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Heilo Automatic Answering Machine

Automatic Answering Machine for Business — Answers When You Can’t

A phone answering machine that actually works for your business. Heilo answers missed calls with your greeting, records the message, turns it into text, and sends you an SMS summary — in 30 seconds. From $19/mo, nothing to install.

The answering machine is the first rung of the Heilo ladder — you start with missed calls, and as your business grows, Heilo grows with it.

Try for FreeHow it works

10 calls free • No credit card • Setup in 5 minutes

What does an unanswered phone cost you?

You’re with a customer, in a meeting, or off the clock. The phone rings — and nothing happens.

The caller tries your competitor

Most callers who can’t reach you won’t try again — they dial the next number in the search results.

Carrier voicemail scares callers away

85% of callers hang up on the robotic carrier prompt. All you’re left with is a “missed call” and no context.

You call back blind

You see a number but not who called or why. You waste time on calls that weren’t urgent — while urgent ones wait.

After hours the phone is dead

Evenings and weekends nobody answers — exactly when customers have time to call. By morning there’s no trace of them.

How does the Heilo answering machine work?

Three steps. No app, no hardware, no number change.

1

Forward your missed calls

Enable conditional forwarding to your Heilo number — with the **61* code or in your phone settings. You still answer as usual.

2

Heilo answers and records

The caller hears your greeting — typed as text and read in a natural voice, or recorded by you — and leaves a message.

3

You get an SMS with the transcript

Within 30 seconds you see who called, what they want, and how urgent it is. You call back with full context.

Not sure how to enable forwarding? Step-by-step guide for iPhone, Android and landlines →

More than message recording

The Heilo answering machine turns every missed call into information you can act on.

Your own greeting

Type a text and Heilo reads it in a natural voice — or record your own. Separate versions for business hours and after hours.

Every message transcribed

Each voice message becomes text you can read in 10 seconds — no listening required.

SMS summary

Within 30 seconds of the call you get an SMS: who called, what about, and how urgent it is.

Lead priority

Heilo scores which messages look like new business and which can wait — so you call the valuable ones first.

Business-hours schedule

Different greetings for business hours, evenings, weekends and holidays. The answering machine works 24/7, even when you don’t.

Dashboard & integrations

Call history with transcripts in one dashboard. Push the data straight into your own CRM via API and webhooks.

No app — works with any phone

Looking for an answering machine app? You don’t need one. Heilo runs in the cloud through standard call forwarding — no battery drain, no permissions, no dependence on your phone model.

Android

Samsung, Xiaomi, and every other Android phone — forwarding is all it takes.

Answering machine on Android →

iPhone

A better alternative to Visual Voicemail — with transcription and SMS.

Answering machine on iPhone →

Landline

Your business landline can have a smart answering machine too — your carrier sets up the forwarding.

Carrier voicemail, live receptionist, or Heilo?

Three ways to handle missed calls — a no-nonsense comparison.

Carrier voicemailLive receptionistHeilo
Monthly cost$0$300–800from $19
Availability24/7, but 85% of callers hang upOffice hours, holidays, sick days24/7
Message transcriptionNone — you listen to recordingsManual notes, error-proneAutomatic, in 30 seconds
SMS after the callNoneDepends on the contractAlways, with a summary
Talks to the caller (e.g. books an appointment live)NoYesNo — records the message and sends a transcript in 30 seconds
Setup time—Days or weeks5 minutes

For the full cost breakdown, see How much does an answering service cost? →

Try it on your own calls — the first 10 are free.

Create account

An answering machine for your industry

The biggest gains go to businesses where the phone rings while your hands are busy working.

Plumbers, electricians, tradespeople
Hair & beauty salons
Dental practices
Law firms
Auto repair shops
Accounting firms
Veterinary clinics
Wedding photographers

Know this service as “business voicemail”? See the voicemail page →

Frequently asked questions

An automatic answering machine is a service that answers calls when you can’t — it greets the caller with your greeting and records a message. Heilo goes further: it transcribes the message, scores the lead priority, and sends you an SMS summary within 30 seconds.
It doesn’t hold a conversation. Heilo plays your greeting, asks the caller to leave a message, and records it. The caller always knows they’re talking to an answering machine, and you get an exact transcript of what they said — instead of a bot improvising answers.
No. Heilo works through call forwarding — a feature built into every phone. There’s nothing to install on Android or iPhone, and it works with landlines too.
Create an account, set up your greeting, and enable conditional call forwarding to your Heilo number — with the **61*number# code or in your phone settings. The whole setup takes about 5 minutes. You still answer normally; Heilo only takes the calls you miss.
Heilo starts at $19/mo. Your first 10 calls are free, no credit card required. For comparison: a live answering service starts around $300/mo and only covers set hours.
Yes. Call forwarding is a standard network feature with every carrier, on both mobile and landline numbers.
Carrier voicemail records a message and stops there. Heilo greets the caller professionally, transcribes the message, extracts details, scores the priority, and sends you an SMS — you see what the caller wants before you even call back.
Yes. Each number gets its own greeting, schedule, and SMS settings, and every message lands in one dashboard. With the API and webhooks you can push transcripts straight into your own CRM.

The next rungs — as your business grows

The answering machine catches missed calls. When you want more, you move up — same account, same dashboard.

Turn on your answering machine for free

10 calls free. No credit card. Setup in 5 minutes.

Start for Free