A free fax number is almost always a number included with a paid plan and described as free, and the phrase covers three different things: a number that costs nothing beyond the plan, a number that lives on a trial and ends with it, and a free sending service that provides no number at all. Which one a search result means decides whether you can receive faxes, how long the number lasts, and what you pay from the second month. Every receiving plan in the Fax Line Index catalog includes at least one number; the plan's printed price, allowance and overage are what the number really costs.
A number included with a plan
This is what most providers mean. Fax.Plus prints one fax number included on its Basic plan at $6.99 a month with 200 pages; WestFax prints one included number on Solo at $14.99 a month with 500 pages; Documo prints one fax number and one user on Solo at $25 a month billed annually with 300 pages. The number itself carries no charge, and it stays yours for as long as the plan runs. What it costs is the plan, and what the plan costs beyond its allowance is the overage, which is why the index records those two figures beside every vendor rather than the word free.
A number on a free trial
A trial gives you a working number for a fixed period and ends on the paid plan's printed price. MyFax prints a 14-day free trial on its Home Office User plan at $12 a month; Fax.Plus prints a 30-day free trial beside each plan; Documo prints a free trial on Solo and Business. During the trial the number receives normally, which is enough to port an existing number in or to test whether a client's machine reaches you, but it is a trial and the number is only yours while the subscription that follows is paid.
A free sender with no number
FaxZero, the one free service in the catalog, provides no fax number at all. It sends up to three pages plus a cover free of charge, at most five faxes a day, and offers a paid option at $3.29 per fax by PayPal for up to 25 pages; nothing can be sent to you, because there is no line to receive on. For a single outbound form it is the cheapest route there is. For anyone who needs to receive, it is not a fax number, and the plans above are the honest answer.
Questions people ask about free fax number
Can I get a fax number for free?
A number is included free with the paid receiving plans in the index, and lives on a trial for 14 to 30 days at several vendors. A genuinely free receiving number with no plan behind it is not something the vendors in the catalog print.
Does FaxZero give you a fax number?
No. FaxZero sends only: free up to three pages, five faxes a day, or $3.29 per fax. It provides no number and cannot receive.
What happens to a trial fax number when the trial ends?
It continues on the paid plan at the printed price, or it ends with the trial if you cancel. Port a number in only once you have decided to stay.