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Home > All Providers Reviews > Magicjack

magicJack Reviews

magicJack is an extremely cheap VoIP provider that works by using your existing Internet connection to make and receive calls. magicJack provides a plug-and-play device (like a USB drive) that you can connect to your computer or high-speed modem to start making local and long-distance calls. You can use magicJack for as little as $19.95/year per line. 

With the newest magicJack Plus system, you don't have to have your computer on at all times in order to receive a call.

Is magicJack worth it? 

We recommend that anyone interested in buying a magicJack read the user reviews here first.

 

Users Average Rating

Providers Comparison

Note: The graphs above only measure the user ratings displayed over the last five years.
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Magic Jack Review

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The worst product, worst customer service and completely false advertising. My Magic Jack had a warranty but it stopped working within the warranty period. They don't even have a phone number to call, everything is by email and they don't reply. After waiting for months with no response from them I contacted BBB, Attorney General and TV station and even then they did not honor warranty. STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY. Bunch of thieves, thugs and crooks.

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quality, service
No

Worst Company Of All

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I have many magicJacks in my office and they are some of the worst phone systems of all. The other day I renewed my services on a couple devices and they took my money out of my bank but never turn on my services. I called and spoke to some people in the Philippines but never got anything handled. Finally today they sent me an email and stated that due to Rule 6 I had violated the fraud rules. No clue what that could mean other than they do not like that I am asking about my money. They said they were not able to work with the magicJack device they sold me due to this and made no mention of returning my money. I filed a claim at my bank to get my money back and filed a complaint with the FCC on these people. Will also file a complaint with my States Attorney Generals office. It is people like this that makes it so hard to trust anyone anymore. and most all your company has an out by just saying it was a fraud they believed happen when they are the frauds themselves. I do not recommend this company to anyone anywhere.

Cheap Enough
Bad Customer Service and Can Not get what you paid for upon Renewal.
No

MagicJack home phone since 2008 was fine until it suddenly wasn't

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MagicJack has been my home phone since August 2008. Economical and feature rich, it served me good enough fine until May 2023 when it suddenly stopped working through the router, throwing Error 23 and 42. After a long stretch of torturous tech support efforts, I finally called it quits. Bought an Ooma Telo Air 2 which works perfectly fine on my ATT Fiber router where the mJ device failed. Luckily I have only 2 months on my long mJ subscription where I can transition to the cool new number I got from Ooma's selection process. I'm out $40 for the replacement device sent by mJ which also never worked, but it's overall been a good 15 year run with mJ, relatively trouble free until it abruptly wasn't.

Economical and feature rich. Satisfactory ongoing reliability. Includes texting and a functional smart phone app.
Customer service when something goes wrong. As for mJ recommendation, I'd now say Maybe as a crap-shoot.
No

Terrible Sound Quality, Even Worse Customer Service

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Buyer Beware of a company that doesn't allow anybody to post reviews on their own website! I purchased my first Magic Jack 12 years ago to use while overseas on my laptop before international cell plans became reasonable. I bought a second one for my little retail store about 6 years ago as a cheap extra line. The sound quality sucks on both lines. As I didn't need the first line anymore, I tried to cancel, but they autorenew and won't give prorated refunds. I just cancelled both lines after just getting charged $49.88 annual fee each line last month. They don't care about past history, so just know that after they charge your card in advance for a full year, you won't get any refund even you cancel as soon as you see the charge on you credit card statement. Terrible sound quality, terrible customer service, my recommendation is to use another better quality option.

none
terrible sound quality,m even worse customer service
No

Magic Jack Support

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I have been a MJ customer for over 10 years. I now have 2 obsolete devices attached to my account. Both of these were destroyed and recycled. I am trying to get them removed from my account. Support is totally incompetent in providing this request. Very disappointed with MJ support.

Very happy with the device and it's functionality.
Support Stinks
Yes

magicJack

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I don't understand the negative! I have been using magicJack since they started and am using 2 units now. Never had any issues even with fax. I pick up the phone, there is a dial tone and it works no quality issues at all. Feels like a land line to me, I have my modem, router, magicJack and cordless phone connected to a UPS, never been without phone service. I do forward the ports magicJack uses as much as UPnP should work. I had to contact support three times so far and had great experiences. My mother also uses magicJack on a daily basis as her main number and relies on it.

Cheapest reliable phone service available.
No WiFi, has to be connected to a Router. Provided charger and flat Ethernet cable leave a lot to be desired. Must be changed for stable service.
Yes

Don't Use MagicJack

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While I haven't used any other VoIP service myself, I will say you should save yourself the time and headache of ever purchasing MagicJack. I am very comfortable and capable in setting up and trouble shooting technology and this was a pain. In addition, if you should ever need to utilize customer service they are inefficient and not customer-centric. Lastly when I tried to cancel the account after my mom died, they continued to charge me for two years claiming they couldn't cancel the account because the address I provided them didn't match their records....and the address they had was completely wrong. Save yourself hours of time and frustration and poor billing management and look for another product. We were told this was a great product for seniors as well. I can't imagine my mom having to navigate all this herself. Don't use MagicJack!

inexpensive
horrible customer service, not easy to set up and difficult to cancel when you're done
No

Been a customer since they first came out. Still happy.

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I used MJ for my "land line" (for alarm mainly and yes newer alarms use cellular tech) and for faxing. The first one I had required a PC. So been using it for quite some time. Had a few issues and for the most part they were resolved. Been sent replacements a few times. Only reoccurring annoying issues: 1) Sometimes I can't make calls to certain number and certain numbers can't get to me. These are numbers I call on regular basis. 2) Sometimes VM light does not work and sometimes VM thinks I have messages when I don't. 3) e911 - in regards to "paying" for this. This is what upsets me the most. I have made the payment and it often shows unpaid in the portal. However, it shows enrolled and valid. It is a very small payment. Support has been inconsistent in verifying what they see on my account. In one instance I paid twice so expected it to carry over. Support could find no record though I had proof of the payment. I was able to dispute with my card and get the refund. Of the three issues this one upset me the most because they supposedly had no record, but my payment went thru. I have worked with support on 1 and 2. Often it just resolves on its own. I would like to know why it happens, but no support I get in touch with has the Indepth knowledge to answer\figure that out. Now I am mostly issue free and 1 and 2 crop up randomly so it is odd. It is just a brief blip on the radar. Hopefully I have not jinxed myself. All this said, the service is well worth the price. You do not need e911 and it is no longer required. Go to their help page for more info. This varies by area,

99% perfect service. VERY VERY affordable. I use all the features available. Using for 10+ years.
Support is inconsistent. However, after 10+ years i have not had to use them much. It the early years they seemed to be much better.
Yes

Poor Call Quality on MagicJack

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The call volume on my MagicJack is very low, much lower that when the phone was on Verizon. I repeatedly appealed to customer and technical service and they were no help at all. Do not recommend.

Cost is low.
Call quality is poor. Volume is too low.
No

Rip Off

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I was a Magic Jack customer for over 10 years. They auto renewed me while they were having a sale. I called them on it and they told me to sign up again and I would get a refund of the higher fee. After signing up again at a discounted price, paying again for another year expecting the refund I was told I was going to get they refused to give me a refund. Therefore lying to me about the refund and getting me to sign up for another year. What a shame I will never renew with them again.

Cheap
Cheap until they rip you off.
No

Pages

magicJack

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United States
2002Year Founded
27%Recommend
307User Reviews

Overall Rating

2.35
3.5
51%
43%
50%
33%
70%

Service Locations

    VoIP app

    The Skinny

    magicJack Revealed

    What is magicJack?

    A magicJack is a small device that allows you to make Internet phone calls for cheap prices.

    As of 2016, magicJack Express costs $39.95 plus shipping and handling. You get 3 months of free unlimited calling to the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. Additional years cost $35.

    How does magicJack work?

    One of magicJack's top selling points is its ease of installation.

    1. Plug your phone into the magicJack
    2. Plug the magicJack into your computer
    3. Start making calls

    Is there a special magicJack phone?

    Nope! The magicJack device is what's known in the industry as an analog telephone adapter (ATA). You won't need a special phone in order to use magicJack.

    What do you think of magicJack?

    Many users have had a variety of issues with magicJack (as evidenced by the reviews). However, here are a couple of advantages of magicJack:

    1. Lowest Monthly Rates

    Setting aside the fact that the first 6 months of phone service with magicJack are absolutely free, monthly rates are available for as little as $3.00 per month. Prices like that are extremely hard to complain about, and even some of our most scathing magicJack reviews still rate magicJack with 5 stars in the price category.

    2. Cheap Equipment

    Any way you slice it, $39.95 is a great price to pay for the complete setup of a VoIP phone service that uses your existing phones. Other VoIP companies require specialized IP phones that can cost over $100, and an ATA adapter alone is often more than $50.

    Even if the device runs into a problem and needs to be replaced, the low cost takes most of the sting out of a new purchase. In fact, with the money you'll save with magicJack's low monthly rate, the device practically pays for itself.

    3. Easy to Use

    MagicJack is designed for people who have never heard of VoIP in the first place, and want a simple plug-and-play device that works right away. That's exactly what magicJack offers, and the new magicJack PLUS offers even more options. The old device required a constant connection to a computer to work, but the new one only needs to do so once to register. After that, just plug it into the wall and feel free to shut the computer off. The video below outlines how to use magicJack without a computer.

    Previously the magicJack software was been reported by some as very difficult to remove. MagicJack software now comes with an easier to access uninstall option, so this point is no longer valid.

    MagicJack Customer Service

    Unfortunately, magicJack does not have a customer service hotline. That means that the only way to resolve a service issue is through a high-traffic chat room, which occasionally has a slow response time as a result. Fortunately, the device is easy to install, so you'll likely never need the support. If you run into trouble, our best advice is to be patient with the chat, and see if the issue lies with your router configuration or Internet speed in the meantime.

    If everything checks out and the chat system seems frustrating, just try doing something else for a while and wait for the chat system to get back to you. You can watch one of the many fan-made YouTube videos for magicJack support, try one of the links below to see if your issue is answered there, or even take care of checking your email while you wait. Sometimes, the best option is to simply wait a few hours for the peak traffic to die down, so that the support team has more time to dedicate to your needs. Either way, spending an hour or two researching and fixing any issues with the magicJack adapter is definitely worth the amount of money that you're saving with .

    Third-party magicJack Support

    There are also some helpful blogs out there on the web that cover how to use magicJack if you still encounter trouble.

    Overall Analysis

    In the end, and despite the issues that customers raise about magicJack service, we feel that magicJack offers a very low priced Residential VoIP service, especially for someone new to VoIP. However, there are a lot of negative customer reviews you should take into consideration. The extremely low monthly rate for unlimited phone calls is impossible to ignore, and the ease of installation further makes the case that magicJack's barebones VoIP service is one of the best in the industry.!

    Don't take our word for it. We've got over 100 magicJack reviews for real magicJack customers. See what magicJack users have to say.

    If you have used magicJack, here's you should do: Write a review. We could use your voice on our website.

    Have something to say? Leave a comment about magicJack.

    Have you used magicJack's service? Write a review. You can help other prospective customers make a good decision.

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