VoIP vs landline for small business: a New Jersey guide to the copper shutoff

In the VoIP vs landline for small business decision, most New Jersey offices will end up on VoIP or another internet-based line, and the real question is when and how carefully they switch. Verizon has asked the FCC for permission to stop offering copper landline service in parts of New Jersey and eight other states. A VoIP phone system costs less to run and does more, but a copper line keeps working during a power outage and quietly carries things like alarm panels and fax machines. This guide covers what is actually changing, how the two compare, and a checklist so nothing breaks when you move.

What is happening to copper landlines in New Jersey

On August 10, 2026, Verizon filed an application with the FCC to discontinue copper-based telephone service, sometimes called POTS or plain old telephone service, in portions of nine states including New Jersey, under WC Docket No. 26-227. Verizon said it would only discontinue service where a qualifying replacement is available, such as fiber or cable VoIP, its fixed-wireless home phone, or mobile service. The earliest date it gave for starting was on or after October 23, 2026.

That date is not automatic anymore. In late September the FCC issued an order saying the request was not automatically granted because the Commission needed more time to review it, and it said this was not a final decision either way. Verizon has also said that if an approved replacement is not available at an address, the customer stays on copper, and that not everyone who got a notice will lose service. As of this writing we have not seen a final FCC decision, so treat the shutoff as a question of when, not whether, and plan on your own schedule instead of the carrier's.

The numbers in Verizon's filing show where this is heading. About 277,000 residential and business copper voice lines remain across the nine states, which is under 2.25% of the locations where the service could be offered. Nationally, copper line subscriptions fell 81% from 2014 to 2024.

VoIP vs landline for small business, side by side

The short version: VoIP wins on features and flexibility, and the landline wins on one thing, which is staying up when the power and internet go down. That one thing matters, so the goal is to get VoIP's features while planning for the outage.

What else is plugged into your copper line

The phone on the front desk is the easy part. The surprises are the devices nobody thinks of as phones. Before you switch, walk the office and find everything that uses a phone jack.

• Alarm and fire panels. Many older panels report to the monitoring company over the phone line. Ask your alarm company whether yours can move to a cellular or internet communicator before the copper goes away.
• Fax machines. Dental offices, law offices and insurance work still fax. Fax over VoIP can be unreliable, so look at an online fax service or a VoIP line set up for fax.
• Elevator emergency phones. If your building has an elevator, the emergency phone may be on copper. Talk to the building owner and the elevator service company.
• Card terminals and postage meters. Older ones dial out. Most current terminals use internet or cellular, but check.
• Door and gate entry systems. Some call a phone number to let visitors in.
• Anything medical. If a patient or employee depends on a landline for monitoring equipment, flag it before anything changes.

Power and internet outages are the real risk

Replacement services need power. Verizon's own notices say its Fios Digital Voice and fixed-wireless home phone offer up to about 24 hours of battery backup under typical conditions, that the customer has to maintain the batteries, and that without power the equipment will not work, including for 911 calls. Cable and fiber phone service from other providers may also need battery backup.

For an office in Lakewood, Toms River or Freehold, a storm that takes out the power for a day is not hypothetical. A sensible outage plan for a small office looks like this:

1. Put the modem, router, network switch and any desk phones that need power on a battery backup (UPS), and test how long it actually lasts.
2. Set your VoIP system to forward calls to cell phones automatically when the office phones stop responding.
3. Consider a second internet connection, such as a cellular backup router, so a cable outage does not take the phones with it.
4. Have callers answered somewhere that is not your building. An AI voice agent or answering service that runs in the cloud keeps picking up even when your office is dark.
5. Keep one charged cell phone on site for 911.

The 911 rules your office phone system has to meet

If your office has more than one line with extensions, you likely have what the FCC calls a multi-line telephone system. Under Kari's Law, systems installed or first sold after February 16, 2020 must let anyone dial 911 directly, with no need to dial 9 first, and must alert a central point on site or off site when a 911 call is made so someone can let responders in. Under RAY BAUM's Act, 911 calls from these systems must send a dispatchable location, meaning the street address plus details like suite or floor. When you move to VoIP, make sure each phone's registered address and suite number are correct, and update them if you move.

How to switch to VoIP without losing your number

You can usually keep your business phone number when you change providers in the same area, and FCC rules let you move it from a landline to a VoIP or wireless provider. The FCC's one firm piece of advice is do not cancel your old service first. Start the new service, ask the new provider to port the number, and let the port close the old account. Simple ports of a single line must be processed within one business day. Your old carrier cannot refuse to port the number because you owe a balance, though it may charge a fee.

Use the switch to fix how your calls get answered

Changing phone systems is the cheapest moment to fix the bigger problem, which for most small businesses is the calls nobody picks up. If you have not counted them, our guide to what a missed call costs walks through the formula. A VoIP system can send overflow and after-hours calls to an AI voice agent that answers on the first ring, says it is an AI assistant, books into your calendar and logs the call to your CRM, with a person available on request.

This is the work Connect Helm does with Watchman IT: the phone system, the network and battery backup behind it, and the agent that answers it, built as one setup instead of three vendors pointing at each other. We serve businesses across New Jersey, including Ocean and Monmouth counties.

Frequently asked questions

Is Verizon shutting off landlines in New Jersey? Verizon has asked the FCC to discontinue copper landline service in parts of New Jersey where it says a replacement is available. In late September the FCC said the request would not be granted automatically and kept it under review, so no final shutoff date has been set as of this writing.

Is VoIP cheaper than a landline for a small business? For most offices with more than one line, yes, because extensions, voicemail-to-email and mobile apps are included instead of billed as extra lines. Compare the full monthly cost including internet, battery backup and any separate fax or alarm service before deciding.

Will my phones work in a power outage with VoIP? Not on their own. VoIP needs power at the modem, router and phones, so you need battery backup and a plan to forward calls to cell phones or a cloud answering service when the office goes dark.

Can I keep my business phone number if I switch to VoIP? Usually yes, if you stay in the same area. Start the new service and request the port before you cancel the old line, because canceling first can release the number.

Next step

If you want to hear what answers the phone after a switch, call the demo line; it is the same AI agent that answers Connect Helm's own number. To plan a move off copper for your office, book a call, and see how phones, CRM and follow-up fit together on the packages page. We quote after one conversation.