Title: How Much Does an AI Receptionist Cost? (2026) | Keres AI
URL: https://www.keresai.com/ai-receptionist-cost
Updated: 2026-10-12
Description: AI receptionist prices for 2026, taken from each vendor’s own pricing page: entry plans from $24.95 a month, how billing works, and what 100 calls cost.
Source: https://www.keresai.com/ai-receptionist-cost (HTML). This is a Markdown copy of the page's main content for AI agents and LLM tools.

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# How much does an AI receptionist cost? 2026 prices compared

An AI receptionist costs about $25 to $100 a month on published entry plans in 2026, while live answering services start at $99 to $300 a month. Below: what each vendor charges, taken from its own pricing page, with the arithmetic for a typical month shown in full.

Written by Keres AI, which sells Remi, one of the AI receptionists below. Prices checked on October 11, 2026 on each vendor’s own pricing page. Updated October 12, 2026. [How we check and correct prices](https://www.keresai.com/editorial-policy).

AI receptionists publish entry plans from about $25 to $100 a month in 2026: Upfirst $24.95 for 30 calls, Dialzara $29 for 60 minutes, Rosie $49 for 250 minutes, Goodcall $79 for 100 callers and My AI Front Desk $99 for 200 minutes. Live answering services start higher: PATLive at $99 for 50 minutes, Ruby at $250 for 50 minutes and Smith.ai at $300 for 30 calls. Keres AI quotes Remi to your call volume: one monthly rate with included minutes, then per minute, with no per-call fees.

Source: each vendor’s pricing page, checked October 11, 2026.

## How much does an AI receptionist cost per month?

| Vendor | Who answers | How it bills | Lowest published plan | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Smith.ai | Hybrid | Per call: plans include a set number of calls, then a per-call rate. | Human receptionists from $300/mo for 30 calls ($11.50 per extra call). AI receptionist has a free tier of 25 calls/mo, then $3 per call. | [Pricing page](https://smith.ai/pricing) |
| Ruby | Human | Monthly plans with included receptionist minutes. | $250/mo for 50 receptionist minutes. | [Pricing page](https://www.ruby.com/pricing/) |
| Goodcall | AI | Per unique caller each month; no per-minute charges. | $79/mo for 100 unique callers (79¢ per extra caller). | [Pricing page](https://www.goodcall.com/pricing) |
| Rosie | AI | Monthly plans with included minutes. | $49/mo for 250 minutes. | [Pricing page](https://heyrosie.com/pricing) |
| Dialzara | AI | Monthly plans with included minutes, then per minute. | $29/mo for 60 minutes ($0.48 per extra minute). | [Pricing page](https://www.dialzara.com/pricing) |
| PATLive | Human | Per minute, with monthly plans that include minutes. | $99/mo for 50 minutes ($2.29 per extra minute); pay-as-you-go at $2.99/min. | [Pricing page](https://www.patlive.com/pricing/) |
| Abby Connect | Hybrid | Monthly plans with included minutes; AI-answered minutes count as half. | $165/mo for 50 minutes of human answering (or 100 of AI). | [Pricing page](https://www.abby.com/pricing/) |
| Upfirst | AI | Monthly plans with included calls, then per call. | $24.95/mo for 30 calls ($1.50 per extra call). | [Pricing page](https://www.upfirst.ai/pricing) |
| My AI Front Desk | AI | Monthly plan with included voice minutes, texts and chats; overage from a credit pool. | $99/mo for 200 voice minutes plus text and chat. | [Pricing page](https://www.myaifrontdesk.com/pricing) |
| AnsweringLegal | Human | Not published; packages are shown after a form is submitted. | Not published. | [Pricing page](https://www.answeringlegal.com/answering-service-pricing-plans) |
| [Keres AI (Remi)](https://www.keresai.com/agents/inbound) *(that’s us)* | AI | One monthly rate with included minutes, then per minute; no per-call fees. | Quoted to your call volume; month-to-month. | [Pricing page](https://www.keresai.com/pricing) |

“Hybrid” means people and AI answer on the same line. Prices are the lowest published plan on October 11, 2026, before taxes and any annual-billing discount. They change often; check the vendor’s page before you buy.

## How do AI receptionists bill: per minute, per call or per caller?

**Included minutes, then per minute.** Dialzara, PATLive and Keres AI charge a monthly fee that covers a set number of minutes, then a rate for each extra minute. Ruby, Rosie, Abby Connect and My AI Front Desk also sell plans with included minutes. This suits businesses with short calls, such as booking a service visit or confirming hours, because a quick call uses little of the allowance.

**Per call.** Smith.ai and Upfirst count calls, not minutes: plans include a number of calls, then a rate per extra call. This suits businesses with long calls, such as legal intake or detailed quotes, because a ten-minute call costs the same as a one-minute call.

**Per caller.** Goodcall counts unique phone numbers each month, so a customer who calls five times counts once. This suits businesses whose regular customers call back often, for example to reschedule or check on a job.

**Flat plans with an allowance.** Most plans, whatever they count, are a flat monthly fee with an allowance. The entry price only tells you what a light month costs; the overage rate decides what a busy month costs, so check both.

## What do 100 calls a month cost?

Assumptions: **100 calls a month, averaging 3 minutes (300 minutes in total), each from a different caller.** Each figure uses the vendor’s lowest published plan plus its published overage rate, and nothing else.

| Vendor | Who answers | Plan | Working | Monthly cost |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Goodcall](https://www.goodcall.com/pricing) | AI | Starter | $79 plan covers all 100 callers | **$79** |
| [My AI Front Desk](https://www.myaifrontdesk.com/pricing) | AI | Lowest monthly plan | $99 + 100 extra minutes × $0.25; Overage is drawn from credits: 25 credits per voice minute at $10 per 1,000 credits, or $0.25 a minute. | **$124** |
| [Upfirst](https://www.upfirst.ai/pricing) | AI | Starter | $24.95 + 70 extra calls × $1.50 | **$129.95** |
| [Dialzara](https://www.dialzara.com/pricing) | AI | Business Lite | $29 + 240 extra minutes × $0.48 | **$144.20** |
| [Smith.ai (AI receptionist)](https://smith.ai/pricing) | AI | Free tier | $0 + 75 extra calls × $3 | **$225** |
| [PATLive](https://www.patlive.com/pricing/) | Human | 50-minute plan | $99 + 250 extra minutes × $2.29; PATLive adds government taxes and fees on top. | **$671.50** |
| [Smith.ai (human receptionists)](https://smith.ai/pricing) | Human | Starter | $300 + 70 extra calls × $11.50 | **$1,105** |

**Higher tiers lower the unit rate.** These figures use each vendor’s entry plan. At 100 calls a month, a larger plan from the same vendor can cost less than the entry plan plus overage, so check the vendor’s page for the tier that fits your volume.

**Left out:** Ruby, Rosie and Abby Connect, whose pricing pages do not publish a rate past the plan; AnsweringLegal, which does not publish prices; and Keres AI, which quotes Remi to your volume. Change the assumptions and the order changes: see the worked example on the [Goodcall alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/goodcall-alternative) page for repeat callers and one-minute calls.

## Is an AI receptionist cheaper than an answering service?

On published prices, usually yes. In the 100-call example, the AI plans come to $79 to $225 a month, while the live plans that publish overage rates come to $671.50 (PATLive) and $1,105 (Smith.ai human receptionists). Entry prices tell the same story: paid AI plans start at $24.95, live plans at $99 (PATLive, 50 minutes) to $300 (Smith.ai, 30 calls).

What you get differs. A live service puts a person on the call, which helps with upset callers, unusual requests and callers who refuse to talk to AI. An AI receptionist follows your script the same way on every call and can book into your calendar during the call. If a human on every call matters to you, the price gap is the cost of that. Compare live, hybrid and AI options on the [best AI receptionists](https://www.keresai.com/best-ai-receptionist) page.

## Is an AI receptionist cheaper than hiring a receptionist?

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the national median wage for receptionists and information clerks (SOC 43-4171) at **$38,010 a year, or $18.27 an hour**, in its May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics ([BLS OEWS, 43-4171](https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes434171.htm)). That is about $3,168 a month in wages alone, before payroll taxes, benefits and paid time off, for roughly 40 of the week’s 168 hours.

Published AI receptionist plans start under $100 a month and answer around the clock. But a receptionist does more than answer the phone: greeting visitors, handling paperwork, and judgment calls an AI should not make. For many small businesses the choice is not either-or; an AI receptionist covers after-hours, overflow and lunch breaks while staff handle the front desk.

## How does Keres AI price Remi?

Remi by Keres AI is billed as one monthly rate that includes a set number of minutes, then a per-minute rate after that, with no per-call fees. Keres AI does not publish a Remi price, because the right number of included minutes depends on how many calls you get and how long they run. Tell Keres AI roughly what your busiest month looks like, and you get all three numbers on a 30-minute call.

- **A monthly rate with included minutes**, quoted to your call volume.
- **Per minute after the included minutes**, at the rate in your quote.
- **No per-call fees**. Your quote sizes the included minutes to your busy season.
- **Month-to-month**, with no long contract; cancel with 30 days’ written notice.

Keres AI also sells Found, which builds and runs your website and Google Business Profile and asks customers for reviews, from $249 a month ($499 for law firms). See [pricing](https://www.keresai.com/pricing), [how Remi works](https://www.keresai.com/agents/inbound), or [hear Remi answer a call](https://www.keresai.com/hear-it).

## AI receptionist cost FAQ

### How much does an AI receptionist cost per month?

As of October 11, 2026, published entry plans run from $24.95 a month (Upfirst, 30 calls) to $99 a month (My AI Front Desk, 200 voice minutes), and Smith.ai’s AI receptionist has a free tier of 25 calls a month. What you actually pay depends on your call volume and on whether the plan counts minutes, calls or callers.

### Is per-minute or per-call billing cheaper?

Per-minute billing is cheaper when calls are short. Per-call billing is cheaper when calls are long, because a ten-minute call costs the same as a one-minute call. Per-caller billing, which Goodcall uses, is cheaper when the same people call several times a month.

### What is the cheapest AI receptionist?

On published prices, Smith.ai’s AI receptionist is free for up to 25 calls a month, then $3 per call. The lowest paid plans are Upfirst at $24.95 for 30 calls and Dialzara at $29 for 60 minutes. At 100 calls a month averaging three minutes from 100 different callers, Goodcall’s $79 Starter plan was the lowest of the plans that publish an overage rate.

### Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human receptionist?

In wages alone, yes. The BLS puts the May 2025 national median wage for receptionists and information clerks at $38,010 a year ($18.27 an hour), before payroll taxes and benefits, for about 40 hours of coverage a week. Published AI plans start under $100 a month. A receptionist also does work an AI receptionist does not, such as greeting visitors.

### How much does Keres AI charge for Remi?

Keres AI quotes Remi to your call volume: a monthly rate with included minutes, then per minute, with no per-call fees, month-to-month. Found, which runs your website and Google Business Profile, is from $249 a month ($499 for law firms).

### Why are Ruby, Rosie and Abby Connect missing from the 100-call example?

Their pricing pages list an entry plan but not the rate charged past it, so the cost of 100 calls cannot be worked out from published figures. We left them out rather than guess. AnsweringLegal does not publish prices at all.

## Related comparisons

- [Best AI receptionists for small businesses (2026)](https://www.keresai.com/best-ai-receptionist)
- [Smith.ai alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/smith-ai-alternative)
- [Ruby alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/ruby-alternative)
- [Goodcall alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/goodcall-alternative)
- [Rosie alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/rosie-alternative)
- [AnsweringLegal alternatives](https://www.keresai.com/answering-legal-alternative)
- [All comparisons](https://www.keresai.com/compare)