Quick answer
A 100-minute live answering plan costs $150 per 28 days at Continental and $189 to $395 a month at four other vendors (published prices, October 2026). At PATLive's estimate of 2.5 minutes a call, the computed bill is $230 to $530 a month for 50 calls, $620.75 to $1,440 for 150 and $1,499 to $2,950 for 400.
Key takeaways
- At 2.5 minutes a call (PATLive's estimate), live answering comes to $230 to $530 a month for 50 calls, $620.75 to $1,440 for 150 and $1,499 to $2,950 for 400. That is arithmetic on prices published as of October 5, 2026.
- A 100-minute live plan is $150 per 28 days at Continental, then $189 a month at PATLive, $215 at Posh, $329 at Abby and $395 at Ruby.
- Live per minute or per call: per-minute PATLive costs less than per-call Smith.ai until calls average about 4.5 to 5.9 minutes, depending on volume.
- No vendor here publishes a flat plan with human receptionists. The flat plans are AI: Goodcall starts at $79 a month per agent.
- Before you sign, ask how a minute is rounded, whether spam calls count, and whether the bill comes monthly or every 28 days.
How much does an answering service cost per month?
A live answering service costs a small business $230 to $530 a month at 50 calls, $620.75 to $1,440 at 150 calls and $1,499 to $2,950 at 400 calls. Those totals are my arithmetic on four vendors' published plan and overage prices, at 2.5 minutes a call, which is PATLive's own estimate. I opened each vendor's pricing page on October 5, 2026.
A 100-minute bundle is $150 per 28 days at Continental Message Solution, then $189 a month at PATLive, $215 at Posh, $329 at Abby and $395 at Ruby. Continental bills thirteen times a year, so its $150 averages $162.50 a calendar month (my arithmetic: $150 × 13 / 12).
Below 100 minutes, you can pay as you go: AnswerFirst charges a $30 monthly base plus $1.60 to $1.95 a minute. AI answering costs far less. Upfirst starts at $24.95 a month for 30 calls, and Goodcall at $79 a month per agent.
What are the three ways answering services bill?
Answering services bill per minute, per call, or at a flat monthly rate. Think of how you pay for outside help: by the hour, by the job, or on a monthly retainer. This comparison covers nine vendors: seven with live receptionists and two that are AI only.
| Billing model | Vendor | Published plans | Extra usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per minute | PATLive (live) | $49 a month with no minutes; 100 minutes for $189 | $2.99 a minute on pay-as-you-go; $2.09 on the 100-minute plan |
| Per minute | Posh (live) | $65 a month with no minutes; 100 minutes for $215 | $2.30 a minute; $2.15 on the 100-minute plan |
| Per minute | AnswerFirst (live) | $30 a month base, no bundles | $1.60 to $1.95 a minute, based on usage |
| Per minute | Abby (live or AI) | 50 Abby minutes for $165; 100 for $329 | "Billed at your plan's Abby Minute rate"; no price printed |
| Per minute | Ruby (live) | 50 minutes for $250; 100 for $395; 200 for $720; 500 for $1,725 | No overage price published |
| Per minute, 28-day cycle | Continental (live) | Per 28 days: 100 minutes for $150; 250 for $300; 500 for $575 | "Ask your rep for the exact rate" |
| Per call | Smith.ai (live) | 30 calls for $300; 90 for $810; 300 for $2,100 | $11.50, $10.50 and $8.50 a call, by plan |
| Per call | Upfirst (AI) | 30 calls for $24.95; 90 for $59.95; 300 for $159.95; 600 for $299 | $1.50, $1 and $0.75 a call on the first three plans |
| Flat monthly | Goodcall (AI) | $79, $129 or $249 a month per agent, unlimited minutes | Includes 100, 250 or 500 unique callers; $0.50 for each one beyond |
List prices, checked October 5, 2026; monthly unless marked per 28 days. Posh marks its prices "Effective 1/1/26". Sources: Ruby, PATLive, Posh, AnswerFirst, Abby, Continental, Smith.ai, Upfirst, Goodcall.
None of the nine publishes a flat plan with human receptionists. The flat plan is AI, and it counts different callers, not minutes.
What would 50, 150 or 400 calls a month cost?
At 2.5 minutes a call, live answering costs $230 to $530 a month for 50 calls, $620.75 to $1,440 for 150 and $1,499 to $2,950 for 400. AI answering tops out at $79, $119.95 and $234.95 at the same volumes. The 2.5 minutes is PATLive's figure, not mine: its plan labels describe 50 minutes as "about 20 calls". Each cell below is my arithmetic: the cheapest mix of that vendor's published plan and overage price.
| Vendor | 50 calls (125 minutes) | 150 calls (375 minutes) | 400 calls (1,000 minutes) |
|---|---|---|---|
| PATLive (live, per minute) | $241.25 = $189 for 100 minutes + 25 × $2.09 | $620.75 = $479 for 300 minutes + 75 × $1.89 | $1,499, the 1,000-minute plan |
| Posh (live, per minute) | $268.75 = $215 for 100 minutes + 25 × $2.15 | $750 = $700 for 350 minutes + 25 × $2.00 | $1,900, the 1,000-minute plan |
| AnswerFirst (live, per minute) | $230 to $273.75 = $30 + 125 × $1.60 or $1.95 | $630 to $761.25 = $30 + 375 × $1.60 or $1.95 | $1,630 to $1,980 = $30 + 1,000 × $1.60 or $1.95 |
| Smith.ai (live, per call) | $530 = $300 for 30 calls + 20 × $11.50 | $1,440 = $810 for 90 calls + 60 × $10.50 | $2,950 = $2,100 for 300 calls + 100 × $8.50 |
| Upfirst (AI, per call) | $54.95 = $24.95 for 30 calls + 20 × $1.50 | $119.95 = $59.95 for 90 calls + 60 × $1 | $234.95 = $159.95 for 300 calls + 100 × $0.75 |
| Goodcall (AI, flat) | $79 | At most $104 = $79 + 50 × $0.50 | At most $204 = $129 (Growth plan) + 150 × $0.50 |
- AnswerFirst is a range because its rate drops as usage grows and the tiers are not published.
- Goodcall's "at most" assumes every call comes from a different phone number. Repeat callers count once.
- Ruby, Abby and Continental are missing because none prints an overage price. Price the next bundle up: for 125 minutes, Ruby's 200 minutes for $720 or Continental's 250 minutes for $300 per 28 days.
The live rows are not like for like: Smith.ai includes lead screening, qualification and intake in its per-call price.
Should you pick per-call, per-minute or flat pricing?
Pick per-minute billing when your calls are short, per-call billing when they are long intake conversations, and a flat plan only if AI answering works for you. For live service, the dividing line at these published prices is a call of about four and a half to six minutes.
The break-even is my arithmetic: Smith.ai's price at each plan size, and how many PATLive minutes the same money buys.
| Calls a month | Smith.ai (per call) | PATLive minutes for the same money | Break-even call length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | $300 | 153 minutes: $189 for 100 + 53 × $2.09 = $299.77 | 5.1 minutes (153 / 30) |
| 90 | $810 | 528 minutes: $759 for 500 + 28 × $1.79 = $809.12 | 5.9 minutes (528 / 90) |
| 300 | $2,100 | 1,355 minutes: $1,499 for 1,000 + 355 × $1.69 = $2,098.95 | 4.5 minutes (1,355 / 300) |
If your calls average less than the break-even, PATLive's per-minute plan costs less. If they run longer, Smith.ai's per-call plan does. At PATLive's 2.5-minute estimate, per minute wins at all three sizes.
Per call against flat, one AI example: Upfirst's 90-call plan plus $1 a call comes to $78.95 at 109 calls and $79.95 at 110. So Goodcall's $79 flat plan is cheaper from 110 calls, as long as no more than 100 are different callers.
- Count last month's calls. Use your phone bill or call log.
- Time ten of them. Under four and a half minutes on average, price per-minute plans. Over six, price per-call plans. In between, price both.
- Decide who answers. AI costs less at every volume in the budget table. It has two honest uses: overflow when nobody can pick up during business hours, and after-hours calls. This guide to AI phone answering covers the trade-off.
- Compare two bundles, not one. The plan below your volume plus overage is often cheaper than the plan above it. At 125 minutes, PATLive's 100-minute plan comes to $241.25, and its 200-minute plan is $349.
- Read the billing rules below before you sign.
What counts as a billable minute or call?
A billable minute is whatever the vendor's rounding rule says it is, and the rules differ enough to change your bill. Check six things.
- Rounding. PATLive bills only the time its receptionists are on the phone, with the first minute in full and then "6 second increments". AnswerFirst advertises one-second billing and says a 65-second call can be charged as more elsewhere.
- Spam and hang-ups. Smith.ai does not charge for spam or unsolicited sales calls when the line you forward passes Caller ID. Upfirst does not bill calls under 15 seconds or calls where the caller never speaks.
- AI versus human minutes. At Abby, a minute of AI answering uses half an Abby minute.
- Per-call add-ons. Smith.ai charges $1.50 a call to book appointments on your calendar.
- Billing cycle. Continental prices its plans per 28 days. Thirteen 28-day cycles fit in a year (13 × 28 = 364 days), so that is thirteen bills, not twelve. PATLive's FAQ makes the same point about competitors: 28-day cycles "effectively add up to an extra 'month' of charges over a year."
- Taxes and setup. PATLive lists its prices "plus government taxes and fees." Continental says setup fees vary with account complexity.
When is an answering service not worth paying for?
An answering service is not worth it when callers only need to leave a message, or when calls need judgment only you have. For a handful of non-urgent calls a week, voicemail-to-text does the job if your phone plan includes it.
The median hourly wage for receptionists was $18.27 in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is wages only. If your front desk also greets walk-ins and handles paperwork, a person on site does work no phone service can.
Medical, legal and emergency-dispatch calls need a written script and an escalation path before any outside service takes them.
FAQ
What is the cheapest answering service for a small business?
Among the nine vendors checked in October 2026, the lowest published price is Upfirst's AI plan at $24.95 a month for 30 calls. With live receptionists, the lowest base fee is AnswerFirst's $30 a month plus $1.60 to $1.95 a minute, and the lowest 100-minute bundle is Continental's $150 per 28 days. The lowest base fee is not always the lowest bill, because every minute is charged on top.
Is there a free answering service?
No. None of the nine vendors compared here publishes a free plan with live receptionists. Some offer a free trial instead: PATLive and Upfirst each give 14 days, and Abby says every plan comes with a free trial.
Do answering services charge setup fees?
Some do. Smith.ai and Abby each state that there is no setup fee, and Ruby says it has no additional or hidden fees for setup. Continental Message Solution says setup fees vary with account complexity and are quoted by a rep. Ask for it in writing.
Is an AI answering service cheaper than a live one?
Yes, at published prices. Fifty calls a month come to $54.95 on Upfirst's AI plan and $530 on Smith.ai's live plan, both billed per call, by our arithmetic on October 2026 prices. The trade-off is judgment: a person handles an upset caller or an unusual request better than a script does.
Your next step
Count last month's calls and time a typical one. Find your column in the budget table, then check your call length against the break-even table. PATLive and Upfirst each offer a 14-day free trial, so forward your after-hours line for two weeks and compare the usage report against your estimate. If you land on AI, the AI receptionist setup guide walks through the configuration.