How Much Does an AI Receptionist Cost in 2026?
Real published prices for 10 AI receptionists at three monthly volumes, and what the same coverage costs with a human receptionist.
By , research by the BestBots team · Updated Oct 18, 2026
Fact checked against each company's published pricing, documentation and verified user ratings. How we score
An AI receptionist costs $24.95 to $449 a month as listed in October 2026. For about 200 calls or minutes a month, most small businesses pay $49 to $160. That is roughly a twentieth of one full time human receptionist, who costs about $3,167 a month at the BLS median wage of $18.27 an hour.
The rest of this page shows the math, plan by plan, from each vendor's own pricing page. Run your own volume in the cost calculator, and see monthly rate changes in the AI Price Index.
Cost by monthly volume
Each cell is the cheapest published plan that covers the volume, on monthly billing, including overage at the listed rate. Per call tools are priced at that many calls, per minute tools at that many minutes.
| Tool | Billing unit | 200 | 500 | 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upfirst | Per call | $159.95 | $299 | $579 |
| Smith.ai | Per call | $385 | $800 | $1,850 or custom quote |
| Quo Sona | Per call plus $19 seat | $118 | $218 | $398 |
| Goodcall | Per unique caller | $129 | $129 | $259 |
| Rosie | Per minute | $49 | $149 | $149 |
| Dialzara | Per minute | $96.20 | $199 | $349 |
| My AI Front Desk | Per minute | $99 | $164 | $289 |
| RingCentral AI Receptionist | Per minute | $99 | $249 | $499 |
| Abby Connect | AI minutes | $329 | about $749 | $1,380 |
| Sameday AI | Per minute | $449 | $449 | $789 |
How the harder cells were built:
- Smith.ai at 200 calls: Pro 150 tier ($270) plus 50 calls at $2.30. At 1,000 calls: the $800 Enterprise 500 tier plus 500 calls at $2.10, or ask for its custom 1,000+ quote.
- Upfirst at 1,000 calls: Scale ($299 for 600) plus 400 calls at $0.70. A custom plan above 600 calls may come in lower.
- Quo Sona: one $19 Starter seat plus the Sona tier ($99 for 250 calls, $199 for 600, plus 400 calls at $0.45 for 1,000).
- Goodcall: counts unique callers, not calls. 1,000 unique callers on Growth is $129 plus 500 at $0.26.
- My AI Front Desk: 200 included minutes plus a 1,000 credit pool (about 40 minutes), then $0.25 per minute.
- RingCentral: $49 for 100 minutes, then $0.50 per minute.
- Abby Connect: an AI minute uses half an Abby Minute. 500 AI minutes is the Professional plan (400 AI minutes, $599) plus 100 AI minutes at the plan rate.
- Rosie and Sameday: neither publishes an overage rate, so we priced the plan that covers the volume outright.
Calls vs minutes
A call and a minute are not the same unit, and this is where most cost comparisons go wrong. If your average call runs 3 minutes, 200 calls is 600 minutes. At that length, Rosie's 1,000 minute Scale plan ($149) covers about 333 calls, while Upfirst's 300 call Pro plan ($159.95) covers 300 calls whatever their length.
The rule of thumb: short calls (hours, directions, quick bookings) favor per minute plans. Long calls (legal intake, quotes, troubleshooting) favor per call plans, or Goodcall's per caller billing, which never meters minutes. Pull last month's call log from your phone provider, divide total minutes by total calls, and you have the number that decides it.
Human receptionist comparison
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median hourly wage for receptionists at $18.27 in May 2025, or $38,010 a year (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). That works out as follows, in wages only, before payroll taxes, benefits, training and turnover:
| Coverage | Hours | Wage cost |
|---|---|---|
| One full time receptionist | 40 hours a week | about $3,167 a month |
| Coverage around the clock | 168 hours a week | about $13,300 a month |
Even the most expensive AI plan in the table above, Abby Connect at 1,000 AI minutes for $1,380, costs well under half of one full time wage, and every AI tool here answers 24 hours a day and handles more than one call at a time. The human still does things AI does not: greets walk ins, handles upset callers, does admin work between calls. The fair comparison is AI against the share of a receptionist's day spent on the phone, or against a live answering service, covered in AI receptionist vs answering service.
Hidden costs to check
- Unpublished overage. Rosie and Sameday do not list a rate past the plan.
- Seat fees. Quo bills a phone seat per user on top of Sona calls.
- Human escalation. Smith.ai bills live receptionist handoffs per call when you or the caller request them.
- Add ons. Rosie website texting is $50 a month; Dialzara's SMS agent and web chat are free with a voice plan.
- Feature gates. Rosie books directly into a calendar only from the $149 plan.
- Annual terms. Upfirst and My AI Front Desk take 20% off for annual billing; read the cancellation terms first.
Bottom line
For most small businesses, budget $50 to $160 a month for 200 calls or minutes on a pure AI plan, $300 to $450 if you want a human hybrid or trade software integrations, and compare every option at your real call length. Our ranked picks are in best AI receptionists.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost per month?
As listed in October 2026, entry plans cost $24.95 to $449 a month. A small office taking about 200 calls or minutes a month pays $49 to $160 on most pure AI plans, and $329 to $449 on hybrid or trade specialist plans.
How much does an AI receptionist cost per call?
Per call pricing runs from $0.45 (Quo Sona at 600 calls) and $0.70 (Upfirst Scale overage) to $3.00 (Smith.ai free plan overage). Per minute tools work out cheaper per call only when your calls are short.
Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human receptionist?
Yes, by a wide margin for most small businesses. The BLS median wage for receptionists was $18.27 an hour in May 2025, about $3,167 a month for one full time person before taxes and benefits, and that covers 40 hours a week. The most expensive plan in our 500 minute table costs about $749.
Are there hidden fees?
Watch for overage rates that are not published (Rosie, Sameday), per user seat fees on top of AI calls (Quo), live agent escalation billed per call (Smith.ai), and add ons such as website texting ($50 a month at Rosie). Most tools here list no setup fee.
Is a free AI receptionist any good?
Smith.ai's free plan covers 25 real calls a month with booking, recording and transcripts, then $3.00 per call. Quo includes 10 Sona calls with a paid phone seat. Beyond that volume, free plans get expensive fast.