Missed calls are missed customers. Some services answer with humans at a premium; others are standalone AI phone bots. Here's an honest comparison — and why an AI receptionist that's part of your whole toolkit (booking, CRM, reviews) beats a bolt-on that only picks up the phone.
| Service | Starts at | Human or AI | Pricing model | More than answering (booking, CRM, reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Viva | $99/mo flat | AI | Flat monthly | Yes — full free platform |
| Ruby | $245–$1,640/mo* | Human | By the minute | Answering only |
| Smith.ai | $95+ AI / $293+ human* | AI + Human | Per call | Answering only |
| Rosie | $49–$299/mo* | AI | Flat (per-minute tiers) | Answering only |
| Goodcall | $79+/mo* | AI | Per unique caller | Answering only |
Viva's AI receptionist answers your phone 24/7 for a flat $99/mo — no per-minute or per-call meter. The difference is what happens after it picks up: because it's part of the full Viva platform, it books straight into your calendar, updates your CRM, and works with your website, inbox and reviews. It's a receptionist that's wired into your whole business, not a phone bot off to the side.
The best-known name in human virtual receptionists — friendly, US-based people answering your calls, with a strong reputation and transparent, all-inclusive plans.
The catch: it's priced by the minute and gets expensive fast ($245/mo for 50 minutes up to $1,640/mo for 500). It answers calls; it doesn't run your booking, CRM or marketing.
A capable hybrid — AI receptionist plus live human agents, with the ability to escalate, and lots of integrations. Good if you want both AI efficiency and a human backstop.
The catch: per-call pricing that climbs (the human service is ~$293–$1,950/mo, and budgets often run 20–30% over with overages). Like the others, it's an answering layer, not your whole toolkit.
The affordable AI-first answering services. Rosie uses flat, per-minute tiers ($49–$299/mo); Goodcall is metered by unique callers (from ~$79/mo). Both are solid, low-cost ways to stop missing calls.
The catch: they're standalone AI phone bots. They answer and take messages (higher tiers add booking), but they aren't tied to your website, CRM, reviews or marketing — you'd run those separately.
Every option here will stop your phone from ringing out. But answering the call is only half the value — the other half is what happens next: the appointment gets booked, the lead lands in your CRM, the follow-up goes out, the review gets requested. A standalone bot or a per-minute human service hands you a message and stops there; you're left stitching it to the rest of your tools.
Viva's AI receptionist is part of the platform that does all of that — for a flat $99/mo, on top of tools that are free. No per-minute meter, no separate integrations to wire up.
It depends what you want. Ruby and Smith.ai offer human (and some AI) receptionists but are priced per minute or per call and get expensive ($245–$1,950+/mo). Rosie and Goodcall are affordable standalone AI answering services. Viva's AI receptionist is $99/mo flat and part of a full free platform, so it doesn't just answer — it books appointments, updates your CRM, and works alongside your website, reviews and inbox.
As of July 2026: Viva's AI receptionist is $99/mo flat (on top of Viva's free tools). Rosie starts around $49/mo, Goodcall around $79/mo (metered by unique callers). Smith.ai's AI receptionist starts around $95/mo (per-call), and its human receptionists run $293–$1,950+/mo. Ruby's human receptionists run about $245–$1,640/mo by minutes. Check each vendor's site for current pricing.
For 24/7 coverage, booking appointments, answering common questions and capturing leads you'd otherwise miss, a modern AI receptionist does the job at a fraction of the cost. For complex, high-empathy or high-value conversations, a human service like Ruby still has the edge. Many businesses use AI for the bulk of calls and reserve humans for exceptions.
Yes. Because it's part of the full Viva platform, it books directly into your calendar, updates your CRM, and works with your website, inbox and reviews — not just as a standalone phone bot. Most dedicated answering services only take messages or require separate integrations.
Get an AI receptionist that answers 24/7 and books, updates your CRM and works with your whole toolkit. Free marketing tools forever; the AI receptionist is $99/mo.
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