A missed call is a missed customer. AI receptionists answer every call 24/7, book appointments, screen spam, capture leads, and text callers back, without a per-hour salary. In 2026 they're good enough that most small businesses can't tell the difference on a routine call, and they double as AI appointment setters, putting jobs straight on your calendar.

We compared the leading done-for-you AI receptionists on call quality, appointment booking, integrations (CRM, calendars, scheduling tools), and price. Every figure below was verified from the vendor's own pricing page in June 2026.

Top picks at a glance

The state of the market in 2026

The market splits by who it's built for. General SMB receptionists (Rosie, Goodcall, Dialzara, My AI Front Desk) answer calls, book appointments, and text for any small business. Vertical specialists go deeper for one industry, Slang.ai for restaurants, Sameday for home services, Numa for auto dealerships, with native integrations that generic tools lack. And AI-plus-human services like Smith.ai blend AI speed with live agents for the calls that need a person. Pricing ranges from free/usage-based (echowin, My AI Front Desk) and ~$29–$99/mo for SMB plans up to $399–$789/mo for vertical and managed services, usually metered by call minutes.

1. Rosie, Best overall AI receptionist

Note: 24/7 AI phone receptionist: answers calls, books appointments, transfers, and texts callers · Pricing: Professional $49/mo (250 min) / Scale $149/mo (1,000 min) / Growth $299/mo (2,000 min). Website Texting add-on $50/mo. 7-day free trial. · No free plan (7-day trial)

Rosie is the best all-round AI receptionist for small businesses: it answers calls around the clock, books appointments, transfers to a human when needed, and follows up by text. Pricing is clean and metered by minutes, the setup is fast, and it's already handling millions of calls for thousands of businesses. There's no free tier (7-day trial only), but the Professional plan is affordable for what it replaces.

Ideal for: Small businesses that want a dependable, general-purpose AI receptionist

Visit Rosie →Full review

2. Smith.ai, Best AI + human receptionist

Note: AI receptionist with 500+ live human agents for handoff, plus lead intake and appointment booking · Pricing: AI Receptionist self-service: Starter $95/mo / Basic $270/mo / Pro $800/mo (live handoff $3/call). Managed annual: Starter $500/mo / Basic $1,000/mo / Pro $2,000/mo / Enterprise custom. · No free plan

Smith.ai is the most established name here and the best choice when some calls genuinely need a human. Its AI answers and handles routine calls, but can hand off to one of 500+ live agents for complex intake, a combination law firms, agencies and professional services value. It's the priciest option, especially the managed plans, but for high-value calls where a dropped lead costs hundreds, the AI+human safety net pays off.

Ideal for: Law firms, agencies and pro services where a missed call is costly

Visit Smith.ai →Full review

3. Goodcall, Best for lead capture

Note: AI phone agent answering inbound calls 24/7, booking appointments and capturing leads · Pricing: Starter $79/mo / Growth $129/mo / Scale $249/mo per agent (annual ~15-17% off). $0.50 per extra unique customer. Enterprise custom. 14-day free trial. · No free plan (14-day trial)

Goodcall is a solid general AI phone agent with a focus on never letting a lead slip, it answers 24/7, books appointments, and logs every caller. Pricing is per agent with a small per-customer overage, which is fair for steady call volumes. It's a strong middle pick: more configurable than the cheapest tools, less expensive than the managed services, with a 14-day trial to test it.

Ideal for: Service businesses focused on capturing every inbound lead

Visit Goodcall →Full review

4. Slang.ai, Best for restaurants

Note: Restaurant-specific voice agent: answers calls 24/7 and books reservations via OpenTable/SevenRooms · Pricing: Core $399/location/mo / Premium $599/location/mo / Enterprise custom. Add-ons: Private Events (Tripleseat) $199/mo, Bilingual Spanish $99/mo. · No free plan

Slang.ai is the category leader for restaurants. It's tuned for exactly the calls a restaurant gets, hours, reservations, private events, and integrates natively with OpenTable and SevenRooms so bookings land in your existing system. At $399/location it's priced for restaurants, not solopreneurs, but for a busy venue that misses calls during service, it pays for itself by capturing reservations the host can't get to.

Ideal for: Restaurants and hospitality venues that miss calls during service

Visit Slang.ai →Full review

5. Dialzara, Best budget AI receptionist

Note: AI virtual receptionist: answers calls 24/7, books appointments, screens spam, emails call summaries · Pricing: Business Lite $29/mo (60 min) / Pro $99/mo (220 min) / Plus $199/mo (500 min) / Elite $349/mo (1,000 min). Overage $0.48-$0.35/min. Add-ons: SMS from $19/mo, chatbot $39/mo. 7-day free trial. · No free plan (7-day trial)

Dialzara is the most affordable entry into AI reception, with a $29/mo starter tier that's hard to beat for very low call volume. It answers 24/7, books appointments, screens spam, and emails you call summaries, with no setup fees or contracts. The low tiers come with small minute allowances, so heavier users will climb the plans, but for a solo operator or new business it's an easy, cheap way to stop missing calls.

Ideal for: Solo operators and new businesses with light call volume

Visit Dialzara →Full review

6. echowin, Best no-code / free to build

Note: No-code AI phone & chat agent: 24/7 answering, booking, lead qualification, 30+ languages, built-in CRM · Pricing: Free to build & test (~$5 starter credits, no card; pay when you deploy). Usage bundles from $49.99/mo (~100 min); extra credits ~$1/100 min; phone numbers separate. · Free to build & test (~$5 credits)

echowin is the most flexible builder-style option: a no-code platform where you design the AI agent's logic, then pay only when you deploy. It handles phone and chat, qualifies leads, books appointments, speaks 30+ languages, and includes a basic CRM. The credit-based pricing rewards low volume and lets you test free. It asks a bit more setup effort than plug-and-play receptionists, but you get more control.

Ideal for: Businesses that want to customize their AI agent without code

Visit echowin →Full review

7. My AI Front Desk, Best free plan

Note: AI receptionist that answers calls, books appointments and texts customers 24/7 for small businesses · Pricing: Free ($0, no card) / Business-in-a-Box $99/mo ($79/mo annual) / Partner & Enterprise custom. Overage ~$0.25/min voice. · Free plan ($0, no card)

My AI Front Desk is the lowest-risk way to try an AI receptionist, it's one of the only tools here with a genuine free plan (no card required), then a flat $99/mo Business-in-a-Box for the full feature set. It answers calls, books appointments, and texts customers 24/7. The free tier is limited, but it lets you hear the AI on your own number before paying, which most competitors won't.

Ideal for: Cost-conscious small businesses that want to try before paying

Visit My AI Front Desk →Full review

8. Sameday, Best for home-service businesses

Note: AI phone + sales agent that books jobs 24/7 with native ServiceTitan, Jobber and Housecall Pro integration · Pricing: Launch from $449/mo (500 min) / Scale from $789/mo (1,000 min) / Enterprise custom. Demo-led, no long-term contract. · No free plan (demo)

Sameday is built for home-service businesses (HVAC, plumbing, electrical) and it shows: it doesn't just answer, it sells, booking jobs straight into ServiceTitan, Jobber or Housecall Pro. For a contractor losing after-hours calls to voicemail, that booking-focused approach can directly add revenue. It's priced for established service businesses, not side hustles, and it's demo-led rather than self-serve.

Ideal for: HVAC, plumbing and other home-service businesses

Visit Sameday →Full review

9. Numa, Best for auto dealerships

Note: Vertical AI phone platform for auto dealerships: answers calls, books service, follows up on leads · Pricing: Custom / demo only, no public self-serve pricing; sales-led (enterprise/multi-rooftop). · No free plan (demo only)

Numa is a vertical AI platform purpose-built for auto dealerships. Its Voice AI answers service and sales calls, books appointments, follows up on leads, and surfaces issues from a smart inbox, with the dealership-specific workflows generic receptionists lack. Pricing is sales-led and quote-only, clearly aimed at dealer groups rather than small shops, so it's a niche but strong pick if you run a dealership.

Ideal for: Auto dealerships and dealer groups

Visit Numa →Full review

Compared side by side

Pricing snapshot (verified June 2026)

• Rosie, No free plan (7-day trial); Professional $49/mo (250 min) / Scale $149/mo (1,000 min) / Growth $299/mo (2,000 min). Website Texting add-on $50/mo. 7-day free trial..
• Smith.ai, No free plan; AI Receptionist self-service: Starter $95/mo / Basic $270/mo / Pro $800/mo (live handoff $3/call). Managed annual: Starter $500/mo / Basic $1,000/mo / Pro $2,000/mo / Enterprise custom..
• Goodcall, No free plan (14-day trial); Starter $79/mo / Growth $129/mo / Scale $249/mo per agent (annual ~15-17% off). $0.50 per extra unique customer. Enterprise custom. 14-day free trial..
• Slang.ai, No free plan; Core $399/location/mo / Premium $599/location/mo / Enterprise custom. Add-ons: Private Events (Tripleseat) $199/mo, Bilingual Spanish $99/mo..
• Dialzara, No free plan (7-day trial); Business Lite $29/mo (60 min) / Pro $99/mo (220 min) / Plus $199/mo (500 min) / Elite $349/mo (1,000 min). Overage $0.48-$0.35/min. Add-ons: SMS from $19/mo, chatbot $39/mo. 7-day free trial..
• echowin, Free to build & test (~$5 credits); Free to build & test (~$5 starter credits, no card; pay when you deploy). Usage bundles from $49.99/mo (~100 min); extra credits ~$1/100 min; phone numbers separate..
• My AI Front Desk, Free plan ($0, no card); Free ($0, no card) / Business-in-a-Box $99/mo ($79/mo annual) / Partner & Enterprise custom. Overage ~$0.25/min voice..
• Sameday, No free plan (demo); Launch from $449/mo (500 min) / Scale from $789/mo (1,000 min) / Enterprise custom. Demo-led, no long-term contract..
• Numa, No free plan (demo only); Custom / demo only, no public self-serve pricing; sales-led (enterprise/multi-rooftop)..

How to choose

General or vertical? If you run a typical small business, a general receptionist (Rosie, Goodcall, Dialzara, My AI Front Desk) is simpler and cheaper. If you're in restaurants, home services, or auto, a vertical tool (Slang.ai, Sameday, Numa) integrates with the systems you already use and books directly into them.

Check the integrations that matter. The value is in bookings landing where you work, confirm native support for your calendar, CRM, or scheduling tool (OpenTable, ServiceTitan, Jobber, Calendly, etc.) before you commit. A booking the AI can't write into your system is a booking you'll lose.

Watch the minutes. Most plans meter by call minutes, so estimate your monthly volume and check overage rates, a cheap base plan can get expensive at scale. Also test the voice and handoff on your own number during the trial. If you'd rather build a fully custom agent yourself, developer platforms like Synthflow, Vapi and Retell let you do that, but they're more work than these done-for-you receptionists.

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