AI Receptionist Pricing 2026 — A Transparent Comparison
What does an AI receptionist actually cost in 2026? Real pricing for Aroha, Goodcall, Rosie, Smith.ai and others — with the gotchas.
The headline prices (per month)
Aroha Lite NZ$99 / US$45. Aroha Essentials NZ$199 / US$90. Aroha Professional NZ$349 / US$157. Aroha Premium NZ$599 / US$269. Goodcall: from US$59 (Starter), US$199 (Pro). Rosie: from US$199. My AI Front Desk: from US$65. Smith.ai (hybrid): from US$285.
What's included vs. what's an upsell
Watch for: per-minute overage charges, calendar integration as a paid add-on, CRM access only on top tiers, language support locked behind premium plans, and setup fees of $500+ on enterprise plans.
Aroha is transparent on purpose
Aroha plans include: unlimited minutes (Essentials and up), free white-glove setup, managed Google Calendar setup, CRM, email summaries, no per-call fees. The price you see is the price you pay.
ROI by plan
Lite (NZ$99) can pay for itself with one recovered booking in many appointment businesses. Essentials, Professional and Premium make more sense when email, SMS, CRM memory, routing, analytics, or multi-location handling create enough extra saved time or recovered revenue.
Should you start cheap or premium?
Most service businesses should start on Essentials. Lite is for sole operators with low call volume. Professional + is for teams of 3+ or multi-location operators.