Managed Agents at Previously $0.06 $0.03/minManaged Agents are Previously $0.06 $0.03/min.

ServiceNow#1 on EVA-Bench

Artificial Analysis#1 on Speech Agent Arena

AI receptionist that answers every call and books visits.

Answer your business line 24/7, book visits on your calendar, and take messages when your team is out.

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Trusted by leading teams

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Ranked #1

on EVA-Bench and Speech Agent Arena

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Indeed
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Answer every call and get the caller what they need

Every caller gets an answer, a booked visit, a saved message or a person on the line.

The agent answers questions about hours, services and service areas from what you provide, and says when it does not know.

How an AI receptionist runs the phone side of your front desk

What is an AI receptionist?

An AI receptionist is a voice agent that answers your business phone, works out what each caller needs and finishes the job on the call. That might be a booked visit, a saved message or a transfer. A message taker writes things down for later, and a receptionist gets an outcome now.

  • Check team and hours
  • Find open times
  • Book a visit
  • Save caller message
  • Transfer to team member

What happens when the phone rings and the desk is busy?

One person is checking someone in, chasing an invoice and covering lunch, and the line rings through it all. The agent picks up every time, so a caller who wanted a Thursday slot doesn't hear a mailbox and try the next business.

I have a question about my invoice.

get_team_statusJoan in the office

Joan in the office handles invoices, and she's in. What's the invoice number, so she has it when she picks up?

How does an AI phone receptionist book a visit?

It reads your services, pulls open times from your calendar, repeats the choice back and books only after the caller says yes. Before any transfer it checks who is in. When Dave is out until 3:00, it saves a name, a number and a reason for him.

  • Leaking kitchen faucet, Thursday 1:302:14
  • Message for Dave, deck quote1:21
  • Invoice question to the office0:47

Which AI receptionist fits my kind of business?

Start from your trade. There are versions for dental, medical, salons, restaurants, hotels and real estate, plus an AI receptionist for small business. All of them stop at judgment, so complaints go to a person. For closed-hours cover alone, use an answering service.

Caller got an outcome

Did the call end with a booked visit, a saved message, or the caller on the line with a person?

What changes when your front desk stops chasing the phone

The person at your desk keeps the work that needs a person. These are the parts of the phone job the agent takes off them, and the part it leaves alone.

Visits get booked while the caller is on the line

Open times come straight from your calendar. The agent reads the choice back and books on a yes, so a leaking faucet doesn't turn into three rounds of phone tag.

No more transfers to an empty desk

A team status check runs before any transfer. If Joan is in, she picks up with invoice 4471 in front of her. If she's out, the caller leaves a message.

Messages your team can actually return

Each one carries a name, a callback number and a reason, and the caller hears it's saved only after your system confirms it. Sticky notes retire.

Lunch, Saturdays and sick days stay covered

Coverage no longer depends on who is sitting at the desk. With the office closed, a caller can still book Monday morning or leave word for the team.

Answers stay inside what you approved

Hours, services and service areas come from your text. Ask about something that isn't there and the agent says it doesn't know, which beats a confident guess.

Complaints still go to a person

The agent won't settle a billing dispute or talk down an angry customer. Those calls transfer to the person you name, and they should.

Phone manners are the hard part of a receptionist

People call a front desk mid-errand, with kids in the back seat. Cartesia's speech models keep up with how they really talk.

  • $0.03per minute
  • #1on Speech Agent Arena and EVA-Bench
  • 24/7answers every call, at any hour

Lets callers finish spelling

A caller reading out a last name or an invoice number pauses between pieces. The agent waits for the end of the thought before it answers.

Your LLM, your front-desk tools

Choose the LLM, then hand it the tools that check who is in, find open times, book the visit, save a message and transfer the call.

Sounds like someone from your office

Browse the voice library for someone who suits your business, so a first-time caller gets the warmth they'd find walking in the door.

Pricing an AI receptionist against a hire and a live service

Shoppers usually price these three against each other. Each one has a place, and plenty of offices end up running two of them on the same number.

Cartesia agentFront-desk staffLive answering service
Books during the callYes, only times your calendar returnsYesSometimes, often a message for you to return
Three callers at onceHandled side by sideOne at a time, the rest ring or holdCallers wait for a free operator
Nights and weekendsAnswers 24/7Only on scheduled shiftsUsually yes, sometimes at a higher rate
Knows who is in todayChecks team status before each transferYes, they can see the officeOnly if someone keeps them updated
An upset customerTransfers to the person you chooseYes, and a good receptionist shines hereTakes a message or follows the script
Record of what was saidEvery call recorded and transcribedUsually noneOften a short message summary
How you pay$0.03 a minute, plus LLM usage and telephonyA wage, busy or quietUsually a monthly fee, plus charges by the minute or call

See which calls got callers what they needed

Every call is recorded and transcribed. See which callers booked a visit, left a message or reached a person, and which hung up first.

Launch an AI receptionist in three steps

Start building

  1. Clone the front desk

    Copy this agent, then swap Fernhollow's hours, services and team list for your own.

  2. Connect your calendar and line

    Link your calendar and messaging tools, set the transfer numbers, then forward your line or bring your own Twilio account or SIP trunk.

  3. Book a fake faucet repair

    Call in, book a visit, then ask for someone who is out. Read both transcripts and go live when each call ends the right way.

Enterprise-grade security

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    HIPAA compliant

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    SOC 2 Type 2

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    GDPR

Receptionist FAQs

What is an AI receptionist?

An AI receptionist, also called an AI virtual receptionist, is a voice agent that answers your business phone, handles routine questions, books visits, takes messages and transfers callers to a person. See what to buy and what to build.

Is there an AI receptionist for small business?

Yes. The AI receptionist for small business page shows the agent set up for a one-person shop. It quotes your price list, books the slots your calendar shows open and rings you only for the call types you pick. You pay for call minutes, so a slow week costs less than a busy one.

What is the best AI receptionist for a business?

The one that handles your calls the way your front desk would. Check that it books only times your calendar returns, checks who is in before it transfers, saves messages in the system you already use, and records every call so you can read what was said. Then compare the price per minute with LLM usage and telephony counted. This agent is $0.03 per minute plus those, and you can call the sample office on this page first.

Can an AI phone receptionist book appointments?

Yes. Connect the agent to your calendar or booking system, and it offers only the times your system returns. It reads the choice back and books only after the caller says yes.

Can an AI receptionist answer calls 24/7?

Yes. The agent answers every call 24/7, and books visits or takes messages when your office is closed.

Can AI replace a receptionist?

It can cover the routine phone work, such as hours, bookings and messages, so the person at your desk isn't pulled away by every ring. Complaints and judgment calls still transfer to the person you choose.

How is an AI receptionist different from an answering service?

An answering service takes a message when your team cannot answer. A receptionist also books visits and routes callers during the day, and you can run both on one number.

What phone systems and calendars does an AI receptionist connect to?

Calls reach the agent on a Cartesia phone number, on your own number forwarded to it, or through your own Twilio account or SIP trunk. It connects to your calendar, booking and messaging systems through tools you configure, and transfers calls to the numbers you set.

Can an AI receptionist transfer a call to a person?

Yes. The agent transfers complaints and judgment calls to the person you choose, and routes other callers to the numbers you set.

How much does an AI receptionist cost?

An AI receptionist bills for the minutes it spends on calls, at $0.03 per minute of call time, so a quick hours question costs less than a full booking call. LLM usage is billed separately. A Cartesia phone number adds $0.014 per minute, or nothing if you bring your own Twilio account or SIP trunk. The free plan includes $1 of agent calls a month, so you can test the front desk before you pay. See pricing.

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