What does it cost to make your buzzer ring more than one phone?
Making an apartment buzzer ring more than one phone costs anywhere from nothing to a monthly fee, depending on the route. The free routes, one person’s mobile, forwarding or taking turns, cost no money but still ring one phone at a time. A number that rings everyone at once, like BuzzMeBro, costs $9.99 a month for the whole apartment, split however you like.
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Two or three people live in the apartment and the buzzer rings one of them. You want it to ring everybody. Before you choose how, it helps to see what each route actually costs, including the parts that are not money.
Does the building charge to change the number?
Usually not. Updating the number stored for your unit is a routine request, and most property managers do it without a fee. A few charge a small admin fee or pass on a technician’s visit. How to ask, and what to send.
Whatever route you pick, you only want to make this request once. Every route below that needs the number changed again later costs you another request.
The cost of each route
| Route | Monthly cost | Rings everyone at once? | The cost that is not on a bill |
|---|---|---|---|
| A number that rings every phone, like BuzzMeBro | $9.99 for the apartment, first month free | Yes, up to 4 phones | One request to the building, once |
| One person’s mobile on the panel | Nothing | No | That person lets everyone in, every time |
| Taking turns being the number | Nothing | No | A building request at every swap |
| Call forwarding from one phone | Often included in your plan | No, it moves the call | The first phone has to be on and set up |
| A home phone line just for the buzzer | A monthly home phone bill | No, and only inside the apartment | Nobody hears it when everyone is out |
Free app numbers come up a lot here. They cost nothing, but the panel often cannot dial them as a local call, or the door digit fails on the way back. Fongo and the buzzer and TextNow and the buzzer go through it.
The costs that never show up on a bill
The money is the easy part to compare. The real cost of one phone carrying the apartment is the stuff that happens when that phone is not answered.
- Missed deliveries. Food goes cold in the lobby, parcels go back to the depot, and somebody spends a lunch hour fetching them.
- The walk down. Whoever holds the buzzer goes to the lobby for everyone else’s guests and plumbers.
- The roommate chat. "Can you buzz me up?" messages, and the wait while someone checks their phone.
- Turned-away visitors. A friend or a technician gives up after a couple of tries.
One honest concession. If you live alone and your mobile is a local number, put it on the panel and pay nobody. The cost question only starts when more than one person needs to hear the buzzer.
What a shared number costs per person
BuzzMeBro is priced per apartment, not per person. It is $9.99 a month, or $95.00 a year, which works out to $7.92 a month. Two people, three people or four, the total is the same, so each person’s share drops as you add roommates.
The first month is free, and nothing is charged until it ends. You get a local number for the building, up to 4 phones ringing at once, and the message to send your property manager. Start free.
Questions people ask
Is there a free way to make the buzzer ring two phones at once?
Not reliably. The free routes move the call between phones or ring one at a time. Ringing two phones at the same moment needs a number built to do it, which is what BuzzMeBro provides.
Do we pay per roommate?
No. BuzzMeBro is one price for the apartment, $9.99 a month, whether two or four of you are on it. Nothing in the product tracks who paid, so split it however you split the internet.
Does receiving a buzz cost anything on my phone plan?
On a normal Canadian plan an incoming call is usually included. The lobby’s side of the call is paid by the building. Who pays for buzzer calls.
Is the yearly plan cheaper?
Yes. Paying $95.00 for the year works out to $7.92 a month, 21% less than paying monthly. Annual plans are not refunded part way through, so monthly suits a short lease.