How much does an answering service cost in 2026?
Updated November 10, 2026. Written by the AnswerHaven team in Connecticut.
There are three common ways to make sure someone answers your business phone. Here is what each costs for a business that gets about 250 calls a month, which is around 500 minutes on the phone.
A full-time receptionist
About $3,170 a month in wages. That's the national median for receptionists, $38,010 a year according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures for May 2025, before payroll taxes and benefits. A receptionist does much more than answer the phone, but the phone is only covered 40 hours a week. Nights, weekends, lunch and sick days still go to voicemail.
A live answering service
Usually several hundred to a couple of thousand dollars a month, depending on minutes. Ruby's published plans on November 9, 2026 were $720 a month for 200 minutes and $1,725 a month for 500 minutes. Smaller and regional services often charge less per minute.
An AI answering service
Far less, because no one is paid by the minute to sit on the line. Most small businesses end up on a plan under $300 a month. AnswerHaven's plans are $49 a month for 250 minutes, $99 for 500 minutes, $179 for 1,000 minutes and $299 for 1,750 minutes, with a month free if you pay yearly.
Fees to check before you sign up
Overage. Ask what a minute costs once you pass your plan. With AnswerHaven it's 40 cents a minute, and we email you when you've used 90 percent so you can move up a plan instead.
Setup fees. Some services charge to build your script or account. AnswerHaven doesn't.
Billing for junk calls. Robocalls and hang-ups can eat a plan. Ask whether they count. AnswerHaven doesn't bill spam calls or hang-ups under ten seconds.
How minutes are rounded. Some live services bill in full-minute or longer blocks and count the time an agent spends typing after the call. Ask how a 40-second call is billed.
Contracts. Check whether you're committing for a year. AnswerHaven is month to month unless you choose the yearly price, and you can turn off renewal in your account settings.
What a missed call costs
The price of a service only means something next to what unanswered calls cost you. If one new customer is worth a few hundred dollars and you miss a few of those a month, the cheapest option is rarely voicemail. You can put your own numbers into our missed-call calculator.
Try it on your own phone
The trial is 7 days and up to 15 calls, and setup takes about ten minutes. You can also call our demo line at (860) 345-5415 and hear it answer before you sign up for anything.