What after-hours-only AI answering costs
If your office answers calls during the day, you may only need an AI receptionist for nights and weekends. This page prices that: only the calls outside business hours go to the AI.
The numbers we used
| Calls a month | 200 Unverified |
|---|---|
| Average call length | 3 minutes Unverified |
| Calls outside business hours | 30% Unverified |
| Calls the AI answers | Only calls outside business hours (60 of 200) |
| Prices as published | Read on each vendor's own pricing page on 2026-10-29 |
Unverified means these are example numbers we chose, not survey data. Use a month from your phone log for your own estimate.
Estimated monthly bill, after-hours only vs all calls
| Vendor | After-hours only (60 calls) | All calls (200) |
|---|---|---|
| Rosie | $49Professional: within the plan | $149Scale: auto-upgraded from the $49 plan |
| Simple Phones | $49Basic: plan sized to cover your calls (hard cap) | $149Advanced: plan sized to cover your calls (hard cap) |
| Jobber Receptionist | $52.70Receptionist add-on: 30 conversations over the plan; plus your Jobber plan | $163.30Receptionist add-on: 170 conversations over the plan; plus your Jobber plan |
| Quo Sona (formerly OpenPhone) | $59Starter + Sona Tier 2: 20 calls over the plan; includes one $19 Starter seat | $118Starter + Sona Tier 4: within the plan; includes one $19 Starter seat |
| Upfirst | $59.95Premium: within the plan | $159.95Pro: within the plan |
| Goodcall | $79Starter: within the plan | $105.33Starter: 33 customers over the plan |
| RingCentral AI Receptionist (AIR) | $89Standalone: 80 minutes over the plan | $299Standalone: 500 minutes over the plan |
| Dialzara | $89.60Business Lite: 120 minutes over the plan; includes $3 phone number | $242Business Plus: 100 minutes over the plan; includes $3 phone number |
| My AI Front Desk (Frontdesk) | $99Business-in-a-Box: within included minutes + credit pool | $189Business-in-a-Box: 360 min over at $0.25 |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | $105Free: 35 calls over the plan | $385Pro (150 calls): 50 calls over the plan |
| OnCrew | $149Pro: within the plan | $448Multi-Truck: 100 minutes over the plan |
| NextPhone | $199Pro: flat price, unlimited calls | $199Pro: flat price, unlimited calls |
| Abby Connect (human + AI) | $295.20Starter: 40 minutes over the plan; all-AI answering (counts half) | $898.50Professional: 100 minutes over the plan; all-AI answering (counts half) |
| Sameday AI | from $449Launch: "starts at" price; overage not published | from $789Scale: "starts at" price; overage not published |
| Ruby (live receptionists + AI) | $720200 minutes: plan sized to cover your minutes; overage not published | n/aover 500 min: custom quote |
At these numbers, NextPhone bills the same either way.
Price known, usage limits not published
- Allo AI Receptionist: $60 (AI Receptionist add-on: usage limits not published)
- CallRail Voice Assist: $75 (Voice Assist: usage limits not published)
No public price for this usage
- Avoca AI: n/a (price not published)
- Housecall Pro CSR AI: n/a (price not published)
We list these separately instead of guessing what they would charge.
These bills come from the same calculation as the calculator, using each vendor's published plans as of 2026-10-29. Taxes, phone-number fees (unless published) and add-ons aren't included. For Goodcall we assume 1.5 calls per unique customer, Goodcall's own ratio. Vendors are sorted by estimated bill alone.
Try your own numbers in the calculator (opens with "Only after-hours" selected)
After-hours only, by trade
| Trade | Example numbers | AI-answered calls | Lowest estimated bill | Calculator |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing | 200 calls, 3 min, 40% after hours | 80 | Rosie and Simple Phones, tied at $49 a month | Check |
| HVAC | 250 calls, 3.5 min, 35% after hours | 88 | Simple Phones (Basic plan), $49 a month | Check |
| Electrical | 150 calls, 3 min, 25% after hours | 38 | Jobber Receptionist (Receptionist add-on plan), $34.92 a month | Check |
| Roofing | 180 calls, 4 min, 20% after hours | 36 | Smith.ai AI Receptionist (Free plan), $33 a month | Check |
| Garage door | 120 calls, 3 min, 35% after hours | 42 | Jobber Receptionist (Receptionist add-on plan), $38.48 a month | Check |
| Pest control | 150 calls, 3 min, 15% after hours | 22 | Smith.ai AI Receptionist (Free plan), $0 a month | Check |
| Water damage restoration | 90 calls, 5 min, 45% after hours | 40 | Jobber Receptionist (Receptionist add-on plan), $37.30 a month | Check |
Trade numbers are our example inputs Unverified.