Two completely different categories
Before comparing, understand that "virtual phone number" means two different things depending on who you ask:
Category A — permanent virtual numbers. You rent a number monthly, it's yours, you receive unlimited SMS and calls. Examples: Google Voice, Twilio, Telnyx, OpenPhone. Use case: building a product, having a second business line, replacing a SIM.
Category B — single-use SMS-receive numbers. You pay per SMS, the number is yours for 15 minutes, you discard it after. Examples: 5sim, SMS-Activate, SMS-Man, GhostNumber. Use case: verifying an account on WhatsApp, Tinder, Discord, ChatGPT etc. without giving out your real number.
Most people asking "what's the best virtual phone number" actually want Category B. This article focuses there. Category A is mentioned briefly at the end for context.
Criteria that actually matter
When testing services we look at five things: price per SMS, reliability (does the SMS actually arrive?), payment options, privacy (KYC required? data retention?), and country coverage.
Price varies $0.50 to $12 depending on country/app — apps like WhatsApp, Tinder and Telegram are the most expensive because the underlying carrier costs are higher and there's more demand.
Reliability is everything. A service that's $1 cheaper but fails 30% of the time costs you more in retries. We've found that prices below $2 generally come from low-quality numbers that fail more often.
Payment matters because it determines who you have to give your identity to. Crypto-only services don't see your real-world identity at all. Card-only services keep your billing details forever.
5sim.net
One of the largest and oldest SMS-receive services. Strong country coverage, decent reliability, and the prices are competitive ($0.50-$5 per SMS for most apps).
Strengths: huge catalog, good API for developers, established service with reviews going back years. Weaknesses: minimum top-up is relatively high ($10), interface is dated, and they accept fiat which means they may eventually want KYC.
Best for: developers who want to script SMS verification flows.
SMS-Activate
Similar profile to 5sim — large catalog, established, supports many apps. Slightly cheaper on average but reliability varies more by country.
Strengths: very low minimum balance ($1), supports a wider variety of obscure apps. Weaknesses: anti-bot challenges sometimes block legitimate users, interface confusing for newcomers.
GhostNumber
Newer entrant focused on privacy and simplicity. Crypto-only payment, no KYC, single-use guarantee per number-app pair. Pricing is straightforward at $4 for most combinations.
Strengths: clean modern interface, fully crypto (BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, BNB and 50+ via OxaPay), no fiat onramp means no identity exposure, automatic refunds if SMS doesn't arrive within 15 minutes. Weaknesses: catalog is smaller than 5sim or SMS-Activate, fewer obscure apps supported.
Best for: privacy-conscious users doing one-off verifications and willing to pay a slight premium for simplicity.
Google Voice
Google's permanent virtual number service. Free, US-only. Requires an existing US phone number to verify the Google Voice number itself, which means it doesn't help if you don't already have a US line.
Strengths: free forever, integrates with Gmail and Google Workspace, professional features (call forwarding, voicemail transcripts). Weaknesses: not anonymous (Google knows everything), US-only, can't use it for many services because they detect Google Voice as a VoIP number.
Best for: US-based users who want a free secondary line for personal/work separation.
Twilio
Enterprise-grade telecom API. You pay monthly per number ($1-15 depending on country) plus per-message charges. Setup requires a credit card and business verification.
Strengths: extremely reliable, global coverage, programmable. Weaknesses: not for personal use, requires KYC, very expensive for low-volume use, complex setup.
Best for: businesses building SMS-driven products. Don't use this for verifying your Tinder account.
Verdict by use case
Use case: I want to verify a single account on WhatsApp/Telegram/Discord/ChatGPT once. → GhostNumber or 5sim. Both work, GhostNumber is simpler and crypto-only, 5sim is slightly cheaper if you'll do many verifications.
Use case: I run a business and need to send/receive SMS programmatically. → Twilio or Telnyx. Don't bother with consumer services.
Use case: I need a permanent personal second number in the US. → Google Voice. Free.
Use case: I need permanent international virtual numbers. → MessageBird or Twilio (paid).
Use case: I want privacy-first SMS reception with crypto payment. → GhostNumber.