Upfirst vs Talkify
The short answer
- Talkify costs least: NZ$109 (about $61) a month for 100 calls and NZ$209 (about $117) for 500.
- Pick Talkify if you want Spanish.
 Upfirstsmall businesses whose phone goes unanswered while the owner is out on the jobVisit site |  TalkifyNZ and Australian trades, clinics and salons that miss calls while on the jobVisit site | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| At 100 calls a month | UpfirstNot priced yet | TalkifyNZ$109about $61Lowest |
| At 500 calls a month | UpfirstNot priced yet | TalkifyNZ$209about $117Lowest |
| Advertised from | Upfirst$24.95 a month | TalkifyNZ$10 (about $5.60) a monthabout $5.60 |
| The advertised plan covers | UpfirstNot counted | TalkifyThe NZ$10 (about $5.60) plan it advertises covers 0 of 100 calls. Shortwave (Personal Assistant) costs less for all 100. |
| Bills | Upfirst | Talkifyper minute |
| Keeps answering past your allowance | UpfirstYesCalls past the allowance keep being answered | TalkifyYesCalls keep being answered past the allowance and are charged per extra minute |
| Free trial or plan | UpfirstPartlyYou can put it on your real line before paying, but only for the fourteen-day trial | TalkifyPartlyYou can hear and sign up on a live demo line |
| Month to month, cancel online | UpfirstYesMonth to month with cancellation, upgrade or downgrade at any time and no call required | TalkifyYesStandard plans are month to month with no lock-in and transcripts kept after you stop |
| On the call | ||
| Books appointments | UpfirstYesIt checks the connected calendar during the call, offers open times | TalkifyYesThe agent reads live diary availability during the call and writes the appointment in |
| Transfers to a person | UpfirstYesRule-based transfers to a person, department or extension, and warm transfers brief you on | TalkifyYesUrgent callers are warm-transferred to a person with the context already collected |
| Human receptionists as backup | UpfirstNoUpfirst supplies no human agents for calls | TalkifyNoThere is no human answering team behind the AI for customer calls |
| After-hours rules | UpfirstYesCoverage is a choice per account: all calls, overflow only, or after hours only | TalkifyYesIt answers continuously including weekends and public holidays |
| Urgent calls escalated | UpfirstYesEmergencies are recognized from what the caller describes and handled by your own rules | TalkifyYesEmergencies are recognized against rules you write |
| Texts your callers | UpfirstPartlyIt can text the caller mid-call on every plan with no extra charge | TalkifyYesThe agent can text the caller after or during a call, including booking links |
| Call summary by text | UpfirstYesA summary of the key details goes out by text or email the moment the call ends | TalkifyYesA summary is texted and emailed as soon as the call ends |
| Language, privacy and trying it | ||
| Languages | UpfirstYes35+ languages | TalkifyYes32 languages |
| HIPAA, with a signed BAA | UpfirstPartlyA Business Associate Agreement is listed only in the Custom tier's feature set | TalkifyNot stated |
| Hear it before you buy | UpfirstYesA public number answered by its own AI receptionist is published on the site | TalkifyYesA public New Zealand demo number is answered by their own agent around the clock |
| What it connects to | ||
| Google Calendar | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square | TalkifyYesGoogle Calendar and Microsoft 365 or Outlook are booked into directly after a live availability read |
| Outlook | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square | TalkifyYesGoogle Calendar and Microsoft 365 or Outlook are booked into directly after a live availability read |
| Calendly | UpfirstYesGoogle Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square | TalkifyYesCalendly is supported but the caller is texted a single-use booking link instead |
| Your trade’s software | UpfirstPartlyField service tools such as ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro | TalkifyPartlyTrade and clinic systems are covered through ServiceM8, Fergus, Simpro, Jobber, Tradify |
| Keep your number | UpfirstYesEvery plan includes an Upfirst number and you keep your existing line | TalkifyYesYou keep your existing mobile, landline or 0800 number |
| 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 | TalkifyTalkify is a New Zealand-built AI phone agent that answers a business number or a personal mobile around the clock, books into the caller's diary and texts a summary. It sells reception, personal assistant, booking, sales and outbound calling agents on NZ and Australian numbers.All answers for Talkify |
| Checked | UpfirstOctober 16, 2026 | TalkifyOctober 15, 2026 |
Costs are for 100 or 500 calls a month of 2½ minutes each, on the cheapest public plan. How we price
“About” figures are converted at the European Central Bank rate of Oct 15, 2026.