added on top of our prices. We show an itemized estimate up front; your invoice shows the exact amounts for your service address.
Every invoice is itemized: each of our charges, and each tax and government fee, on its own line. Some fees depend on how much of your calling is between states versus in-state, so they can vary a little month to month.
Estimates as of October 14, 2026 (2026-Q4). Updated quarterly.
- Federal Universal Service Fund (USF)
- A federal charge that funds phone and internet programs. It applies to the interstate share of charges (VoIP safe harbor 64.9%) at the current factor of 42%.
- California per-line surcharges
- public purpose programs surcharge $1.05, 911 surcharge $0.41, 988 surcharge $0.05 per line, per month. Our estimate counts each phone number as a line.
- CPUC user fee
- 1.8% of the in-state share of charges.
- Local utility users’ tax
- Some cities charge one. Public agencies are often exempt; bring your exemption certificate and we’ll apply it.
No long-term contract.
Either side can end service with 30 days’ notice. Payment terms are net 30.
Pricing questions
What is a calling channel?
A channel is capacity for one outside call at a time, with unlimited minutes. Incoming, outgoing and two-way channels are available. When every channel is busy, extra calls are billed per minute instead of getting a busy signal. Our estimator picks the cheapest mix for your calling.
What does a classroom phone cost?
$9.98 a month (a phone plus an extension), before taxes and fees. Add a voicemail box for $0.99 a month if you want one.
Is there a contract?
There's no long-term commitment. Either side can end service with 30 days' notice. Read the summary of our standard agreement.
Is VoIP covered by E-Rate?
No. Voice service hasn't been eligible for E-Rate (the federal school and library telecom discount program) since 2019. Internet access and internal data connections still are. That's one reason honest, itemized phone pricing matters.
What will we see on our invoice?
Every charge on its own line: our services, any usage, and each tax and government fee. Some fees depend on how much of your calling is between states versus in-state, so they can vary a little from month to month. Your estimate shows them up front.
What is a not-to-exceed amount?
Because pricing is usage-based, we give you a ceiling your board can approve. It allows 50% more calling than estimated and 10% growth, including estimated taxes, so routine changes don't need a new approval.
How is Pylon priced?
Itemized and usage-based. You pay for phones, extensions, numbers, voicemail boxes and calling. There's no seat license, so a classroom phone doesn't cost as much as a staff line. See Pricing.
Can you set up and install everything for us?
Yes, for a one-time fee. Pre-Service Configuration ($3 for each device, user and voicemail box) builds your system before cutover day. Scheduled Cutover Installation ($43.05 per device) installs your phones and runs the tests on cutover day. Each is optional, and both can be paid over 12 months. Or your IT team does the work after our training. See how switching works.
Are taxes included?
No. Government taxes and fees are added on top, as with most phone services. We show you an itemized estimate up front, and your invoice lists every line. Public agencies are often exempt from local utility taxes; bring your exemption certificate.
See your honest monthly total in about 3 minutes.
No sign-up needed. Taxes and fees are estimated up front, and you can share the estimate with your team in one email thread.