Asterisk

Open-source telephony toolkit for building IP PBXs, VoIP gateways and conferencing systems.

Open sourceBusiness phone systems and PBX software

Updated Oct 29, 2026 · AppBreakup editorial · Linux, Self-hosted

Visit Asterisk See 5 alternatives

Is Asterisk free?

Yes, free and open source

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All 5

FreeSWITCH
Open source
Fu
FusionPBX
Open source
Ri
RingCentral RingEX
Starting price: $20 per user/month billed annually ($30 monthly)

Verified facts: 5 of 5
Alternatives ranked: 5
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Asterisk

Asterisk is the open-source telephony engine that many business phone systems are built on. Started by Mark Spencer as a home-grown PBX and now developed by Sangoma (which acquired Digium) with its community, it runs on a Linux server and handles extensions, voicemail, call queues, IVR menus, conferencing and connections to SIP trunks, VoIP phones and traditional phone lines. It is configured with text files and a dialplan, and developers can control calls from their own applications through its management, gateway and REST interfaces (AMI, AGI and ARI). Asterisk is free under the GPL version 2, with commercial licences and support available from Sangoma. It is a toolkit rather than a finished product: there is no built-in web admin, so most businesses use it through a distribution such as FreePBX, while developers and telecom providers use it directly to build custom voice services. Expect a learning curve around SIP, codecs and dialplan logic.

Best for: Telecom engineers and developers building a custom or self-hosted PBX on their own Linux servers..

What works

Free and open source with no per-extension licence fees
Very flexible dialplan plus AMI, AGI and ARI interfaces for custom call apps
Works with SIP trunks, IP phones and analogue or digital phone lines
Large community and long track record

Why people leave

No built-in web interface; configuration is text files unless you add FreePBX or similar
Steep learning curve around SIP, NAT and dialplan logic
Officially tested only on a handful of Linux distributions

Asterisk vs FreeSWITCH, FusionPBX and RingCentral RingEX

From each app's listing and the prices verified on its own site. A dash means we haven't verified it yet.

Attribute	Asterisk	FreeSWITCH	FusionPBX	RingCentral RingEX
Pricing	Open source	Open source	Open source	Paid
Verified price	—	—	—	$20 per user/month billed annually ($30 monthly)
Free plan	Free app	Free app	Free app	No
Open source	No	No	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No	No	No
Platforms	Linux, Self-hosted	Linux, Self-hosted	Linux, Self-hosted	Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

Top Asterisk alternatives

See all 5

1
FreeSWITCH
Open-source engine built for high call volumes and multi-tenant platforms, with strong WebRTC and video support.
68.8
2Fu
FusionPBX
Ready-made multi-tenant PBX with a web admin, so you don't have to edit config files by hand.
62.6
3Ri
RingCentral RingEX
Hosted business phone system with calling, video and messaging, for teams that want to stop maintaining their own PBX.
61.8
4
Google Voice
Simple hosted business numbers tied to Google Workspace, for small offices that don't need a programmable PBX.
59.4
5
FreePBX
Adds a browser-based admin panel on top of Asterisk so you don't edit config files by hand.
40.0

Why people left Asterisk

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Asterisk: common questions

What is Asterisk?

Asterisk: Open-source telephony toolkit for building IP PBXs, VoIP gateways and conferencing systems. Best for telecom engineers and developers building a custom or self-hosted PBX on their own Linux servers. Available for Linux, and you can host it yourself.

Is Asterisk free?

Yes. Asterisk is free, open-source software.

Is Asterisk open source?

No, Asterisk is not open source.

What platforms does Asterisk run on?

Asterisk is available for Linux and Self-hosted.

What are the best alternatives to Asterisk?

The highest-ranked Asterisk alternatives right now are FreeSWITCH, FusionPBX and RingCentral RingEX. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

Asterisk vs FreeSWITCH: what's the difference?

Both Asterisk and FreeSWITCH are free and open source. Both run on Linux.

See all 5 Asterisk alternatives

Asterisk facts

5 of 5 verified

License: GPL version 2 (commercial licences available); Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.asterisk.org(opens source in a new tab); “Asterisk is distributed under the GNU General Public License version 2”
Supported platforms: x86 Linux: CentOS, RHEL, Fedora, Ubuntu, Debian; Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.asterisk.org(opens source in a new tab); “The Asterisk project supports 32-bit and 64-bit x86 platforms using non-end of life CentOS, RHEL, Fedora, Ubuntu, and Debian Linux distributions.”
APIs: AMI, AGI and ARI; Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.asterisk.org(opens source in a new tab); “This includes the Asterisk Manager Interface (AMI), the Asterisk Gateway Interface (AGI), and the Asterisk REST Interface (ARI).”
Uses: IP PBX, VoIP gateways, conferencing; Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.asterisk.org(opens source in a new tab); “an IP PBX with many powerful features and applications VoIP Gateways Conferencing systems”
Owner: Digium (formerly Linux Support Services); Checked Nov 8, 2026docs.asterisk.org(opens source in a new tab); “In 2001, Linux Support Services changed its name to Digium.”