If you're shopping for a plumbing answering service, you're probably missing calls you can't afford to miss: the burst pipe at 10 PM, the water heater quote that went to the next company, the property manager who needed an answer before 8. The services that catch those calls sell in very different ways, and the sticker price rarely tells you what a month in January will cost.
This guide covers the three main pricing models, what published plans actually cost (checked November 10, 2026), a worked example for a small plumbing shop, and the questions to ask before you sign anything. We make an AI receptionist, Connie, and it's in the tables too, so weigh our take accordingly.
The three ways answering services charge
- Per minute of agent time (live services). A person answers, and you pay for the minutes they spend on your calls. Plans bundle a block of minutes; overage is per minute. Watch the billing increment: a 40-second call billed as a full minute costs 50% more than you'd think.
- Per call (live and some AI). You pay for each answered call regardless of length. Good for long calls, expensive for short ones and for spam, unless spam is excluded.
- Flat monthly plans (most AI receptionists). A monthly fee covers a set number of minutes or calls, with overage after that. Usually far cheaper per call, but the answer comes from software, not a person.
What published plans cost in 2026
These are the entry plans on each vendor's own pricing page, checked November 10, 2026. Prices change; check before you buy.
| Service | Who answers | Entry price | Overage / notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| AnswerFirst | Live, US-based | $30/mo base plus $1.60 to $1.95 per minute1 | One-second billing increments; no extra charge for nights, weekends or holidays1 |
| MAP Communications | Live | $179/mo for 125 minutes; $49/mo pay-as-you-go2 | $1.28 to $1.37 per extra minute; no long-term contract2 |
| Ruby | Live | $250/mo for 50 minutes; $720/mo for 2003 | No setup fees listed3 |
| Smith.ai receptionists | Live | $300/mo for 30 calls4 | $8.50 to $11.50 per extra call4 |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | AI | $150/mo for 75 calls (Pro)5 | Free plan with 25 calls5 |
| Rosie | AI | $49/mo (Professional)6 | Higher tiers $149 and $299/mo6 |
| Goodcall | AI | $79/mo (Starter)7 | Growth $129, Scale $299/mo7 |
| Connie | AI, overflow only | $79/mo for 150 minutes; founding members $49/mo, 300 minutes fair use | $0.20 to $0.35 per extra minute; no setup fee |
A worked example: 60 missed calls a month
Example only. A two-truck plumbing shop misses about 15 calls a week, roughly 60 a month, at about 1.5 minutes each: 90 minutes. No spam is counted and no setup fees are included.
| Service | How it's counted | About a month |
|---|---|---|
| AnswerFirst | $30 + 90 min × $1.60 to $1.951 | $174 to $206 |
| MAP Communications | 125-minute plan covers 902 | $179 |
| Ruby | Next tier up from 50 min is 100 min, $3953 | $395 |
| Smith.ai receptionists | 30 calls + 30 × $11.504 | $645 |
| Smith.ai AI | 75-call plan covers 605 | $150 |
| Connie | 150-minute Starter covers 90 | $79 ($49 founding) |
Now double it, because that's what a cold snap does. At 120 calls and 180 minutes, the per-minute live services roughly double (AnswerFirst about $318 to $381; MAP $179 plus 55 extra minutes at $1.30, about $251), Ruby moves to its 200-minute tier at $720, and Smith.ai's people cost $300 plus 90 extra calls. On a flat AI plan the increase is the overage on the extra minutes, if any. The value side matters more than the cost side: if one burst-pipe job is worth several hundred dollars, any of these pays for itself with one or two saved calls. Run your own numbers in the missed call calculator.
Costs that aren't on the pricing page
- Billing increments. Per-second billing and per-minute rounding give very different bills for short calls.
- Spam and wrong numbers. Some services don't charge for them; some do. Ask.
- Patches and transfers. Connecting a caller to your on-call tech can be billed as extra time or a separate fee.
- Holiday and after-hours rates. Some live services charge more; AnswerFirst says it doesn't.1
- Setup, scripting and changes. A one-time setup fee, or a charge each time you update your script before winter.
- Texting registration. If the service texts your customers, US carriers require business texting registration, with its own fees.8
12 questions to ask before you sign
- How exactly do you bill: per minute, per call or flat? What's the billing increment?
- Do spam calls, hang-ups and wrong numbers count?
- What happens to my bill and your answer speed when I get three times my normal calls during a freeze?
- Will the caller hear my company's name, and can you give my shutoff and safety instructions word for word?
- Can you book into my calendar, or only take messages?
- How do you reach my on-call tech, and what if they don't answer?
- How fast do I get the details, and in what form (text, email, app)?
- Do I get recordings and transcripts?
- What does it cost to change my script, hours or on-call number?
- Is there a contract, a minimum term or a cancellation fee?
- Can my phone ring first, with you only getting calls I miss (conditional forwarding)?
- Can I make test calls before I go live, and do those count against my plan?
Ask every vendor the same questions in writing, then make five test calls from a phone that isn't yours: a burst pipe at night, a clogged drain, a water heater quote, a confused caller and someone who asks for a person. Compare the summaries.
Human or AI: a short rule of thumb
If your calls are long, sensitive or unusual, or your customers expect a person every time, a live service earns its price. If most missed calls are straightforward service requests that come in bunches, an AI receptionist on overflow covers them for far less, and it never puts a caller on hold. Many shops use both. For the full trade-offs, read answering service vs AI receptionist for plumbers and AI vs live answering service.
Where Connie fits
Connie is an overflow-only AI receptionist. Your phone rings first; Connie answers only what you miss, in your company's name, books into Google Calendar or hands emergencies to your on-call number, and emails you the job. Text summaries and missed call text back are Coming at launch. Starter is $79/mo for 150 minutes, no contract; founding members (20 spots) pay $49/mo (300 minutes fair use), locked for life. Setup is self-serve online in a few minutes. Michiana plumbers: see your town's page.