Auto-Respond AI Answering Service
AI voice agent that answers forwarded calls for contractors, books jobs and transfers emergencies.
Our verdict
Best for contractors and home-service crews who miss calls while on the job
Auto-Respond is an AI answering service for contractors: a voice agent answers calls forwarded from the existing business line, answers from uploaded business details, books jobs and transfers urgent callers. The same account also answers Yelp, Thumbtack, Facebook, Instagram and Google LSA message leads.
At a glance
Yes
Books appointments
When scheduling is enabled the agent checks live availability, offers slots and creates the…
Yes
Transfers to a person
Transfer is an opt-in toggle with written criteria, and warm transfer briefs the receiving…
Yes
After-hours rules
Call hours default to 24/7 and can be set per day in windows
Yes
Call summary by text
Post-call summaries can be pushed by SMS, Slack or Telegram as well as email, though the…
Partly
Calendar and CRM
Cal.com and Zapier
Not stated
Languages
Not stated by Auto-Respond AI Answering Service.
No
Human receptionists as backup
No staffed fallback exists: when transfer is off or nobody answers, the agent only takes a…
Partly
Hear it before you buy
A recorded product walkthrough is published and you can call your own agent during setup, but…
Good to know
Watch out
- The voice agent has no plan allowance and no calculator: the bill is $10 per number plus $1 for every billable minute, and each non-batch call of at least 10 seconds is rounded up to the next whole minute, so a busy month's cost is only knowable after the fact. Texting a caller adds a separate $2/month plus $20 registration and per-message carrier fees.
- The only free way in is a 7-day trial, limited to eligible first-time customers and locations and shown only when the checkout order summary says so; reconnecting or reactivating a previously subscribed location does not restart it, and a payment method is collected at checkout regardless. There is no standing $0 plan.
All 32 answers
Every answer comes from Auto-Respond AI Answering Service’s own pages. Open “Their words” for the quote and the page it is on.
What it costs at your call volume
4 answers
- Cost at 100 calls a month
$310 a month on Voice agent for 100 calls of 2.5 minutes (300 billed minutes). Billed in 60-second steps: 3 min for a 2.5-minute call.
Their words
$10 per month, per number, plus $1 per billable minute
auto-respond.comChannel table, 'Voice agent' row
- Cost at 500 calls a month
$1510 a month on Voice agent for 500 calls of 2.5 minutes (1500 billed minutes). Billed in 60-second steps: 3 min for a 2.5-minute call.
Their words
$10 per month, per number, plus $1 per billable minute
auto-respond.comChannel table, 'Voice agent' row
- What it bills by
Voice is priced per phone number plus per billable minute of talk time, with whole-minute rounding per call rather than per call or per caller.
Their words
The voice agent costs $10 a month for each phone number plus $1 per billable minute, for inbound and outbound calls.
auto-respond.comSection 'How the voice agent is priced', first paragraph
- Past your allowance
Yes
There is no allowance to exceed: every minute is metered at the same rate, with no lead caps and no plan tier that stops answering.
Their words
More leads. There are no per-lead fees: a channel costs the same whether it brings in five leads or five hundred.
auto-respond.comSection 'What changes your monthly bill, and what never does', 'These never do' list
What it does on the call
8 answers
- Books appointments
Yes
When scheduling is enabled the agent checks live availability, offers slots and creates the booking during the call rather than sending a link.
Their words
Your voice agent can check real availability and book appointments during a live call.
auto-respond.comScheduling Integrations, opening paragraph
- Transfers to a person
Yes
Transfer is an opt-in toggle with written criteria, and warm transfer briefs the receiving person privately before the caller is bridged in.
Their words
Warm Transfer - the agent calls the target number, greets the person who answers, summarizes the situation (using the Private Handoff Prompt below), and only then bridges the customer in.
auto-respond.comOptions → Transfer type
- After-hours rules
Yes
Call hours default to 24/7 and can be set per day in windows; calls outside those windows play your voicemail message and are still logged.
Their words
Default: every day, 00:00-24:00 - the agent answers any time.
auto-respond.comSection 'Call hours', bullet list
- Urgent calls escalated
Yes
You write the emergency triggers in plain words and matching calls ring your on-call number, with a private briefing first on a warm transfer.
Their words
Transfer if the customer mentions a gas leak, water damage, or any safety emergency.
auto-respond.comOptions → Transfer Criteria, 'Customizing criteria' example
- Human receptionists as backup
No
No staffed fallback exists: when transfer is off or nobody answers, the agent only takes a message for the customer's own team to follow up.
Their words
If transfer is disabled and the customer insists on a human, the agent politely offers to take a message and records the request for manual follow-up.
auto-respond.comSection 'Escalating to a human', second paragraph
- Asks your questions
Yes
A configurable collection list (up to 50 fields) plus a service-identification question drive qualification; the agent skips details it already has.
Their words
Before booking, the agent collects a configurable list of customer details. Each field is an item with an enable toggle; you can add up to 50, and each is up to 500 characters.
auto-respond.comSection 'Collection Fields', first paragraph
- Answers about your business
Partly
The agent answers prices, services and coverage from documents you upload per agent; there is no stated crawl of your website, and files are not shared between agents.
Their words
Upload documents the agent references during calls - service lists, FAQs, pricing sheets, policies. Supported file types: csv, doc, docx, html, md, pdf, txt, xls, xlsx.
auto-respond.comTab 2 - Knowledge Base → Reference Library
- Texts your callers
Partlyfrom SMS Messaging add-on
Two-way texting with a caller exists but only through the paid SMS Messaging add-on, which needs carrier registration approval before any text sends.
Their words
SMS Messaging lets Auto-Respond hold a real two-way text conversation with your lead on a dedicated phone number.
auto-respond.comSMS Messaging, opening paragraph
What you get after the call
2 answers
- Call summary by text
Yes
Post-call summaries can be pushed by SMS, Slack or Telegram as well as email, though the messaging notification toggle is off by default.
Their words
When on: after a call finishes, the call summary is sent to your business through your configured messenger integrations (SMS, Slack, Telegram).
auto-respond.comTab 5 - Advanced → Messaging Notifications
- Recordings and transcripts
Yes
Every call log carries the audio recording with download, the turn-by-turn transcript, an AI summary and the data extracted from the conversation.
Their words
Each log entry has the full transcript, audio recording, an AI-generated summary, the customer data extracted from the call, the appointment booked (if any), disconnection reason, and duration.
auto-respond.comCall Logs & Analytics, opening paragraph
What it connects to
5 answers
- Google Calendar
No
Google Calendar, Outlook and Calendly are not in that list, though a marketing FAQ claims Google and Microsoft 365.
Their words
When on, pick one of: Cal.com, FieldPulse, GoHighLevel, HousecallPro, Quickbase, Open Schedule.
auto-respond.comTab 3 - Scheduling → Appointment Scheduling
- Outlook
No
Google Calendar, Outlook and Calendly are not in that list, though a marketing FAQ claims Google and Microsoft 365.
Their words
When on, pick one of: Cal.com, FieldPulse, GoHighLevel, HousecallPro, Quickbase, Open Schedule.
auto-respond.comTab 3 - Scheduling → Appointment Scheduling
- Calendly
No
Google Calendar, Outlook and Calendly are not in that list, though a marketing FAQ claims Google and Microsoft 365.
Their words
When on, pick one of: Cal.com, FieldPulse, GoHighLevel, HousecallPro, Quickbase, Open Schedule.
auto-respond.comTab 3 - Scheduling → Appointment Scheduling
- CRM, Zapier and webhooks
Yes
Eleven purpose-built CRM connectors plus Zapier and a custom REST webhook push call data out, and they are included on every subscription with no tier gate.
Their words
Auto-Respond has direct, purpose-built connectors for eleven CRMs, plus Zapier for no-code routing. If your CRM is not one of them, use REST Webhook (Custom CRM Integration) if you can host a JSON endpoint.
auto-respond.comSection 'Supported CRMs', first paragraph
- Your trade’s software
Partly
Field-service and trade tools are covered (ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Workiz, AccuLynx, SmartMoving), but no dental, legal, restaurant or salon systems appear in the connector list.
Their words
Field service (HVAC, plumbing, electrical, cleaning, etc.): Workiz, Housecall Pro, or ServiceTitan.
auto-respond.comSection 'Which one should I pick?', first bullet
Trying it, starting and leaving
5 answers
- Free trial or free plan
Partly
A 7-day trial covers the voice agent on your own line, but only for eligible first-time customers when the checkout order summary shows it.
Their words
A 7-day trial applies only to eligible first-time customers and locations when the exact signup or checkout order summary shows it.
auto-respond.comSection 'Trial eligibility', first bullet
- Card required to start
Yes
Checkout collects a payment method even when the trial applies, with the amount due today shown before you confirm anything.
Their words
Yes. Checkout collects a payment method even when a trial applies, and the order summary shows the amount due today and the monthly price before you confirm.
auto-respond.comPricing FAQ, 'Do I need a payment method to start the trial?'
- Sign up without a sales call
Yes
You sign up, buy a number and configure the agent yourself in the app; no demo booking or sales call is described anywhere in the purchase flow.
Their words
Setup is a form, not a project: your business details, your questions, your calendar and a forwarding rule on the line you already have.
auto-respond.comSection 'How to set up an AI answering service', intro line
- Setup fee
Partly
No setup fee on the voice agent or any source subscription, but the optional SMS Messaging add-on carries a one-time $20 registration charge.
Their words
There is no setup fee for a core source subscription. Optional SMS registration, phone numbers, usage, and other add-ons have the separate charges shown before you enable them.
auto-respond.comCommon questions, 'Is there a setup fee?'
- Contract and cancelling
Yes
Subscriptions renew monthly with no fixed term, and cancellation is done in the app's Billing dialog without contacting anyone.
Their words
There is no contract: subscriptions run month to month and you cancel online.
auto-respond.comSection 'What changes your monthly bill, and what never does', 'These never do' list, 'Leaving'
Which languages it speaks, and how it sounds
2 answers
- Choose or clone the voice
Partly
You pick from a fixed library of eleven American-accent voices with previews; nothing on the site offers voice cloning or uploading your own voice.
Their words
Eleven voices with a neutral American accent. Mix of male and female, with a range of tones from warm and friendly to professional and direct.
auto-respond.comSection 'Available voices' → 'American voices'
- Hear it before you buy
Partly
A recorded product walkthrough is published and you can call your own agent during setup, but no public demo number or sample call recording is offered.
Their words
You can call the agent yourself and adjust it before any customer hears it.
auto-respond.comSection 'How to set up an AI answering service', intro paragraph
Your phone number and where it works
2 answers
- Keep your number
Yes
Keeping your existing number and forwarding it is the documented default, with always, busy and no-answer rules and the US star codes listed.
Their words
Most businesses keep their established phone number and forward unanswered or after-hours calls to a voice agent.
auto-respond.comCall Forwarding Setup, opening paragraph
- Move your number in
Partly
A marketing FAQ offers porting as one of two options, but the phone-number documentation only covers buying and releasing numbers and says nothing about porting in or out.
Their words
Two options: port your number into Auto-Respond, or keep it where it is and forward calls to a new Auto-Respond number.
auto-respond.comAI receptionist questions, 'Can I keep my existing business phone number?'
Who it is built for
2 answers
- Industries it is set up for
The site ships trade-by-trade starting points for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing and cleaning, naming transfer triggers and the details to collect.
Their words
Three settings do most of the work: the transfer rules (which calls must reach a person now), the details the agent collects before booking, and your service area. A starting point by trade:
auto-respond.comSection 'An AI answering service for contractors and home-service businesses', above the trade table
- Several locations or numbers
Partly
One account can hold several businesses, numbers and agents, but each extra voice number costs $10 a month and each marketplace location is its own subscription.
Their words
Yelp is priced per connected Yelp source, and each Yelp business location you connect is its own source. Two Yelp locations are two sources at $99 a month each.
auto-respond.comPricing FAQ, 'Is Yelp priced per location?'
Getting set up and getting help
2 answers
- Setup help
Partly
Setup is self-service and claimed to take under two minutes, with documentation and in-app chat guidance, but no done-for-you onboarding service is offered.
Their words
Full setup takes under 2 minutes. You forward your business line to the AI agent, add your services, pricing ranges, service area, and hours, set your qualifying questions, link your calendar, and turn it on.
auto-respond.comFAQ, 'How fast can I set up an AI answering service?'
- Support
Partly
Support is email plus in-app chat, included on every plan; no phone support line or published response hours are stated for customers.
Their words
Email and in-app support
auto-respond.comSection 'What's included on every plan', last bullet
Sources
- auto-respond.com/pricingCost at 100 calls a month, Cost at 500 calls a month, What it bills by, Past your allowance and 3 more
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/agent-configurationAnswers about your business, Call summary by text, Google Calendar, Outlook and 1 more
- auto-respond.com/ai-answering-serviceSign up without a sales call, Hear it before you buy, Industries it is set up for, Setup help
- auto-respond.com/docs/pricingFree trial or free plan, Setup fee, Support
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/scheduling-integrationsBooks appointments, Asks your questions
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/call-transferTransfers to a person, Urgent calls escalated
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/inbound-call-handlingAfter-hours rules, Human receptionists as backup
- auto-respond.com/docs/integrations/crm-systemsCRM, Zapier and webhooks, Your trade’s software
- auto-respond.com/docs/messaging-settings/conversation-setup/sms-messagingTexts your callers
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/call-logs-analyticsRecordings and transcripts
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/voice-selectionChoose or clone the voice
- auto-respond.com/docs/voice-agent/call-forwarding-setupKeep your number
- auto-respond.com/ai-receptionistMove your number in
All read on October 14, 2026.