How much does an AI receptionist cost?
Short answer: anywhere from $50 a month to a full salary. Here is an honest breakdown of what an AI receptionist and answering service costs in Canada, and where HeyDiane fits.
DIY AI receptionist apps
Self-serve, US-billed, you configure and tune it yourself.
~$50–$300/mo USD
US AI answering services
Trade-built but priced for larger shops, often per-minute.
~$450–$3,000/mo USD
Human answering service
Live agents, billed per minute or per call — costs rise with volume.
~$100–$400+/mo CAD
Part-time receptionist
A real hire, daytime only, plus turnover and training.
$2,400–$3,600/mo
HeyDiane
Done-for-you, flat monthly, built and supported in Alberta.
$0 setup + $199/mo CAD
What drives the price
The cheap apps are cheap because you do the work: you write the prompts, you teach the AI your trade, you tune it. The expensive US services are built for shops with five or more office staff. The gap in the middle is a done-for-you receptionist priced for a one-to-ten truck operation, billed in Canadian dollars.
HeyDiane is $0 to set up and a flat $199 a month. That setup — a real person configuring Diane to your service area, pricing, and emergencies — is included. The flat monthly means no per-minute spike in your busy season.
Common questions
How much does an AI receptionist cost in Canada?
It ranges widely. Self-serve AI receptionist apps run about $50 to $300 a month in US dollars but you configure them yourself. US trade-built AI services run $450 to $3,000+ a month. HeyDiane is $0 setup and a flat $199 a month in Canadian dollars, done for you and supported by an Alberta team.
Is there a setup fee?
No — setup is $0. The configuration work done up front is included: mapping your service area, your pricing and after-hours rates, your emergency and escalation rules, your calendar integration, and tuning Diane on real calls. That is the difference between an AI that books jobs and a generic bot.
Is a flat monthly cheaper than a per-minute answering service?
For most trades, yes, and it is more predictable. Per-minute and per-call services spike in your busy season — exactly when your call volume is highest. HeyDiane starts at a flat $199 a month no matter how many calls Diane answers.
What does HeyDiane actually cost me each month?
$199 CAD, month-to-month, no contract, cancel any time in one click. One emergency call she catches usually covers the month. Use the missed-call calculator to see what your missed calls are worth against that.