In the UK, a ready-made AI receptionist costs about £39 to £199 a month in 2026. A custom build on a developer platform costs roughly 5p to 25p a minute to run, plus a setup fee that can reach £2,000 or more. For comparison, a full-time human receptionist costs an employer about £29,000 to £33,000 a year once National Insurance and pension are added.
Key takeaways
- Most UK small businesses will pay £39 to £199 a month for a ready-made plan.
- The price depends on calls or minutes included, calendar booking, and contract length.
- Pay-per-minute platforms are cheap to run but need someone to build and maintain them.
- Human answering services start around £49 to £55 a month, then charge per call or minute.
- Under UK GDPR, callers must be told they're speaking to AI and how their details are used.
What you're actually paying for
An AI receptionist answers your business phone, talks to callers in natural language, takes their details or books them in, and sends you a summary. Whichever provider you choose, the bill is made of the same five parts.
- The subscription or usage. Either a flat monthly fee with a call or minute allowance, or a price per minute.
- A phone number. Most plans let you keep your existing number and forward calls to the AI. A new UK number usually costs a few pounds a month.
- Setup. Writing the script, adding your services, prices and opening hours, and testing it. Some providers include this, others charge for it.
- Integrations. Booking into Google or Outlook Calendar, or sending leads to a CRM, is often only on the middle or top plan.
- Changes. New prices, new services or a new holiday rota. Check whether updates are free or charged by the hour.
UK AI receptionist prices compared
These are the published prices we found on each provider's own website on 23 October 2026. Prices exclude VAT unless stated, and providers change them often, so always check before you sign.
| Provider | Monthly price | What's included | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jodie | £49, £99 or £199 | Unlimited minutes on every plan | No setup fee, month to month, 7-day free trial |
| Fasthosts AI Receptionist | £39, £69 or £99 | 30 calls, 100 calls or unlimited | Extra calls 49p or 39p each on the smaller plans. Calendar booking from £69. No contract |
| Moneypenny AI Receptionist | From £49 | Quoted per business | UK company with human receptionist backup available |
| BT Business AI Receptionist | Price on request | Bundles from 100 minutes a month | Launched 1 October 2026. Monthly rolling, optional £150 training session |
| Smith.ai | $0, $150 or $500 (US pricing) | 25, 75 or 300 calls | Extra calls $2.17 to $3 each. Built for the US market |
| Trillet | $49 (US pricing) | 150 minutes | 20 cents a minute after that, no contract |
Published prices checked 23 October 2026. US-priced tools are shown in dollars because that's how they bill.
For most small businesses taking up to a few hundred calls a month, the realistic range is £39 to £199 a month. The jump between plans usually buys calendar booking, more calls, or connections to other software, not a better voice.
What a custom build costs to run
Agencies often build AI receptionists on developer platforms such as Vapi or Retell. You pay for what you use, which is cheap at low volumes, but someone has to build, test and look after it.
| Cost | Typical price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Platform and AI usage | About $0.07 to $0.31 a minute (roughly 5p to 25p) | Retell, Vapi |
| UK phone number | About $2.50 to $3.50 a month, plus about 1 cent a minute for incoming calls | Twilio UK pricing |
| Setup by an agency | From a few hundred pounds for a simple script to £2,000 or more for a bespoke build | Published UK agency prices |
As a worked example, 300 minutes of calls a month at about $0.11 a minute comes to roughly $33 (about £25) in usage, plus the number. The running cost is low. What you're really paying for is the setup, the testing, and someone to keep it accurate when your business changes.
AI receptionist vs a human receptionist
A full-time receptionist on the average UK salary costs an employer about £29,150 a year. That's based on an average of £25,495 (Indeed, October 2026), plus 15% employer National Insurance above £5,000 and the 3% minimum pension contribution (GOV.UK). On Reed's higher average of £28,761 it's about £33,000. Holiday cover, sick days, recruitment and a desk come on top. Eligible small employers can offset some of the National Insurance with the £10,500 Employment Allowance.
| Option | Typical UK cost | Hours covered | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI receptionist | £39 to £199 a month | 24/7, many calls at once | Booking, enquiries and out-of-hours calls |
| Human answering service | From about £49 to £205 a month, plus calls or minutes (Moneypenny, Face for Business) | Office hours, 24/7 often extra | Sensitive or complex calls |
| Full-time receptionist | About £29,000 to £33,000 a year | Working hours only | Busy front desks with walk-in customers |
Many businesses use both: AI takes routine calls, bookings and anything out of hours, and passes anything sensitive or urgent to a person.
Is an AI receptionist worth it?
It depends on how many calls you miss and what each one is worth. A September 2026 survey for BT by Censuswide found that 67% of UK small businesses miss at least one valuable call a day, and BT estimates missed calls cost UK SMEs about £3.7 billion a year (BT newsroom). BT sells phone systems, so treat the money figure as an estimate. The pattern is still clear: an unanswered call is often a customer who rings the next business on Google.
The simple test: if your average job or booking is worth £100 or more, one extra customer a month covers most plans. If you rarely miss calls, or most callers are existing clients with complex questions, a human service may suit you better.
Hidden costs to check before you sign
- Overage charges. Per-call plans can double in price in a busy month. Unlimited plans avoid this.
- Booking on the cheapest plan. Calendar booking is often only on the middle tier.
- Contract length. Some human services need 3 to 12 months. Most AI tools are month to month.
- Change fees. Ask what it costs to update your prices, services or script after launch.
- Call recording and data. Where are recordings and transcripts stored, and for how long?
- Keeping your number. Make sure you can forward your existing number rather than print a new one.
UK rules you need to follow
There's no special licence for AI call answering, but UK data protection law still applies.
- Tell callers it's AI. The ICO expects you to explain in plain language that AI is being used, at the start, not buried in your terms (ICO AI transparency guidance).
- Tell them how their details are used. Under UK GDPR, callers have the right to be informed when their data is collected. A short spoken notice with a link to your privacy policy works (ICO, right to be informed).
- Solicitors have extra duties. The SRA says it "should always be made clear to clients where they are interfacing with AI", and your firm stays responsible for what it says (SRA compliance tips). In practice, set it up to take details and book consultations, never to give legal advice.
How to choose in 5 steps
- Count your calls. Check your phone log for a normal month: total calls, missed calls and calls out of hours.
- Decide what it should do. Take messages only, or book appointments and answer common questions too?
- Match the plan to the job. If you need booking, compare middle-tier plans, not the headline price.
- Test it as a customer. Use the free trial, call it yourself, and ask the awkward questions your customers ask.
- Check the exits. Month to month, free changes, and your data back if you leave.
Want it set up for you?
SAL Digital sets up AI receptionists for UK small businesses and law firms. We write the script in your words, connect it to your calendar, send you a summary after every call, and test it before it goes live. You only pay once you're happy with it.
Sources
- Provider pricing pages linked in the tables above, checked 23 October 2026.
- Indeed UK, receptionist salaries (updated 5 October 2026) and Reed, average receptionist salary.
- GOV.UK, rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 and workplace pension contributions.
- BT and Censuswide, survey of 1,500 UK SME decision makers and 2,000 UK adults, September 2026 (BT newsroom).
- SRA, compliance tips for solicitors and SRA warning notice on misuse of AI.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost per month in the UK?
Ready-made AI receptionists in the UK cost about £39 to £199 a month in 2026. Jodie charges £49, £99 or £199 with unlimited minutes, and Fasthosts charges £39, £69 or £99 depending on calls included.
Is there a free AI receptionist?
Some tools have free plans or free trials, such as Smith.ai's free tier with 25 calls or Jodie's 7-day trial. Free plans are usually too limited for a business that relies on its phone, but they're a good way to test before paying.
Is an AI receptionist cheaper than a human receptionist?
Yes, by a wide margin. A full-time UK receptionist costs about £29,000 to £33,000 a year including National Insurance and pension, while most AI receptionist plans cost under £2,400 a year.
Can I keep my existing business phone number?
Usually, yes. Most AI receptionists work by forwarding calls from your current number, either all the time, when you're busy, or out of hours.
Will callers know they're talking to AI?
They should. The ICO expects businesses to tell people clearly when AI is being used and how their data is handled, so a good setup says so at the start of the call.
Can an AI receptionist book appointments?
Yes. Most providers can book into Google or Outlook Calendar, but it's often only included on the middle or top plan, so check before you choose.
Is an AI receptionist suitable for a law firm?
It can be, for taking enquiry details, capturing information for conflict checks and booking consultations. The SRA says clients must be told when they're dealing with AI, and the firm stays responsible, so it should never give legal advice.
Do AI receptionists need a long contract?
Most are month to month with no setup fee. Human answering services more often need a 3 to 12 month minimum term, so read the terms before signing.
Syed Latief
Syed founded SAL Digital to help UK small businesses get found on Google and stop losing enquiries. He holds an MBA, is a CPD-certified digital marketer and a certified systems administrator, holds a cyber security essentials certification, and builds and tests every automation SAL Digital sells.