What does an AI receptionist cost, and when does it pay for itself?

We sell AI receptionists, so let’s be upfront: ours start at €990 for setup and €290 a month, including 300 call minutes. Extra minutes are €0.25 each.

Whether that’s a good deal for you depends on one thing: how many customers you lose today because nobody picks up. This guide shows you how to work that out in two minutes, what the alternatives cost, and what to check before you sign with anyone, including us.

What you’re actually paying for

An AI receptionist answers your phone, talks to callers in natural language, and then books the appointment, takes a clear message or sends the details to you.

The setup fee pays for the work that makes it sound like your business, not a generic robot:

Your services, prices you approve, opening hours and the questions people really ask
The voice, the languages and how it greets callers
The connection to your calendar or booking system, so it books real slots
Testing with real calls before it goes live

The monthly fee pays for the minutes, keeping it running, updating it when your prices or hours change, and a short report on what happened each month.

The other options, and what they cost

Option	What it costs	What happens to the caller
Voicemail	Nothing	They hear a recording. Many simply call the next business.
You answer yourself	Your time	You stop what you’re doing, or you miss the call.
An answering service	Usually charged per call or per minute	A person takes a message, but usually can’t book.
A part-time receptionist	See the example below	Great during their hours. Nobody after hours.
An AI receptionist	Ours: €990 setup, €290 a month	Answered day and night, booked or passed on to you.

A part-time receptionist in Germany, as an example

Germany’s legal minimum wage has been €13.90 an hour since 1 January 2026. A receptionist working 20 hours a week at that minimum costs:

20 hours × 52 weeks ÷ 12 months = about 87 hours a month
87 hours × €13.90 = about €1,205 a month in gross pay

On top of that, the employer pays its share of social insurance. With the 2026 rates (pension 9.3%, health 7.3% plus half of the health fund’s extra contribution, unemployment 1.3%, long-term care 1.8%), that’s about 21% more. So roughly €1,460 a month, at the minimum wage, for 20 hours a week.

This isn’t an argument against people. A good receptionist does far more than answer the phone. But if your problem is missed calls, especially when you’re busy or closed, that’s a lot of money for the hours that don’t cover evenings and weekends.

When it pays for itself: the two-minute check

You need three numbers you already know, roughly:

Missed calls a week. Check your phone’s call log for a normal week.
The share of those callers who would have booked. Be honest. Some calls are questions or wrong numbers. If you’re not sure, use 50%.
What an average customer spends with you per visit.

Then:

Missed calls a week × 52 ÷ 12 × share who’d book × average spend = money at stake each month

Example: 10 missed calls a week, half would have booked, €60 average spend. 10 × 52 ÷ 12 × 0.5 × €60 = about €1,300 a month at stake.

Now flip it around. How many extra bookings a month does the receptionist need to cover its cost?

Average spend per customer	To cover €290 a month	To also cover the €990 setup over 12 months (€372.50 a month)
€30	10 bookings	13 bookings
€60	5 bookings	7 bookings
€120	3 bookings	4 bookings

If you’d rather work with profit per booking instead of what the customer spends, use that number instead. The method is the same.

The calculator on our home page does this for you with your own numbers. Nothing is sent anywhere unless you ask for an audit.

What to check before you buy any AI receptionist

Does it say it’s an AI? Since 2 August 2026, Article 50 of the EU AI Act requires AI systems that talk to people to be designed so people know they’re talking to an AI, unless that’s obvious. Ours says so at the start of every call. A receptionist that pretends to be human is a legal risk and a trust risk.
Is there a data processing agreement? Under the GDPR (Article 28), whoever handles your callers’ data for you needs a contract that says how. Ask where the data is processed.
Are calls recorded, and for how long is anything kept? Ivy, our own AI receptionist, keeps no audio recordings and deletes transcripts after 90 days. Ask every provider the same question.
What’s included, and what happens above it? Check the minutes included and the price of extra minutes, so a busy month doesn’t surprise you.
Can it book, or only take messages? Booking straight into your calendar is where the value is.
What happens with urgent calls? It should pass them on to you or flag them straight away.
Which languages? If your customers speak more than one language, it should too.
How long are you tied in? Our AI receptionist plan runs month to month. Founding clients agree to three months in return for their discount.

When it’s not worth it

Be honest with yourself here:

You rarely miss calls. If someone answers almost every call already, the gain is small.
Almost nobody calls. If nearly all bookings already come in online, fix the website first.
Each customer is worth very little, and calls are few. The table above will tell you quickly.

If that’s you, you don’t need us for this. If it isn’t, the cheapest way to find out is to measure it.

Hear one for yourself

The best test is a phone call. Talk to Ivy, the AI receptionist we built for Webliify, and ask her to answer the phone for your business. You’ll hear exactly what your customers would hear.