Answering service cost UK

The problem

Answering service pricing is deliberately hard to compare. That's the first thing to understand before you spend anything.

Three things work against you:

• Most UK providers don't publish rates. You fill in a questionnaire or take a sales call, and get a quote based on what they think you'll pay.
• The headline number isn't what you pay. A base plan buys a small allowance, and the real cost lives in the overage.
• Every model charges by volume. Per call or per minute, so the cost rises exactly when the business is doing well.

For a business that quotes in day rates and fixed prices, that's an awkward way to buy your own front door. You can't forecast it, and you're mildly penalised for the calls you most want to receive.

This guide sets out what the models actually cost at realistic volumes, where the hidden fees are, and how the maths change when the cost of answering a call isn't tied to a human being on the other end.

The three billing models

Per-call pricing

You pay a fixed amount each time an agent answers. This is the simplest model to budget for.

myalldayPA advertises "from just 99p per call" on its website. That is the only figure it publishes. No plan structure, no included volume, and no membership cost appear anywhere on the site; you sign up or call their membership team to find out the rest.

Who it suits: businesses with low, unpredictable call volumes where a monthly commitment would be wasteful.

The catch: short calls and long calls cost the same. A two-minute "what are your opening hours?" costs as much as a ten-minute lead qualification.

Per-minute pricing

You pay for talk time, billed in one-minute increments. A monthly plan includes a block of minutes, and overage is charged on top.

AnswerConnect publishes its UK rates in full, which makes it the most comparable provider in the market:

The setup fee applies to every plan except the 250-minute one, which AnswerConnect badges as its best value tier.

The ladder keeps going: plans run up to 49,950 minutes at £48,275 a month. There is no long-term contract, and the first 30 interactions under 30 seconds in a billing cycle are not charged. Everything else is rounded up to the nearest minute and billed in one-minute increments, so a 20-second call past that allowance still costs you a full minute.

Who it suits: businesses whose call durations vary and who want to pay proportionally.

The catch: overage is where the pain lives. A busy month or a few long calls pushes you well past the headline price.

Quote-only pricing

Some of the largest UK providers publish nothing at all.

AllDayPA's UK marketing site offers "pay per call or per minute, you choose" and then routes you to a savings calculator, a quote form, or a phone number. The only published rate card sits inside its self-service signup flow: £29.95 a month excluding VAT for 25 minutes, £49.95 for 45 minutes, and a custom-priced Accelerator tier. Those are ex-VAT figures, so the £49.95 tier is £59.94 a month in real money. No overage rate is published.

Moneypenny publishes no pricing at all. Its telephone answering service is priced by quote, tailored to call volume and confirmed after a conversation, and its guidance describes billing by the minute rather than by the call. What it does publish is the commitment: three months minimum on schemes including 150 minutes or fewer, six or twelve months on larger ones, with three months' notice.

The catch: you cannot compare either provider against anything without entering a sales process first.

Worked example at 60 calls a month

Assume 60 calls averaging three minutes each, so 180 minutes of talk time.

Two things stand out. The Growth plan at £245 is cheaper than the Entry plan at £257.50 for this volume, because Entry's smaller allowance tips you into overage. And if your calls run to four minutes rather than three, Entry rises to £362.50 while Growth stays at £245. The cheapest headline plan is frequently not the cheapest plan.

Hidden fees to check before you sign

• Setup fees. AnswerConnect charges £49.99 on its Entry and Standard tiers but not on Growth. Ask whether yours is waived.
• After-hours cover. Some providers charge extra for evenings, weekends, and Bank Holidays rather than including them.
• Minimum contract length. Monthly rolling or a twelve-month commitment changes what a bad fit costs you.
• Overage rate. The base plan price is rarely what you pay in a busy month. Get the per-minute or per-call rate in writing.
• Transfer fees. Some providers charge a premium when a call is transferred to you rather than messaged.
• Script changes. Re-briefing agents when your services or prices change may cost money or take days to take effect.
• VAT. Quoted prices are almost always exclusive. Add 20%.

Where AI receptionists change the maths

Traditional answering services charge per call or per minute because they are paying people to sit on phones. An AI receptionist has a different cost structure underneath it, so the pricing works differently.

• Flat monthly pricing. No per-call fees, no per-minute overage, no after-hours surcharge.
• No volume anxiety. A busy week does not produce a bigger invoice.
• Cover included. Evenings, weekends, Bank Holidays, no add-on.
• Instant changes. Update your services or FAQs in the app in seconds, with no re-briefing.

AI receptionists in the UK market run from roughly £20 to £100 a month for small business plans.

For a trade business taking 60 or more calls a month, the maths usually favour AI by a wide margin. The predictability matters as much as the price.

Comparison table

Telphi

Telphi is a flat-rate AI receptionist built for UK trade businesses. One monthly price covers calls at any hour, lead qualification, job summaries, and a booking link that lets callers book straight into your calendar. No overage, no after-hours surcharge, no setup fee. Seven days free, no card required.