AI receptionist cost in the UK: how to work out what you'd pay

If you search for AI receptionist cost in the UK, you'll get answers from a few pounds a month to several hundred. Both can be true. The products are different, and so is the way they're billed.

This guide doesn't list other companies' prices. Prices change, and the only reliable place to read one is the provider's own pricing page on the day you buy. What it does give you is the list of things that decide your real bill, so you can compare any two offers fairly.

The four ways they charge

Most AI receptionists use one of these. Some mix two.

• A flat monthly price. You pay the same every month. Check whether calls or minutes are capped, because "unlimited" isn't always unlimited.
• A monthly price with an allowance. The plan includes a number of calls or minutes. Go over and you pay extra for each one.
• Pay per call. You pay for each call the AI answers. Quiet month, small bill. Busy month, bigger bill.
• Pay per booked job or appointment. You pay only when it books something. Check what counts as a booking, and who decides.

None of these is better in itself. A sole trader who gets a handful of missed calls a week may do well on a small allowance. A busy firm may want a flat price so there are no surprises.

Minutes or calls: what's the difference?

A plan that counts minutes charges you for how long callers talk. A plan that counts calls charges you for each call, however long it lasts.

Short calls favour minutes. Long calls favour per-call pricing. Ask the provider what a typical call length looks like for a job enquiry, then do the sum yourself.

Spam and wrong numbers use up an allowance too. Ask whether they count.

What to check in the small print

The monthly figure is the start of the bill, not the end. Before you sign up, find out:

1. Is VAT included? Many business prices are shown without VAT. If you're VAT-registered you may be able to reclaim it. If you're not, it's a cost. Ask your accountant if you're unsure.
2. What happens when the allowance runs out? Some plans charge extra. Some stop answering. Some fall back to something simpler.
3. Is there a contract? Month-to-month is easier to leave. A yearly term may be cheaper per month but locks you in.
4. Is there a set-up fee? Some providers set the assistant up for you and charge for it.
5. What does the free trial need? Some ask for a card up front and charge when it ends. Check the date.
6. Do texts cost extra? If the assistant texts your caller or you, find out whether that comes out of a separate allowance.
7. Can it book jobs, and do you want it to? Booking costs more on some plans. If you'd rather confirm the time yourself, you may not need it.
8. Where do the enquiries go? An email you have to copy into your phone is a cost in time, even if the price is low.

What a cheap price can leave out

A low price is fine if it covers what you need. Check it covers these:

• Does it say it's an AI? Callers should know who they're talking to. Ask how it introduces itself and what it says if someone asks.
• What does it do with emergencies? For a gas smell or a carbon monoxide alarm, the caller needs the National Gas Emergency Service number, not a booked appointment. Ask what happens on those calls.
• Does it make things up? An assistant that quotes a price you never set can cost you a job. Ask whether it gives prices, and who sets them.
• Is the call recorded? Some services keep call audio, some keep only a transcript. If it matters to you or your customers, ask.

A worked example

Say a provider offers a plan with 100 calls a month, then a set price for each extra call. In a month with 130 calls you pay the plan, plus 30 extra calls. In a month with 60 calls you still pay the full plan.

Now say another offers minutes. If an average enquiry lasts two minutes, 100 calls is about 200 minutes. A 100-minute plan would run out halfway through the month.

These numbers are made up, to show the method. Use your own call volume. Look at your phone's call log for the last month, count the calls you missed, and use that.

How TradiesMate prices it

The AI receptionist isn't sold on its own. It comes with the plan.

• Minimum is £24 every 30 days.
• Covered is £39 every 30 days, with 250 texts. The first 30 days are half price.
• Covered Team is £79.
• No VAT is added to any of these.

The AI receptionist is included in Covered and Covered Team, and it's free while it's in beta. You get 60 minutes of AI calls every 30 days. If you use them all, callers get the text-back instead until your plan renews, so nobody is left hanging.

It says it's an AI, and takes the job, the postcode, the caller's name and when suits them. It doesn't book visits, and it doesn't make up prices. If a caller smells gas or a carbon monoxide alarm is going off, it gives them 0800 111 999 and never books the call. It doesn't record call audio. You get a written transcript and a summary in your Inbox.

See pricing for how texts are counted, and the AI receptionist page to hear a real call.

Work out your own number

1. Count your missed calls. Use last month's call log.
2. Pick the billing style that fits. Allowance, per call, or flat.
3. Add VAT if it isn't included. And any set-up fee.
4. Check the overage rate. Multiply it by a busy month.
5. Compare what you get. Emergencies, disclosure, where the enquiry lands.

If the answer is a price you'd be happy to pay for one rescued job a month, it's worth a try. If you'd have to rescue several to cover it, keep looking. We can't tell you how many jobs any provider will win you, and nobody honestly can.

Questions

Last checked 2 November 2026.

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