While Google itself does not have a faxing service, you can still get an online fax number by using a separate service that can be integrated with your Gmail account.
A Google fax number is an online fax number provided by an online fax service, that is easily connected to your Gmail account so you can send and receive faxes directly from your Gmail dashboard.
It’s the best solution to solve the hassle of dealing with traditional fax machines and improve productivity by being able to fax documents directly from your computer, which saves you money on paper and toner supplies.
With no dedicated fax line or equipment required, it only takes a few minutes to set up your Google fax number to send fax from Gmail today!
How Does Google Fax Work?
When someone sends you a fax, either a fax machine or computer, it’s automatically converted into a TIFF image and sent to the online fax providers servers. From here it’s converted to an image and into a PDF which is then delivered to your Gmail inbox.
This is what goes on behind the scenes. All you have to do is wait for the faxes to be delivered. Since you’re receiving them online you can easily print, forward or save your faxes (providers also offer cloud storage).
Step 1: Sign up with an online fax service
To get your own Google fax number, you just have to sign up with an online fax service such as eFax or RingCentral Fax. These services will integrate the power of online faxing with your Gmail account so you can send and receive faxes directly from your inbox.
Step 2: Pick a plan that works best for you
After you sign up with an online fax service, pick a plan that works best with your faxing needs. Whether you have a large business or home office, you can find a variety of plans at competitive prices. All plans come with a virtual fax number that you can pick from. Free trials do require a credit card but you are not charged unless you decide to continue to use the service.
Step 3: Activate your Google fax number
After picking a plan and going through the sign up process, your Google fax number is immediately activated. Depending on the provider you are using, you can add the email you want to use in the Settings options, so that all incoming faxes are forwarded to your Gmail account and so you can also use the same email account to send a fax.
Step 4: Start sending and receiving faxes
Congrats! Now you have your own Google fax number that will allow you to begin sending and receiving faxes online and to any fax number worldwide. To send a fax, just enter the recipients fax number in the “To” field of your email message followed by your providers server information which for in this example for eFax is “@efaxsend.com”. For a complete tutorial check out our article on how to send a fax from Gmail. To receive faxes just give your online fax number to anyone and they can send you a fax from anywhere in the world whether it’s from a fax machine or online fax.
Considering all this, getting a Google fax number is an easy way to save your business time and money. Pick the best online fax service so you can make faxing online a pain-free process that will improve communication with clients and customers.
Is Google fax secure?
The benefit of using a Google fax service is that they are dedicated to keeping your confidential information safe and faxing it with the highest standards available.
All your date that comes through their services are encrypted and secure. This advanced end-to-end encryption is essential to preventing any hacking situations that could leak sensitive information.
In fact, using the internet to send your faxes is safer than using a fax machine because they are delivered to an online account that is only accessed by authorized users. This is different from using a fax machine, which is usually placed in a highly transited area could be accessed by someone who is unauthorized to view the information being sent.
Fax machines also require paper and toner since all faxes must be printed out. These papers can easily get mixed up, lost and fall into the wrong hands if not disposed of or stored correctly. Avoid all of these disasters by using Google faxing instead!
What type of Google fax numbers are available?
For the most part, a Google fax number looks like a regular number, except it is only used to communicate with other fax machine or server. Here is a quick overview of the type of fax numbers you can choose from when you sign up with an online fax service.
- Local fax number: Numbers with your local area code.
- Vanity fax number: Numbers that you specifically want to request either for customers to remember easily or a number that can spell out your slogan.
- Toll-free number: This is any number that starts with 800, 888 and such.
- International number: Only eFax offers fax numbers for over 42 countries.
Or you can keep your current number and transfer it over. This is called number porting keep reading to learn how this works. For business that already have a fax number established and don’t want to change it this is the best option.
Can fax numbers be ported?
Yes! You can keep your current fax number!
If your business already has fax number it’s important to keep the same number to avoid delays in communication.
The way this is done is through number porting. This process takes your current fax number and transforms it into an online fax number, allowing you to fax through the internet.
The transition can take up to a week to be completed, but most services will give you a temporary number in the meantime.
If you plan on porting your number be sure to use a trustworthy service. Sometimes it’s worth it to spend a little more on a quality provider that knows how to handle this transfer safely.
Can you fax with Google Voice?
No, you can’t use Google Voice (GV) to fax but you can port over your number to an online fax service.
Google Voice is a VoIP (voice over internet protocol) which means it’s not setup to be used as a faxing solution.
If you want to start using your GV number to send and receive faxes then you can port if over to an online faxing provider but this means you will no longer be able to use that number for voice calls.
Does Google have a fax service?
No, Google does not offer a fax service at the moment. You can transfer your number from Google Voice (GV) but when you transfer the number to an online fax provider it’ll no longer work as a GV number, something to keep in mind.
Aside from Google Voice, there is also an app on Google Workplace Marketplace called Online Fax that allows you to fax documents from Google Drive with a limit of 5 pages a month. Unfortunately it doesn’t have good reviews and you cannot receive faxes or get a fax number with this app.
The best Google fax solution is to integrate an online fax service with your Gmail so you can send and receive faxes through email and it only takes minutes to get it set up!
Why Use Online Fax Instead of Traditional Faxing?
Unlike the traditional method, you’ll be able to start using a Google fax number within minutes! This is because it doesn’t require lengthy set ups. Which basically means that after signing up and setting up your account information you can immediately begin to send and receive faxes through Gmail or the providers dashboard.
The online fax service will be the middle-man between incoming fax transmissions and your Gmail account to help you send and receive faxes through the internet.
In the past, if you wanted to send a fax you needed to have a traditional fax machine and a dedicated landline just to get started. This meant you needed to spend time and money to get everything set up, which isn’t ideal if you want to focus on communicating efficiently with your customers and business operations.
When it comes to installing things, the quicker the better. Getting your Google fax number today will take you less than 5 minutes!
With so many apps and technology available these days, some may wonder why we even continue to use faxing as a communication tool. However many professions such as legal, financial and healthcare practices use faxing to securely send documents. Online faxing is the upgraded tool to be able to fax without a fax machine but still keep documents secure and delivered safely.
Whether it’s a real estate agent sending over a purchase agreement or a lawyer sending legal documents to client out of town, using the internet to fax is a valuable tool that can be easily setup and used from any location, without having to use a fax machine.
With internet fax you are no longer a prisoner of a fax machine because:
- It works incredibly fast.
- You can send and receive faxes from your Gmail.
- You can send and receive faxes from a mobile app.
- You can fax from cloud storage such as Dropbox or even Google Drive.
- You don’t need a land line.
- You can store your documents online.
- You can sign your documents electronically.
- And most importantly, you get a FREE Google fax number.
Online Fax Services We Recommend
The providers we recommend here can easily be integrated with your Gmail account. They are great services for all types of businesses, big or small. Most importantly, you can try any of them for free before signing up, which is a great opportunity to fully explore their features to see which is the best fit.
- eFax – One of the leading services that provides an easy solution to link their online fax service with your Gmail account. You can choose Google fax numbers from over 40 countries or local, toll-free and vanity numbers.
- RingCentral Fax – This service is one of the many cloud business solutions they offer. You can choose local, toll-free and vanity fax numbers from the US, Canda and UK.
There are several types of plans and they all vary mainly depending on how many faxes you send/receive each month. Most plans give you access to most popular features such as cloud storage and being able to add more users but some high cost plans give you access to more features or support.
There are no contracts, so you can cancel at anytime.
Fax Using Google Today!
By opting to fax online you are also opting for the most environmentally friendly solution when it comes to Google fax.
Did you know that the fax machine was reported as the most energy consuming office machine?
This is because you can’t unplug, doing so would put your business at risk of missing an important fax or causing an error in the machines setup.
It only takes around 5 minutes to sign up, pick one of the providers we recommend above and start your free trial. After that you’ll be able to send and receive faxes no matter where you are.
If your business keeps you on-the-go, then you’ll have piece of mind knowing that you can view your received faxes on your cell phone or send a fax from any part of the world through your email.
You no longer have to worry about complicated telephone line installations or malfunctions. Say good-bye to those paper jam days and forget about running out to buy toner at the last minute.
Faxing will no longer be restricted to a stationary office machine. Break free and start enjoying the new and smarter way to fax.