Best Answering Service for Small Business: AI and Human Picks
By Adam Sandler · 2026-10-20
Short answer: for most small businesses taking about 100 short calls a month, the cheapest option we track is an AI receptionist like OnCrew at $49 a month, and the cheapest live answering service we checked is PATLive at $479 a month. Our picks are based on published prices and features only, since we haven't run test calls yet.
How we picked (and who wrote the other lists)
Most "best answering service" lists you'll find are written by an answering service. When we checked the top Google results on October 15, 2026, the lists ranking near the top came from vendors such as Allô and Upfirst, which both sell AI receptionists. That doesn't make them wrong, but it's worth knowing.
ReceptionistRank doesn't sell an answering service. We ranked every option on two things you can check yourself:
- Price: the real monthly cost at 50, 100 and 200 calls, using each plan's published price and overage.
- Published features: free plans, trials, money-back guarantees, and whether you need to buy a separate phone seat.
AI prices come from our database, captured from each vendor's pricing page on October 15, 2026. Live answering prices were read from each company's own pricing page on October 20, 2026. We don't score call quality yet; that comes when our test calls are done.
Our picks by situation
| If you want | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The lowest bill at about 100 calls | OnCrew | $49 for 100 calls, then $0.99 a call, 14-day free trial |
| The lowest bill at about 200 calls | Trillet | $49 for 150 minutes plus $0.20 a minute, $139 at 200 calls, 28-day money-back |
| To start free | Smith.ai AI Receptionist or Phonely | Smith.ai's free plan covers 25 calls; Phonely has a free plan and $0.25 a minute overage on its $50 plan |
| The same customers calling a lot | Goodcall | $79 for 100 unique callers, so repeat calls from one person count once |
| One fixed bill no matter what | NextPhone | $199 a month for unlimited calls |
| A live person on every call, for the least | PATLive | Cheapest live service we checked at 50, 100 and 200 calls, and it says it doesn't use AI |
| Live people with an AI option on the same plan | Abby | Plans from $164 for 50 Abby Minutes; AI answering uses half an Abby Minute per minute |
What each option costs at your call volume
Same workload for everyone: calls of 3 minutes each, each from a different caller. For AI plans we used the entry plan plus its published overage, the same math as our cost calculator. For live services we used the cheapest published plan for those minutes or calls, including that plan's overage.
| Service | Type | 50 calls | 100 calls | 200 calls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OnCrew | AI | $49 | $49 | $148 |
| Marlie | AI | $49 | $66.50 | $171.50 |
| Phonely | AI | $50 | $75 | $150 |
| Trillet | AI | $49 | $79 | $139 |
| Goodcall | AI | $79 | $79 | Not computable |
| Nextiva XBert | AI | $99 | $99 | $198 |
| My AI Front Desk | AI | $99 | $124 | $199 |
| Upfirst | AI | $54.95 | $129.95 | $279.95 |
| Dialzara | AI | $72.20 | $144.20 | $288.20 |
| Ringly.io | AI | $99 | $198.50 | $397.50 |
| NextPhone | AI | $199 | $199 | $199 |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | AI | $150 | $212.50 | $462.50 |
| PATLive | Live | $293.50 | $479 | $938 |
| Posh | Live | $322.50 | $630 | $1,170 |
| Abby | Live | $492 | $898.50 | $1,656 |
| Smith.ai live receptionists | Live | $530 | $915 | $1,965 |
| Ruby | Live | $720 | $1,725 | Not computable |
"Not computable" means the volume passes what the plan includes and the company publishes no overage rate. Goodcall's $79 plan stops at 100 unique callers, and Ruby's largest published plan is 500 minutes. Rosie and AptaBook cost $49 at 50 calls but aren't computable at 100 for the same reason. Abby says overage is billed at your plan's Abby Minute rate, which we took as the plan price divided by its minutes (for example $599 for 200 minutes is about $3 a minute). The full list of 16 AI services is on the ReceptionistRank leaderboard.
The live answering services we checked
Here's what each live company's own pricing page said on October 20, 2026, before taxes.
- PATLive: $49 a month plus $2.99 a minute, or plans from $99 for 50 minutes up to $759 for 500 minutes. It doesn't bill for after-call notes or wrap-up, and nights, weekends and Spanish calls cost the same.
- Posh: $65 a month plus $2.30 a minute, or $130 for 50 minutes up to $975 for 500 minutes. Its minutes include time spent on tasks for your account, not only time on the phone.
- Abby: $164 for 50 Abby Minutes, $329 for 100, $599 for 200 and $1,380 for 500. Human answering uses one Abby Minute per minute and AI answering uses half.
- Smith.ai live receptionists: $300 for 30 calls, $810 for 90 and $2,100 for 300, billed per call. Add-ons cost extra, such as $1.50 per booked appointment.
- Ruby: $250 for 50 minutes, $395 for 100, $720 for 200 and $1,725 for 500, with no overage rate listed. Optional AI enhancements are included at no extra cost.
How to choose in 5 minutes
- Pull last month's call log from your phone provider and count inbound calls and the average length.
- Decide which calls truly need a person, like upset customers, emergencies or legal intake. If that's most of them, start with the live table.
- If most calls are routine, like hours, prices, booking and messages, start with AI. Our AI receptionist vs human answering service comparison walks through the tradeoffs.
- Put your numbers into the cost calculator to price all 16 AI services at once.
- Start a free trial on your top pick and forward only overflow or after-hours calls at first. If nights are your main gap, see our after-hours answering service guide.
Prices change. We recheck every AI pricing page daily and log verified changes on the price changes page.
FAQ
What is the best answering service for a small business?
It depends on how many calls you get and whether callers need a person. On price alone, at 100 three-minute calls a month the cheapest AI option we track is OnCrew at $49 (prices captured October 15, 2026), and the cheapest live service we checked is PATLive at $479 (pricing page checked October 20, 2026).
How much does an answering service cost for a small business?
For 100 calls of 3 minutes a month, the five live services we checked cost $479 to $1,725, per their pricing pages on October 20, 2026. The 12 AI receptionists we can price for that volume cost $49 to $212.50, using prices captured October 15, 2026.
What is the best AI answering service for small business?
On price and published features, OnCrew is cheapest at 100 calls ($49 for 100 calls, then $0.99 a call) and Trillet is cheapest at 200 calls ($139, from $49 for 150 minutes plus $0.20 a minute). We haven't run test calls yet, so these picks don't reflect call quality.
Is there a free answering service for small business?
A few AI services have free plans. Smith.ai's AI Receptionist free plan covers 25 calls a month and Phonely also offers a free plan. On the live side, Posh's free trial runs 7 days or 250 receptionist minutes with no card, and PATLive offers 14 days free, per their pricing pages on October 20, 2026.
Do answering services use real people or AI?
Both exist. PATLive says on its pricing page that it doesn't use AI to answer calls, while services like OnCrew and Phonely are AI only. Some, like Abby, let you mix the two, and Abby counts an AI minute as half an Abby Minute, per its pricing page on October 20, 2026.