AI receptionist cost calculator
Last updated October 22, 2026 · Free, no sign-up. Prices change, so check the linked sources before you buy.
How the math works
- Calls you miss = calls a month × share you miss.
- Revenue recovered = calls you miss × share who’d become customers × value of a new customer. Calls you already answer don’t count, because you weren’t losing them.
- Monthly cost = monthly price + (usage over the allowance × price per extra unit). Usage is the calls the AI answers, or those calls × average length on minute-billed plans.
- Net each month = revenue recovered × your margin − monthly cost.
- Payback period = setup fee ÷ net each month. With no setup fee, a plan with a positive net pays back in the first month.
- Break-even = monthly cost ÷ (value of a new customer × margin): how many recovered customers a month cover the bill.
What the presets assume
| Preset | Monthly price | Included | Over the allowance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goodcall Starter | $79 | 100 unique customers | 79¢ per extra customer. Repeat callers count once a month, so treating each call as a new caller overstates cost [1] |
| Rosie Professional / Scale | $49 / $149 | 250 / 1,000 minutes | Not published on the pricing page; the calculator warns you instead of guessing [2] |
| Frontdesk Business-in-a-Box | $99 ($79 billed yearly) | 200 minutes + a 1,000-credit pool (about 40 more minutes) | 25 credits ($0.25) a minute, through $10 reloads of 1,000 credits [3] |
| Smith.ai Free / Pro | $0 / $150 | 25 / 75 calls | $3.00 / $2.50 a call [4] |
| Kairos Health (dental) | $399 per location | Flat price | None stated. Price is from Kairos’s blog (last updated July 2026); it has no pricing page [5] |
Taxes, phone-number fees, annual-billing discounts and intro offers are left out. Prices change, so confirm with the vendor before you sign. For a full side-by-side of what each one does on a call, read Best AI receptionists for small businesses.
Three honest caveats
- Not every missed caller is lost. Some leave a voicemail or call back. Measure for a couple of weeks before you guess the “would become customers” share.
- Spam inflates usage. On per-call and per-minute plans, robocalls can eat the allowance. Ask how the vendor filters them (Smith.ai, for example, lets you remove up to 10% of calls as spam each billing cycle [4]).
- An AI that annoys callers costs you too. Test it yourself before you switch it on, and make sure callers can reach a person.
Dental practice? Patient calls involve insurance and PMS booking, so read Dental AI receptionists compared and the dental AI vendor watch from our sister newsletter, The AI Operatory. Adoptly earns no commission from any vendor on this page (as of October 22, 2026).
FAQ
How much does an AI receptionist cost a month?
List prices checked October 22, 2026: Smith.ai has a free plan for 25 calls a month ($3 a call after) and Pro at $150 for 75 calls. Rosie starts at $49 for 250 minutes, Goodcall at $79 for 100 unique callers, and Frontdesk at $99 with 200 minutes. Dental-specific Kairos Health lists $399 a month per location.
Is an AI receptionist worth it?
It is worth it when the revenue from calls you currently miss is larger than the monthly bill. Multiply missed calls by the share who would have booked and by the value of a new customer, then compare that with the plan price. The break-even is often under one new customer a month for plans under $150.
How do I calculate the payback period for an AI receptionist?
Divide the one-time setup fee by the net monthly gain, which is recovered revenue times your margin minus the monthly cost. If there is no setup fee and the net gain is positive, it pays back in the first month.
Should the AI answer every call or only missed calls?
Starting with overflow and after-hours calls keeps usage-billed plans cheaper and lets you test the AI on calls you would have lost anyway. Recovered revenue is the same either way, because only the calls you miss today count.
Where do the calculator’s example numbers come from?
The business numbers (150 calls, 20% missed, 15% would book, $250 per customer) are an illustrative example, not an industry benchmark, so replace them with your own. Plan prices come from each vendor’s pricing page or, for Kairos, its own blog.
Sources
- Goodcall pricing (checked Oct 22, 2026)
- Rosie pricing (checked Oct 22, 2026)
- Frontdesk (My AI Front Desk) pricing (checked Oct 22, 2026)
- Smith.ai AI Receptionist pricing (checked Oct 22, 2026)
- Kairos blog: How much does a dental answering service cost? (checked Oct 22, 2026)