An AI receptionist that answers every call and books the job
Forward your calls to your HelloSetter number. The AI receptionist picks up day and night, finds out what the caller needs and books the visit on your calendar. The AI Receptionist is $297 a month flat for up to 500 calls, set up by our team.
The caller reported roof damage and scheduled an appointment for a roof estimate on Friday at noon. The call ended positively with the appointment confirmed.
The dashboard summary of the test call further down this page
What the AI receptionist does on a call
It asks what’s going on and answers like a person would, then does one of five things. It never tells a caller you’re closed.
Books the visit
It offers open times from your calendar and books the job, inside your service area.
Answers from your details
Services, area, hours and the prices you allow it to say. It never makes up a price. If it doesn’t know, it takes a message.
Moves or cancels a booking
A caller with a visit coming up can move it or cancel it. It only ever touches that caller’s own booking.
Puts callers through to you
During your business hours, a caller who asks for a person goes to the number you choose.
Takes a message
When a person is needed, it takes the details and emails you. Bookings and answered questions don’t fill your inbox.
- AI receptionistThanks for calling Jack Home Service.
- CallerHi there. I need someone to come take a look at my roof. Some shingles blew off in the wind last night, and I’ve got a small water stain on the ceiling.
- AI receptionistSorry to hear that. We can get someone out to take a look. What’s the address where you need the roof checked?
- CallerIt’s 1840 Maple Ridge Drive, Sheridan, Wyoming, 82801.
- AI receptionistOne second.
- CallerOkay.
- AI receptionistOne moment. I have Friday at noon or Friday at 1:30 open for a roof estimate. Which works better for you?
- CallerFriday at noon works for me.
- AI receptionistBooking the appointment slot for you. You’re set for Friday…
- CallerGreat.
- AI receptionistBye bye.
Recorded on our test line on November 13, 2026. Jack Home Service is our test company, and the caller is a second AI we set up to play a homeowner. The booking went onto the calendar.
More than half the shops we called didn’t pick up
On October 21 to 23 we called 281 roofing, HVAC and plumbing companies during business hours. A person answered 131. The other 150 calls rang out, went to voicemail or got a busy line.
130 of them rang out with no voicemail at all, so the caller couldn’t even leave a message. Those are the calls an AI answering service picks up.
One dot per call. Nobody picked up: 130 rang out, 18 went to voicemail, 2 were busy. Source: HelloSetter call logs, Oct 21 to 23, 2026, US business hours.
| Outcome | Calls |
|---|---|
| A person answered | 131 |
| Rang out | 130 |
| Voicemail | 18 |
| Busy | 2 |
From setup call to live in three steps
Our team does the setup. You forward your phone and make a test call.
- Step 1
A 30-minute setup call
We set up your AI receptionist with you: services, area, hours, the questions it asks and your calendar. It can read your website to fill most of that in.
- Step 2
Forward your phone
Send your calls to your new HelloSetter number. On most US and Canadian carriers you dial *72 and the number. If that doesn’t work, we do it with you.
- Step 3
Call it, then go live
Call it yourself and talk to it like a customer would. When you’re happy with it, it goes live.
It books inside your calendar and your service area
Before it offers a time, it checks your calendar. Connect Google Calendar, Outlook or another calendar with its iCal link and it won’t book over a job you already have.
Set your area as one ZIP code and a number of miles, or as Canadian postal codes. Callers inside it get booked on the call. For a caller outside it, the AI takes their details and you decide whether to call back.
What you see in your dashboard
You only get an email when a person is needed: a message, a caller outside your area or an emergency. Everything else is waiting when you look.
- Every call, with a short summary and what happened: booked, put through, or a message.
- Messages wait in one list with a Call back button. Mark them Done or Booked when you’ve handled them.
- Block a number from its call. A blocked caller hears one sentence and doesn’t count toward your 500 calls.
- Change its voice, questions and company details yourself. Picking a voice changes its name too.
What the AI receptionist costs
One flat price for the AI Receptionist, with no charge per appointment and no per-minute billing. Month to month, no setup fee and no contract. You pay through a secure link after the setup call. Nothing to buy on the website.
AI Receptionist
$297a month, flat
- Up to 500 calls a month
- No charge per appointment
- Past 500 it keeps answering, and we talk about a plan that fits
- Its own local number and your calendar
- Set up with you by our team
Add the Receptionist to any Setter plan for $197 a month instead of $297. It has its own number and its own settings.
AI Receptionist or AI Appointment Setter
The AI Receptionist answers the calls that come to you. The AI Appointment Setter calls the leads you get from forms, Angi, Thumbtack and Facebook. They are separate packages, each with its own number and settings. Want both? You keep one login with a tab for each.
| Compare | AI ReceptionistThis page | AI Appointment Setter |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | AI ReceptionistAnswers the calls you forward and books them | AI Appointment SetterCalls your new leads within 60 seconds and books them |
| Follow-up | AI ReceptionistNone. It only answers. | AI Appointment SetterCalls and voicemails for days until they book or say no |
| Old leads | AI ReceptionistNo | AI Appointment SetterCalls your old quotes in campaigns |
| Price | AI ReceptionistReceptionist: $297 a month flat, up to 500 calls | AI Appointment Setter$697, $1,297 or $2,197 a month for 20, 50 or 120 booked appointments |
Not a contractor?
We built it for plumbers, roofers, HVAC and other home-service companies. Any business that books appointments by phone can use it. Our team sets it up the same way, from your website and a 30-minute call. Read our guide to the AI receptionist for small business, or see the trades we built it for.
Questions about the AI receptionist
Does it sound like a robot?
You pick its voice from more than 100, and you can listen to each one first. To hear one of our AIs on a real call, ring our own line at (307) 216-2890. An AI answers it at any hour.
What happens after 500 calls in a month?
It keeps answering. We tell you once in that month and talk to you about a plan that fits your volume. There is no charge per call or per appointment.
Do I have to forward every call?
No. You can forward only after-hours calls, only the calls you don’t pick up, or every call. We set up forwarding the way you want on the setup call.
Which calendar does it book into?
Your HelloSetter calendar. Connect Google Calendar, Outlook or another calendar with its iCal link so it never books over a busy time. If you’d rather book jobs yourself, it can take messages only.
How is it different from a live answering service?
A live answering service usually bills by the minute or by the call, and takes a message for you to call back. The AI receptionist books the job on the call, for one flat monthly price. Compare what answering services cost.
Can it call my leads too?
No, the AI Receptionist only answers. Calling your new leads and old quotes is the AI Appointment Setter, a separate package with its own number and settings. You can have both on one login.
Hear it answer a call on your own phone
Book 30 minutes with us. We show you the AI receptionist on a live call and set it up around your business.