AI Receptionist Software: Six Products Compared and a Buyer's Checklist (2026)
- The sticker price starts low: Dialzara Lite $29 a month for 60 minutes, Rosie $49 for 250 minutes, Smith.ai's AI tier free for 25 calls, and Upfirst from $24.95 for 30 calls 4,2,3,6.
- Pricing units differ, so monthly prices do not compare directly: minutes (Rosie, Dialzara, My AI Front Desk), calls (Smith.ai, Upfirst) and unique customers (Goodcall) 2,4,5,3,6,1.
- Compliance statements vary and are the vendor's own: Goodcall says SOC 2 and HIPAA compliant, and My AI Front Desk says HIPAA compliant with signed BAAs; Rosie, Smith.ai and Dialzara state none on the pages we read 1,5,2,3,4.
- Transfer wording differs: Smith.ai and Upfirst say warm transfers, Dialzara lists blind and warm transfer on its top tier, and Rosie lists live transfers on its Scale tier 3,6,4,2.
- We tested none of these products, so every line is what the vendor says.
AI receptionist software answers your phone with a voice agent, books appointments and passes calls on. The products look alike on their home pages and differ in how they charge, what they connect to and how they hand a call to a person. This page lays out what six vendors state on their own pages as of 9 November 2026, a checklist for choosing, and where Convocore fits.
· 7 sources · Published by Convocore, which sells white label AI agents. See method and limits.
What six AI receptionist products state
We read each vendor's own pages on 9 November 2026. A blank means the page did not say.
| Vendor | Plans and monthly price | Priced by | Free trial or tier | Transfer wording | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodcall | Starter $79, Growth $129, Scale $299 | Unique customers (100, 500, 2,000); no per-minute charges | Free demo agent | Transfers go to the right person with a backup | |
| Rosie | Professional $49, Scale $149, Growth $299 | Minutes (250, 1,000, 2,000) | 7-day free trial | Live call transfers on Scale; waterfall transfers on Growth | English and Spanish |
| Smith.ai AI | Free $0, Pro $150, Enterprise $500 | Calls (25 free, then $3.00, $2.00, $1.67 a call) | Free tier, no trial | Warm transfers; no fee if the AI starts the escalation | English and Spanish |
| Dialzara | Lite $29, Pro $99, Plus $199, Elite $349 | Minutes (60, 220, 500, 1,000); overage $0.48 to $0.35 | 7-day free trial | Blind and warm transfer on Elite | 10 languages |
| My AI Front Desk | $99, or $79 billed annually | 200 voice minutes; overage 25 credits a minute | 7-day free trial | Agent Actions include transfer a call | 20 or more |
| Upfirst | From $24.95 | Calls (30 a month base) | Two week free trial | Warm transfers to you or your team | English, Spanish and 35 or more |
- Ruby, a well known receptionist service, uses live human receptionists and says an AI virtual receptionist is not how it works, so it is not in this table.
Why monthly prices do not compare
Three pricing units appear in the table. A busy practice with many short calls can run out of minutes, a business with long calls can run out of minutes faster than calls, and a business with many repeat customers is cheaper on a per-unique-customer plan. Smith.ai's per-call price falls from $3.00 to $1.67 as the tier rises 3, while Dialzara's overage falls from $0.48 to $0.35 a minute 4. Our reading: price a month of your own calls, by count and by length, against each unit before comparing.
The units differ, so the bars show the entry price only, not value for money.
A checklist for choosing
Ask each vendor these questions in writing, and check the answers against the pages we read.
- Phone number: Goodcall includes a local number or lets you forward, Rosie lets you pick an area code, My AI Front Desk says you can keep your existing number, and Upfirst gives each plan its own number and supports forwarding 1,2,5,6.
- Calendar: Smith.ai lists Calendly and others, Upfirst lists Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square and Clio, and My AI Front Desk connects through Zapier 3,6,5.
- Compliance: only Goodcall (SOC 2 and HIPAA) and My AI Front Desk (HIPAA with signed BAAs) state a standard on the pages we read, and those are their claims, not our verification 1,5.
Where Convocore fits
Convocore is an AI agent platform rather than a receptionist-only product, so one agent can answer your phone, your website chat, WhatsApp and Instagram. It books into Google Calendar, Outlook or Calendly, can send leads to your software by webhook, and forwards calls to numbers you set; a transfer is a plain call forward. The Business plan is $99 a month plus a $0.02 a minute voice fee and providers at cost, with a free plan to build and test first 7. Convocore makes no HIPAA claim: if you handle patient information, ask for a business associate agreement from any vendor before you buy.
If you want a ready-made receptionist you can switch on in 15 minutes with a fixed number of calls, the products in the table are built for that. If you want to design the agent's behaviour yourself and reuse it across channels, a platform fits better.
What the evidence does not show
- We tested none of these products; every feature and price is what the vendor's page says.
- We could not read the US Bureau of Labor Statistics receptionist page, so we quote no wage figure.
- Upfirst's pricing page was not read, only its home page price line; Frontdesk, Ruby and Slang.ai are left out because their pages did not state comparable prices.
- Rosie's FAQ was collapsed in our reader, so its calendar and compliance answers are unknown.
- Compliance wording is the vendor's own claim; we did not check any certificate.
Choosing AI receptionist software
Estimate a month of your own calls by count and by minutes, pick the vendor whose pricing unit favours that pattern, and test with a real call before you forward your main line. Ask for any compliance promise in writing.
Method and limits
- Every figure comes from a vendor page opened on 9 November 2026. Where a page was silent we leave the cell blank rather than assume.
- Convocore sells an AI agent platform and has a commercial interest. If you find an error, write to support@convocore.ai.
Sources
- PricingPrimary sourceGoodcall. Read 9 November 2026.
- PricingPrimary sourceRosie. Read 9 November 2026.FAQ answers were collapsed in our reader.
- AI receptionistPrimary sourceSmith.ai. Read 9 November 2026.Prices are from this page, not Smith.ai's separate pricing page.
- PricingPrimary sourceDialzara. Read 9 November 2026; page says updated 21 October 2026.
- PricingPrimary sourceMy AI Front Desk. Read 9 November 2026.
- Home pagePrimary sourceUpfirst. Read 9 November 2026.Pricing page not read; only the home page price line.
- Convocore pricingPrimary sourceConvocore. Read 9 November 2026.
Questions
What is AI receptionist software?
Software that answers your business phone with an AI voice agent, books appointments, takes messages and passes calls to a person when needed.
How much does AI receptionist software cost?
On 9 November 2026 Dialzara Lite was $29 for 60 minutes, Rosie $49 for 250 minutes, Goodcall $79 for 100 unique customers, My AI Front Desk $99 with 200 minutes, and Smith.ai had a free tier of 25 calls.
Why can't I compare the monthly prices directly?
Vendors price by minutes, calls or unique customers. Price a month of your own calls against each unit.
Are AI receptionists HIPAA compliant?
Some vendors say so on their pages, such as Goodcall and My AI Front Desk, which says it signs BAAs. Those are their claims. Convocore makes no HIPAA claim; ask any vendor for a BAA in writing.
Can an AI receptionist transfer to a person?
Yes, but wording differs: Smith.ai and Upfirst say warm transfers, Dialzara lists blind and warm transfer on its top tier, and Rosie lists live transfers on its Scale tier.
Is Convocore AI receptionist software?
Convocore is an AI agent platform. One agent can answer your phone, website chat, WhatsApp and Instagram. A transfer is a plain call forward, and you can build and test on the free plan.