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NeuCalla vs a managed AI front desk
A managed AI front desk is a service that sets up and runs an AI receptionist for you, usually from $497 a month and up. NeuCalla is the receptionist itself, $99 a month, set up with you and run by you. Here is what you pay, what you get, and what you give up.
What you pay and what you get
| Aspect | A managed AI front desk | NeuCalla |
|---|---|---|
| What you pay | Typically $497 a month and up, with the price depending on the package and the minutes in it. | $99 a month for the call-answering plan. Calls, texts and website chat are included. |
| What is included | A package of call minutes, and often extra charges for texts, additional numbers or features outside the package. | 100 call minutes, 100 texts and 100 website chats a month. Extra minutes $0.50 (prepaid) · extra texts $0.15 · extra chats $0.30. Add 200 texts for $19 or 100 chats for $19. |
| Who sets it up | An onboarding team builds your scripts and settings for you, usually over a few sessions. | You describe your business in plain English and the AI Designer drafts your call flow. Hands-on setup is included for each new customer: we help with forwarding and make a test call with you. |
| Who changes it | Changes go through your account manager, on their timetable. | You change it yourself in the dashboard — greeting, rules, hours, voice — and test it before you press Make live. We are a message away if you want a hand. |
| Texts and website chat | Often a separate product, a separate bill, or not offered. | Texting and website chat are included: the same receptionist answers SMS, WhatsApp and your website chat, and conversations land in Follow-ups, with each customer’s calls and texts on their page in Customers. |
| Your numbers | A number from the service, or forwarding set up by their team. | Keep your own number and forward it with your carrier's codes. Extra phone numbers $10/month each, sharing the same allowances. |
| Taking payment | Depends on the package; usually a message is taken and you follow up. | Connect Stripe and the receptionist sends a secure payment link for a call-out fee or deposit during the call. Card details are not read out over the phone. |
AUD, including GST. Allowances reset each month. Managed-service figures describe a typical offer in Australia, not any one provider.
What you give up
The honest side of the comparison. These are the things a managed service offers that NeuCalla does not.
- An account manager
- A managed service gives you a named person who makes changes for you. With NeuCalla you make them yourself and test them before they go live. Hands-on setup and a test call are still included for each new customer, and support is there when you want it.
- Unlimited minutes
- Some managed packages advertise unlimited minutes at the higher price. NeuCalla includes 100 call minutes a month, with extra minutes at $0.50 each, prepaid. For many small businesses that comes in under a managed service’s price; the pricing page has a calculator so you can check your own numbers.
- A human on the line
- Some managed services put a person on the call for the hard ones. NeuCalla is an AI receptionist: when a caller needs a person, it can put them through to your team, take a message or book a callback, and the call lands in Follow-ups for you.
Set up with you, run by you
Hands-on setup included: we help with forwarding and test your call or text setup with you. From $99/month — calls, texts and website chat included.
Also read: Answering service vs AI receptionist · Voicemail vs AI receptionist