AI Receptionists · independent pricing index · updated Jun 27, 2026
What an AI receptionist actually costs at 200 calls a month
At 200 calls a month (3 min each, 600 talk-minutes), the cheapest AI receptionist resolves to about $30/mo (Vapi), and the median across 20 priceable vendors is $159.95/mo. Sticker prices start near $0 pay-as-you-go but the real cost depends on call volume.
As of Jun 10, 2026 · figures linked to their source in the table below
Headline prices hide the real number. Plans only compare once you line them up the same way. We normalize every vendor to the same workload — 200 inbound calls a month at 3 minutes each — and show the cheapest effective monthly cost, with every figure linked to its source and dated.
Top-line findings
- Cheapest at 200 calls/mo Vapi resolves to the lowest effective monthly cost once every billing model is normalized to 200 calls of 3 min.
- 18 of 24 vendors start under $100/mo Published entry prices cluster low, but headline price rarely reflects the cost at volume — per-minute and per-call models cross over flat plans as call count rises.
- 5 publish HIPAA, 4 a signed BAA Most vendors say nothing about HIPAA or BAA on their public pages. We record silence as "not published," never as "no."
- 12 of 24 state bilingual support English/Spanish (or broader multilingual) coverage is claimed by a clear majority, but only some include it at the base tier rather than as a paid add-on.
- 1 are quote-only Vendors that gate all pricing behind sales surface here with no fabricated number — an honest gap rather than an invented figure.
Cost ranking at 200 calls / month
Effective monthly cost = each vendor's cheapest plan once its native billing model is normalized to 600 talk-minutes (200 calls × 3 min). Where a plan would need an overage rate the vendor never published, we exclude that plan rather than invent a number. See the full capability matrix →
| # | Vendor | Cost @ 200 calls/mo | On plan | Billing model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vapi | $30 vapi.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Build (Pay As You Go) | Per minute |
| 2 | Retell AI | $42 retellai.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pay As You Go | Per minute |
| 3 | Synthflow | $54 synthflow.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pay As You Go | Per minute |
| 4 | Goodcall | $79 goodcall.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Starter | Flat monthly |
| 5 | Bland | $84 bland.ai verified Jun 10, 2026 | Start (Free) | Per minute |
| 6 | My AI Front Desk | $145 myaifrontdesk.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Free | Flat monthly |
| 7 | Rosie | $149 heyrosie.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Scale | Flat monthly |
| 8 | Phonely | $150 phonely.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pro | Flat monthly |
| 9 | Trillet | $159 trillet.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Studio | Flat monthly |
| 10 | Upfirst | $159.95 upfirst.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pro | Per call |
| 11 | AIRA | $159.95 getaira.io verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pro | Per call |
| 12 | NextPhone | $199 getnextphone.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Pro | Flat monthly |
| 13 | Loman | $199 loman.ai verified Jun 10, 2026 | Starter | Flat monthly |
| 14 | Dialzara | $239 dialzara.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Business Plus | Flat monthly |
| 15 | ServiceAgent | $279 serviceagent.ai verified Jun 22, 2026 | Franchise | Flat monthly |
| 16 | Slang.ai | $399 slang.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Core | Flat monthly |
| 17 | ReceptionHQ | $423 receptionhq.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | MessageExpress | Per call |
| 18 | Thoughtly | $500 thoughtly.com verified Jun 27, 2026 | Flex | Flat monthly |
| 19 | Smith.ai | $503 smith.ai verified Jun 27, 2026 | Starter (self-service) | Per call |
| 20 | PATLive | $1,170 patlive.com verified Jun 10, 2026 | Pro | Per minute |
Why a normalized number
A low pay-as-you-go base and a high flat managed service can land within dollars of each other at real volume. The sticker price is a marketing artifact; the cost at a fixed workload is the decision input. Change the workload and the ranking changes — which is exactly why we publish the method, the inputs, and the source behind every figure.