Best answering service for a small business that misses calls
GreetKeeper ranks first of the eight small-business answering services we checked in September 2026. Forward the calls you miss, and it answers them, books the appointment on the $49 plan, and texts the caller a confirmation. Starter covers 200 answered calls, with no setup fee and $0.45 for each extra call.
Booking is where small-business plans split. Rosie's $49 plan takes messages, and booking starts on its $149 tier. Moneypenny's AI Answering starts at $69 for 25 calls, and Upfirst at $24.95 for 30.
Want to try the category for almost nothing? Smith.ai's free tier covers 25 calls, and Dialzara's paid plan starts at $29 for 60 minutes. Both publish what comes next: $3.00 a call on Smith.ai, and from $0.48 a minute on Dialzara.
A busy month matters more than a quiet one. Compare the rate after the allowance, and treat a rate that isn't on the page as a number you still need to get in writing.
How this was put together
Disclosure: GreetKeeper is our product. We set the criteria and weights for an owner-run business before scoring. Every rival price was read on that vendor's own pricing page in September 2026.
What we compared
- Missed calls caught (30%): forwarding on no-answer and busy from the number you already have, and calls that arrive together answered at once.
- Booking on the entry plan (25%), so a missed call becomes an appointment, not a message.
- A published overage rate (20%), because a small business feels a surprise bill most.
- The real entry cost (15%): the monthly price, any setup fee, and a trial.
- Setup effort (10%): whether the assistant drafts its answers from your website.
The shortlist at a glance
Billing unit first, because it decides more of the final bill than the headline price does.
| Charges by | Entry plan | After the allowance | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GreetKeeper | per answered call | $49/mo for 200 answered calls | $0.45 a call on Starter, published |
| Rosie | per minute | Professional $49/mo for 250 minutes | Not published |
| Moneypenny | per call (AI Answering) or per minute (People Answering) | AI Answering $69/mo for 25 calls; People Answering $165/mo for 50 minutes | Published: $2.49 down to $1.89 per extra AI call; $2.28 down to $1.67 per extra people-answered minute |
| Upfirst | per call | Starter $24.95/mo for 30 calls ($20/mo billed annually) | Published: $1.50 a call on Starter, $1 on Premium, $0.75 on Pro, $0.70 on Scale |
| Smith.ai | per call | Free tier at $0 for 25 calls, then $3.00 a call | Published, and the per-call rate falls as the tier rises |
| Dialzara | per minute | Business Lite $29/mo for 60 minutes | Published on every tier, from $0.48 a minute down to $0.35 |
| Goodcall | per unique caller | Starter $79/mo ($66 annual) for 100 unique customers | $0.50 per additional unique customer, published |
| NextPhone | flat monthly plan | Pro $199/mo, unlimited calls, 7-day free trial | None published: every plan lists unlimited calls with no per-minute or overage fees |
Read from each vendor's own pricing page in September 2026.
GreetKeeper
Missed calls answered and booked on the $49 plan, with no setup fee and every rate printed.
Worth it for: You miss calls while you're on a job or with a customer, and each one could have been a booking. GreetKeeper drafts its setup from your website and answers only the calls you forward to it. Robocalls and very short calls don't count toward your plan.
Charges per answered call. Entry plan $49/mo for 200 answered calls. After the allowance: $0.45 a call on Starter, published.
Rosie
A $49 plan with 250 minutes, and booking on the $149 tier.
Worth it for: You want missed calls answered and details taken, and you'll do your own callbacks and booking.
Not for: Filling a calendar from the entry plan, since booking and live transfer start at $149. Rosie also leaves its overage rate off the page.
Charges per minute. Entry plan Professional $49/mo for 250 minutes. After the allowance: Not published.
Moneypenny
AI answering per call, or people by the minute, from one provider.
Worth it for: You want a choice between AI and human answering from the same company.
Not for: A business that misses lots of calls. AI Answering holds 25 calls for $69, and each extra call costs $2.49 down to $1.89.
Charges per call (AI Answering) or per minute (People Answering). Entry plan AI Answering $69/mo for 25 calls; People Answering $165/mo for 50 minutes. After the allowance: Published: $2.49 down to $1.89 per extra AI call; $2.28 down to $1.67 per extra people-answered minute.
Upfirst
Per-call billing on a four-step ladder, from $24.95 for 30 calls.
Worth it for: You miss about one call a day and want a per-call bill.
Not for: A business that misses more than that. Each extra call on Starter costs $1.50, and above 600 calls a month Upfirst moves to custom pricing.
Charges per call. Entry plan Starter $24.95/mo for 30 calls ($20/mo billed annually). After the allowance: Published: $1.50 a call on Starter, $1 on Premium, $0.75 on Pro, $0.70 on Scale.
Smith.ai
Free for 25 calls, then per-call pricing with people behind the AI.
Worth it for: You want to test answering on your real calls before you spend anything.
Not for: Staying on the free tier, where each call past 25 costs $3.00. Pro is $150 a month.
Charges per call. Entry plan Free tier at $0 for 25 calls, then $3.00 a call. After the allowance: Published, and the per-call rate falls as the tier rises.
Dialzara
A $29 plan with the overage printed on every tier.
Worth it for: You miss only a few short calls a month.
Not for: Growth. The entry plan holds 60 minutes, and the next plan is $99 for 220 minutes.
Charges per minute. Entry plan Business Lite $29/mo for 60 minutes. After the allowance: Published on every tier, from $0.48 a minute down to $0.35.
Goodcall
Unique-customer billing with uncapped minutes.
Worth it for: One job brings several calls from the same person, and you'd like that person counted once.
Not for: A business where nearly every caller is new, and one running several numbers, since each number is a separately priced agent.
Charges per unique caller. Entry plan Starter $79/mo ($66 annual) for 100 unique customers. After the allowance: $0.50 per additional unique customer, published.
NextPhone
Unlimited calls at a flat price, with features stepped by plan.
Worth it for: Your missed-call count is high and unpredictable, and answering, booking and transfers on the $199 Pro plan cover your needs.
Not for: A tight budget, since the entry plan is $199 a month and CRM connections are listed from Growth at $299.
Charges flat monthly plan. Entry plan Pro $199/mo, unlimited calls, 7-day free trial. After the allowance: None published: every plan lists unlimited calls with no per-minute or overage fees.
How a small business should choose
Count the calls you miss in a normal week, then check your worst week. That tells you the plan. GreetKeeper holds 200 calls for $49, 750 for $149 and 2,000 for $349, and the rate after each is on the pricing page.
Decide how the missed calls reach the service. Forward on no-answer and busy, and you keep answering whenever you can. The ring count is set where the forwarding is set, and GreetKeeper answers the moment the call arrives.
Then check what a missed call becomes. With GreetKeeper it becomes a booked slot in Google Calendar or Outlook, a text to the caller, and a transcript and summary for you.
Our own pricing, in full
Including the rate after the allowance, which is the number most of this list leaves off.
| Plan | Monthly | Calls included | After that |
|---|---|---|---|
| StarterFor a single location taking calls one line at a time. | $49 | 200 | $0.45 per call |
| ProfessionalBooking, routing and transfers included, not an add-on. | $149 | 750 | $0.35 per call |
| ScaleFor busy phones and longer opening hours. | $349 | 2,000 | $0.25 per call |
The short version
- Booking is included on every tier. Rosie keeps booking and live transfer behind its $149 plan.
- The overage rate is on the pricing page. Rosie, Ruby, Slang and AnswerConnect do not publish theirs.
- Calls are counted, not minutes, so a long useful conversation costs the same as a short one.
Questions people ask about this list
What is the best answering service for a small business that misses a lot of calls?
On our published method, GreetKeeper ranks first. It answers the calls you forward, books them on the $49 plan, and prints its overage at $0.45 a call. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial, you don't need a card, and there's no setup fee.
What is the cheapest answering service that books appointments?
Among the plans we checked in September 2026, GreetKeeper books on its $49 Starter plan. Rosie's booking tier is $149, and Smith.ai's Pro plan is $150. Starter covers 200 answered calls.
How long does setup take?
Point GreetKeeper at your website, and it drafts your hours, services and FAQs. Correct the draft, connect Google Calendar or Outlook, and forward your number to the dedicated local number that comes with your plan.
What counts as a billable call?
On GreetKeeper, an answered call counts once, whatever its length. Very short calls, robocalls and calls it screens out don't count toward your plan. Ask every vendor you compare for the same rule in writing.
Why is GreetKeeper first on a list it wrote?
Catching missed calls and booking them carried the most weight, and GreetKeeper does both on its $49 plan with no setup fee. You can check the price, the overage and the booking on our pricing page.
Hear one of these handle your own call
Your scenario, your greeting, a couple of minutes.