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