Asterisk vs Plivo Voice API
Asterisk
asterisk.org
Plivo Voice API
plivo.comSide by side
| Figure | Asterisk | Plivo Voice API |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $0.01/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 3 |
| Spec score · Voice APIs | 8.0 (#9) | 8.1 (#8) |
| Founded | 1999 | 2011 |
| Integrations | The site says Asterisk can connect communications to applications, including Salesforce automation or CRM systems using AMI. | Listed integrations include Microsoft Power Automate, Zapier, n8n, Pipedream, Tray, and EngageBay for voice and other Plivo communication workflows. |
| Support | Sangoma offers five support levels for core components of current open source Asterisk versions, with Level 5 reserved for customers requiring an SLA and engineering support. | Plivo says it responds to priority 1 business-critical incidents around the clock, 365 days a year. |
Plans
Plivo Voice API
- Pay as you goPriced on request
- Voice API pay as you go$0.01 a month
- Enterprise$1,000 a month
In their own words
Asterisk
Asterisk is a free, open-source framework for building communications applications and turning an ordinary computer into a communications server. It powers IP PBX systems, VoIP gateways, conference servers, call centers, voicemail servers, and IVR systems. Listed functions include call routing, recording, queuing, conferencing, voicemail, automated attendants, and call transfers. Computer-telephony interfaces include AGI, AMI, and the Asterisk REST Interface (ARI); listed VoIP protocols include SIP, H.323, IAX, Jingle/XMPP, MGCP, and SCCP. Asterisk can connect communications to applications, including CRM systems through AMI. The source code can be downloaded, and the project points users to installation on a modern cloud Linux instance. Building applications requires working knowledge of Linux, scripting, networking, and telephony. Asterisk is distributed under GPLv2; Sangoma offers commercial licensing for uses incompatible with that license. The Asterisk forum provides community help with installation, upgrades, and operation.
Plivo Voice API
Plivo Voice API lets web and mobile applications make and receive calls programmatically, play audio, record conversations, and build interactive voice applications. It connects calls across PSTN, SIP, and WebRTC endpoints. Features include queues, conferences, text to speech, dual-channel recording, DTMF input, speech recognition, answering machine detection, voicemail transcription, and custom caller ID. Its Audio Streams API sends raw audio from active calls over WebSocket for transcription, voice AI, analytics, or custom processing. Plivo lists SDKs for Python, Node.js, Ruby, PHP, Java,.NET, and Go, along with integrations including Zapier, n8n, Pipedream, Tray, EngageBay, and Microsoft Power Automate. The service is listed for Android, iOS, web, and API. The Voice API pay-as-you-go plan is listed at $0.01 a month; call routes and features have separate rates. Calls are billed in 60-second increments. Pay-as-you-go accounts receive $10 in free credits without a credit card. Plivo was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.