Quick answer
If you chose Localphone for transparent pay-as-you-go calling without subscriptions, BoraPhone is the closest modern equivalent: per-minute rates from $0.02/min to 180+ countries shown before you dial, no connection fees, email-only signup, and calling that runs in any browser. Localphone is still operating and still honestly priced, but recent user reports include disappearing numbers, site outages, ID-verification rejections after payment, and an iOS app rated 2.4 stars — the kind of wobbles that matter when a call has to work.
A pioneer running on old rails
Localphone (UK, around since 2007) deserves credit: it offered honest per-minute pricing with published rate tables, a €1 minimum top-up, no connection fees, and clever local-access-number calling long before most competitors. Its terms are still clean — "no connection charges, maintenance or service charges, or other hidden fees" is its own wording.
What users report in recent years is less about pricing and more about the machinery. Outage trackers logged incidents like "all my Localphone numbers have disappeared today" and full site inaccessibility; Trustpilot reviews describe ID document collection followed by rejections from its legal department, calls cutting off, paid SMS never delivered, and slow crediting of payments; the iOS app sits at 2.4 stars with reports of dropped calls and audio playing back from minutes earlier. None of this means Localphone is going away — it remains an active UK company — but for calls that matter, infrastructure age shows.
BoraPhone keeps what made Localphone good — pay-as-you-go, rate transparency, no fee games — and runs it on modern browser-based infrastructure with a written refund policy for failed calls.
What Localphone gets right — and where it falls short
- Honest pricing DNA: published rate tables, no connection or service fees, €1 minimum top-up.
- Multiple calling methods — local access numbers (no internet needed), SIP/VoIP from a computer, and mobile apps.
- Optional per-country subscriptions that genuinely cut heavy-corridor rates (e.g. Nigeria from 15.5¢ to ~8.8¢/min as of July 2026).
- Reliability reports: numbers disappearing from accounts, site outages, and calls cutting off.
- ID/KYC friction: reviewers describe submitting documents and still being rejected after paying.
- The iOS app rates 2.4 stars, with dropped calls and audio glitches in reviews.
- Credit and account stand for one year without activity — the fate of credit after that is not clearly spelled out.
- Per-minute rounding, and PayPal top-ups require a £/€/$10 minimum despite the €1 headline.
Pricing model: BoraPhone vs Localphone
The per-minute rate is only part of the price. How a service bills — minimums, renewals, expiry, fees — usually matters more.
| BoraPhone | Localphone | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Pay-as-you-go, from $0.02/min | Pay-as-you-go + optional per-country subscriptions |
| Minimum top-up | $5 | €1 (but €/£/$10 minimum via PayPal) |
| Connection fees | None | None |
| Billing increment | Per minute (rounds up) | Per minute (rounds up) |
| Signup | Email only | Account signup; users report ID-verification hurdles |
| Idle accounts | Log in and call, any time | Account and credit "stand for a year" of inactivity |
| Refunds | 100% refund if a call fails, in writing | Case by case |
Rates to popular destinations
BoraPhone rates below are live. Localphone rates are from its published pricing as of July 2026 — check both before you decide.
| Destination | BoraPhone landline | BoraPhone mobile | Localphone |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | $0.11/min | $0.11/min | 1.9¢/mineuro cents, excl. VAT |
| Mexico | $0.04/min | $0.11/min | 0.4–1.4¢ landline / 1.4¢ mobileeuro cents, excl. VAT |
| Philippines | $0.46/min | $0.65/min | 13.6–15.2¢ landline / 14.7–17.1¢ mobileeuro cents, excl. VAT |
| Nigeria | $0.51/min | $0.52/min | 15.5¢/min PAYG~8.8¢ on monthly plans; excl. VAT |
| United Kingdom | $0.04/min | $0.07/min | 1¢ landline / 2.6¢ mobileeuro cents, excl. VAT |
| Pakistan | $0.35/min | $0.40/min | 4.5¢ landline / 5.9¢ mobileeuro cents, excl. VAT |
Localphone rates as of July 2026 (source) — Localphone prices in euro cents excluding VAT — add VAT for the price EU customers actually pay. BoraPhone bills per minute (partial minutes round up) with no connection fees. See all BoraPhone rates by country.
Feature comparison
| Feature | BoraPhone | Localphone |
|---|---|---|
| Calls from the browser, no install | SIP setup required for computer calling | |
| Call without internet (access numbers) | ||
| Public rate tables | ||
| Landlines and mobiles in 180+ countries | ||
| Modern maintained apps | No app needed | iOS app rated 2.4★ |
| Virtual/incoming numbers | Virtual numbers from $1.95/mo | |
| First call free |
Which one fits you?
- A vanished number, failed verification, or outage has already cost you a call that mattered.
- You want computer calling without configuring SIP — BoraPhone is a browser tab, not a softphone setup.
- You want a written refund policy for failed calls instead of support tickets.
- You want prices in plain USD with no VAT arithmetic.
- You rely on local access numbers to call without internet from a landline or basic phone.
- You use a Localphone incoming number that people call you on, and it is working reliably for you.
- A Localphone country subscription meaningfully beats PAYG for your heavy corridor and it has been dependable for you.
Switching takes about a minute
No download, no app store. The dialer runs in the browser you already have — laptop or phone.
No phone verification. Your first call is free, so you can test the exact number you need to reach before paying anything.
Rates from $0.02/min, shown before every call. No subscription to manage and nothing from Localphone to cancel first — just stop using it.
Frequently asked questions
Ready to try the Localphone alternative that runs in your browser?
Email signup, rate shown before you dial, first call free. No subscription, no app, nothing to cancel later.