Our picks

Best ai receptionists tools for UK small businesses (2026)

We compared 6 ai receptionists tools using prices and plan details checked on each provider's own page on 2026-10-14. We haven't been paid for any placement; see how we make money.

Quick picks

Best free starting point: Smith.ai AI Receptionist. Smith.ai AI Receptionist has a free plan: 25 calls a month with 24/7 answering, recordings, transcripts, summaries and calendar booking.
Best priced in pounds: Moneypenny AI Receptionist. Moneypenny AI Receptionist publishes UK prices: £25 (AI Receptionist, per month, from), so there are no exchange-rate surprises.
Cheapest dollar-priced paid plan: Upfirst. Upfirst starts at $24.95 (Starter, per month).

All ai receptionists tools compared

Tool	Cheapest paid plan	Free plan	Best for
Smith.ai AI Receptionist	$150 (Pro, per month)	Yes	Trying an AI receptionist properly before spending anything.
Upfirst	$24.95 (Starter, per month)	No	Sole traders who get a handful of calls a day.
Rosie	$49 (Professional, per month)	No	Businesses with longer calls, such as trades quoting for jobs.
Goodcall	$79 (Starter, per month)	No	Businesses whose regular customers call back often, or whose calls run long.
Frontdesk (My AI Front Desk)	$99 (Business-in-a-Box, per month (or $79 billed annually))	No	Businesses that want phone, chat and text handled in one place.
Moneypenny AI Receptionist	£25 (AI Receptionist, per month, from)	No	Firms that want a UK company, a UK contract and human backup.

Smith.ai AI Receptionist

An AI receptionist that answers calls 24/7, qualifies leads and books appointments, with live human backup available.

Price: Free: 25 calls a month, then $3.00 a call. Pro: $150 a month (75 calls, about $2.00 a call). Enterprise: from $500 a month.
Watch out for: Per-call billing gets expensive with many short calls. Live agents are based in North America.
UK notes: US company, priced in dollars; confirm UK number support.

Upfirst

An AI receptionist that answers, summarises and transfers calls and books appointments.

Price: Starter: $24.95 a month for 30 calls ($20 billed annually), then $1.50 a call. Premium: $59.95 for 90 calls. Pro: $159.95 for 300 calls. 14-day free trial.
Watch out for: Human support hours are US Eastern time.
UK notes: US company, priced in dollars.

Rosie

An AI answering service that takes messages, sends booking links and, on higher plans, books and transfers calls.

Price: Professional: $49 a month for 250 minutes. Scale: $149 a month for 1,000 minutes. Growth: $299 a month for 2,000 minutes. 7-day free trial.
Watch out for: Calendar booking and live transfers start on Scale. Built for the US market (area codes, English and Spanish).
UK notes: Confirm UK number support before signing up.

Goodcall

An AI phone agent billed per unique customer rather than per minute.

Price: Starter: $79 a month for 100 unique customers, then 79¢ each. Growth: $129 for 500. Scale: $299 for 2,000.
Watch out for: Check what counts as a unique customer for your call pattern.
UK notes: US company, priced in dollars.

Frontdesk (My AI Front Desk)

Phone answering plus web chat, two-way text, a simple CRM and automations in one plan.

Price: Business-in-a-Box: $99 a month, or $79 a month billed annually, including 200 voice minutes.
Watch out for: You pay for features you may not use if you only need calls answered.
UK notes: US company, priced in dollars.

Moneypenny AI Receptionist

A UK answering company offering an AI receptionist with the option of real receptionists.

Price: From £25 a month according to its AI Receptionist page, priced to your needs; no call or minute allowance published. Human answering is by quote.
Watch out for: You need a sales conversation to get a real price.
UK notes: UK company.

How to choose

Start with a free plan or trial if there is one, and test it on a real job.
Prefer pound pricing if you want a predictable monthly cost.
Check what counts towards limits (calls, minutes, seats, contacts or credits) before comparing headline prices.

Head-to-head comparisons

Sources

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