AI vs human receptionist: what each costs and does
There are three ways to get your phone answered when you can't: an AI receptionist, a live virtual receptionist service (real people, shared across many businesses), or your own hire. This page compares them on published prices and government wage data only. We don't quote survey stats about "missed calls" or "customer preference" because we couldn't trace them to solid sources.
Monthly cost on published figures
Smith.ai is useful here because it sells both an AI receptionist and a live receptionist service, priced the same way (per call), so the comparison is like for like.
| Option | 50 calls/mo | 150 calls/mo | 300 calls/mo | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI receptionist: Smith.ai AI Receptionist | $75 Free | $270 Pro (150 calls) | $500 Enterprise (300 calls) | smith.ai · 2026-10-16 |
| AI receptionist: range across vendors we track | $18 – $449 | $48 – $449 | $93 – $789 | Price Index (10 vendors) |
| Live virtual receptionists: Smith.ai | $530 Starter | $1,440 Basic | $2,100 Pro | smith.ai · 2026-10-16 |
| In-house receptionist (full time, median wage) | ≈ $3,167.50/mo in wages ($38,010/yr ÷ 12), any volume one person can handle, before payroll taxes and benefits | bls.gov · May 2025 data | ||
How the live-receptionist figures were calculated
Smith.ai live plans: Starter $300/mo for 30 calls, then $11.50/call; Basic $810/mo for 90 calls, then $10.50/call; Pro $2,100/mo for 300 calls, then $8.50/call. Per call. Appointment booking is +$1.50 per call; call recording +$0.25 per call. 24/7 live staffing. Cheapest plan at each volume:
- 50 calls: Starter $300 + 20 × $11.50 = $530.00; Basic $810 (includes 90 calls) = $810.00; Pro $2,100 (includes 300 calls) = $2,100.00
- 150 calls: Starter $300 + 120 × $11.50 = $1,680.00; Basic $810 + 60 × $10.50 = $1,440.00; Pro $2,100 (includes 300 calls) = $2,100.00
- 300 calls: Starter $300 + 270 × $11.50 = $3,405.00; Basic $810 + 210 × $10.50 = $3,015.00; Pro $2,100 (includes 300 calls) = $2,100.00
AI figures use the same method as the Price Index. Booking and recording add-ons on the live plan are not included.
What each one does
| AI receptionist | Live virtual receptionist | In-house receptionist | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hours | 24/7 is standard on the vendors' pricing pages (e.g. Rosie, Upfirst, NextPhone) | Smith.ai's live service is staffed 24/7 | The hours you pay for |
| Several calls at once | Rosie, Dial Milo and Jobber Receptionist say they handle simultaneous calls | Depends on the service's staffing | One call at a time per person |
| Books jobs | Varies by vendor and plan; some only send a booking link (see the table) | Smith.ai: +$1.50 per call to book appointments | Yes, in whatever software you use |
| Into ServiceTitan / Jobber / Housecall Pro | Only a few book natively (ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro) | Depends on the service | Yes |
| Hand-off to a person | Most transfer to your team; Smith.ai's AI can transfer to its live receptionists | It is a person | It is a person |
| Other front-desk work | Phone (and on some plans text/chat) only | Mainly phone (some services add chat) | Visitors, filing, admin (per BLS duties list) |
The common middle ground
Plenty of shops don't pick one. They keep a person answering during office hours and send overflow and after-hours calls to an AI receptionist. ServiceTitan's own AI Voice Agent is built around exactly that (overflow, after-hours and outage backup), and Upfirst lets you choose every call, overflow only or after-hours answering. If you're weighing the cost, our missed-call calculator uses your own numbers.
FAQ
Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human receptionist?
On the published prices we have, yes. Smith.ai sells both: its AI Receptionist works out to $75 at 50 calls, $270 at 150 calls, $500 at 300 calls, and its live Virtual Receptionists to $530, $1,440, $2,100 at the same volumes. A full-time in-house receptionist at the U.S. median wage ($18.27/hour, $38,010/year, BLS, May 2025) is about $3,167.50/month in wages alone, before payroll taxes and benefits, and covers one shift.
Can an AI receptionist hand calls to a real person?
Most can transfer to your own team. Smith.ai's AI Receptionist can also transfer to its live North America-based receptionists, and Avoca's ServiceTitan Marketplace listing describes human-in-the-loop trained CSRs for after-hours calls.
When does a human receptionist make more sense?
When most calls need judgment, negotiation or a calm voice for an upset customer, or when the job includes front-desk work beyond the phone. Even AI products route those cases to people: ServiceTitan's agent escalates when a caller asks for a live agent or it detects frustration.
Does an AI receptionist answer 24/7?
Rosie, Upfirst, Dialzara, NextPhone, Goodcall and Smith.ai all advertise 24/7 answering on their pricing pages, and Rosie, Dial Milo and Jobber Receptionist say they handle multiple calls at once. Smith.ai's live receptionists are also staffed 24/7, at a higher per-call price.
Related
Disclosure: we may earn a commission if you sign up through some links (currently Rosie and NextPhone). It never changes the data or the order. Details.