By Aman Singh · · 8 min read
AI & Automation · Australia · Prices checked 8 October 2026 · By Aman Singh
Disclosure up front: we don't sell an AI receptionist subscription. We build websites and small automations, including missed-call text-back. That means we have no plan to push in the comparison below, but we do have a bias towards the simpler option. Every price links to the provider's own page so you can check it.
Key takeaways
- Published AI receptionist plans in Australia start around $95/month and run to $600/month for higher call allowances. Several add a one-off setup or training fee.
- Most plans include a minute allowance (for example 600 minutes) and charge per minute after that. Check the overage rate, not just the headline price.
- A full-time receptionist costs $60,000–$70,000 a year on SEEK's October 2026 figures, before 12% super and leave.
- If you miss calls a few times a day while on the tools, a missed-call text-back often recovers the lead for a fraction of the cost. If you get dozens of calls a day that need bookings, an AI receptionist earns its fee.
- Searches for "ai receptionist" in Australia run at about 880 a month, up 39% year on year (Google Keyword Planner, our pull on 8 Oct 2026). Lots of businesses are asking this question right now.
How much does an AI receptionist cost in Australia?
These are the published plans we could verify on 8 October 2026. We left out providers that only quote on a call, because "contact us" is not a price.
Two things change the real number more than the headline price:
- Minutes, not calls. Most plans meter talk time. A 600-minute allowance sounds like a lot until a few long quoting calls a day eat it. Work out your average call length from your phone bill before you pick a tier.
- GST. Some providers quote ex-GST, some don't say. Add 10% to any "+ GST" price when you compare.
What an AI receptionist actually does
An AI receptionist answers your business number with a synthetic voice, holds a conversation, and acts on it. The better ones can:
- Answer every call, 24/7, including several at once
- Answer common questions from information you give it (hours, service area, rough pricing)
- Book a job or appointment straight into your calendar
- Transfer urgent calls to a person
- Send you a written summary and transcript of every call
What it can't do well yet: handle an upset customer with real judgement, quote a complex job, or recover gracefully when the caller goes off-script. Most providers sell a "warm transfer to a human" option for exactly this reason.
What a missed-call text-back does (and what it costs)
A missed-call text-back is much simpler. When a call to your business goes unanswered, the caller gets an SMS within about a minute: "Sorry we missed you, it's Dave from Smith Plumbing. What do you need a hand with?" Their reply lands on your phone, so you call back knowing what the job is.
It doesn't talk to anyone. It just stops the caller ringing the next business on the list while you finish the job you're on. That is usually where the lead is lost: not because nobody answered, but because nobody got back to them before a competitor did.
Running cost is small. On Twilio's published Australian list prices, a mobile number is US$8.25 a month and each outbound SMS is US$0.0515 (Twilio AU pricing, checked 8 Oct 2026). At 100 missed calls a month that is about US$13, or roughly A$20. You pay that to the SMS provider directly. Setting it up is a one-off build, which we quote as a fixed written price after a free automation audit.
AI receptionist or missed-call text-back: which do you need?
Plenty of businesses end up with both: text-back for missed calls during the day, and an AI receptionist for after-hours bookings once call volume justifies it.
Questions to ask before you sign up for an AI receptionist
- What happens when I run out of minutes? Get the overage rate in writing.
- Is the price ex-GST?
- Is there a setup or training fee, and is there a lock-in contract?
- Where are call recordings stored, and who can access them? Recordings contain personal information, so the Privacy Act 1988 applies. Ask where the data is processed.
- Does it connect to what I already use (Google Calendar, ServiceM8, Simpro, a CRM), or do I re-enter bookings by hand?
- Can I hear a recorded call from a business like mine? Every provider has a demo; ask for one in your trade.
Who this isn't for
If your phone rings twice a week, you don't need either. Turn on voicemail-to-text, put a clear contact form on your website, and spend the money elsewhere. And if your business depends on a relationship with every caller (a solicitor, a specialist clinician), an AI voice answering first can do more harm than a short wait.
Where to go from here
If missed calls and slow replies are costing you work, start with our lead follow-up automation page, which covers missed-call text-back and instant form replies. For questions customers type rather than ring about, see the AI chatbot for business page. Everything we build is listed on the AI & automation services hub. Not sure which you need? The free automation audit takes a few minutes and you get a written answer.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost in Australia?
Published plans checked on 8 October 2026 run from about $95 a month to $600 a month. Some providers add a one-off setup or training fee of $1,000 to $3,500. Most plans include a monthly minute allowance and charge per minute above it, so your call length matters as much as the plan price.
Is an AI receptionist cheaper than hiring a receptionist?
Yes, by a wide margin. SEEK puts the average Australian receptionist salary at $60,000 to $70,000 a year in October 2026, which is over $5,000 a month before 12% super and leave. A mid-range AI receptionist plan costs $250 to $500 a month. The trade-off is judgement: a person handles difficult or unusual calls far better.
What is a missed-call text-back?
An automation that sends an SMS to anyone whose call to your business goes unanswered, usually within a minute. The caller replies by text, you see what they need, and you call back. It doesn't answer the call; it stops the caller moving on to a competitor while you're busy.
Can an AI receptionist book jobs into my calendar?
Most of the Australian providers we checked can book straight into Google Calendar, and some connect to trade software such as ServiceM8 or Simpro. Confirm the exact integration for your software before you sign up.
Are AI receptionist calls covered by Australian privacy law?
Call recordings and transcripts contain personal information, so a business covered by the Privacy Act 1988 needs to handle them accordingly. Ask the provider where recordings are stored and processed, how long they're kept, and how you can delete them.
Do I need an AI receptionist if I'm a sole trader?
Often not at first. If you get under about 15 calls a day and the problem is missing them while working, a missed-call text-back usually recovers most of those leads at a much lower cost. An AI receptionist makes more sense once call volume or after-hours bookings are the bottleneck.
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