How much does an AI receptionist cost in 2026?

If you’ve started shopping for an AI receptionist, you’ve probably noticed a frustrating pattern: half the websites won’t show you a price until you “book a demo.” Let’s fix that. Here’s how AI-receptionist pricing actually works in 2026 — in pounds, for UK tradespeople.

The three pricing models

1. Per-minute. You pay for the minutes the AI spends on calls (often £0.08–£0.40/min). Cheap if you get few callouts, unpredictable if you get a lot.

2. Flat monthly. A fixed fee for a bucket of minutes or unlimited calls — usually £49 to £400+/month depending on volume and features. Predictable, which most trades prefer.

3. Setup + monthly (done-for-you). A one-off setup fee (£200–£1,000) to build and tune it for your business, plus a flat monthly. You pay a bit more up front, but someone else does the work and keeps it running properly.

What actually drives the price

• Call volume — more minutes, higher tier.
• Booking vs. messages — calendar booking and job management integration costs more than simple message-taking.
• Trade-specific tuning — a receptionist that knows a Gas Safe callout from a standard boiler service is worth more than a generic bot.
• Done-for-you vs. DIY — self-serve is cheaper; done-for-you saves you the hours.

How to know it’s worth it

Do the missed-callout maths. If your average job is worth £350 and your receptionist books just one extra callout a month, it’s already paid for itself several times over. For higher-ticket trades — a £12,000 re-roof, a £4,500 boiler replacement — a single recovered call can cover a year.

Red flags

• Per-call fees buried in the small print.
• “Contact sales” with no public pricing.
• No trial or pilot — you should be able to test it risk-free.

Bottom line: expect a flat monthly in the low hundreds, and judge it on callouts booked, not features listed. See our pricing — it’s right on the page.