How Much Does an Answering Service Cost? Per-Minute Plans vs a Flat Monthly AI Agent

How much does an answering service cost? It depends on the billing model and the minutes you use, and here is how to work out your own number.

Every figure below is what the vendor prints on its own pricing page, read on October 21, 2026. Most pages show a $ sign without naming the currency, so I show them the same way and convert nothing. Prices change, so confirm with each vendor before you commit.

How much does an answering service cost under each pricing model?

What you pay follows the billing model: per-minute and per-call plans rise with volume, while a flat monthly price stays level.

Per minute. You buy a block of minutes and pay a set rate for each extra one. Long calls cost more, and so do more calls.

Per call. You buy a block of calls. Length stops mattering. Count is what moves the bill.

Flat monthly. One price, whatever the volume. Aida is priced this way.

What do live answering services charge?

Five live services, read in October 2026, publish plans by the minute or by the call. Four print a price, and one prints none.

• PATLive (minutes): $99 for 50 minutes, $349 for 200, $759 for 500. Extra minutes cost $2.29, $1.99 and $1.79. Currency printed as $ only.
• Moneypenny, People Answering (minutes): $165 for 50 minutes, $422 for 200. Extra minutes cost $2.85 and $2.39. Each price is labelled "Original price". Currency printed as $ only.
• Ruby (minutes): $250 for 50 minutes, $395 for 100, $720 for 200, $1,725 for 500. Page read, no overage rate shown. Currency printed as $ only.
• Smith.ai (calls): Starter is $300 for 30 calls, then $11.50 per extra call. Pro is $2,100 for 300 calls, then $8.50. The page does not say which of its service options these plans belong to. Currency printed as $ only.
• AnswerConnect (Canada pages): page read, no price. It offers a quote form.

Divide each plan's price by its minutes and the per-minute cost differs widely. Ruby's $720 for 200 minutes is $3.60 a minute. PATLive's $349 for 200 minutes is about $1.75. That is my arithmetic on published plans, and the services differ, so it is not a ranking.

What do AI receptionists charge?

Three AI services print plans from $29 to $349 a month, each with an allowance. Aida is a flat monthly price with unlimited calls.

• Goodcall: Starter is $79 a month for 100 unique customers, then 79 cents each. Growth is $129 for 500, then 26 cents. Scale is $299 for 2,000, then 15 cents. It bills by unique callers, not minutes. Currency printed as $ only.
• Rosie: Professional is $49 for 250 minutes, Scale $149 for 1,000, Growth $299 for 2,000. Page read, no overage rate shown. Currency printed as $ only.
• Dialzara: Business Lite is $29 for 60 minutes, then $0.48 per extra minute. Business Elite is $349 for 1,000 minutes, then $0.35. The page prints the currency as USD.
• Aida by Attainment: US$350 a month, or US$300 billed annually. In Canada, CA$500 or CA$400 billed annually. In Australia, A$500 or A$400 billed annually. These are per location, with unlimited calls, no setup fee and nine channels.

Aida answers every call as your business, books the visit where booking is switched on, and follows up on inquiries. You are not metering the calls your customers make. The Aida pricing page shows the figure in your currency, and what Aida does for inbound calls is set out in full.

What hidden costs change an answering service price?

Overage rates, setup fees, taxes and notice periods move the bill. Read the pricing page for each, then ask what it leaves out.

• Overage. Smith.ai charges $11.50 per call over 30 on Starter. Goodcall charges 79 cents per unique customer over 100 on Starter. Dialzara charges $0.48 per minute over 60 on Business Lite.
• Setup. Smith.ai and Dialzara state no setup fee. Ruby says no hidden fees for activation but gives no figure. Rosie shows none.
• Taxes. PATLive's page says government taxes and fees are excluded from its prices.
• Terms. PATLive and Moneypenny print "no contract", though Moneypenny's FAQ asks for 30 days' notice to cancel. Smith.ai is month to month and offers 10 percent off a 12-month subscription.
• After-hours surcharges. None of the pages I read listed one. Ask in writing which hours the price covers.

How do I work out the cost for my own call volume?

Multiply your monthly calls by minutes per call, then price that total on each plan. The method takes five minutes and a call log.

1. Count a real month of calls, including after hours.
2. Multiply by the average minutes per call. That is your monthly minutes.
3. Price those minutes on each plan: base price, plus extra minutes at the overage rate.
4. Add taxes and any setup fee.
5. Repeat at double the volume, to see how the bill behaves in a busy month.

Illustration only, with invented call counts to show the method. Say 60 calls a month at 4 minutes each is 240 minutes. On PATLive's published plans, that is the 200-minute plan at $349 plus 40 extra minutes at $1.99, which is $79.60, for $428.60 before tax. At 120 calls, 480 minutes fits inside the 500-minute plan at $759. On Smith.ai's per-call plans, 60 calls is Starter at $300 plus 30 extra calls at $11.50, which is $345, for $645. At 120 calls, Starter at $300 plus 90 extra calls at $11.50, which is $1,035, comes to $1,335, still below the Pro plan at $2,100.

A flat price does not move. Aida is US$350 a month at 60 calls and at 120.

For the break-even, divide a flat price by your per-minute rate. With an invented rate of 2.00 a minute against a flat 350, break-even is 175 minutes, or about 44 four-minute calls. Below that, per-minute costs less. Above it, flat costs less.

How do I choose between per-minute plans and a flat monthly AI agent?

Choose by volume: low and steady favours per minute, busy or spiky favours flat. Count one real month of calls before you decide.

• Low, steady calls. A small per-minute plan can cost less than any flat price. That is true, so check it.
• Busy or seasonal calls. A flat price protects you from the month when everything rings at once.
• The work after the call. Compare what is finished on the call, not only the price. Aida books, follows up and reports what it did, so your team opens the day to a list of calls handled. For dental practices, the Canadian dental answering service cost guide covers quotes in detail.

Answering service cost questions

These six answers cover common billing units, overage, contracts, after-hours calls and how an AI agent is priced.

How much does an answering service cost per month?

From the plans I read in October 2026, live services print monthly prices from $99 for 50 minutes at PATLive to $1,725 for 500 minutes at Ruby, both printed only with a $ sign. Your bill depends on your minutes or calls, so price your own volume on each plan rather than relying on a single average.

Is a flat-rate AI agent cheaper than a per-minute service?

It depends on volume. At low call counts a per-minute plan can cost less. As calls grow, per-minute and per-call bills rise while a flat price does not. Aida is US$350 a month in the United States, with unlimited calls and no setup fee. Work out your break-even from your own call log.

What is overage?

Overage is the rate you pay for minutes or calls beyond your plan's allowance. On the pages I read it ran from 79 cents per extra unique customer at Goodcall to $11.50 per extra call at Smith.ai. Check the rate before you pick a plan, because a busy month can raise a small plan's bill well above its headline price.

Do these services require a long contract?

Not on the pages I read. PATLive and Moneypenny print "no contract" and Smith.ai says month to month. Moneypenny's FAQ asks for 30 days' notice to cancel. Rosie says cancel anytime. Read the terms for the plan you choose, because notice periods and annual discounts differ.

Are after-hours calls charged extra?

None of the pages I read listed an after-hours surcharge. PATLive, Moneypenny and Ruby price by minutes or calls used, and Aida answers day or night at its flat price. Plans can still differ in coverage hours or add-ons, so ask each vendor in writing which hours and services the price includes.

How do AI agents charge, and what does Aida include?

The AI plans I read bill by included minutes (Rosie, Dialzara) or by unique callers (Goodcall). Aida is a flat monthly price per location, with unlimited calls, no setup fee and nine channels. The price does not rise with call volume. See the Aida pricing page for the figure in your currency.

See Aida's pricing, then request a demo and hear Aida answer as your business.