AI receptionist pricing in 2026
AI receptionist pricing for most small businesses lands between $20 and $300 per month. AI answering service pricing depends on call volume, whether you need live human backup, and the integrations your business runs on. This guide breaks down typical ranges, the pricing models you'll see, and the hidden costs worth checking before you sign.
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Take the 60-second quiz →Pricing at a glance
| Plan tier | Typical monthly range | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Low-cost AI-only | $20–$80/mo | Solo operators and single-location teams that just need overflow + after-hours coverage. |
| Mid-range AI with booking / SMS | $80–$200/mo | Small businesses that want calendar booking, SMS follow-up, and bilingual coverage. |
| Hybrid AI + human backup | $200–$400+/mo | Professional services (legal, healthcare) or higher-value calls that need a person on escalation. |
| Higher-volume / custom | $400+/mo | Multi-location or multi-trade teams with custom integrations and dispatch logic. |
Ranges reflect published starting prices across the providers we cover. Confirm current pricing with the vendor before signing.
Typical monthly price ranges
Most listed pricing falls into four broad tiers. Where you land depends on volume, staffing model, and integrations.
Want a worked example by business type plus a quick calculator? See the AI receptionist cost guide.
- · Starting at $20–$80/mo — entry AI-only plans for solo operators and very small teams. Usually includes a single number, basic booking, and SMS.
- · From $80–$200/mo — mid-range AI receptionists with calendar integrations, bilingual support, and a more generous minute bucket.
- · From $200–$400/mo — hybrid AI + human-backup plans for professional firms (legal, healthcare, multi-provider clinics).
- · $400+/mo — higher volume, multi-site, or specialized vertical workflows with custom integrations.
AI-only vs human-backed pricing
AI-only services do the whole call themselves and are the cheapest option — listed pricing typically starts at $19–$79/mo. They make sense when calls are predictable (FAQs, basic booking, intake) and you're comfortable with an occasional handoff to voicemail or a callback queue.
Human-backed (hybrid) services keep AI on the front line but escalate to a live receptionist when the conversation gets complicated. Plans usually start around $200–$300/mo and scale by minutes or calls handled by humans. They're worth the premium for law firms, healthcare, and any business where a botched call has a high cost.
Per-minute vs flat monthly pricing
Flat monthly plans bundle a set number of minutes or calls for a predictable price. Easier to budget and usually cheaper at moderate volume.
Per-minute pricing charges per call-minute, often with a small base fee. Cheaper at very low volume — but a single after-hours spike or a long intake call can balloon the bill.
Rule of thumb: if you can estimate monthly minutes within a 30% range, a flat plan wins. If your volume is genuinely tiny and sporadic, per-minute can be fine — just confirm the overage rate.
AI answering service pricing by business type
What you'll actually pay depends on the workflows your industry needs. See the industry guides for picks and benchmarks:
- · Medical & dental practices — HIPAA-aware plans, $50–$600+/mo
- · Law firms — conflict-screened intake, $200–$500+/mo
- · Real estate — lead capture + SMS, $40–$200/mo
- · Home services — dispatch SMS + FSM, $50–$300/mo
- · Restaurants — reservations + overflow, $30–$150/mo
Real-world 2026 cost scenarios
Three realistic setups we see across the buyers who use our quiz, with worked math. Numbers are illustrative — plug your own call volume in before you commit.
25 missed calls per week outside business hours, 3 minutes average handle time. That's ~325 min/mo of AI answering.
- · Recommended tier: mid AI plan with EHR-friendly webhook.
- · Projected spend: $80–$180/mo flat, or ~$100 at $0.30/min per-minute.
- · Revenue upside: if 20% of missed calls become new patients at $400 lifetime value, ~$2,000/mo recovered.
60 intake calls per week, 5–8 min each, plus overnight overflow. ~1,700 min/mo, with 15–20% escalated to a live receptionist.
- · Recommended tier: hybrid (AI + human backup) with Clio write-back.
- · Projected spend: $350–$600/mo for the base + $150–$300 in human-handled minutes.
- · Why hybrid: one missed retainer at $5,000 pays for a full year of the upgrade.
120 calls/week during peak season with a 2-minute average — mostly quote requests, scheduling, and after-hours emergency triage. ~1,000 min/mo.
- · Recommended tier: mid AI plan with FSM (Jobber/ServiceTitan) sync + SMS.
- · Projected spend: $150–$250/mo flat, avoiding per-minute during summer spikes.
- · Trap to avoid: per-minute plans that look cheap in shoulder season and burn margin in July.
Illustrative scenarios with stated assumptions. Confirm current pricing with each provider before signing.
Starting prices across providers
| Provider | Starting price | Pricing model | Setup fee known? | Human backup? | Best fit | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodcall | Starting at $19/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Local SMBs that want a simple AI phone agent and a business number. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Dialzara | Starting at $29/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Solo operators and very small teams that want an affordable AI answering service. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Allo | Starting at $32/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Small sales and service teams that want an AI phone system with call summaries and CRM sync. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| VoiceGenie | Starting at $49/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Sales-led SMBs that want AI for both inbound qualification and outbound follow-up. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Cira | Starting at $59/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Service businesses that want a natural-sounding AI for front-line calls, texts, and web chat. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Frontdesk | Starting at $79/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | SMBs that want a single AI receptionist covering voice, SMS, chat, booking, and CRM follow-up. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Smith.ai | Starting at $95/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | Live human backup | Law firms and professional services that want human backup on every call. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| BuzzWisely | Starting at $99/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Small dental practices (especially 1–5 doctor offices) needing dental-specific calls and PMS workflows. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| MedReception AI | Starting at $199/mo | Flat monthly (verify) | Not published — verify with provider | Hybrid | Clinics and practices that need patient-friendly call handling and intake. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Jobber AI Receptionist | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Home-service businesses that want answering, booking, and request capture tied to Jobber scheduling and field-service operations. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| RingCentral AI Receptionist | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Teams already on RingCentral that want AI call handling without changing platforms. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| GoTo Connect AI Receptionist | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | SMBs that want a unified phone + AI receptionist from one vendor. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Slang AI | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Restaurants and hospitality groups that want an AI host for reservation-heavy phone calls. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Nextiva AI Receptionist | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | SMBs that want a credible, all-in-one comms platform with AI call handling. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Dentina | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Dental practices evaluating dental-specific AI voice agents. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Viva AI | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Dental practices evaluating dental-focused AI communication platforms. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Rondah AI | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Dental practices evaluating dental-specific AI phone solutions. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
| Whippy | Custom / bundled | Custom pricing | Not published — verify with provider | AI only | Teams that want a general SMS/voice automation platform rather than a dental-specific AI receptionist. | Last verified | Read review | Visit provider |
Listed pricing reflects what providers publish. Confirm current pricing with the provider before signing — usage caps, overage rates, and contract minimums are not always on the public page.
Questions to ask before choosing an AI receptionist plan
Run every shortlisted vendor through these questions in writing. Vague answers on any of them tend to become the first line-item on your next invoice.
- · What is included in the base monthly price?
- · Are calls billed by minute, call, seat, or location?
- · What happens after included minutes are used — hard cap, overage rate, or auto-upgrade?
- · Is SMS included, or billed by segment above a free tier?
- · Is calendar booking included, or a paid add-on per integration?
- · Is human backup included in the base plan or a separate tier?
- · Is there an annual contract, or is the plan month-to-month?
- · Is there a setup fee, and does it cover script build, integration testing, and porting?
Need a shortlist first? Try the AI receptionist match quiz or size the upside with the missed-call revenue calculator.
Cheapest options
Dialzara is our editorial budget pick for home services, with affordable AI answering for small teams. Jobber users should also compare Jobber AI Receptionist for native scheduling. Goodcall remains in the price table because of its published $19/mo starting price, but it is not our home-services recommendation. Confirm current pricing with each provider.
Dialzara
Solo operators and very small teams that want an affordable AI answering service.
- · Budget-friendly AI answering
- · Good fit for small home-service teams
AI virtual receptionist that answers, qualifies, and routes calls, with custom voices and scripts.
Best value options
Two reliable picks at different price points. Listed pricing below; confirm current pricing with the provider.
Frontdesk
SMBs that want a single AI receptionist covering voice, SMS, chat, booking, and CRM follow-up.
- · Predictable flat monthly pricing
- · Bilingual EN/ES
AI receptionist and multichannel front-office platform for voice, SMS, chat, CRM, booking, and follow-up.
Smith.ai
Law firms and professional services that want human backup on every call.
- · Live US-based human backup
- · Best for legal & healthcare intake
Hybrid AI + live US-based receptionists handling calls, chat, and intake for professional service firms.
FAQ
For most small businesses, an AI receptionist costs between $20 and $300 per month. Entry AI-only plans start near $20/mo, mid-range AI plans with booking and SMS sit around $80–$200/mo, and hybrid services with live human backup typically start at $200–$300/mo. Confirm current pricing with the provider before you sign.
Solo operators and very small teams usually budget $20–$80/mo for AI-only coverage. Practices and firms that need bookings, integrations, or human escalation tend to land between $150 and $400/mo. Multi-location or higher-volume operations can exceed $500/mo once overage and seat fees are included.
AI answering service pricing usually comes in three shapes: flat-rate AI plans starting at $19–$79/mo, hybrid AI + human plans starting around $199–$300/mo, and bundled phone-platform plans (RingCentral, GoTo, Nextiva) priced per seat. Always confirm current pricing, usage limits, and overage fees with the provider.
Flat monthly plans are easier to budget and usually cheaper for predictable volume. Per-minute pricing can be cheaper at very low volume, but a single after-hours spike can blow the budget. If your call volume varies week-to-week, a flat plan with a generous included-minute bucket is normally the safer choice.
A handful of providers offer free trials, but ongoing free plans are rare — every answered call has a real underlying cost (telephony, speech-to-text, LLM tokens, optional human backup). Budget-conscious teams usually start in the $20–$80/mo range.
Setup or onboarding fees, per-minute or per-call overages above included buckets, SMS volume, extra phone numbers, calendar/CRM/EHR integration add-ons, number porting, and annual-contract minimums. Ask for written pricing on each of these — and confirm current pricing with the provider.
Most AI-only vendors are month-to-month. Hybrid and platform-bundled services sometimes require an annual contract or charge an early-termination fee. Verify the cancellation terms in writing before you sign.
Not sure what you should pay for?
Pricing depends on your industry, call volume, and how much human backup you need. Start with the guide closest to your business.
- Dental AI receptionist guide →What dental practices typically pay and what to expect for the price.
- Medical AI receptionist guide →Clinic pricing ranges and where HIPAA/BAA tiers add cost.
- Jobber / home-service answering →Pricing for quote capture, dispatch, and after-hours coverage.
- AI receptionist cost benchmarks →Monthly cost ranges by business size and call volume.
- Missed-call revenue calculator →Check whether monthly cost is justified by recovered revenue.