What service has replaced Skype

Craig Naude 0 Reputation points
2026-08-21T11:26:10.6333333+00:00

My legacy Skype credit has now been exhausted and I want to continue to use a service similar to the Skype-to-phone. What options are there?

Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Teams Free | Calls
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  1. AI answer

    2026-08-21T11:26:26.12+00:00

    Microsoft has not replaced Skype-to-phone with an equivalent new paid consumer calling service in Teams Free.

    Current Microsoft options are:

    1. Teams Free for chats and internet calling Teams Free is the consumer replacement for Skype’s core chat and calling experience. Skype users can sign in with their Skype credentials, and contacts and chats transfer automatically.
    2. Skype Dial Pad for existing paid users only If there is still an active Skype subscription, Skype Number, or Skype Credit, calls to landlines and mobile numbers can be made through the Skype Dial Pad on the Skype web portal or within Teams Free. Since the legacy Skype credit is exhausted, this is only usable if another active paid Skype entitlement still exists.
    3. No new Skype paid purchases New purchases of Skype Subscriptions, Skype Numbers, and Skype Credit are no longer available.
    4. For small businesses: Teams Essentials + Teams Phone Microsoft states that Teams Free does not support paid calling plans. For a business-style replacement, small businesses can consider Teams Essentials paired with Teams Phone.

    So, for a service similar to classic Skype-to-phone:

    • For personal use: Microsoft currently offers Teams Free for chat and app-to-app calling, but not a new paid Skype-to-phone replacement.
    • For business/small business use: Teams Essentials + Teams Phone is the Microsoft option mentioned for telephony.
    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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  2. Virginia M 41,805 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-08-21T12:08:49.1233333+00:00

    Hello, I’m Virginia.

    Teams has replaced Skype so you’ll need their calling plans: https://learn.microsoft.com/microsoftteams/calling-plans-for-office-365 however this may be a feature of the paid version of Office or just for businesses.

    Otherwise you’ll need an app/program which has VOIP capability.

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  3. EmilyS_726 27,470 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2026-08-21T23:35:25.3466667+00:00

    To be specific, there are two types of Teams determined by the account type.

    Teams logged in with personal account, even with a paid subscription, will NOT have calling feature and doesn't have option to get a calling plan.

    Teams logged in with a commercial account can be set up to have calling feature, meaning, you need to have a business subscription, Teams phone license and calling plan.

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