PennyTalk Review

PennyTalk is one of the largest calling card companies according to our 2009 Alexa rankings.

Visit PennyTalk.com

PennyTalk is a calling card subsidiary of IDT, one of the largest international VoIP carriers in the world. IDT is a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. It provides local, long distance, and calling card services. In addition to PennyTalk, the company also operates another calling card business called Net2Phone.

Unlike calling card resellers (e.g., Comfi.com) which distribute cards on behalf other companies, all PennyTalk calling card minutes are carried directly by PennyTalk's parent company IDT on it's global communications network. We call this kind of calling card company an 'integrated provider'. In general, we recommend integrated providers over resellers, although you can get very good cards from either type of company. Pingo, a company we rate very highly, is another integrated provider.

PennyTalk offers a single integrated calling plan that includes pricing for all calling routes both within the United States and around the world. The PennyTalk card can be used from many locations worldwide via toll-free access numbers located in over 30 countries. The company also has mobile dialing apps for use on iPhone and Blackberry phones. The company does not offer a PC dialing app (aka 'softphone').

PennyTalk pricing is relatively clean and straightforward, but their prices are towards the high end of the industry. The main problem is that they charge a 49¢ connection fee on every call. Unless you are making only very long calls, this can easily add 1¢ to 4¢ per minute to their base rate. Since their per minute rates start off being a bit high, this extra fee really drives prices over the top.

Also of some concern is that IDT has been involved in several lawsuits against companies in the calling card industry brought by federal and state authorities in the US. These suits had to do with deceptive marketing and pricing practices. Two were settled as recently as 2009. PennyTalk seems to have mended it ways since then and become a model citizen.

Bottom line

While PennyTalk.com has some positive qualities (network, customer service), they are generally not a good value because of high rates. Their per minute rates aren't too bad, but the real kicker is the 49¢ connection fee that applies to every call. If you make short calls, then PennyTalk will not be your cheapest option. If you make longer calls (at least 30 mins, if not longer), then it could work for you, but check the rates for your destinations carefully. Overall, we give them a 'qualified buy' rating and recommend that you consider our higher rated cards.

PennyTalk.com Company Information

Company PennyTalk
Type of company integrated provider (a company that both sells and services it's calling card)
Summary PennyTalk is one of the largest calling card companies. It sells over 20 million calling cards per month. PennyTalk sells one calling card with a comprehensive rate plan that covers all locations worldwide, including call origination points from 30 countries worldwide. PennyTalk rates are not very competitive and they have a $25 minimum purchase requirement. All PennyTalk calls are carried by IDT, their parent company, which operates a global VoIP communications network.
Website www.PennyTalk.com
Phone 1-888-311-8360
Hours: M-F: 9am-9pm, S-S:8am-4pm US eastern time
Email email via their contact page
Sales channel online
Carriers represented IDT only (PennyTalk's parent company)
Other products & services
  • Smartphone dialing apps for iPhone and Blackberry
Related companies The parent company IDT operates 2 other calling card companies:
Parent Company IDT, which operates an global VoIP telephony network. IDT is well established and trades on the New York Stock Exchange. IDT has been cited repeatedly in lawsuits by US and state governments against players in the calling card industry. In settlements reached in 2009, it pledged to end all deceptive marketing and pricing tactics. It appears to have fulfilled that pledge.

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PennyTalk.com Ratings

Key Factors Rating Comments
Competitive rates

PennyTalk rates are well above prevailing industry rates. PennyTalk's base per minute rates are higher than average, but the main problem is their 49¢ connection fee which is applied to every call. For a 25 minute call, this adds 2¢ per minute to your 'real' rate. Since their per minute rates are already higher than average, this drives their 'real' rates towards the high end in the industry.

'Clean' pricing

PennyTalk has relatively clean calling cards compared to some companies, but unfortunately their 49@cent connection fee applies to every call and that's a real killer.

Card selection

PennyTalk is not a reseller and so it does not not sell lots of different cards. Instead, it sells only 1 calling card with a comprehensive rate plan for all locations it serves. This keeps things simple and we like that.

Full disclosure

PennyTalk does a good job of fully disclosing all its rates and fees. The main PennyTalk pricing are: per minute rates, a 49@cent connection fee (applies to every call), a 99@cent monthly maintenance fee, and 90@cent payphone surcharge.

Carriers

All PennyTalk calls are carried by IDT, their parent company. IDT is a well established global communications provider. We strongly prefer calling card companies that carry their own traffic - it leads to less finger pointing if something goes wrong. It also generally indicates you'll get higher call quality and reliability.

Website usability

The PennyTalk.com website is well designed and easy to use. Their rate table is pretty nifty - one of the best ways we've seen to show per minute rates. The site also provides fairly complete FAQs and other useful information for consumers.

Privacy and security

PennyTalk.com provides prominent links to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use disclosures. Neither document contains anything unusual or troubling. PennyTalk.com use SSL for secure credit card transactions.

Customer support

PennyTalk.com provides customer support via phone and email. Phone lines are open 12 hrs a day during the work week and 8 hrs a day on weekends. In test calls we've made, their support lines appear to be well manned and service reps are available without long wait times.

Access numbers

In the US, PennyTalk provides a single toll-free access number for the entire country. Unlike many other companies, there are no local access numbers. PennyTalk has an alternative toll-free access number for Spanish speakers in the US. PennyTalk also has access numbers in 30+ countries worldwide -- this is far better than most companies. Most of these numbers are toll-free national numbers. In many cases, you also have the option to dial into PennyTalk's main international access number. There are no extra charges for these calls, but you may want to check with your local provider to make sure your local carrier treats these as free calls, too.

Reputation

If you go back a year or so (2009), you will find that PennyTalk's parent company, IDT, was cited in a number of legal actions for deceptive calling card marketing and pricing practices. They appear to have since cleaned up their act and become a model citizen since then. In other words, maybe they deserve 'green' here for their current behavior, but the dicey history is recent enough that it makes us cautious.

Advanced features

Because they are an integrated operator, PennyTalk is able to offer very good advanced features - things that many resellers can't offer because they don't 'own' the entire customer relationship. In addition to solid dialing and account management features, PennyTalk also has some good mobile dialing apps for the iPhone and the Blackberry. Nothing for Android yet, as far as we know.

We'd sort of expect a company of PennyTalk's caliber to also have a PC dialing app (aka, 'softphone'), similar to what Pingo offers, but they don't seem to have one. We're not sure why - seems like a no brainer.

Return policies

PennyTalk's return policy is to refund any remaining balance in your account. This is fairly typical in the industry.

Incentives & offers

PennyTalk offers a $20 immediate credit for each friend who signs on - this is the highest of any company we know of. They also have a 'Save-o-rites' program that allows you to save 20% when you make calls from any US number you designate for the program. In other words, you add whatever numbers you usually use to make PennyTalk calls and you save 20% when you use them. PennyTalk does not offer anything in the way of first-time customer deals - no special trial offers or the like. To the contrary, they have a $25 minimum purchase, the highest we know of in the industry.

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PennyTalk.com Calling Card Review - Recap

We give PennyTalk.com a 'qualified buy' rating. Despite having some outstanding features, we find their prices too high and their service lacks some important features we'd expect to see from a player of their size and scope (e..g., PC calling app). In terms of their pricing, the real killer is their 49¢ connection fee on every call, especially if you make shorter calls. We recommend you consider some of our higher rated cards before buying PennyTalk.

Pros Cons
  • Backed by a large international telecom carrier
  • Simple one-stop pricing plan covers all destinations
  • Access numbers in 30+ countries
  • Mobile dialing app for iPhone, Blackberry
  • Live customer support
  • 49¢ connection fee is a killer
  • High per minute rates
  • Minimum purchase of $25
  • No PC dialing app
  • No special deals for first-time customers
  • Cited in numerous legal actions (though they appear reformed)
  • No shared accounts
Visit PennyTalk.com website

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Disclosure: AboutCallingCards.com recommends a small number of vendors based on in-depth company reviews and analysis. We recommend only firms that we believe deliver the best value to consumers. Read complete disclosure statement.

PennyTalk is one of the largest calling card companies according to our 2009 Alexa rankings.

Visit PennyTalk.com

PennyTalk is a calling card subsidiary of IDT, one of the largest international VoIP carriers in the world. IDT is a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. It provides local, long distance, and calling card services. In addition to PennyTalk, the company also operates another calling card business called Net2Phone.

Unlike calling card resellers (e.g., Comfi.com) which distribute cards on behalf other companies, all PennyTalk calling card minutes are carried directly by PennyTalk's parent company IDT on it's global communications network. We call this kind of calling card company an 'integrated provider'. In general, we recommend integrated providers over resellers, although you can get very good cards from either type of company. Pingo, a company we rate very highly, is another integrated provider.

PennyTalk offers a single integrated calling plan that includes pricing for all calling routes both within the United States and around the world. The PennyTalk card can be used from many locations worldwide via toll-free access numbers located in over 30 countries. The company also has mobile dialing apps for use on iPhone and Blackberry phones. The company does not offer a PC dialing app (aka 'softphone').

PennyTalk pricing is relatively clean and straightforward, but their prices are towards the high end of the industry. The main problem is that they charge a 49¢ connection fee on every call. Unless you are making only very long calls, this can easily add 1¢ to 4¢ per minute to their base rate. Since their per minute rates start off being a bit high, this extra fee really drives prices over the top.

Also of some concern is that IDT has been involved in several lawsuits against companies in the calling card industry brought by federal and state authorities in the US. These suits had to do with deceptive marketing and pricing practices. Two were settled as recently as 2009. PennyTalk seems to have mended it ways since then and become a model citizen.

Bottom line

While PennyTalk.com has some positive qualities (network, customer service), they are generally not a good value because of high rates. Their per minute rates aren't too bad, but the real kicker is the 49¢ connection fee that applies to every call. If you make short calls, then PennyTalk will not be your cheapest option. If you make longer calls (at least 30 mins, if not longer), then it could work for you, but check the rates for your destinations carefully. Overall, we give them a 'qualified buy' rating and recommend that you consider our higher rated cards.

PennyTalk.com Company Information

Company PennyTalk
Type of company integrated provider (a company that both sells and services it's calling card)
Summary PennyTalk is one of the largest calling card companies. It sells over 20 million calling cards per month. PennyTalk sells one calling card with a comprehensive rate plan that covers all locations worldwide, including call origination points from 30 countries worldwide. PennyTalk rates are not very competitive and they have a $25 minimum purchase requirement. All PennyTalk calls are carried by IDT, their parent company, which operates a global VoIP communications network.
Website www.PennyTalk.com
Phone 1-888-311-8360
Hours: M-F: 9am-9pm, S-S:8am-4pm US eastern time
Email email via their contact page
Sales channel online
Carriers represented IDT only (PennyTalk's parent company)
Other products & services
  • Smartphone dialing apps for iPhone and Blackberry
Related companies The parent company IDT operates 2 other calling card companies:
Parent Company IDT, which operates an global VoIP telephony network. IDT is well established and trades on the New York Stock Exchange. IDT has been cited repeatedly in lawsuits by US and state governments against players in the calling card industry. In settlements reached in 2009, it pledged to end all deceptive marketing and pricing tactics. It appears to have fulfilled that pledge.

* Click to learn more about VoIP internet calling

Back to top

PennyTalk.com Ratings

Key Factors Rating Comments
Competitive rates

PennyTalk rates are well above prevailing industry rates. PennyTalk's base per minute rates are higher than average, but the main problem is their 49¢ connection fee which is applied to every call. For a 25 minute call, this adds 2¢ per minute to your 'real' rate. Since their per minute rates are already higher than average, this drives their 'real' rates towards the high end in the industry.

'Clean' pricing

PennyTalk has relatively clean calling cards compared to some companies, but unfortunately their 49@cent connection fee applies to every call and that's a real killer.

Card selection

PennyTalk is not a reseller and so it does not not sell lots of different cards. Instead, it sells only 1 calling card with a comprehensive rate plan for all locations it serves. This keeps things simple and we like that.

Full disclosure

PennyTalk does a good job of fully disclosing all its rates and fees. The main PennyTalk pricing are: per minute rates, a 49@cent connection fee (applies to every call), a 99@cent monthly maintenance fee, and 90@cent payphone surcharge.

Carriers

All PennyTalk calls are carried by IDT, their parent company. IDT is a well established global communications provider. We strongly prefer calling card companies that carry their own traffic - it leads to less finger pointing if something goes wrong. It also generally indicates you'll get higher call quality and reliability.

Website usability

The PennyTalk.com website is well designed and easy to use. Their rate table is pretty nifty - one of the best ways we've seen to show per minute rates. The site also provides fairly complete FAQs and other useful information for consumers.

Privacy and security

PennyTalk.com provides prominent links to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use disclosures. Neither document contains anything unusual or troubling. PennyTalk.com use SSL for secure credit card transactions.

Customer support

PennyTalk.com provides customer support via phone and email. Phone lines are open 12 hrs a day during the work week and 8 hrs a day on weekends. In test calls we've made, their support lines appear to be well manned and service reps are available without long wait times.

Access numbers

In the US, PennyTalk provides a single toll-free access number for the entire country. Unlike many other companies, there are no local access numbers. PennyTalk has an alternative toll-free access number for Spanish speakers in the US. PennyTalk also has access numbers in 30+ countries worldwide -- this is far better than most companies. Most of these numbers are toll-free national numbers. In many cases, you also have the option to dial into PennyTalk's main international access number. There are no extra charges for these calls, but you may want to check with your local provider to make sure your local carrier treats these as free calls, too.

Reputation

If you go back a year or so (2009), you will find that PennyTalk's parent company, IDT, was cited in a number of legal actions for deceptive calling card marketing and pricing practices. They appear to have since cleaned up their act and become a model citizen since then. In other words, maybe they deserve 'green' here for their current behavior, but the dicey history is recent enough that it makes us cautious.

Advanced features

Because they are an integrated operator, PennyTalk is able to offer very good advanced features - things that many resellers can't offer because they don't 'own' the entire customer relationship. In addition to solid dialing and account management features, PennyTalk also has some good mobile dialing apps for the iPhone and the Blackberry. Nothing for Android yet, as far as we know.

We'd sort of expect a company of PennyTalk's caliber to also have a PC dialing app (aka, 'softphone'), similar to what Pingo offers, but they don't seem to have one. We're not sure why - seems like a no brainer.

Return policies

PennyTalk's return policy is to refund any remaining balance in your account. This is fairly typical in the industry.

Incentives & offers

PennyTalk offers a $20 immediate credit for each friend who signs on - this is the highest of any company we know of. They also have a 'Save-o-rites' program that allows you to save 20% when you make calls from any US number you designate for the program. In other words, you add whatever numbers you usually use to make PennyTalk calls and you save 20% when you use them. PennyTalk does not offer anything in the way of first-time customer deals - no special trial offers or the like. To the contrary, they have a $25 minimum purchase, the highest we know of in the industry.

Click here for details on how we review calling card vendors

Back to top

PennyTalk.com Calling Card Review - Recap

We give PennyTalk.com a 'qualified buy' rating. Despite having some outstanding features, we find their prices too high and their service lacks some important features we'd expect to see from a player of their size and scope (e..g., PC calling app). In terms of their pricing, the real killer is their 49¢ connection fee on every call, especially if you make shorter calls. We recommend you consider some of our higher rated cards before buying PennyTalk.

Pros Cons
  • Backed by a large international telecom carrier
  • Simple one-stop pricing plan covers all destinations
  • Access numbers in 30+ countries
  • Mobile dialing app for iPhone, Blackberry
  • Live customer support
  • 49¢ connection fee is a killer
  • High per minute rates
  • Minimum purchase of $25
  • No PC dialing app
  • No special deals for first-time customers
  • Cited in numerous legal actions (though they appear reformed)
  • No shared accounts
Visit PennyTalk.com website

Back to top

Disclosure: AboutCallingCards.com recommends a small number of vendors based on in-depth company reviews and analysis. We recommend only firms that we believe deliver the best value to consumers. Read complete disclosure statement.

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