Call routing and queues (ACD) explained
What call routing does
Call routing, often called ACD (automatic call distribution), decides who answers each incoming call. At its simplest it rings a group of phones. In a call center it holds callers in a queue and gives each one to the best available agent.
Common routing methods
- Ring all. Every phone in the group rings; the first to answer takes the call.
- Round robin and longest idle. Calls are spread evenly or sent to whoever has waited longest.
- Skills-based. Callers go to agents with the right language or product skills.
- Priority and VIP routing. Important callers, often identified from the CRM, jump the queue or go to a named owner.
- Time- and number-based. Different rules by opening hours, holiday or the number that was dialled.
Fallbacks matter
Decide what happens when nobody answers: overflow to another team, voicemail, or an offer of a callback so the caller keeps their place without waiting on the line. Callbacks help service level because the caller is no longer counted as waiting.
What to look for
- The number of queues and ring groups allowed on your plan.
- Skills and priority if your callers need different expertise.
- Overflow rules and queue callback.
- Real-time views so a supervisor can see waiting callers and move agents.
Routing only works if you have enough agents. Use the Erlang C calculator to size the team, and the shrinkage calculator to turn that into a schedule.
Which apps list call routing and queues
From each provider's own pricing page. “Check” means the page doesn't say, or we haven't verified that app yet.
| App | Status | What the provider says |
|---|---|---|
| CallHippo | Some plans | Business-hours routing on Basic, cascading routing on Professional, smart DID, holiday and CRM routing on Ultimate. |
| CloudTalk | Included | Routing, queues and skills on every plan (Lite has one ring group). |
| JustCall | Some plans | Intelligent routing and queue callback from Pro. |
| KrispCall | Check | Not verified yet. |
| PhoneBurner | Some plans | Smart lead distribution on every plan; custom inbound routing on Premium only. |
| Quo | Some plans | Group calling, transfers and ring order from Business; Starter has basic forwarding. |
| Readymode | Check | Not listed on the pricing page. |
FAQ
What is the difference between a ring group and a queue?
A ring group rings several phones at once or in turn, and unanswered calls usually go to voicemail. A queue holds callers in order and hands each one to the next free agent, with hold music and messages while they wait.
What is skills-based routing?
Routing that matches a caller to the agent best able to help, using skills such as language or product knowledge, instead of just the next free agent.