AI Receptionist vs Upfirst
The short answer
- AI Receptionist costs least: $57.75 a month for 100 calls and $261.50 for 500.
- Pick AI Receptionist if you want Spanish.
 AI Receptionistsolo professionals and small businesses that miss calls while workingVisit site |  Upfirstsmall businesses whose phone goes unanswered while the owner is out on the jobVisit site | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| At 100 calls a month | AI Receptionist$57.75Lowest | UpfirstNot priced yet |
| At 500 calls a month | AI Receptionist$261.50Lowest | UpfirstNot priced yet |
| Advertised from | AI Receptionist$14 a month | Upfirst$24.95 a month |
| The advertised plan covers | AI ReceptionistThe $14 plan covers 30 of 100 calls.70 cost extra. | UpfirstNot counted |
| Bills | AI Receptionistper minute | Upfirst |
| Keeps answering past your allowance | AI ReceptionistPartlyCalls are not auto-upgraded or billed down | UpfirstYesCalls past the allowance keep being answered |
| Free trial or plan | AI ReceptionistPartlyA 7-day trial lets it answer your real line: you get 30 minutes of live calls | UpfirstPartlyYou can put it on your real line before paying, but only for the fourteen-day trial |
| Month to month, cancel online | AI ReceptionistYesMonth-to-month with no contract, and you cancel yourself in the app without phoning anyone | UpfirstYesMonth to month with cancellation, upgrade or downgrade at any time and no call required |
| On the call | ||
| Books appointments | AI ReceptionistPartlyIt books into the caller’s slot during the call | UpfirstYesIt checks the connected calendar during the call, offers open times |
| Transfers to a person | AI ReceptionistYesTransfers are warm by default: it texts you who is calling and why | UpfirstYesRule-based transfers to a person, department or extension, and warm transfers brief you on |
| Human receptionists as backup | AI ReceptionistNoNo human agents sit behind the AI | UpfirstNoUpfirst supplies no human agents for calls |
| After-hours rules | AI ReceptionistPartlyAnswering is 24/7 on every plan including weekends and holidays | UpfirstYesCoverage is a choice per account: all calls, overflow only, or after hours only |
| Urgent calls escalated | AI ReceptionistYesEmergency recognition is a documented behavior: the vendor says it triages urgent calls | UpfirstYesEmergencies are recognized from what the caller describes and handled by your own rules |
| Texts your callers | AI ReceptionistYesCallers can text the same number | UpfirstPartlyIt can text the caller mid-call on every plan with no extra charge |
| Call summary by text | AI ReceptionistYesYou can get per-call alerts by SMS as well as email, with a daily SMS | UpfirstYesA summary of the key details goes out by text or email the moment the call ends |
| Language, privacy and trying it | ||
| Languages | AI ReceptionistYes57 languages | UpfirstYes35+ languages |
| HIPAA, with a signed BAA | AI ReceptionistNoNo BAA today on any plan: the vendor lists HIPAA compliance | UpfirstPartlyA Business Associate Agreement is listed only in the Custom tier's feature set |
| Hear it before you buy | AI ReceptionistYesThree live demo receptionists are published with their phone numbers | UpfirstYesA public number answered by its own AI receptionist is published on the site |
| What it connects to | ||
| Google Calendar | AI ReceptionistYesGoogle Calendar is the only calendar it books into, included from the $14 plan up | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Outlook | AI ReceptionistYesThe vendor says support for other calendar platforms is still to come | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Calendly | AI ReceptionistYesThe vendor says support for other calendar platforms is still to come | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Your trade’s software | AI ReceptionistNot stated | UpfirstPartlyField service tools such as ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro |
| Keep your number | AI ReceptionistYesYou keep your existing line and forward it with carrier star codes, documented per carrier | UpfirstYesEvery plan includes an Upfirst number and you keep your existing line |
| In short | ||
| What it is | AI ReceptionistAI Receptionist is a 24/7 AI phone answering service for small businesses and solo operators. It greets callers, answers their questions from your own business information, books appointments, screens spam and sends you a summary of every call.All answers for AI Receptionist | UpfirstUpfirst is an AI receptionist that answers a small business's phone around the clock, answers caller questions from the owner's own information, books appointments and transfers urgent callers. Plans are sold by monthly call allowance and set up self-serve from the business website.All answers for Upfirst |
| Checked | AI ReceptionistOctober 14, 2026 | UpfirstOctober 16, 2026 |
Costs are for 100 or 500 calls a month of 2½ minutes each, on the cheapest public plan. How we price