The best missed-call text-back tools, ranked on what the caller gets
GreetKeeper is our product, and it ranks first on the method below because the call is never left unanswered in the first place. It answers, books the slot, and then sends the caller one text with the booking link or confirmation. Plans start at $49 for 200 calls.
A text-back tool fires when a call goes unanswered: the caller hangs up, and a moment later gets a message saying sorry we missed you. That beats silence. But by then the caller has heard the ring-out and may already be dialling the next business on the list.
The other entries here answer the call, so the text becomes a follow-up rather than an apology. Rosie starts at $49 for 250 minutes, Goodcall at $79 for 100 unique customers, and Dialzara at $29 for 60 minutes.
Smith.ai adds a human team behind its AI from $150 for Pro. PATLive staffs human receptionists from $99 for 50 minutes, with every rate published.
How this was put together
Disclosure: GreetKeeper is our product. We compared six ways to stop losing missed callers in September 2026, scored on what the caller experiences. Each rival's prices come from its own pricing page that month.
What we compared
- Whether the caller reaches a live conversation, or only a text after hanging up.
- Whether the text the caller receives carries a booking or a confirmation.
- Whether the caller can reply with an opt-out word to stop further texts.
- Whether the business hears about the call straight away.
- Published entry price and the rate past it.
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 |
| Goodcall | per unique caller | Starter $79/mo ($66 annual) for 100 unique customers | $0.50 per additional unique customer, published |
| Dialzara | per minute | Business Lite $29/mo for 60 minutes | Published on every tier, from $0.48 a minute down to $0.35 |
| 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 |
| PATLive | per minute | $49/mo pay as you go with no minutes included, at $2.99 a minute; $99 for 50 minutes | Published on every tier: $2.99 a minute pay as you go, $2.29 on the $99 plan, $1.99 at $349, $1.79 at $759, down to $1.49 at $6,899 (re-read on patlive.com/pricing 2026-09-24) |
Read from each vendor's own pricing page in September 2026.
GreetKeeper
Answers the call, then texts the caller the booking link or confirmation, from $49.
Worth it for: A business losing calls while it's busy, that wants every caller to end with an appointment and a text confirming it.
Charges per answered call. Entry plan $49/mo for 200 answered calls. After the allowance: $0.45 a call on Starter, published.
Rosie
An AI answer at the $49 anchor price, with booking one tier up.
Worth it for: A small business with short calls that wants them answered for $49 with 250 minutes.
Not for: Booking during the call on the $49 plan, since booking and live transfer sit on the $149 Scale tier.
Charges per minute. Entry plan Professional $49/mo for 250 minutes. After the allowance: Not published.
Goodcall
An AI answer billed per unique customer.
Worth it for: A trade whose customers call back about the same job, since each repeat caller counts once at $79 for 100.
Not for: A business with several lines, since pricing is per agent and each phone number is an 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.
Dialzara
The cheapest AI answer here, metered by the minute.
Worth it for: A business with only a few missed calls a month, at $29 for 60 minutes.
Not for: Regular volume, since the rate past 60 minutes starts at $0.48 a minute and the next plan is $99.
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.
Smith.ai
AI with a trained team behind it, billed per call.
Worth it for: A professional firm that wants a person available behind the AI, at about $2.00 a call on the $150 Pro plan.
Not for: Missed-call volume on a budget, since calls past the free tier's 25 cost $3.00 each.
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.
PATLive
Human receptionists, with every per-minute rate printed.
Worth it for: A business whose missed calls are few and valuable, where a person answering at $2.29 a minute past the plan fits.
Not for: Frequent short calls, since pay as you go costs $2.99 a minute from the first one.
Charges per minute. Entry plan $49/mo pay as you go with no minutes included, at $2.99 a minute; $99 for 50 minutes. After the allowance: Published on every tier: $2.99 a minute pay as you go, $2.29 on the $99 plan, $1.99 at $349, $1.79 at $759, down to $1.49 at $6,899 (re-read on patlive.com/pricing 2026-09-24).
How to choose a missed-call fix
Decide whether you want to recover the call or keep it. A text-back tries to win back someone who already hung up. GreetKeeper answers every call forwarded to it, including calls that arrive together, so the caller never hears the ring-out.
Then look at the text itself. After a GreetKeeper call, the caller receives one SMS with the booking confirmation, or a booking link when no time was set on the call. A reply with the opt-out word stops further texts, so a caller who opts out hears nothing more.
Last, make sure you hear about it. GreetKeeper texts the on-call person with the caller's name, number and reason, and every call arrives as a transcript and a short summary. Nothing sits in a voicemail box waiting for you to check it.
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 missed-call text-back?
Missed-call text-back sends an automatic text to someone whose call went unanswered, usually inviting them to reply or book. GreetKeeper goes one step earlier: it answers the call, then sends the caller one text with the booking link or confirmation.
Does GreetKeeper text the caller after every call?
After a call, the caller receives one SMS with the booking link or the booking confirmation. If the caller replies with the opt-out word, GreetKeeper stops texting them. Texts to your own on-call person are separate and carry the caller's details.
How much does a missed call cost my business?
It depends on what one customer is worth to you, and our missed-call cost calculator works it out from your own numbers. GreetKeeper's side is fixed: $49 a month for 200 answered calls and $0.45 a call past that.
Can I keep answering my own phone and use GreetKeeper only for misses?
Yes. Set your carrier to forward on no-answer, busy or unreachable. The ring count is set where the forwarding is set, and GreetKeeper answers the moment the call arrives. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial with no card.
Hear one of these handle your own call
Your scenario, your greeting, a couple of minutes.