How much does an AI receptionist cost? The four things you pay for
A clear breakdown of what goes into the cost of an AI receptionist or AI voice agent - setup, telephony, AI usage and support - and how to work out whether it pays back.
By Muthuraman ·
Prices for AI receptionists vary widely because sellers bundle different things. Whatever the headline number, you are paying for four things.
1. Setup
Designing the conversation, connecting your calendar or booking system, writing and testing the answers, and running test calls. This is a one-time cost and depends on how many things the agent must do and how many systems it touches. An agent that only books appointments is much simpler than one that also handles payments and several departments.
2. Telephony
Calls travel over a phone provider, which charges per minute, plus a small monthly fee for the number. Rates differ by country. Keeping your existing number, by forwarding calls, is usually possible.
3. AI usage
The speech and language models are paid for by use, generally per minute of conversation. A short booking call costs little. Long, complicated calls cost more.
4. Support
Someone needs to watch for failures, update answers when your prices or hours change, and review calls the agent could not handle. This is usually a monthly fee.
Per-minute plans versus a custom build
Off-the-shelf services charge a monthly fee with a bundle of minutes. They are quick to start and fine for simple needs. A custom build costs more up front but connects properly to your systems, follows your rules and runs in your own accounts.
Working out whether it pays back
Start with missed calls, not minutes.
- How many calls do you miss each week? Your phone provider can tell you.
- How many of those would have become a booking or a sale?
- What is one booking worth?
Missed calls a week, times the share that would convert, times the value of a booking, times 52, is what unanswered calls cost you a year. Add the front-desk hours spent on routine calls. Compare that with setup plus a year of running costs.
Questions to ask any provider
- Is the per-minute cost included or billed separately?
- Which languages are included?
- Does it connect to my actual calendar, or just take messages?
- What happens to calls it cannot handle?
- Does it tell callers it is an AI?
- Who owns the phone number, the recordings and the setup?
We give every client a fixed quote after a free call, and every quote includes an estimate of running costs. See the AI voice agents service, or book a free call.