An AI receptionist usually costs a clinic a monthly fee that covers a set number of minutes or calls, plus a charge for anything over that. When we checked providers’ own websites in November 2026, AI receptionists for any small business started at about $25 to $100 a month in the US, and those built for clinics at about £59 to £147 a month in the UK. Ruby’s live receptionists started at $250 a month for 50 minutes.
The headline price is only half the answer. What you actually pay depends on how many calls your clinic gets, how long they last and which features sit on a higher plan. This guide explains the pricing models, lists what providers publish and shows you how to turn it all into one number you can compare: the cost per booked appointment.
We make HeyCAi, an AI receptionist for health clinics, so keep that in mind as you read. Every other provider’s price below comes from its own website, with the date we checked it.
How AI receptionists charge
There are five models in the market. Most providers use one of them, and a few mix two.
- Per call: you pay for each call answered, whatever its length. Easy to predict if you know your call volume, and a short call costs the same as a long one.
- Per caller: you pay for each different person who calls in the month, however many times they ring.
- A monthly plan with included minutes, then a charge for each extra minute. This is the most common model for AI receptionists.
- Per practitioner, so the price grows with your team rather than with your calls.
- By quote, or inside your practice software. Some providers only give a price after a sales call, and some practice software sells its own AI receptionist as part of a plan.
Live answering services, where people pick up your calls, mostly sell bundles of minutes.
What providers publish (checked November 2026)
These are the starting prices each provider published on its own website when we checked it on 6 November 2026. Prices change and some exclude tax, so check the provider’s page before you buy.
| Provider | Starting price, as published | How it charges |
|---|---|---|
| Smith.ai | AI plan free for 25 calls a month, then $3.00 a call | Per call |
| Upfirst | $24.95 a month for 30 calls ($20 billed annually) | Per call |
| Lyngo (clinics) | £69 a month for 45 calls | Per call |
| Aeva (clinics) | £139 a month for 100 calls | Per call |
| Goodcall | $79 a month for 100 unique callers | Per caller |
| Dialzara | $29 a month for up to 60 minutes | Plan with included minutes |
| Rosie | $49 a month for 250 minutes | Plan with included minutes |
| My AI Front Desk | $99 a month ($79 billed annually), 200 voice minutes | Plan with included minutes |
| Hey Jodie | £49 a month ex VAT, unlimited minutes | Flat plan, unlimited minutes |
| Verbalise (clinics) | £147 a month + 55p a minute, VAT included | Plan plus every minute |
| BookedSolid (clinics) | From £59 a month for one practitioner (£49 billed annually), ex VAT | Per practitioner |
| Ruby | $250 a month for 50 minutes | People, by the minute |
| Moneypenny, Clinic Assist | No public price | By quote |
What each provider does, who it suits and when it isn’t the right fit is in our comparison of AI receptionists for clinics, and the UK providers are in the UK comparison.
The costs that aren’t in the headline price
Before you compare two prices, ask each provider the same questions:
- What does each minute or call past the allowance cost? That’s where the bill grows. Dialzara publishes $0.48 a minute over its plan, Upfirst $1.50 per extra call and Lyngo £1.50 per extra call.
- Which features need a higher plan? Booking into a calendar is often one of them: Rosie’s calendar booking starts on its $149 plan, and Hey Jodie’s booking on its £99 plan.
- Does the price include tax? Many UK prices exclude VAT. Verbalise’s includes it.
- Is the monthly price for monthly billing, or for paying a year upfront? Several providers show both.
- Are text messages or WhatsApp charged on top of the calls? Reminders and confirmations sometimes are.
- Can you leave when you want? Check the minimum term as well as the price.
What a human receptionist costs
The comparison most clinics make is with a person on the front desk. Pay varies by region, so these are the UK’s official floors for 2026/27, the same sources we use in AI receptionist vs human receptionist.
| Item | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum hourly pay (21 and over) | £12.71 an hour from April 2026 | GOV.UK, National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates |
| Typical pay for receptionists in your area | Put your figure here | ONS, ASHE Table 14 (occupation 4216, Receptionists) |
| Employer National Insurance | 15% on earnings above £5,000 a year (2026 to 2027) | GOV.UK, rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 |
| Workplace pension | At least 3% of qualifying earnings from the employer | GOV.UK, workplace pensions |
Our own sum: a full-time receptionist on 37.5 hours a week at the minimum rate earns about £24,800 a year, and employer National Insurance adds nearly £3,000 before pension, holiday cover or training. Most receptionists earn more than the minimum.
The two aren’t the same job, though. A receptionist handles the patient in front of them, payments and the awkward conversations. An AI receptionist covers the calls nobody is free to take: the busy hours, lunchtime and everything after closing. Many clinics end up with both.
How to work out the cost per booked appointment
Monthly prices are hard to compare when one provider counts minutes, another calls and a third practitioners. Turn each quote into the same number:
Cost per booked appointment = what you’d pay in a month ÷ appointments it books in that month
- Count your calls. Your phone provider can show calls per month and how many went unanswered. Count only the calls the AI receptionist would take: all of them, or just the ones your team misses.
- Work out the minutes: those calls times the average call length.
- Price each provider for that volume, including the charge past its allowance and any feature you need from a higher plan.
- Estimate the bookings: how many of those calls are people wanting an appointment. If the receptionist books straight into your calendar, those calls end with an appointment rather than a call back.
- Divide.
A worked example with round numbers: your clinic gets 200 calls a month that the AI would answer, averaging 2.5 minutes, so 500 minutes. A hypothetical plan of £120 a month with 600 minutes included covers it. If 80 of those calls end in a booking, each booked appointment costs £1.50. Set that against what a new patient’s first visit is worth to your clinic, and against the patients who hang up and book somewhere else when nobody answers.
What HeyCAi costs
HeyCAi is a monthly plan with no lock-in. Plans and an estimate for your clinic are on our Pricing page: the simulator asks how many practitioners, sites and call minutes you have, and we confirm the exact price on the video call. To hear it before you look at numbers, try the demo with your clinic.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost per month?
When we checked providers’ websites in November 2026, AI receptionists for small businesses started at about $25 to $100 a month in the US, and those built for clinics at about £59 to £147 a month in the UK. Most include a set number of minutes or calls and charge for anything over that, so your call volume decides the real figure.
Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human receptionist?
For the same hours, yes: a full-time receptionist at the UK minimum wage costs about £24,800 a year before employer costs, while AI receptionist plans are priced by the month. But they don’t do the same job. A person handles patients at the desk and difficult conversations; an AI receptionist covers the calls nobody is free to take. Many clinics use both.
Per minute or per call: which is cheaper?
The length of your calls decides. Per-call pricing suits clinics with longer calls, since a ten-minute call costs the same as a one-minute one. Plans with included minutes suit clinics with many short calls. Multiply your monthly calls by their average length and price both ways before you choose.
What should I ask before I sign?
Ask what each extra minute or call costs, which features need a higher plan, whether the price includes tax, whether reminders or WhatsApp messages are charged on top and whether there is a minimum term. Then work out the cost per booked appointment for your own call volume.
How much does HeyCAi cost?
HeyCAi is a monthly plan with no lock-in. Plans and an estimate for your clinic are on our Pricing page; the exact price depends on your practitioners, sites and minutes, and we confirm it on the video call.