5 Best AI Receptionists for Small Business in 2026

If you're a small business owner looking for an AI receptionist, you've probably noticed there are a lot of options — and it's hard to tell which one is actually worth your money.

We tested and compared the 5 most popular AI receptionist services available in 2026. We looked at pricing, features, appointment booking, industry fit, and what real setup looks like. Here's what we found.

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Quick Comparison Table

| Service | Starting Price | Appointment Booking | Free Trial | Best For | |---------|---------------|-------------------|------------|----------| | EnoDesk | $29/mo | Google Calendar (all plans) | 5 days | Small businesses wanting fast setup and industry-specific AI | | Smith.ai | $95/mo (50 calls) | Via integrations | No (30-day guarantee) | Businesses needing human backup for complex calls | | Rosie | $49/mo (250 min) | $149/mo plan only | 7 days | Basic message taking with bilingual support | | Goodcall | $79/mo (100 customers) | Via Zapier only | 14 days | Teams who want to build custom call workflows | | RingCentral AI | $59/mo add-on | No | 14 days | Businesses already using RingCentral phone system |

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1. EnoDesk — Best Overall for Small Business

Pricing: $29/mo (Lite), $49/mo (Starter), $149/mo (Pro), $299/mo (Business)

EnoDesk is a pure AI receptionist built specifically for small businesses. It has 4 industry-specific agents — home services, appointments, professional services, and restaurants — so it works out of the box without configuring call flows.

What stands out:

• Google Calendar booking on all plans — Even the $29/month Lite plan includes real-time appointment scheduling. Most competitors gate this behind higher tiers or don't offer it at all.
• Smart Upload — Snap a photo of your menu, price list, or service board. Upload a PDF or spreadsheet. EnoDesk reads it and your AI answers questions about your business on calls. Available on Business plan.
• Built-in CRM — Every caller becomes a contact with call history, orders, tags, and notes. Repeat callers are recognized automatically.
• EnoIQ+ analytics — Shows why people call, which services trend, caller sentiment, and gives improvement tips. Business plan.
• Setup time — Under 5 minutes. Import from Google Business Profile or enter details manually.

Limitations: Smart Upload and EnoIQ+ are only on the Business plan ($299/mo). No Outlook Calendar sync yet (coming soon). No human fallback — it's pure AI.

Best for: HVAC companies, salons, law firms, dental offices, restaurants, cleaning services, auto shops, and real estate agencies that want a fast, affordable AI receptionist with appointment booking.

Try EnoDesk free for 5 days →

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2. Smith.ai — Best for Human + AI Hybrid

Pricing: $95/mo for 50 calls ($2.40/call overage)

Smith.ai combines AI with human receptionists. Calls start with AI and can escalate to a live person when needed. This makes it the best choice if your calls frequently involve complex or sensitive conversations.

What stands out:

• Human backup — Real receptionists handle calls the AI can't
• 5,000+ businesses use it
• CRM integrations — Connects to Salesforce, HubSpot, Clio, and others
• Bilingual — English and Spanish

Limitations: Expensive — $95/month only gets 50 calls. Overages are $2.40 per call. No free trial (30-day money-back guarantee instead). No native calendar integration on base plan.

Best for: Law firms, financial advisors, and professional services that need human judgment for intake calls.

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3. Rosie — Best Budget Option for Message Taking

Pricing: $49/mo for 250 minutes

Rosie is a straightforward AI answering service. It answers calls, takes messages, and forwards them to you. It's simple and affordable, but appointment booking requires the $149/month Scale plan.

What stands out:

• Bilingual on all plans — English and Spanish
• Simple setup — No complex configuration
• Zapier integration — Connect to other tools
• 7-day free trial

Limitations: No appointment booking on the base plan — you need the $149/month Scale plan. No built-in CRM. No document upload or menu learning. Limited analytics.

Best for: Businesses that primarily need message taking and call forwarding at an affordable price.

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4. Goodcall — Best for Custom Call Workflows

Pricing: $79/mo for 100 unique customers ($0.50/customer overage)

Goodcall's standout feature is its visual workflow builder. You can design custom call flows with branching logic, making it highly customizable. The trade-off is that it requires more setup time.

What stands out:

• Visual workflow builder — Design custom call flows with drag-and-drop
• Per-customer pricing — Good if you have repeat callers (each unique customer counts once)
• 14-day free trial
• Custom greetings and scripts

Limitations: Per-customer pricing means costs are unpredictable if you get lots of new callers. No native calendar integration — requires Zapier. No built-in CRM. No document/menu upload. Requires more setup time than plug-and-play alternatives.

Best for: Tech-savvy business owners who want full control over their call flows and don't mind spending time on configuration.

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5. RingCentral AI Receptionist — Best if You Already Use RingCentral

Pricing: $59/mo add-on (requires RingCentral phone plan at $20–$35/user/month)

RingCentral's AI Receptionist is an add-on to their existing phone system. It handles FAQ answering, call routing, and message taking. If you already use RingCentral for your business phones, it's a natural addition.

What stands out:

• Deep RingCentral integration — Works seamlessly within the RingCentral ecosystem
• Enterprise security — SSO, MFA, and compliance features
• 100 minutes included

Limitations: Not standalone — requires a RingCentral phone plan ($20–$35/user/month), so the real minimum cost is $79–$94/month. Only 100 minutes with ~$0.50/minute overage. No appointment booking. No CRM. No analytics dashboard.

Best for: Businesses already paying for RingCentral that want to add basic AI answering to their existing phone system.

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How to Choose the Right AI Receptionist

Here's a simple decision framework:

• Need appointment booking on a budget? → EnoDesk ($29/mo with Google Calendar on all plans)
• Need human backup for complex calls? → Smith.ai ($95/mo)
• Just need basic message taking? → Rosie ($49/mo)
• Want to build custom call workflows? → Goodcall ($79/mo)
• Already use RingCentral? → RingCentral AI Receptionist ($59/mo add-on)

For most small businesses — especially service businesses like HVAC, salons, dental offices, and restaurants — an AI receptionist that books appointments, takes orders, and works out of the box is the best value. That's why EnoDesk tops our list.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is an AI receptionist?

An AI receptionist is software that answers your business phone calls using artificial intelligence. It handles greetings, answers questions about your business, books appointments, takes messages, and routes calls to your team — available 24/7 without hiring staff.

How much does an AI receptionist cost?

AI receptionist services range from $29 to $95+ per month. EnoDesk starts at $29/month, Rosie at $49/month, Goodcall at $79/month, Smith.ai at $95/month, and RingCentral at $59/month plus a required phone plan. Most offer free trials between 5 and 14 days.

Can an AI receptionist book appointments?

Some can, but not all. EnoDesk includes Google Calendar appointment booking on all plans starting at $29/month. Rosie requires the $149/month plan. Goodcall requires Zapier. Smith.ai uses integrations. RingCentral does not support appointment booking.

Will callers know they're talking to AI?

Modern AI receptionists use natural-sounding voices with realistic conversation flow. Most callers don't realize they're speaking with AI for routine calls. All five services in this comparison use professional voice quality.

Can I keep my existing phone number?

Yes. All five services work with your existing business phone number. You simply set up call forwarding from your current number to the AI receptionist's number. No need to change your business phone number.