AI Receptionist Cost in 2026: Real Prices Compared
An AI receptionist costs about $25 to $350 a month on published self-serve plans: Upfirst from $24.95, Dialzara from $29, Rosie from $49, Goodcall from $79 and My AI Front Desk from $99, per their pricing pages checked October 5, 2026. Services with humans behind them cost more: Ruby from $250 and Smith.ai from $300 a month. A full-time receptionist costs about $3,168 a month in wages alone at the US median. Built-for-you receptionists are quoted as a set package price.
Last checked October 5, 2026. Every price is from the vendor's own pricing page, linked below. Modern Mustard Seed wrote this guide and is one of the options in it.
What each one charges
| Option | From | Plans | Metered by |
|---|---|---|---|
| UpfirstAI receptionist | $24.95 a month | Starter $24.95 (30 calls), Premium $59.95 (90 calls), Pro $159.95 (300 calls), Scale $299 (600 calls) a month. Billed annually: $20, $48, $128 and $240 a month. Custom above 600 calls.
| Calls. Overage $1.50 a call on Starter, down to $0.70 on Scale. |
| DialzaraAI receptionist | $29 a month | Business Lite $29 (60 minutes), Business Pro $99 (220 minutes), Business Plus $199 (500 minutes), Business Elite $349 (1,000 minutes) a month.
| Minutes. Overage $0.48 a minute on Lite, down to $0.35 on Elite. |
| RosieAI receptionist | $49 a month | Professional $49 (250 minutes), Scale $149 (1,000 minutes), Growth $299 (2,000 minutes) a month.
| Minutes. |
| GoodcallAI receptionist | $79 a month | Starter $79, Growth $129, Scale $249 a month per agent. Billed annually: $66, $108 and $208. Enterprise by quote.
| Unique customers: 100, 250 or 500 a month, then $0.50 per extra customer. Goodcall states it does not charge for calls, call minutes or tokens. |
| My AI Front DeskAI receptionist | $99 a month ($79 billed annually) | Business-in-a-Box $99 a month, or $79 a month billed annually, with 200 voice minutes. Partner and Enterprise by quote.
| Minutes, then prepaid credits at $10 per 1,000. |
| Smith.aiAI or human, same price | $300 a month | Starter $300 (30 calls), Basic $810 (90 calls), Pro $2,100 (300 calls) a month. Enterprise custom. The same prices apply to its AI-first and human-first options.
| Calls. Overage $11.50 a call on Starter, $10.50 on Basic, $8.50 on Pro. |
| RubyLive human receptionists | $250 a month | $250 (50 minutes), $395 (100 minutes), $720 (200 minutes), $1,725 (500 minutes) a month.
| Minutes of live receptionist time. |
| AvocaAI receptionist | Quote only | Quote only. Avoca publishes no prices; it offers a 20-minute demo.
| Not published. |
| Modern Mustard SeedThis is us | Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call | Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call. Built around one business, tested, and handed over; you own the configuration and the accounts.
| Set out in the written scope before any work starts. |
AI receptionist
Upfirst
From $24.95 a month
Starter $24.95 (30 calls), Premium $59.95 (90 calls), Pro $159.95 (300 calls), Scale $299 (600 calls) a month. Billed annually: $20, $48, $128 and $240 a month. Custom above 600 calls.
Metered by: Calls. Overage $1.50 a call on Starter, down to $0.70 on Scale.
- Appointment scheduling, call transfers and 35+ languages listed on every plan.
- Business Associate Agreements for HIPAA are listed on the Custom plan.
AI receptionist
Dialzara
From $29 a month
Business Lite $29 (60 minutes), Business Pro $99 (220 minutes), Business Plus $199 (500 minutes), Business Elite $349 (1,000 minutes) a month.
Metered by: Minutes. Overage $0.48 a minute on Lite, down to $0.35 on Elite.
- Appointment booking and calendar integration listed from the Lite plan up.
AI receptionist
Rosie
From $49 a month
Professional $49 (250 minutes), Scale $149 (1,000 minutes), Growth $299 (2,000 minutes) a month.
Metered by: Minutes.
- English and Spanish on every call, on every plan.
- Booking straight onto your calendar is listed on Scale and Growth; Professional sends appointment links by text.
AI receptionist
Goodcall
From $79 a month
Starter $79, Growth $129, Scale $249 a month per agent. Billed annually: $66, $108 and $208. Enterprise by quote.
Metered by: Unique customers: 100, 250 or 500 a month, then $0.50 per extra customer. Goodcall states it does not charge for calls, call minutes or tokens.
- Logic flows for custom call handling: 1 on Starter, 3 on Growth, 25 on Scale.
AI receptionist
My AI Front Desk
From $99 a month ($79 billed annually)
Business-in-a-Box $99 a month, or $79 a month billed annually, with 200 voice minutes. Partner and Enterprise by quote.
Metered by: Minutes, then prepaid credits at $10 per 1,000.
- Bundles chatbot conversations, SMS and a 20-page knowledge base with the phone agent.
AI or human, same price
Smith.ai
From $300 a month
Starter $300 (30 calls), Basic $810 (90 calls), Pro $2,100 (300 calls) a month. Enterprise custom. The same prices apply to its AI-first and human-first options.
Metered by: Calls. Overage $11.50 a call on Starter, $10.50 on Basic, $8.50 on Pro.
- Add-ons per call: appointment booking $1.50, a dedicated Spanish line $1.00.
Live human receptionists
Ruby
From $250 a month
$250 (50 minutes), $395 (100 minutes), $720 (200 minutes), $1,725 (500 minutes) a month.
Metered by: Minutes of live receptionist time.
- 24/7 Spanish and bilingual call handling listed on every plan.
- No setup, onboarding or customization fees, per the pricing page.
AI receptionist
Avoca
From Quote only
Quote only. Avoca publishes no prices; it offers a 20-minute demo.
Metered by: Not published.
- Built for home service companies; a certified ServiceTitan app.
This is us
Modern Mustard Seed
From Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call
Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call. Built around one business, tested, and handed over; you own the configuration and the accounts.
Metered by: Set out in the written scope before any work starts.
- Changes to what we built are included.
- Not self-serve: it starts with a discovery call and a written scope.
Prices change. Check each source before you buy.
Hire, outsource, or automate
In-house receptionist
About $3,168/mo
US median pay for receptionists was $38,010 a year in May 2025 (BLS). That is wages only, before payroll taxes and benefits, for business hours, with lunches, sick days and nights uncovered.
Virtual receptionist service
$250 to $2,100/mo
Ruby charges for live minutes ($250 for 50 up to $1,725 for 500). Smith.ai charges by the call ($300 for 30 up to $2,100 for 300) with booking at $1.50 a call. You get people, metered.
AI receptionist
$25 to $350/mo
Published self-serve plans from Upfirst, Dialzara, Rosie, Goodcall and My AI Front Desk. Answers every call at once, day and night. You set it up, or have one built for you at a set package price.
When a person is still the right hire
Hire a person when the front desk does more than answer the phone: greeting walk-ins, handling payments, calming an upset patient, or making judgment calls a script cannot. Many offices run both: a person in the building, and an AI receptionist for overflow, lunch and after hours.
AI receptionists under $100 a month
The lowest entry price is only lowest at low volume. Price your busiest month, with overage, before you choose.
What drives the price
What the meter counts
Plans charge by minutes (Dialzara, Rosie, Ruby), by calls (Upfirst, Smith.ai) or by unique customers (Goodcall, which states it does not charge for calls or minutes). Long calls favor a per-call plan; many short calls favor a per-minute plan; repeat callers favor a per-customer plan.
Booking into your calendar
Booking is the feature that turns a call into a job. Some plans include it; others gate or charge for it. Rosie lists calendar booking on Scale and Growth, and Smith.ai charges $1.50 a call to book an appointment.
After-hours coverage
AI receptionists answer around the clock on every published plan we checked. A human receptionist covers business hours unless you pay for more people or an answering service on top.
Spanish and other languages
Rosie answers in English and Spanish on every plan, Upfirst lists 35+ languages, Ruby lists 24/7 Spanish and bilingual handling, and Smith.ai charges $1.00 a call for a dedicated Spanish line.
Script customization
How far the agent can be shaped to your business is often a plan limit: Rosie allows 2, 5 or unlimited message-taking scenarios by plan, and Goodcall allows 1, 3 or 25 logic flows. A built-for-you receptionist is scripted around your services, prices and booking rules from the start.
AI receptionist cost for a dental office
A dental office pays the same published plan prices as anyone, so the table above is the starting point. The deciding question is not price: patient details on a call are protected health information, so use only a vendor that will sign a Business Associate Agreement. Upfirst lists BAAs on its Custom plan. Get it in writing from any vendor before the line goes live.
Most practices keep a person at the front desk and use AI for the lunch hour, after hours and the overflow when the desk is checking someone out. See how we build for health practices.
AI receptionist cost for a restaurant
Restaurants get many short calls at the same time: hours, directions, reservations, is the patio open. That pattern makes the meter matter more than the sticker price. A per-minute plan suits short calls; a per-call plan gets expensive on a Friday night; a per-customer plan suits regulars who call often.
Whatever you choose, make sure it answers several calls at once, so nobody hears a busy signal at 6 pm. See how we build for restaurants.
Does it pay for itself?
Put in your own numbers. Nothing is filled in for you, because nobody else knows what your calls are worth.
Enter all four numbers to see what answered calls are worth and how fast the receptionist pays for itself.
Assumes each missed call would have been answered and that a month has 4.33 weeks. Your own records give the truest inputs.
Built for you instead of set up by you
The self-serve plans above are the right call when you will configure and maintain the agent yourself. We build the receptionist for you, around your services, service area, prices and booking rules, test it on real calls and hand it over, and changes to what we built are included. Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call.
Cost questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost?
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Self-serve AI receptionists run from about $25 to $350 a month on published plans: Upfirst from $24.95, Dialzara from $29, Rosie from $49, Goodcall from $79 and My AI Front Desk from $99, per their pricing pages checked October 5, 2026. Services with humans behind them start higher: Ruby from $250 and Smith.ai from $300 a month. Built-for-you receptionists such as Modern Mustard Seed are quoted as a set package price.
Is there an AI receptionist under $100 a month?
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Yes. Published plans under $100 a month include Upfirst Starter at $24.95 (30 calls) and Premium at $59.95 (90 calls), Dialzara Business Lite at $29 (60 minutes), Rosie Professional at $49 (250 minutes), Goodcall Starter at $79 per agent, and My AI Front Desk at $79 a month billed annually. Check what the meter counts: calls, minutes or unique customers.
What is the cheapest AI receptionist?
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On published monthly prices checked October 5, 2026, Upfirst Starter at $24.95 a month for 30 calls is the lowest entry price, followed by Dialzara Business Lite at $29 for 60 minutes. The cheapest plan is only cheapest at low volume; overage fees decide the real cost once calls pick up.
How much does an AI receptionist cost compared with hiring a receptionist?
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The median annual pay for receptionists in the US was $38,010 in May 2025, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is about $3,168 a month in wages alone, before payroll taxes and benefits, for one person covering business hours. Published AI receptionist plans run about $25 to $350 a month and answer around the clock. A person still wins on judgment, in-office tasks and sensitive conversations.
How much does a virtual receptionist cost compared with AI?
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Live virtual receptionist services charge for human time: Ruby runs $250 a month for 50 minutes up to $1,725 for 500 minutes, and Smith.ai $300 a month for 30 calls up to $2,100 for 300 calls. AI receptionists on published plans run about $25 to $350 a month for far more minutes or calls. Pay for humans when callers need one; use AI when volume, after-hours coverage and booking matter more.
How much does an AI receptionist cost for a dental office?
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Dental offices pay the same published plan prices as any business, but should only use a vendor that will sign a Business Associate Agreement for HIPAA. Upfirst lists BAAs on its Custom plan. Ask every vendor, in writing, before patient information touches the line.
What is the payback period for an AI receptionist?
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Payback depends on three numbers only you know: how many calls you miss a week, how many of those become jobs, and what a job is worth. Divide the monthly cost by the revenue those recovered calls bring in. The calculator on this page does the math with your numbers.
Can I customize an AI receptionist script?
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Yes, and plans differ in how much. Rosie allows 2 message-taking scenarios on Professional, 5 on Scale and unlimited on Growth. Goodcall allows 1 logic flow on Starter, 3 on Growth and 25 on Scale. A built-for-you receptionist is scripted around your services, service area, prices and booking rules from the start.
Does AI receptionist pricing include Spanish?
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It varies. Rosie answers in English and Spanish on every plan, Upfirst lists 35+ languages, Ruby lists 24/7 Spanish and bilingual handling on every plan, and Smith.ai charges $1.00 a call for a dedicated Spanish line.
How much does Modern Mustard Seed charge for an AI receptionist?
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Set package price, quoted after a free discovery call. The receptionist is built around your business and handed over, and changes to what we built are included.
Sources and method
Modern Mustard Seed wrote this guide and is one of the options in it. Every price for another company was read from that company's own pricing page on October 5, 2026. Where a company publishes no price, the table says so.