Retell AI alternatives
Most people looking past Retell AI started building a phone agent and found the build is the job. Retell's meter runs from $0.07 to $0.31 a minute. The prompts, the calendar hookup and the transfer logic are still yours to write. If you'd rather have the phone answered by a finished receptionist, here's the field.
| Service | Bills by | Entry price | Overage published? |
|---|---|---|---|
| GreetKeeper | Answered call | $49 for 200 calls | Yes, $0.45 a call |
| Smith.ai | Per call | Free tier at $0 for 25 calls, then $3.00 a call | Yes |
| Ruby | Per minute | $250/mo for 50 minutes | No |
| Rosie | Per minute | Professional $49/mo for 250 minutes | No |
| Goodcall | Per unique caller | Starter $79/mo ($66 annual) for 100 unique customers | Yes |
| Retell AI | Per minute, plus monthly add-ons | Pay as you go at $0.07–$0.31 a minute, with $10 in free credits | Yes |
Read from each vendor's own pricing page in September 2026, except vendors who gate pricing behind a form. Check before you buy.
What GreetKeeper does differently from Retell AI
Every line below is on our pricing page or in the product today.
Why teams switch to GreetKeeper
- GreetKeeper is a finished receptionist: point it at your website and it drafts your hours, services and FAQs for you to correct.
- You pay per answered call, from $49 for 200 calls, so a long call costs the same as a short one.
- Booking is on every plan and writes straight into Google Calendar or Outlook during the call.
- Every plan includes a dedicated local number, with the area code you choose at signup.
- A transfer that isn't picked up tries a second number you nominate, and the on-call person gets a text with the caller's details.
- Your first 14 days are free with every feature on, no card and no setup fee.
Why people leave Retell AI
Not a general complaint about the category. The specific wall this vendor puts in front of you.
Retell AI is a builder's platform, and the people who leave it are usually business owners who never wanted to be builders. A developer can stand up an agent quickly. Keeping it right as your hours, prices and staff change is the part that lands back on your desk. The second reason is the bill. Voice infra at $0.055 a minute, voices at $0.015 and US telephony at $0.015 stack on every call, and the total moves with how long callers talk.
What the bill does as you grow
The entry price is the cheapest month you will ever have. This is the shape of the rest.
Retell AI meters minutes, so a busy month and a chatty month look the same on the invoice. The rate is $0.07 to $0.31 a minute depending on the parts you pick. Numbers cost $2.00 a month each, and calls past the 20 free concurrent lines add $8.00 a month per line. GreetKeeper counts answered calls. Scale is $349 for 2,000 calls and $0.25 for each one after that. Robocalls and spam calls are screened out before the greeting and never reach the count.
What moving off Retell AI actually involves
Forwarding takes five minutes. Here is the part that takes an afternoon.
Your Retell phone number and agent stay where they are while you test. Sign up for GreetKeeper, pick the area code for your new local number, and point it at your website so it drafts your hours, services and FAQs. Fix what it got wrong, connect Google Calendar or Outlook, and set who a transfer goes to. Then change the forwarding on your business line to the GreetKeeper number. Run a week of real calls, read the transcripts, and switch off the Retell agent when you're happy.
Common questions
What is the best Retell AI alternative for a small business?
A finished AI receptionist, if you'd rather run your business than build a voice agent. GreetKeeper starts at $49 a month for 200 answered calls, with booking, transfers and transcripts included. You set it up from a draft of your own website.
Why does my Retell AI bill change so much month to month?
Retell AI bills by the minute, from $0.07 to $0.31 depending on the parts you choose. Long calls and busy weeks both push it up. A per-call plan such as GreetKeeper's $149 for 750 calls keeps the bill tied to how many people rang, not how long they talked.
Can I keep my number when I leave Retell AI?
Keep your main business number where it is. GreetKeeper gives you a dedicated local number, and you forward your existing line to it. Forwarding on all calls, busy, no answer or unreachable all work. The ring count is set where the forwarding is set, and GreetKeeper answers the moment the call arrives.
Run the receptionist, skip the build
Your local number, your calendar and your transfer rules, set up in the product. No card for 14 days.