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Answering Agent alternatives
Answering Agent is an AI receptionist, starting at $249/month. Its site states: after-hours / 24/7, appointment booking, CRM integration. These 15 vendors are in the same product group and share the most published facts with it.
9 of the 15 publish a lower starting price than Answering Agent's $249/month: AgentZap ($109), NextPhone ($199), Upfirst ($24.95), Aloware ($30), Marlie ($49).
Price comparison
| # | Vendor | Starts at | Per-min | Included | Free trial | HIPAA | Why it's here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Answering Agent (the one you're replacing) | $249/mo | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | |
| 1 | AgentZap AI receptionist · site | $109/mo | $0.85 | 150 min | 30-day money-back guarantee | Claims HIPAA | 3 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 2 | NextPhone AI receptionist · site | $199/mo | — | — | 7 days | Not stated | 3 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 3 | Upfirst AI receptionist · site | $24.95/mo | — | 30 calls | 14 days | BAA available | 3 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 4 | Aloware Phone-system add-on · site | $30/user/mo | — | — | Free trial, no credit card | Not stated | 3 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 5 | Marlie AI receptionist · site | $49/mo | $0.35 | 250 min | 14 days | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 6 | Moneypenny AI Receptionist AI receptionist · site | $99/mo | — | 50 calls | Not stated | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 7 | Nextiva XBert AI Receptionist Phone-system add-on · site | $99/mo | — | 100 calls | Not stated | Claims HIPAA | 3 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 8 | SkipCalls AI receptionist · site | $29.99/mo | — | — | 7 days | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 9 | Smith.ai AI Receptionist AI receptionist · site | Free | — | 25 calls | Free plan | Not stated | 2 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 10 | Tourism Snapshot AI receptionist · site | Not published | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 11 | Zinng AI receptionist · site | $49/mo | — | 300 min | 7 days | Claims HIPAA | 2 shared features, 1 shared integration |
| 12 | Broccoli AI AI receptionist · site | Quote | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 13 | Hatch AI receptionist · site | Quote | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 14 | Hello Patient AI receptionist · site | Quote | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | 3 shared features |
| 15 | Recepta.ai AI receptionist · site | Quote | — | — | Not stated | Not stated | 2 shared features, 1 shared integration |
Each alternative in one line
- AgentZap: Managed AI receptionist with a setup fee, HIPAA compliance and an on-demand 24/7 live-agent network. AgentZap alternatives
- NextPhone: Flat-rate AI receptionist with unlimited inbound calls and no overage, with done-for-you setup on higher plans. NextPhone alternatives
- Upfirst: Per-call AI receptionist with warm handoff, live calendar booking, in-call texting and 35+ languages on every plan. Upfirst alternatives
- Aloware: Contact-center phone system with AI Voice Agent and AI Receptionist add-ons, per agent seat. Aloware alternatives
- Marlie: Per-minute AI receptionist for trades and home services; transfers from Standard, knowledge-base uploads from Pro. Marlie alternatives
- Moneypenny AI Receptionist: AI receptionist from the Moneypenny answering service, per call, with human escalation. Moneypenny AI Receptionist alternatives
- Nextiva XBert AI Receptionist: AI receptionist from Nextiva that answers calls, texts and chats, books appointments and transfers to your team with context. Nextiva XBert AI Receptionist alternatives
- SkipCalls: Budget AI receptionist with unlimited minutes under a fair-use policy, English and Spanish, and calendar booking. SkipCalls alternatives
- Smith.ai AI Receptionist: Per-call AI receptionist with a free 25-call tier and escalation to Smith.ai's own North America-based live receptionists. Smith.ai AI Receptionist alternatives
- Tourism Snapshot: One-time GoHighLevel CRM snapshot for tour operators that includes an inbound AI voice receptionist setup.
- Zinng: Per-minute AI receptionist from $49 for 300 minutes with transfers, texting and 63 languages. Also publishes a competitor comparison. Zinng alternatives
- Broccoli AI: AI call center for home service companies that answers and books calls. Broccoli AI alternatives
- Hatch: AI communications platform for home service companies: calls, texts and lead follow-up. Hatch alternatives
- Hello Patient: AI agents for patient calls and texts (agent "Mia") with call workflows and campaigns. Hello Patient alternatives
- Recepta.ai: AI + human receptionist plans quoted by call volume, with live-agent handoff and CRM sync included. Recepta.ai alternatives
Head-to-head comparisons
Rosie vs UpfirstRingCentral AI Receptionist vs UpfirstRosie vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistRuby vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistMy AI Front Desk vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistAbby Connect vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistAircall AI Voice Agent vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistBland AI vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistDialzara vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistGoodcall vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistSona by Quo vs Smith.ai AI ReceptionistRingCentral AI Receptionist vs Smith.ai AI Receptionist
Lists that include Answering Agent
Best after-hours AI receptionistBest AI receptionist with appointment bookingBest AI receptionist with CRM integration
How we pick alternatives: same product group (receptionist products), at least one shared industry when Answering Agent names any, then ranked by shared industries, stated features and integrations. Only facts from vendor sites; unknown values are left blank. Methodology.