Title: What Is IVR? Interactive Voice Response | Keres AI URL: https://www.keresai.com/glossary/ivr Updated: 2026-10-12 Description: IVR (interactive voice response) is the automated phone menu that routes callers by keypad or voice. How it works, what it costs, and IVR vs AI receptionists. Source: https://www.keresai.com/glossary/ivr (HTML). This is a Markdown copy of the page's main content for AI agents and LLM tools. --- # What is IVR? IVR (interactive voice response) is an automated phone system that greets callers with a recorded menu and routes them by keypad presses or short spoken answers, such as “press 1 for sales.” It directs calls well but cannot hold an open conversation or book an appointment by itself. ## How does IVR work? A typical IVR call runs like this: 1. The call reaches your phone system and plays a recorded greeting. 2. The caller hears a menu and presses a key or says a short phrase. 3. The system matches that input to a rule you configured: a department, an extension, a voicemail box or a recorded message such as your hours. 4. Deeper menus repeat the process until the call reaches a destination. 5. If nobody is free at the destination, the caller waits on hold or leaves a voicemail. Some IVR systems also look up account data, such as an order status, when they are connected to a database. Speech-enabled IVR accepts spoken words, but only the options its menu expects. ## IVR vs AI receptionist IVR routes; an [AI receptionist](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/ai-receptionist) resolves. With IVR the caller does the sorting, and there still has to be a person at the end to book the job. An AI receptionist uses [conversational AI](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/conversational-ai) to understand the request in the caller’s own words, asks your intake questions, and books the appointment on the same call. IVR still makes sense for large organizations with many departments and callers who already know which one they want. For a small business with one front desk, a menu mostly adds steps before the caller reaches the same voicemail. ## What does IVR cost? Basic auto-attendant menus are often included in business phone and VoIP plans, while contact-center IVR is priced by its vendor per seat or per minute. The larger cost is what happens after the menu: if nobody picks up, the call is still missed. AI receptionists are usually billed as a monthly rate with included minutes. See [how much an AI receptionist costs](https://www.keresai.com/ai-receptionist-cost) and [Keres AI pricing](https://www.keresai.com/pricing). ## How does Keres AI handle it? Keres AI does not put callers in a menu. [Remi](https://www.keresai.com/agents/inbound) answers in two rings, 24/7, asks the caller what they need, asks your intake questions, and books into Google Calendar, HubSpot or ServiceTitan. Calls that need a person are escalated by your rules, and calls Remi couldn’t take get a text back within 60 seconds. You can also keep an existing menu and forward one option, or your after-hours calls, to Remi. Remi answers in English today. See the product behind this concept ### Want to see IVR working in practice? See how Keres puts it to work for your vertical and workflow. ### [AI Receptionist](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/ai-receptionist) An AI receptionist is software that answers your business phone automatically, 24/7. The software greets callers in a na… ### [Conversational AI](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/conversational-ai) Conversational AI is software that understands what a person says or types in their own words and replies in natural lan… ### [Call Routing](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/call-routing) Call routing is the set of rules that decides where an inbound call goes: to a person, team, location, queue or voicemai… ### [Call Overflow Handling](https://www.keresai.com/glossary/call-overflow) Call overflow handling sends calls your team can’t pick up, because every line is busy or nobody answers within a few ri… [← Back to the full glossary](https://www.keresai.com/glossary) ## IVR — FAQ ### Is IVR the same as an AI receptionist? No. IVR plays a menu and routes the call based on a key press or short phrase. An AI receptionist holds a conversation, asks your intake questions and books the appointment during the call. ### What is the difference between IVR and an auto attendant? The terms overlap. An auto attendant usually means a simple menu that transfers calls to extensions; IVR can also take spoken input and look up information, such as an account balance, before routing the call. ### Why do callers dislike IVR menus? Menus make the caller do the sorting, and a wrong choice can mean starting over or landing in voicemail. Callers with an urgent problem may press zero or hang up instead. ### Can I replace my IVR with an AI receptionist? Yes. You forward your number, or one menu option, to an AI receptionist, which answers in natural language, handles routine requests and routes only the calls that need a person. Last updated October 12, 2026 · [Reviewed by the Keres AI team](https://www.keresai.com/editorial-policy)