By David Thompson · Published December 1, 2024 · Updated June 8, 2026 · 10 min read
Quick Verdict: Fax.Plus wins on price, modern features, and security for most small businesses. eFax wins on 24/7 phone support, large file handling, and enterprise reputation — and it's the cheaper HIPAA option ($50/mo vs. $99.99/mo). Neither is the best value for healthcare teams: mFax Business includes HIPAA compliance on every plan from about $9/mo (billed annually) — you build your own plan, choosing exactly the seats and pages you need with a live calculator instead of paying for rigid fixed tiers.
eFax vs. Fax.Plus is one of the more interesting matchups in online faxing — two established services with genuinely different strengths. eFax is the industry veteran: launched in 1997, serving 11 million users, and trusted by large enterprises worldwide. Fax.Plus is the modern challenger: clean interface, competitive pricing, Swiss-based security infrastructure, and broader software integrations.
Both send and receive faxes reliably. But they diverge sharply on price, HIPAA accessibility, customer support, and how much they care about your privacy. This comparison breaks down every meaningful difference so you can pick the right one for your team.
Methodology
We reviewed both services' official pricing pages, tested their features, and analyzed user reviews across Trustpilot, G2, and Capterra. Pricing is current as of March 2026.
eFax vs. Fax.Plus at a Glance
| Feature | eFax | Fax.Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $18.99/mo (340 pages) | $8.99/mo (200 pages) |
| Setup fee | $10 one-time | None |
| Free plan | No (30-day trial) | Yes (10 pages lifetime) |
| HIPAA compliance | Protect plan ($50/mo) | Enterprise only ($99.99/mo) |
| BAA included | Protect/Corporate only | Enterprise only |
| Overage rate | $0.10–0.15/page | $0.03–0.10/page |
| Max file size | 3 GB (via secure link) | 30 MB |
| Mobile app | iOS & Android | iOS & Android |
| Fax broadcasting | 20 recipients (Pro) | 500 recipients |
| Slack integration | No | Yes (Business+) |
| Zapier integration | No | Yes (Enterprise) |
| 24/7 phone support | Yes | No (chat/email only) |
| Data residency | No | Yes (20+ regions) |
| Countries (fax numbers) | 49 countries | 48 countries |
| Number porting | Yes (3–6 weeks) | Yes (free, faster) |
Pricing: eFax vs. Fax.Plus
eFax Pricing
eFax charges a $10 one-time setup fee and runs a first-month promotional rate of $5 across all plans.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual (per mo.) | Pages/Month | HIPAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plus | $18.99 | ~$15.83 | 170 in + 170 out | ✗ |
| Pro | $24.99 | ~$20.83 | 275 in + 275 out | ✗ |
| Protect | $50.00 | ~$41.66 | 1,000 combined | ✓ |
| Corporate | Custom | Custom | Scalable | ✓ |
- Overage: $0.10–$0.15/page (US/Canada)
- Annual saves ~17% vs monthly billing
Fax.Plus Pricing
Fax.Plus has no setup fee and offers a permanent free tier.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual (per mo.) | Pages/Month | HIPAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 10 pages (lifetime total) | ✗ |
| Basic | $8.99 | ~$7.00 | 200 | ✗ |
| Premium | $17.99 | ~$14.00 | 500 | ✗ |
| Business | $34.99 | ~$28.00 | 1,000 (5 users) | ✗ |
| Enterprise | $99.99 | ~$80.00 | 4,000 (unlimited users) | ✓ |
- Overage: $0.03–$0.10/page depending on plan
- Annual saves ~20–22% vs monthly billing
The HIPAA Cost Trap
This is where the comparison flips. Fax.Plus is cheaper for everything except HIPAA. Once HIPAA compliance enters the picture, the math reverses dramatically:
- eFax Protect: $50/mo for HIPAA compliance — the cheapest path on eFax
- Fax.Plus Enterprise: $99.99/mo for HIPAA compliance — nearly double eFax's price
Healthcare providers, therapists, pharmacies, and insurance firms all need HIPAA faxing. For those users, eFax wins this category.
A Third Option Worth Knowing
mFax Business includes HIPAA compliance and a signed BAA on every plan — starting at about $9/mo. That's less than eFax's non-HIPAA entry plan, and it undercuts both eFax Protect and Fax.Plus Enterprise by a wide margin. If HIPAA compliance is a requirement, see our comparison of the best HIPAA-compliant fax services.
Features Head-to-Head
HIPAA Compliance & Security
eFax wins on HIPAA affordability. Fax.Plus wins on security certifications.
eFax Protect ($50/mo) includes a BAA, HITRUST r2 certification (stricter than baseline HIPAA), 256-bit AES encryption, TLS 1.2, and jSign e-signatures bundled in. It's the more accessible HIPAA option of the two.
Fax.Plus Enterprise ($99.99/mo) requires "Advanced Security Controls" to be enabled separately before the BAA becomes available. However, Fax.Plus offers a more comprehensive security stack overall: SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001, GDPR, CCPA, PCI DSS certifications, TLS 1.3 (newer than eFax's 1.2), unique per-user encryption keys, and data stored in Swiss data centers — including a former military facility in the Alps. Fax.Plus also supports data residency across 20+ global regions, a feature eFax does not offer.
For a detailed breakdown of HIPAA faxing requirements, see our guide to HIPAA-compliant fax.
Sending & Receiving Faxes
Winner: Fax.Plus (for most workflows)
Both services cover the basics: send via email, web dashboard, or mobile app; receive with delivery confirmations; store fax history in the cloud. The differences show up at the edges.
Fax.Plus advantages:
- 500-recipient fax broadcasting vs eFax's 20 on standard plans — a massive gap for bulk campaigns
- Auto-retry for failed fax transmissions (eFax does not retry automatically)
- Spam/junk fax blacklisting built in
- Camera-based document scanning in the mobile app
eFax advantages:
- 3 GB large file sharing via a secure download link — Fax.Plus caps at 30 MB per fax. If you regularly transmit large engineering drawings, medical imaging files, or multi-hundred-page documents, eFax's large file capability is a genuine differentiator.
- Fax to 200+ countries vs Fax.Plus's 180+
Note on the eFax '60-second page' rule
eFax counts a page as 2 pages if it takes more than 60 seconds to transmit. This applies to image-heavy documents and dense PDFs. The policy is disclosed in the terms of service but not prominently during signup — something to keep in mind when estimating monthly page consumption.
Mobile Apps
Winner: Fax.Plus
eFax has an iOS and Android app with a 4.7/5 App Store rating, but independent testing has documented stability issues — the Compose Fax button crashes on some iOS devices, and users report slow loading and unexpected logouts.
Fax.Plus's mobile app is modern and fully featured, with parity to the web version. Users can scan documents with the phone camera, manage notifications, and handle all account functions from the app. It's among the better mobile fax experiences available.
For personal faxing from your phone — not just the eFax and Fax.Plus apps, but the whole category — the mFax consumer app (iOS & Android, 4.8/5 App Store, 5M+ users) is worth considering. It's built for exactly this use case.
Integrations & Workflow Automation
Winner: Fax.Plus
This is one of the most important differences for modern teams:
| Integration | eFax | Fax.Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Email-to-fax | ✓ | ✓ |
| Microsoft Outlook | ✓ | ✓ |
| Google Workspace | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dropbox | ✓ | ✓ |
| OneDrive | ✓ | ✗ |
| iCloud | ✓ | ✗ |
| Slack | ✗ | ✓ (Business+) |
| Zapier | ✗ | ✓ (Enterprise) |
| Fax API | ✓ (Corporate only) | ✓ (Enterprise) |
Fax.Plus's Slack integration means your team can receive fax notifications and manage faxes without leaving Slack. Zapier on Enterprise unlocks connections to thousands of apps — CRMs, EHRs, project management tools, document systems. eFax has no equivalent for either.
eFax's advantage is its cloud storage depth: Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, and iCloud are all supported. Fax.Plus supports Dropbox and Google Drive but not OneDrive or iCloud.
Customer Support
Winner: eFax — by a significant margin
eFax provides 24/7 phone support alongside live chat and email. This is rare in the online fax market and genuinely valuable when something goes wrong with a time-sensitive document.
Fax.Plus offers live chat and email support but no phone line at any plan level. Response times for chat are generally fast during business hours, but there's no option to reach a human immediately at midnight.
eFax's Trustpilot score (4.4/5 from 2,321 reviews) reflects its support quality. Fax.Plus scores lower (3.8/5 from 178 reviews), with billing disputes being the most common complaint.
One caveat: eFax users report that cancellation still sometimes requires a phone call, and customer service during cancellation is described as friction-heavy by multiple reviewers. Both companies have reports of auto-renewal surprises, but eFax's cancellation process has more documented friction.
Cancellation & Contract Terms
Winner: Fax.Plus (cleaner offboarding)
Neither service offers refunds for unused months on annual plans. Both are month-to-month by default.
Fax.Plus has a cleaner offboarding process: when you cancel, your account is paused for 30 days (holding your fax number), then auto-downgraded to the free plan. Your number is released after 30 days. This gives you time to finish the port if you're moving to another provider.
eFax cancellation can be done online, but users have reported the cancel button malfunctioning, requiring a phone call instead. Once canceled, there are no prorated refunds. The $10 setup fee is also non-refundable.
eFax: Full Review
eFax (efax.com) is the category pioneer — and it still earns its place for enterprises with complex, high-stakes faxing needs. The 24/7 phone support and 3 GB large file capability are genuine differentiators. The HITRUST certification on the Protect plan gives healthcare organizations an extra layer of assurance beyond standard HIPAA.
But for small and mid-sized businesses that just need to send and receive faxes reliably, eFax is overpriced and underdesigned. The interface feels dated, the mobile app has documented stability problems, and basic features like Slack notifications or Zapier automation simply don't exist. The 60-second page billing policy is a hidden cost trap that catches teams by surprise.
Read our full eFax review for a deeper breakdown of every plan.
Pros
- 24/7 phone + chat support — industry-leading
- 3 GB large file sharing per fax
- Fax numbers in 49 countries
- HITRUST r2 certified (Protect plan)
- Established brand, 11M users, Fortune 500 trusted
- jSign e-signatures bundled in Protect plan
- Broad cloud storage: Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud
Cons
- HIPAA only on $50/mo Protect plan — not included in base plans
- $10 setup fee on all plans
- No Slack or Zapier integrations
- Fax broadcasting capped at 20 recipients on standard plans
- 60-second page billing rule (not prominently disclosed)
- Mobile app crash issues reported on iOS
- API restricted to Corporate plan only
- Cancellation can require a phone call; refunds not available
Fax.Plus: Full Review
Fax.Plus (fax.plus) is the right choice for most small businesses and teams that don't need HIPAA compliance. The pricing is genuinely competitive — at $8.99/mo you get 200 pages and a clean modern experience that outperforms eFax's $18.99 entry plan on almost every metric. The Swiss security infrastructure and SOC 2 / ISO 27001 certifications make it a credible choice for privacy-conscious teams.
The ceiling is HIPAA. If compliance is required, Fax.Plus Enterprise at $99.99/mo is the most expensive HIPAA fax path among major services. For teams in that situation, there are better options — eFax Protect ($50/mo) or mFax Business (about $9/mo with HIPAA on all plans).
For a deeper look, see our full Fax.Plus review.
Pros
- Best-in-class pricing: $8.99/mo entry, free tier available
- No setup fees on any plan
- Modern, intuitive interface on web, desktop, and mobile
- 500-recipient fax broadcasting
- Slack integration (Business+) and Zapier (Enterprise)
- Swiss data centers, SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR certified
- TLS 1.3 encryption (newer than eFax's TLS 1.2)
- Auto-retry on failed transmissions
- Fax spam blacklisting
- 30-day number hold after cancellation
Cons
- HIPAA requires Enterprise plan at $99.99/mo — very expensive
- No 24/7 phone support (email and chat only)
- 30 MB max file size — can't handle large document workflows
- Free plan is lifetime-limited (10 pages total, not per month)
- Billing auto-renewal complaints on Trustpilot
- API and Zapier locked to Enterprise tier
Which Should You Choose?
Healthcare (Clinics, Therapists, Pharmacies, Insurance)
Choose eFax Protect — or mFax Business. Fax.Plus requires $99.99/mo for HIPAA compliance, which is hard to justify. eFax Protect at $50/mo is the better option between the two reviewed here, with HITRUST certification adding extra credibility for regulated environments.
That said, mFax Business includes HIPAA compliance from about $9/mo — less than eFax's non-HIPAA entry plan. For most small and mid-sized healthcare practices, mFax is the smarter financial choice. See our guide to the best HIPAA-compliant fax services for a full comparison.
Small Business & Remote Teams
Choose Fax.Plus. The Basic or Premium plan covers most teams at a fraction of eFax's price. The Slack integration (Business plan) is a genuine quality-of-life improvement if your team already communicates in Slack. The modern interface means less time training employees.
High-Volume Faxers & Broadcast Users
Choose Fax.Plus. The 500-recipient fax broadcasting limit (vs. eFax's 20 on standard plans) is a decisive advantage for any team sending the same document to many recipients — law firms serving clients, real estate companies, insurance brokers processing batch claims.
Enterprises Needing 24/7 Support
Choose eFax. No other major fax service offers 24/7 phone support. If a failed fax at 2 AM needs a human on the other end, eFax is the only option here. Large enterprises with Fortune 500 compliance requirements will also find eFax's established infrastructure and HITRUST certification more credible.
Teams Sending Large Files (>30 MB)
Choose eFax. The 3 GB large file capability via secure link is unmatched by Fax.Plus (capped at 30 MB). Engineering firms, architectural practices, and medical imaging facilities that transmit large files should factor this in heavily.
Individual or Occasional Faxing
Neither — download mFax. The mFax consumer app (iOS & Android) lets you send a fax from your phone in under 2 minutes with no monthly subscription. For occasional one-time faxing, see our best pay-as-you-go fax services for all your options.
The Bottom Line
eFax vs. Fax.Plus comes down to your priorities:
- Fax.Plus wins on price, modern features, and security certifications — it's the better service for most small businesses not subject to HIPAA
- eFax wins on HIPAA affordability, 24/7 phone support, and large file handling — the better choice for healthcare, enterprises, or teams that occasionally need a human on the phone
Neither is optimal if HIPAA compliance is required. eFax Protect at $50/mo beats Fax.Plus Enterprise at $99.99/mo — but both are expensive when mFax Business delivers full HIPAA compliance from about $9/mo.
For a broader view of the online fax market, see our roundup of the best online fax services and our full list of eFax alternatives.
Send Faxes with mFax
For personal faxing, download the mFax app on iOS or Android — upload a document, enter a fax number, and send in under 2 minutes. Trusted by 5 million users.
For business teams, visit mFax.to/business to get HIPAA compliance, a virtual fax number, team accounts, and a full audit trail — starting at about $9/mo. Pricing is fully customizable: build your own plan with a live calculator, choosing the exact seats and pages you need and paying only for what you use, instead of locking into fixed tiers. No setup fees, no long-term contracts.