If you’re tired of missing voicemails or playing catch-up with clients, this is for you. Whether you’re running a small business, managing a team, or just the unofficial office tech support, setting up voicemail-to-email in Ringcentral is one of those dead-simple tweaks that pays off every day. Here’s how to get it done, what to watch out for, and a few things you can safely ignore.
Why bother with voicemail-to-email?
Let’s be honest: most of us don’t check our voicemail as often as we should. But missed calls can mean lost sales, frustrated customers, or just more headaches when issues pile up. Email, on the other hand, is where most of us live during the workday.
Voicemail-to-email does exactly what it sounds like—it sends new voicemails straight to your inbox. You get a recording, sometimes a transcript, and you can forward or archive messages just like any other email.
Who benefits? - Small business owners who need to move fast - Customer support teams who can’t afford dropped balls - Anyone who wants to avoid the phone app altogether
How voicemail-to-email works in Ringcentral
Ringcentral makes this pretty easy, but there are a few gotchas. When a caller leaves a voicemail, Ringcentral can send: - An audio attachment (usually .mp3 or .wav) - A text transcription (if enabled and supported for your language) - Notification emails to one or more addresses
You can send these to your own inbox, a shared team mailbox, or even set up rules to route messages based on the extension.
Heads up: Voicemail-to-email is included in most Ringcentral plans, but advanced features (like more accurate transcription) may be limited or cost extra.
Step-by-step: Set up voicemail-to-email notifications
1. Log in to your Ringcentral Admin Portal
- Go to service.ringcentral.com in your browser.
- Use your admin (or user) credentials.
- If you’re not an admin, you may need to ask one for permission or to set this up for you.
Pro tip: If you’re managing multiple users, you’ll need to repeat most of these steps for each one.
2. Go to “Phone System” and choose “Users”
- In the left sidebar, click Phone System.
- Select Users to see everyone in your organization.
- Click on the user/extension you want to set up. (Start with yourself if you’re just testing.)
3. Edit voicemail settings
- Click Messages & Notifications (sometimes labeled “Voicemail & Notifications”).
- Find the section for Voicemail settings.
4. Enable voicemail-to-email delivery
Here’s where you tell Ringcentral what to do with new voicemails.
- Look for an option like “Send email notification to:” or “Email Notifications”.
- Enter the email address(es) you want messages sent to.
- For multiple addresses, separate with commas or semicolons (Ringcentral usually tells you the format).
- You can use a shared mailbox, but beware of clutter.
- Choose your preferred options:
- Attach voicemail as an audio file (almost always a good idea).
- Include voicemail transcription (if available—accuracy varies).
- Mark message as read when emailed (your call; if you leave this off, you’ll still see “new” alerts in the Ringcentral app).
Don’t overthink this: You don’t need to use every notification option. Start with the basics—audio attachment to your main inbox—and expand later if you need more.
5. Save changes and test
- Hit Save or OK (don’t just close the tab).
- Call your own number from another phone, leave a test voicemail.
- Check your email. You should get a message within a minute or two with an audio file attached.
- If you enabled transcription, see how well it works for your callers’ accents and background noise.
- If you don’t see anything, check your spam folder or double-check the email address.
6. (Optional) Set up rules or filters in your email client
If you’re worried about clutter, set up a filter or rule so voicemail notifications skip your main inbox, get labeled, or go to a special folder.
- In Gmail: Use the “Filter messages like these” feature.
- In Outlook: Create a rule based on sender or subject.
Why bother? If you get more than a few voicemails a day, this keeps things sane.
Pro tips and real talk
What actually works
- Keep it simple. Most people just need the audio file. Transcriptions help if you often get voicemails in noisy environments or from people who mumble.
- Use a shared mailbox only if you have a clear process. Otherwise, messages get lost in the crowd.
- Test with real callers. Transcription quality is… let’s say “hit or miss.” Don’t promise clients you’ll always get their message word-for-word.
What doesn’t work (or isn’t worth obsessing over)
- Don’t rely on transcription for important info. It’s OK for a summary, but don’t skip listening to the audio if it matters.
- Don’t send notifications to ten different people. More isn’t better—it’s just more ignored emails.
- Don’t panic about the “mark as read” setting. It’s minor. You’ll still get the email.
Ignore the hype
- AI-powered features: Some marketing claims make it sound like Ringcentral will magically understand every voicemail perfectly. In reality, transcription is about 80% there for clear speakers, much less for strong accents or background noise.
- Integrations galore: Unless you really need voicemails piped into Slack, Trello, or CRMs, skip the extra setup for now. Email just works.
Troubleshooting: What if it doesn’t work?
- No emails showing up? Double-check the address, look in spam, and confirm you hit Save.
- Attachment missing? Make sure you checked the “attach audio file” box.
- Transcription not working? Not every plan supports this—or it may not be enabled for your language.
- Still no luck? Sometimes user settings get overridden by company-wide policies. If you’re not an admin, ask IT to check the “Messages & Notifications” section for your account.
Keeping it simple
You don’t need fancy software or a bunch of integrations to stay on top of voicemails. Start with voicemail-to-email, see how it works for your team, and tweak as you go. Most people find this single change clears up a lot of communication headaches—and if you ever want to get fancier, you can always build from here.
Check your email, respond fast, and don’t overcomplicate it. That’s really all there is to it.