Beside Phone vs Upfirst
The short answer
- Beside Phone costs least: $29.99 a month for 100 calls and $29.99 for 500.
- Upfirst has the lowest advertised price, $24.95, but costs Not priced yet at 100 calls.
- Pick Upfirst if you want a summary by text after each call.
 Beside Phonesolo trades and local teams who miss inbound calls while on the jobVisit site |  Upfirstsmall businesses whose phone goes unanswered while the owner is out on the jobVisit site | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| At 100 calls a month | Beside Phone$29.99Lowest | UpfirstNot priced yet |
| At 500 calls a month | Beside Phone$29.99Lowest | UpfirstNot priced yet |
| Advertised from | Beside Phone$29 a month | Upfirst$24.95 a month |
| The advertised plan covers | Beside PhoneThe $29 plan it advertises stops answering after 30 calls. | UpfirstNot counted |
| Bills | Beside Phoneper call | Upfirst |
| Keeps answering past your allowance | Beside PhoneYesOn Baseline the AI stops answering once 30 calls are used and callers drop to voicemail | UpfirstYesCalls past the allowance keep being answered |
| Free trial or plan | Beside PhonePartlyOnly the pricier Unlimited plan has a seven-day free trial on your real line | UpfirstPartlyYou can put it on your real line before paying, but only for the fourteen-day trial |
| Month to month, cancel online | Beside PhoneYesBaseline and Unlimited are month-to-month only and you cancel yourself in billing settings | UpfirstYesMonth to month with cancellation, upgrade or downgrade at any time and no call required |
| On the call | ||
| Books appointments | Beside PhoneYesWith a connected Google or Outlook calendar the Receptionist checks live availability | UpfirstYesIt checks the connected calendar during the call, offers open times |
| Transfers to a person | Beside PhoneYesThe Receptionist transfers to a teammate or external number on rules you define | UpfirstYesRule-based transfers to a person, department or extension, and warm transfers brief you on |
| Human receptionists as backup | Beside PhoneNoNo human answering service sits behind the AI | UpfirstNoUpfirst supplies no human agents for calls |
| After-hours rules | Beside PhoneYesIt answers around the clock by default and Business Hours sends daytime calls to your team | UpfirstYesCoverage is a choice per account: all calls, overflow only, or after hours only |
| Urgent calls escalated | Beside PhoneYesA Scenario rule can recognize emergency wording | UpfirstYesEmergencies are recognized from what the caller describes and handled by your own rules |
| Texts your callers | Beside PhoneYesA Send a Text action texts the caller a link or confirmation during the call | UpfirstPartlyIt can text the caller mid-call on every plan with no extra charge |
| Call summary by text | Beside PhoneNoSummaries arrive in the app and, if enabled, by email to an address you set | UpfirstYesA summary of the key details goes out by text or email the moment the call ends |
| Language, privacy and trying it | ||
| Languages | Beside PhonePartly5 languages | UpfirstYes35+ languages |
| HIPAA, with a signed BAA | Beside PhoneNot stated | UpfirstPartlyA Business Associate Agreement is listed only in the Custom tier's feature set |
| Hear it before you buy | Beside PhoneYesAnyone can phone a published demo number | UpfirstYesA public number answered by its own AI receptionist is published on the site |
| What it connects to | ||
| Google Calendar | Beside PhoneYesGoogle Calendar and Outlook are booked into directly | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Outlook | Beside PhoneYesGoogle Calendar and Outlook are booked into directly | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Calendly | Beside PhoneYesCalendly is only textable as a link | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square |
| Your trade’s software | Beside PhoneNot stated | UpfirstPartlyField service tools such as ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro |
| Keep your number | Beside PhoneYesYou keep your carrier number and forward calls to the Beside line | UpfirstYesEvery plan includes an Upfirst number and you keep your existing line |
| In short | ||
| What it is | Beside PhoneBeside Phone is a mobile and web business phone line whose AI receptionist answers inbound calls around the clock, captures caller details, qualifies leads and books appointments. Calls, texts, summaries and transcripts live in one shared team app.All answers for Beside Phone | 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 | Beside PhoneOctober 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