Updated July 2026
In short: a basic AI call-answering tool costs around £99–£299/month. A fully managed AI front office — one that also handles web forms, WhatsApp and DMs, qualifies and books the enquiry, chases the ones that go quiet and sends you a monthly report — costs about £300–£950/month plus a one-off setup. Either way it's far cheaper than a full-time receptionist (£25,000+ a year) or a human answering service (£150–£550/mo plus per-call fees) — and one recovered booking usually covers the fee.
"AI receptionist" covers everything from a cheap DIY voice bot to a done-for-you front office. Here's what each tier actually costs — and does — in 2026:
| Option | What it does | Typical UK cost |
|---|---|---|
| DIY AI voice app | Answers calls with a bot you set up and manage yourself | £9–£99/mo |
| AI answering service | Answers calls, takes messages, some booking | £99–£299/mo |
| Managed AI front office (e.g. ReceptionDesk24) | All channels — calls, web, WhatsApp, DMs — qualifies, books, 7-touch follow-up, reactivation, reviews, monthly report, done-for-you | £300–£950/mo + setup |
| Human answering service | People answer calls in your name, take messages | £150–£550/mo + per-call |
| In-house receptionist | One person, ~40 hrs/week, one call at a time | £25,000–£40,000/yr |
Two AI receptionists at very different prices can look similar on the surface. The cost is driven by scope:
The honest way to judge the cost isn't the monthly fee — it's what a missed enquiry is worth. If your average job or booking is worth £1,000+, recovering a single one a month returns several times the fee. For most service businesses the fee is invisible against the work it recovers. See the full ReceptionDesk24 pricing, including a guarantee to recover at least 3× your fee in booked work or you don't pay.
Basic AI call-answering tools cost around £99–£299 a month, while a fully managed AI front office that also handles web forms, WhatsApp, follow-up and booking costs about £300–£950 a month plus a one-off setup — far less than a full-time receptionist (£25,000+/yr) or a human answering service (£150–£550/mo plus per-call fees).
Yes. A full-time in-house receptionist costs roughly £25,000–£40,000 a year all-in for ~40 hours a week. An AI receptionist works 24/7, handles many enquiries at once, and costs from a few hundred pounds a month — usually 85–95% cheaper.
Most managed services charge a one-off setup fee to build, train and test the agent on your business — commonly £300–£1,000 depending on the plan. The monthly fee then covers everything after go-live.
Scope: whether it only answers calls or handles every channel; whether it just takes messages or qualifies, books and follows up; whether it's DIY or fully managed; and included usage. Done-for-you, multi-channel services cost more but do far more of the work.