Difference between Microsoft Teams Calling Plan for PSTN connectivity and Operator Connect

Question

What is the Difference between Microsoft Teams Calling Plan for PSTN connectivity and Operator Connect

Answer 1

Dear @Amrita Dubey,

I would be glad to help clarify the differences between Microsoft Teams Calling Plans and Operator Connect to help you choose the best Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) connectivity model for your organization.

Both options allow your users to make and receive external phone calls directly within Microsoft Teams, and both eliminate the need for on-premises hardware like Session Border Controllers (SBCs). However, the primary difference lies in who acts as the telephony carrier and how the service is billed.  

Here is a direct, concise breakdown of the core differences:

Scenario 1: Microsoft Teams Calling Plan (Microsoft is your Carrier)

With this model, Microsoft acts as your retail telecom operator.  

• Infrastructure & Management: Fully cloud-hosted and managed by Microsoft. You acquire new phone numbers or port existing ones directly within the Teams Admin Center (TAC).  
• Billing & Licensing: You purchase a per-user bundled license (Domestic or International Calling Plans) directly from Microsoft. This includes your monthly allocation of outbound calling minutes.  
• Best For: Small to medium-sized organizations, or businesses looking for a fast, all-in-one setup directly through Microsoft without managing separate telecom vendor contracts.  

Scenario 2: Operator Connect (Certified Third-Party is your Carrier)

With this model, you keep your telephony relationship with a Microsoft-certified external telecom provider (such as AT&T, Verizon, Vodafone, etc.), but the connection is natively integrated into Teams.  

• Infrastructure & Management: The certified operator handles the PSTN infrastructure, SBCs, and cloud peering. Once you authorize the operator in your Teams Admin Center, your managed operator numbers automatically appear in your tenant for easy assignment.  
• Billing & Licensing: You only pay Microsoft for the Teams Phone license. Your actual calling minutes, phone number packages, and contract terms are billed directly by your chosen telecom operator.  
• Best For: Organizations that want to leverage existing telecom contracts, negotiate better bulk rates for high-volume outbound calling, or operate in geographic regions where Microsoft Calling Plans are unavailable.  

Regardless of the method you choose, please note that every user assigned an external phone number must have a Teams Phone license (either as a standalone add-on or included in Microsoft 365 E5) and must be set to TeamsOnly coexistence mode.

For a deeper dive into planning your deployment, you can refer to the official Microsoft documentation:

• PSTN connectivity options - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn
• Plan for Operator Connect - Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Learn

I hope this information directly addresses your questions. Please let me know if you need assistance configuring either option in your environment.

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