Do AI receptionists require contracts?

Most AI receptionist providers offer month-to-month service without long-term contracts, allowing businesses to test services and switch providers if unsatisfied. Some providers offer discounts for annual commitments. Handshake charges $199 monthly or $1,999 annually (saving approximately $400).

Are there free AI receptionist services?

No truly free AI receptionist services exist for business use, though many providers offer free trials ranging from 7 to 14 days.

Do costs increase with more phone lines?

AI receptionist costs typically don't increase directly with simultaneous calls since the AI handles unlimited concurrent conversations. However, you may pay for additional phone numbers if you need multiple local numbers or toll-free lines. Costs increase with total call volume regardless of phone lines used.

Are international calls included?

International call handling depends on the specific provider. Most AI receptionists can receive calls from international numbers without additional charges, though toll-free calls from international callers may incur higher costs. Outbound international calling, if supported, typically costs extra. Check with your provider regarding international calling capabilities and fees.

AI Receptionist Pricing Calculator: What Will You Actually Pay?

THE SHORT ANSWER

AI receptionist pricing
at the same workload.

One location. Monthly billing. FAQs, lead capture, live transfers and direct calendar booking. Every amount is modeled from the dated source dataset.

At 250 calls lasting two minutes each, the eight offers in this panel with all four tasks documented range from $129.00 to $500.00 per month. Your call length, repeat callers and phone setup can change the result. This is a panel range, not a market average.

Research: GetVoIP Research · Editorial lead: Reuben Yonatan
Pricing snapshot: October 28, 2026 · Research release 2.0 · Published-price analysis; no hands-on testing

Provider	50 calls / month	250 calls / month	500 calls / month	Billing unit
Nextiva XBert AI	$99.00	$247.50	$495.00	Session
RingCentral AIR	$49.00	$249.00	$499.00	Minute
Quo SonaBooking link; not direct booking	$51.50	$118.00	$218.00	Call
Reception.ai by ElevenLabs	$39.00	$151.00	$199.00	Minute / credit
Newo.ai	$87.50	$374.00	$749.00	3-minute unit
Smith.ai	$75.00	$500.00	$800.00	Call
Goodcall	$79.00	$129.00	$129.00	Unique caller
Rosie	$149.00	$149.00	$149.00	Minute bundle
Upfirst	$54.95	$159.95	$299.00	Call

Fixed benchmark: two minutes per call, every caller unique, existing phone system, one Quo seat where required. Existing phone bills, taxes, external calendars and unpriced carrier fees excluded. Amounts are estimates, not observed invoices. Read the calculation rules.

Starting price vs. the price for the required tasks

An entry price is not a quote for this workload. The feature-qualified baseline below is before additional usage; free tiers and pay-as-you-go offers are shown as such.

Provider	Published entry price	Feature-qualified baseline / limitation
Nextiva XBert AI	$99100 sessions	Same plan; no phone plan required.
RingCentral AIR	$49100 minutes	Standalone AIR includes the required tasks.
Quo Sona	$19 including Starter10 call equivalents	Direct booking not established; sends a scheduling link.
Reception.ai by ElevenLabs	$2975 minutes / credits	Basic includes the tasks; one concurrent call.
Newo.ai	$0 base + usageNo recurring free allowance	Pay as you go at $1.75 per unit; trial units excluded.
Smith.ai	$0 base + usage25 calls	AI-first free tier plus $3 per extra call; human escalation excluded.
Goodcall	$79100 unique callers	Starter allows one external tool; one calendar modeled.
Rosie	$49Entry plan not modeled	Scale at $149 includes booking and live transfers; Professional does not.
Upfirst	$24.9530 calls	Starter includes all four required tasks.

THE RESEARCH PANEL

Nextiva · RingCentral · Quo · ElevenLabs · Newo.ai · Smith.ai · Goodcall · Rosie · Upfirst

01 / EXPLORE YOUR COSTS

Your calls. Your workload.
Your comparison.

Move the controls to see how the pricing models behave.
Tap any provider to inspect its calculation and sources.

Set your scenario

Calls answered by AI

0 / month2,000

Average AI call length 2 min

30 seconds10 minutes

YOUR AI HANDLING TIME500 min / month

Your phone setup

Your current phone bill is excluded. Quo’s required subscription is still included.

Adjust assumptions +

Unique callers 100%

Only affects Goodcall. Repeat calls from the same number count once.

Calls involving booking 20%

Context only. No verified separate booking fee is added to these plan models. External calendar subscriptions are excluded.

MONTHLY MODELED AMOUNTS

250 calls · 2 minutes each

Plan / fixed Usage / overage Phone service+ Incomplete subtotal

Read the labels. Costs exclude taxes, unpriced setup labor, external app licenses and unknown carrier fees. No quality ranking is implied.

02 / SAME JOB, DIFFERENT PRODUCTS

Does the price cover
the job you need?

Four required tasks. Published documentation, not tested performance.
Feature availability is checked against published documentation.

Provider	Questions & messages	Lead capture	Call transfer	Calendar booking
Nextiva XBert AI	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
RingCentral AIR	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Quo Sona	Documented	Documented	Documented	Booking link
Reception.ai by ElevenLabs	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Newo.ai	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Smith.ai	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Goodcall	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Rosie	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking
Upfirst	Documented	Documented	Documented	Direct booking

Direct booking writes an appointment into a connected calendar. Sending a scheduling link is a different workflow. “Confirm plan” means the self-serve plan has not been established to cover the task.

ORIGINAL PRICING ANALYSIS

When your business grows,
what happens to the bill?

These tools use the same published prices as the calculator. They compare costs, not service quality.

$0 more

Twice the calls can fit the same allowance.

Goodcall and Rosie stay at $129 and $149 respectively when 250 two-minute calls become 500, with every caller unique.

216 calls

A different price model takes the lead.

At two minutes per call, Goodcall becomes less expensive than Reception.ai from 216 calls through the 2,000-call model limit, under the default assumptions.

$49 → $149

Feature scope changes the starting point.

Rosie’s entry tier does not meet the booking and live-transfer requirements. Scale is the first qualifying tier in this dataset.

Fixed findings use the benchmark assumptions above. Interactive results below follow your selected scenario. These are price findings, not quality ratings.

What if my calls double?

250 → 500 calls · two minutes each · existing phone system

Provider	Current workload	Double the calls	Monthly change
Nextiva XBert AI	$247.50	$495.00	$247.50100.0% increase
RingCentral AIR	$249.00	$499.00	$250.00100.4% increase
Quo Sona	$118.00	$218.00	$100.0084.7% increase
Reception.ai by ElevenLabs	$151.00	$199.00	$48.0031.8% increase
Newo.ai	$374.00	$749.00	$375.00100.3% increase
Smith.ai	$500.00	$800.00	$300.0060.0% increase
Goodcall	$129.00	$129.00	$0.000.0% increase
Rosie	$149.00	$149.00	$0.000.0% increase
Upfirst	$159.95	$299.00	$139.0586.9% increase

Uses the scenario controls above, keeping call length and caller mix constant. The engine reselects the lowest modeled listed plan at each volume; a plan change is not assumed to happen automatically. Doubling is available up to 1,000 starting calls.

Where does one provider become less expensive?

Choose two providers. Colored bands show the lower modeled bill at each whole-call volume from 1 to 2,000. Multiple changes are possible because plan allowances create steps.

Provider AProvider B

At two minutes per call with all callers unique, Reception.ai costs less at 1–99 and 101–215 calls, ties Goodcall at 100 calls, and Goodcall costs less at 216–2,000 calls. Use the controls to explore other assumptions.

Call length, phone setup and unique-caller assumptions follow the main calculator. Gray bands indicate unpriced usage; ties are separate. A cheaper modeled price does not establish equivalent quality or workflow. Quo is qualified as booking-link only.

03 / WHAT THE PRICING REVEALS

The meter matters
as much as the rate.

GV ORIGINAL RESEARCH
EDITION 01 · OCTOBER 2026

A minute is not
a universal unit.

Goodcall counts distinct callers. Smith.ai counts calls. Newo uses time blocks. Longer conversations and repeat callers can change which model costs less.

The phone plan
belongs in the total.

Quo requires a phone subscription. RingCentral offers standalone AIR and a RingEX add-on. Switching systems changes the bill, even when the AI workload stays the same.

“Booking” can mean
two different things.

Quo’s published workflow texts a scheduling link. The research flags this rather than treating it as direct calendar booking. A feature promise needs a precise definition.

RESEARCH NOTE

XBert bills by session. The plan is $99/month for 100 sessions, then $0.99 per extra session, as listed on xbert.ai. A voice session is a call longer than 30 seconds.

READ THE METER

What counts as
a billable call?

Provider / unit	How billing is counted	What to watch
Nextiva XBert AISessions	A voice session is a call longer than 30 seconds. The current model treats every call as a billable session.	$99 includes 100 sessions; $0.99 per extra session. No phone plan required.Official evidence ↓
RingCentral AIRRounded minutes	Each call rounds up to a 30-second increment; 100 calls at 1.1 minutes become 150 billed minutes.	$49 standalone / 100 minutes; $0.50 extra per minute. New-system mode uses the $39 add-on plus RingEX seats.Official evidence ↓
Quo SonaCall-equivalent credits	Sona uses automation credits. This model uses published call-equivalent allowances and excludes other credit consumption.	Required $19 Starter seat plus selected AI tier and overage. Published scheduling sends a link.Official evidence ↓
Reception.ai by ElevenLabsShared credits	One phone minute consumes one credit. SMS, chat and other activity can use the same balance.	Basic, Plus or Premium selected by lowest modeled voice-only cost. Call overlap is not modeled.Official evidence ↓
Newo.aiThree-minute blocks	Calls over 30 seconds consume one unit per started three-minute block; short calls consume 0.2 units.	At 3 minutes: one unit per call. At 3.01 minutes: two. One-time 50-unit credit excluded.Official evidence ↓
Smith.aiCalls	AI-first call allowances and overages are modeled, with no assumed spam credits.	Human escalation excluded. Some larger bases are derived from published included-call rates; confirm checkout.Official evidence ↓
GoodcallUnique callers	Distinct phone numbers per month, rather than calls or minutes. Repeat calls from the same number count once.	The unique-caller slider changes the result. One calendar tool is modeled.Official evidence ↓
RosieMinute bundles	Only Scale and Growth meet the required booking and transfer scope in this dataset.	Higher published tier may fit the workload. Above 2,000 minutes: quote required; no invented overage.Official evidence ↓
UpfirstCalls	All listed tiers include the required tasks. Call count drives the modeled recurring bill.	Lowest listed plan-plus-overage cost selected; spam discounts and trial credits excluded.Official evidence ↓

Before you buy: get these costs in writing

Confirm billable spam and short-call rules, rounding, transfer charges after handoff, peak simultaneous calls, phone-number compatibility, calendar access, setup fees and cancellation terms. A low usage estimate does not answer these operational questions.

SMALL-BUSINESS BUYER QUESTIONS

AI receptionist costs,
explained.

How much does an AI receptionist cost per month?

In this nine-provider panel, the eight offers meeting all four task requirements cost $129.00–$500.00 at 250 two-minute calls per month. This is a modeled panel range under stated assumptions, not a market-wide average or a guarantee of your invoice.

What is the cheapest AI receptionist for my business?

It depends on your volume, call length, repeat callers and required tasks. The calculator identifies the lowest modeled price among documented qualifying offers. It does not rank answer quality, setup experience or reliability.

How do I calculate AI receptionist cost per call?

Divide the modeled monthly total by the number of AI-handled calls. This effective per-call figure includes the selected base and known phone charges; it is different from a vendor’s marginal overage rate. Open the table view in the calculator to see it.

Do I need a new phone plan?

Not necessarily. XBert requires no phone plan. RingCentral has a standalone AIR offer; Quo requires its phone subscription. Other standalone offers may work with forwarding, but existing carrier charges and number compatibility should be checked. New-system mode adds listed required seats or your external staff-phone budget.

Does the starting price include appointment booking?

Not always. Rosie’s $49 Professional tier does not meet our booking and live-transfer requirements, so we model Scale from $149. Quo’s documented workflow sends a booking link and is not counted as direct calendar booking. External calendar subscriptions are excluded.

What happens when I exceed the allowance?

Where a published overage exists, the calculator evaluates each retained plan plus its overage and selects the least expensive modeled option. This is a comparison, not an automatic upgrade promise. Rosie totals above its verified 2,000-minute allowance require a quote.

Do spam calls, hang-ups and repeat callers count?

Rules differ. Goodcall counts distinct phone numbers; XBert uses a voice-session duration threshold. We do not assume other spam refunds or free short calls without verified rules. The benchmark assumes calls qualify for billing; real duration distributions can change costs.

Are setup fees, taxes and integrations included?

Taxes, setup labor without a verified price, equipment, outside CRM/calendar subscriptions and unpriced carrier or forwarding charges are excluded. Ask for a written quote listing these items. Unknown charges are not verified zero-dollar costs.

Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human answering service?

This research compares AI receptionist offers only. A credible human-service comparison would need matching hours, call handling, booking, escalation and usage assumptions. It would not establish that an AI service replaces an employee’s full role.

How often is this comparison updated?

This edition uses the October 28, 2026 pricing snapshot. The research is designed for quarterly source reviews and updates after material changes; refreshes are editorial work, not an automated live feed. Source verification dates appear in the methodology.

04 / OPEN CALCULATIONS

A comparison you
can check yourself.

Download source data ↓

How the estimates work

One U.S. location, monthly billing, inbound voice calls and the same selected AI call length. Every call is assumed to last that length; this is a modeled workload, not observed usage. The default is 250 calls lasting two minutes, with every caller unique.

The engine evaluates the published plan options retained in our dataset and selects the lowest modeled recurring cost. It does not include unpublished bundles, negotiated rates, one-time trial credits, annual discounts or live-human escalation.

Monthly estimate = plan + billable overage
+ known phone charges

For minute plans, the model uses AI handling time. RingCentral rounds each call to 30 seconds. Newo applies its published three-minute blocks per call. Other rounding is not inferred. All calls qualify as billable sessions where duration thresholds apply.

What this research can establish

Published prices, documented feature scope and the arithmetic under explicit assumptions. It cannot establish call quality, setup effort, real booking success, reliability or a business’s final invoice.

In new-system mode, a reader-defined staff-phone budget is added to standalone receptionist services. This is an assumption, not a researched bundled offer. RingCentral and Quo use listed monthly seat rates. XBert requires no phone plan; new-system mode adds the optional staff-phone budget.

All four tasks must be documented, and pricing must be resolved, before a packaged offer enters the “lowest published estimate” insight. Quo’s booking-link workflow remains visible with a qualification. XBert requires no phone plan and is included among the comparable published estimates.

Check date: October 28, 2026. This is a fixed research release, not a live price feed. Review source pages before purchasing; refresh the dataset quarterly or after material price changes.

Editorial standards & limitations +

Provider selection follows the nine-provider research brief, not an exhaustive market census. No paid placement or affiliate tracking links appear in this tool. Sponsorship, if later added, must be disclosed and cannot determine calculation rules or ordering. All prices are pre-tax USD. Existing phone bills, equipment, forwarding surcharges, SMS registration, outside calendars/CRMs, custom development and fees without a verified price are excluded. Unknowns are not treated as verified zero-dollar costs. Rosie is priced only within published minute allowances; higher usage requires a quote. A 12× recurring figure is an annualized run rate, not a first-year invoice estimate. This edition includes no vendor outreach or hands-on tests.

Pricing evidence

Every provider · every source · one verification date

Release 2.0October 28, 2026 · Nine providers · Workload comparisons, growth analysis and billing research

AI Receptionist Pricing Calculator: What Will You Actually Pay?

AI receptionist pricingat the same workload.

Your calls. Your workload.Your comparison.

250 calls · 2 minutes each

Does the price coverthe job you need?

When your business grows,what happens to the bill?

Twice the calls can fit the same allowance.

A different price model takes the lead.

Feature scope changes the starting point.

What if my calls double?

Where does one provider become less expensive?

The meter mattersas much as the rate.

A minute is nota universal unit.

The phone planbelongs in the total.

“Booking” can meantwo different things.

What counts asa billable call?

Before you buy: get these costs in writing

AI receptionist costs,explained.

Continue your research

A comparison youcan check yourself.

How the estimates work

What this research can establish

Pricing evidence

Nextiva XBert AI

RingCentral AIR

Quo Sona

Reception.ai by ElevenLabs

Newo.ai

Smith.ai

Goodcall

Rosie

Upfirst

About the Author

Reuben Yonatan