Home › AI Receptionist Cost Guide
How much does an AI receptionist cost?
Real numbers, published — updated August 2026
An AI receptionist typically costs $200–$600 per month for a small business. Tetra AI’s published pricing is $199, $349, or $549 per month depending on call volume, plus a one-time setup fee of $300–$800 — with no contracts and no per-minute charges. For comparison, per-minute rates at the human answering services reviewed by Forbes Advisor run $1.37–$2.60 per minute (as of July 2026) — roughly $550–$1,040 a month at 200 two-minute calls — and a part-time human receptionist costs roughly $3,000 per month before benefits (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2023).
Tetra AI’s exact pricing
We publish our numbers. All plans include 24/7 answering on your existing number, lead capture and qualification, instant text and email summaries, booking configured around your software, and call recordings and transcripts. Month to month, cancel anytime.
| Plan | Monthly price | One-time setup | Included call volume |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $199/month | $300 | Up to 200 calls/month |
| Growth | $349/month | $500 | Up to 600 calls/month |
| Pro | $549/month | $800 | High volume, built around your call load |
The setup fee covers building your agent around your services, prices, hours, and booking rules, then testing and tuning it with you before go-live. Most businesses are live on their existing number within 24 hours. Full plan details are on our pricing section.
What you’d pay for the alternatives
The honest way to judge AI receptionist pricing is against the three things small businesses actually do instead: hire a human answering service, hire a receptionist, or let calls roll to voicemail.
| Option | Typical monthly cost | Coverage | Books appointments? |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI receptionist (Tetra) | $199–$549 flat | 24/7/365, answers instantly | Yes — books or captures per your setup |
| Human answering service | ≈$550–$1,040 at 200 two-minute calls* | Hours vary by plan; callers may hold | Usually takes messages; booking costs extra where offered |
| Part-time / full-time receptionist | ≈$1,500–$3,000+ before benefits† | ≈20–40 of the week’s 168 hours | Yes — and everything else a human at the desk does |
| Voicemail | $0 | Records messages only | No — and ≈80% of callers won’t leave a message (Marchex) |
*Per-minute rates of $1.37–$2.60 across the answering services reviewed in Forbes Advisor’s “10 Best Answering Services” (article updated July 2026); 200 calls averaging two minutes is 400 minutes — several services in that review price 200-minute plans at $349–$359/month. †U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2023: median receptionist wage $17.23/hour (≈$35,840/year full-time).
What actually determines the price
Four things move an AI receptionist quote up or down:
- Call volume — the main driver. More answered minutes cost the provider more, which is why plans tier by calls per month.
- Setup complexity — a single-location salon with one price list is a smaller build than a multi-truck HVAC operation with dispatch rules and emergency escalation.
- Booking depth — capturing a lead is simple; booking directly into scheduling software takes configuration.
- After-hours coverage — for humans this is a premium; for AI it’s free, which is where most of the value hides.
The other side of the math: what missed calls cost
Price only makes sense against the loss it prevents. Industry research finds roughly 80% of callers who reach voicemail hang up without leaving a message (Marchex), and 62% of callers who can’t reach a business contact a competitor instead (PATLive). At typical small-business job values — $80–$200 for a salon appointment, $200–$500 for a detailing job, $300–$2,000 for HVAC work — even two or three missed calls a day compounds into thousands of dollars a month. Our homepage has an interactive calculator that runs this math for your industry, with deliberately conservative assumptions.
Common pricing questions
Why is there a setup fee?
The setup fee ($300–$800 at Tetra) covers the human work of launching well: building your agent around your services, prices, hours, and policies; configuring booking around your software; testing it with you; and tuning it until you’d trust it with your best customer. It is charged once. If you cancel, there is nothing further to pay.
Are there per-minute or per-call charges?
No. Tetra’s plans are flat monthly rates with a call-volume tier (up to 200 calls/month on Starter, up to 600 on Growth, high volume on Pro). This is the biggest structural difference from traditional answering services, which typically bill by the minute.
What happens if I go over my plan’s call volume?
We watch your volume and flag it before you hit the cap, then talk with you about whether a bigger tier makes sense. There are no surprise overage bills.
Is there a contract?
No. Every Tetra plan is month to month. Cancel anytime; call forwarding switches off and your phone line works exactly as it did before.
Deciding between AI and a human service? Read the honest side-by-side: AI receptionist vs. answering service vs. voicemail. Or see how it works for your industry: salons, auto detailing, HVAC & home services, gyms, restaurants, and hotels.
Hear the product before you price it.
Claire and Aaron are live right now — call from your browser or dial +1 (724) 300‑8226 (Claire) or +1 (724) 405‑8538 (Aaron). Free, no signup, three minutes.
Try the live demo