Disclosure: Published by Yapper, a provider included in this comparison. Prices are published examples, not independently tested results. Checked .
The best AI receptionist for a small business is the one that handles the calls you actually get, at a price that fits your call volume. For most small service businesses, four names cover it: Yapper for trade intake and urgent transfers, Dialzara for a low starting price, Goodcall for shops with lots of repeat callers, and Smith.ai AI if you need software integrations or a human backup. Below are current prices, what each one does, and a test to run before you pay.
Provider products and billing units
Yapper: Starter: $199/month for 200 minutes. Pro: $349/month for 500 minutes. Launch sale: the first 10 customers pay $99/month for Starter for their first 12 months, then $199/month. Monthly billing only. Checkout applies the sale price while spots remain.
Each plan includes a monthly minute allowance. On monthly plans, minutes beyond the allowance cost $0.75 each and appear on your next invoice. After 300 extra minutes in one month, answering pauses until the next month or until you upgrade, so a busy month cannot run up an open-ended bill. We email you at 80% and 100% of your allowance.
| Product / handling | Published price / usage | Routing / scheduling | Best fit / check | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smith.ai AI ReceptionistAI-first; human escalation available | Free: $0 for 25 calls. Pro: $150/month for 75 calls. Month-to-month. Free additional calls: $3.00 each. Pro additional calls: $2.50 each; check escalation and optional service charges. | Configurable workflows and transfers; verify escalation rules for your business. Calendly scheduling and integrations advertised. | Owners who need integrations or an AI service with human escalation. Call-based billing is different from minute-based billing; compare add-ons as well as the base plan. | Official pricing |
| Smith.ai Human-firstLive receptionists, 24/7 | Starter: $300/month for 30 calls. Month-to-month, no setup fee. Starter additional calls: $11.50 each. Optional services can cost extra. | Starter includes one transfer destination. Appointment booking: $1.50/call; CRM options available. | Businesses that want a person handling intake and exceptions. This is a separate product from Smith.ai AI Receptionist. | Official pricing |
| DialzaraAI receptionist | Lite: $29/month for 60 minutes. Pro: $99/month for 220 minutes. Billed monthly, no setup fee. Lite: $0.48/additional minute. Pro: $0.45/additional minute. | Call transfers available; the pricing page does not say which tiers include blind or warm transfers, so confirm before choosing. Calendar and workflow features vary by tier; verify your required integration. | Owners seeking a lower entry price with metered extra minutes. Plus is $199 for 500 minutes ($0.40/extra minute); compare transfer type and integrations before choosing a tier. | Official pricing |
| GoodcallAI receptionist | Starter: $79/month for 100 unique customers. Growth: $129/month for 500. Starter: 79¢ per additional unique customer (Growth: 26¢). Minutes are not metered. | Starter includes 5 workers and 1 external tool connection; confirm the transfer logic you need. Confirm the calendar or scheduling connection you need on your plan. | Businesses with repeat callers or long calls that benefit from customer-based billing. Unique customers, worker limits, and tool connections matter more than total call minutes. | Official pricing |
| RubyLive receptionists, 24/7; optional AI enhancements | $250/month for 50 minutes; $395 for 100 minutes; $720 for 200 minutes; $1,725 for 500 minutes. Minute packages; confirm the applicable extra-minute rate with Ruby. | Personalized call handling and flexible forwarding. Scheduling and bilingual answering available. | Owners who want live handling and Spanish or bilingual coverage. Use your actual call duration when choosing a minute package. | Official pricing |
| AnswerConnectLive receptionists, 24/7 | Pricing not published. AnswerConnect now shows plans only after you request a quote. Billed by minutes used on monthly rolling contracts; ask for a written quote at your call volume. | Call routing and transfers advertised. CRM integrations; confirm scheduling requirements in the proposal. | Businesses that need live coverage and a configurable intake script. Ask how calls are rounded and whether short calls or spam count before comparing a quote. | Official pricing |
| ReceptionHQLive answering; service-specific coverage | MessageExpress: from $25/month plus $1.99 per answered call. No long-term contract. This entry offer adds a per-call charge; other products and plans differ. | ReceptionistPlus offers transfers; MessageExpress is message taking. MyDiary is a separate scheduling product. | Low-volume message taking, or owners selecting a specific live-assistance product. The entry offer describes business-hours coverage; check after-hours terms and recipient limits. | Official pricing |
| AbbyHuman, AI, or a mix | Starter: $164/month for 50 Abby Minutes. Professional: $599/month for 200. Month-to-month. A human minute uses 1 Abby Minute and an AI minute uses half, so AI handling stretches the allowance; extra usage bills at the plan rate. | Confirm transfer rules and coverage for your selected human/AI mix. Confirm the calendar and intake workflow with Abby. | Owners who want to choose or change the mix of human and AI handling. Abby Minutes are product-specific; do not treat them as the same allowance as Yapper minutes. | Official pricing |
What to look for in an AI receptionist for small business
Ask four questions before you watch any demo. How fast does it pick up? What does it collect from the caller? What happens to an urgent call? How are you billed? The answers tell you more than a polished sample voice.
Billing units differ more than starting prices. Some services charge by the minute, some by the call, and some by the number of different people who call. The same month of calls can cost very different amounts. Our AI receptionist pricing comparison runs one workload through each billing unit so you can see the gap.
How we picked this shortlist
We compared published prices, billing units, transfer options, scheduling, and the work left for the owner after each call. Yapper publishes this guide, so it is not an independent ranking. We have not run a controlled test of each provider’s voice quality or accuracy.
The table above includes live and mixed services, because some businesses should hire people rather than software. Check each official source and confirm prices before you buy.
Which AI receptionist fits which small business
Trades and home services. Callers need someone to take the address, the problem, and how urgent it is while you are on a job. This is the work Yapper is built for. See how it runs as an answering service for plumbers, an HVAC answering service, or a contractor answering service.
Offices that book appointments. If the AI must write straight into your calendar or CRM, look at Smith.ai AI or the receptionist built into your scheduling software. Smith.ai AI Pro is $150 a month for 75 calls, then $2.50 a call (checked October 18, 2026). Yapper does not write to calendars.
Shops with repeat callers. Goodcall bills by unique customer, so one person calling back five times in a month counts once. Its Starter plan is $79 a month for 100 unique customers.
Very low call volume. Dialzara Lite is $29 a month for 60 minutes, then 48 cents a minute. If you get a handful of calls a week, start there and compare.
What Yapper does, and what it does not
Yapper answers in 3 rings, 24 hours a day. It asks for the caller’s name, number, address, and what the job is, then texts you a summary. Urgent calls, like a burst pipe or no heat, transfer to the one number you set. You get the full transcript in your dashboard.
It does not book into your calendar, dispatch technicians, or route calls to different people. It answers in English only. Pro’s revenue tracking counts the jobs you mark in the dashboard, so it is not proof that every call became a sale. If you need any of those things, pick a different service from the table.
Example budget: 100 calls averaging three minutes
This is a hypothetical workload, not a customer result: 100 billable calls, 300 billed minutes, and 100 unique customers in one month. Assume monthly billing, no optional add-ons, and the provider’s standard included allowance. Actual rounding, spam exclusions, transfer time, and customer definitions can change the bill.
Yapper Pro: $349, within its 500-minute allowance. Starter’s 200 minutes do not cover this scenario; do not treat Starter as an unlimited $199 plan.
Dialzara Pro: $99 + (300 − 220) × $0.45 = $135. Smith.ai AI Pro: $150 + (100 − 75) × $2.50 = $212.50 before optional charges. Goodcall Starter: $79 if all 100 callers fit its unique-customer definition; minutes are not metered. AnswerConnect no longer publishes prices, so ask it for a written quote for this workload.
These figures compare base answering costs, not identical services. Dialzara and Goodcall are less expensive in this example. Yapper should earn its price through a demonstrated fit for your trade workflow, not a claim that every alternative costs more.
When a human answering service is the better buy
Pick live people if many of your calls need judgment: an upset customer, a price negotiation, an insurance or warranty question. Pick them if many callers speak Spanish. Ruby offers bilingual live receptionists. Pick them if a person must book the job straight into your schedule on the call.
Expect to pay more for it. Ruby is $250 a month for 50 minutes and $720 for 200 minutes. Smith.ai’s live Starter plan is $300 a month for 30 calls, then $11.50 a call. Both were checked on their own pricing pages on October 18, 2026. Our guide to AI receptionist vs answering service walks through the tradeoff in more detail.
A trial checklist that shows the limits
Make six test calls: a routine request, a caller who interrupts, an unclear address, an urgent problem, a request outside your service area, and a transfer you do not pick up. Compare each summary with what the caller said. Check that no price or arrival time was made up.
For HVAC, start with our HVAC estimate call example, then repeat it with your own service area and season. For garage doors, test a door stuck open apart from a routine new-door quote.
The trial costs $2 and needs a card. It lasts 7 days and includes 50 minutes of answered calls. If you keep Yapper, the $2 comes off your first bill. On day 8 your plan starts and your card is charged the plan price, minus the $2 you already paid. Cancel anytime before then from the Billing page. If you use all 50 minutes early, answering pauses until day 8.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI receptionist for a small business?
It depends on your calls. For trade and home service businesses that need job details and urgent transfers, Yapper is built for that work. For a very low starting price, look at Dialzara. For many repeat callers, Goodcall bills by unique customer. For calendar and CRM integrations or a human backup, look at Smith.ai AI.
How much does an AI receptionist cost for a small business?
Published entry plans run from $29 a month (Dialzara Lite, 60 minutes) to $199 a month (Yapper Starter, 200 minutes). Smith.ai AI Pro is $150 a month for 75 calls and Goodcall Starter is $79 a month for 100 unique customers. Competitor prices were checked on October 18, 2026. Compare the bill for your own call count and length, not just the starting price.
Does Yapper confirm appointments in my calendar?
Yapper captures appointment requests and can text your booking link. It does not write directly to your calendar or dispatch system. You or your scheduling tool confirm the visit and arrival time.
What happens if I exceed Yapper’s included minutes?
Each plan includes a monthly minute allowance. On monthly plans, minutes beyond the allowance cost $0.75 each and appear on your next invoice. After 300 extra minutes in one month, answering pauses until the next month or until you upgrade, so a busy month cannot run up an open-ended bill. We email you at 80% and 100% of your allowance.
When should I choose a human answering service?
Choose a live service when calls need negotiation, complex exceptions, sensitive conversations, or a workflow that your AI service cannot support. Ask the provider to demonstrate the exact intake and dispatch process you need.