How Much Does an Answering Service Cost? 2026 Price Guide

See also: Virtual Receptionist vs Heilo — Cost Comparison | How Many Customers Do Missed Calls Cost You? | Heilo vs Live Answering Service | Business voicemail pricing

In short: A US receptionist earned a median $38,010 a year in 2025, before benefits (BLS, checked 20 October 2026). Live answering services publish plans from $250 a month for 50 minutes (Ruby) or $300 a month for 30 calls (Smith.ai), so the bill grows with your call volume. Voicemail that turns messages into text never talks to the caller; Heilo prices it per number on our pricing page.

How We Compare

Every missed call costs money, but overpaying for call coverage is a waste too. The right answer depends on your call volume and on whether the caller must talk to a person. Heilo wrote this guide, so it also says when a person on the phone is the better choice. We compare five things: who talks to the caller, which hours are covered, what you get after the call, the unit you are billed in, and how the cost grows with the number of calls. Prices are as each provider lists them; Ruby's page does not say whether tax is included, and Heilo's prices are net.

Option 1: In-House Receptionist

Hiring someone just to answer the phone is the simplest idea, but it carries the largest fixed cost.

Item	Figure	Source
Median pay for receptionists	$38,010 a year, $18.27 an hour (May 2025)	BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook
Benefits	30.0% of employer compensation costs for private-industry workers (June 2026)	BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation
Desk, phone, computer, holiday cover	not included in the figures above	–

Sources checked 20 October 2026.

Example: if a median-paid receptionist's benefits followed that private-industry share, the employer would pay about $54,300 a year, roughly $4,500 a month (38,010 ÷ 0.70), before desk, phone and holiday cover.

Coverage limitations: A receptionist works 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. That leaves evenings, nights, weekends, holidays, lunch breaks, sick days and vacation uncovered: about 40 hours of weekly coverage out of the 168 hours in a week.

Makes sense when: the phone rings through the day, you have a front desk with walk-in clients, and the work needs knowledge of your business.

Less suited to: businesses where most calls come outside office hours.

Option 2: Live Answering Service

An outsourced answering service provides human agents who answer calls in your business name.

Pricing models vary widely:

Pricing model	What to check in the offer
Per minute	whether hold time is billed and how minutes are rounded
Per call	what counts as a call, for example spam and hang-ups
Monthly bundle	what the bundle includes and what an extra call or minute costs
After hours	whether nights and weekends are included or carry a surcharge

Two published price lists (checked 20 October 2026):

Provider	Billing unit	Plans
Ruby	per minute	50 min $250, 100 min $395, 200 min $720, 500 min $1,725 a month
Smith.ai receptionists (live agents)	per call	Starter 30 calls $300 ($11.50 per extra call), Basic 90 calls $810 ($10.50), Pro 300 calls $2,100 ($8.50)

Costs people forget:

Agent briefing and training: you write the script and teach the agents about your business. When your services, prices or procedures change, the agents need updating.
Ramp-up period: agents need some time before they handle your calls smoothly, so expect mistakes at the start.
Overage: calls or minutes above the plan are billed at the provider's overage rate.
Minimum term: ask how long the contract runs and how much notice you must give.
Seasonal scaling: if your call volume doubles in a busy season, a per-minute or per-call bill grows with it.

What you get: A real person answers in your business name, follows your script, captures a short summary and passes it to you.

What you don't get: unless the provider says otherwise, a full transcript of what the caller said; ask whether you receive a recording, a transcript or only the agent's summary.

Makes sense when: calls need a live conversation, or clients expect to speak with a person.

Option 3: Voicemail That Turns Messages Into Text (Heilo)

Heilo is not an answering service: it never talks to the caller. It records a message or a call and turns it into a transcript and a summary. It has three plans, each at a fixed net price per number per month:

Heilo Voicemail: the caller leaves a message when you don't answer (missed-call forwarding at your carrier is required). You get the recording, text, summary and an SMS with the caller's details, topic and a link.
Heilo Select: you keep your number and add Heilo to a chosen call. Conference calling is required, Heilo records the call from the moment it joins, and voicemail is included.
Heilo Line: a Polish +48 company number for each salesperson. Incoming calls and outgoing calls started with "Call via Heilo" (+48 numbers only) are recorded automatically, with a transcript, a summary, suggested tasks and notes from the call coach. Once you set up an integration, results go to your CRM via the API, signed webhooks, Zapier or Make (call assistant). It starts after company verification, with no fixed timing.

Example: a team of five salespeople on Heilo Line needs five numbers.

Plans are billed monthly in advance; you can cancel at any time, and the service runs to the end of the period you have paid for. The price is per number, not per person in the account. Heilo Line includes 6 hours of recorded calls per number in each billing period; each extra hour is billed per minute at the rate on the pricing page and added to the next invoice. Heilo Voicemail and Heilo Select carry an indicative limit of 500 recorded minutes per number per month that never blocks calls. Carrier charges for forwarded calls are separate (how to set up forwarding). Current prices are on our pricing page; the voicemail plan is described on the automatic answering machine page.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Factor	In-house receptionist	Live answering service	Heilo
Who talks to the caller	the receptionist	an agent	nobody: Heilo records a message or a call
Billing unit	salary plus benefits	per minute, per call or a monthly bundle	fixed net price per number per month
Published price	median pay $38,010 a year plus benefits (BLS)	from $250 a month for 50 minutes (Ruby); from $300 a month for 30 calls (Smith.ai)	see the pricing page
Hours	working hours	depends on the plan	voicemail works outside office hours too
What you get after the call	the receptionist's notes	the agent's notes	recording, text and summary
How cost grows	another hire	with minutes or calls	with the number of numbers (Heilo Line: one per salesperson)
Contract	employment contract	depends on the provider (Smith.ai: month-to-month)	billed monthly, cancel at any time

Does It Pay Off? Check the Break-Even

To see whether a service pays off, compare its monthly cost with the margin (not revenue) of the jobs you would otherwise lose. Example: if a job leaves $200 margin, a service that costs $300 a month needs two recovered jobs a month to break even. For Heilo, compare the plan price on our pricing page with the same margin.

Costs That Are Easy to Miss

Cost	In-house receptionist	Live answering service	Heilo
Start	hiring and onboarding	writing the script and passing on knowledge about your business	setting up the greeting and forwarding; for Heilo Line, company verification
Holidays and sickness	cover or days without service	check the offer	no change
More calls	same cost, up to what one person can handle	a higher bill for minutes or calls	same price per number; Heilo Line includes 6 recorded hours per number in each billing period, and each extra hour is billed per minute
Another person on the team	another hire	check the offer	Heilo Line: another number for each salesperson
Carrier charges	–	depends on how calls are forwarded	forwarded calls follow your carrier's tariff

Summary

A person on the payroll has the largest fixed cost: a median wage plus benefits, and still hours without cover. A live answering service costs what its offer says for your volume of calls or minutes. Heilo costs a fixed amount per number, but it never talks to the caller, so when the customer must speak to someone right away, choose a person on the phone. When missed calls are the problem, Heilo Voicemail is enough; sales teams that should record their calls and send results to a CRM need Heilo Line. Prices are on the pricing page, and the voicemail side is covered in business voicemail pricing.

FAQ

How much does an answering service cost per month?

It depends on the form. A US receptionist earned a median $38,010 a year in 2025, before benefits. Live answering services publish entry plans from $250 a month for 50 minutes (Ruby) or $300 a month for 30 calls (Smith.ai), and the price rises with volume. Heilo, which never talks to the caller and only records a message or a call, charges a fixed net price per number per month; see the pricing page. Figures checked 20 October 2026.

Are there long-term contracts with Heilo?

There is no fixed-term contract. Paid plans are billed monthly in advance; you can cancel at any time and the service runs to the end of the period you have paid for.

What if my call volume increases — will the price go up?

Heilo charges per number, not per call. Heilo Line includes 6 hours of recorded calls per number in each billing period; each extra hour is billed per minute at the rate on the pricing page and added to the next invoice. Heilo Voicemail and Heilo Select carry an indicative limit of 500 recorded minutes per number per month that never blocks calls. With Heilo Line, each salesperson needs their own number, so the cost grows with the team.

Can I start with Heilo and add a live service later?

Yes. You can use Heilo Voicemail for after-hours messages and add a live service later, or combine both in a hybrid model. The cost is the Heilo plan plus the live service's bill.