Short answer: on October 19, 2026, self-serve AI employee apps started at $24 to $50 a month, AI receptionists started free or at $150 a month plus a per-call charge, voice AI platforms billed about $0.12 to $0.15 a minute, and managed AI employee services ran from about $700 a month plus a setup fee. Human assistant services started at $35 a month for a handful of tasks. The starting price is rarely the full bill. What you actually pay depends on what each service counts: seats, credits, minutes, calls or tasks.
How we checked: we read each provider's own pricing page on October 19, 2026 and recorded the lowest published plan, the billing unit and anything that adds to the bill. We left out providers that only quote through sales, and we did not test the products. Clover Digital wrote this page and appears in it; Clover is listed with its pricing model, since it quotes rather than publishing a rate card. Prices change often, so check the linked pages before buying.
| Service | Lowest published price | What it counts | What raises the bill |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-serve AI employee apps (you set them up) | |||
| Marblism | $24/month on yearly billing | One plan with a monthly work allowance | Extra work beyond the allowance; the $24 rate requires yearly billing |
| Sintra | $39/month per helper; all helpers from $15.60/month on a 12-month plan | Helpers and monthly credits | More helpers, credit top-ups, shorter plan terms |
| Sistava | From $50/month | Tier-specific employee capacity and credits | Higher tiers for more roles or capacity |
| Lindy | $49.99 per active user per month, including 5,000 credits | Users and credits | Each additional active user; credit top-ups at $10 per 1,000 |
| Voice AI platforms (pay per minute) | |||
| Bland | $0.14 per talk minute, no platform fee | Minutes of calling and transfer time | Call volume; a $299/month plan lowers the rate to $0.12 per minute |
| Vida | $250/month plus usage | Agents, voice minutes ($0.15) and text messages ($0.06) | Extra agents ($250 each), phone numbers, texting add-on; unused usage does not roll over |
| AI receptionist services (pay per call) | |||
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | Free for 25 calls a month; Pro $150/month for 75 calls | Calls | Calls beyond the plan, at roughly $2 to $3 each |
| Managed AI employee services (the provider does the setup) | |||
| AIQ Labs | From $700/month plus a one-time setup fee; monthly-only plans from $1,200/month | AI employees (receptionist, lead response, intake, dispatch) | Setup fees of $3,500 to $7,000 for typical first projects; more employees |
| Clover Digital | Quoted per Clover after a short call | Clovers: a Part-time Clover runs one workflow, a Full-time Clover handles several | Adding workflows or moving to a Full-time Clover. No setup fee, no per-seat or usage charges, no long-term contract |
| Human assistant services | |||
| Fancy Hands | $35/month for 3 requests | Requests of up to 20 minutes each | More requests ($55 for 5, $125 for 15) |
| Ruby | $250/month for 50 receptionist minutes | Minutes of live receptionist time | More minutes; separate chat plans |
| Smith.ai Virtual Receptionists | $300/month for 30 calls | Calls handled by human receptionists | Overage at $8.50 to $11.50 per call; add-ons such as booking |
A $24 app and a $700 managed service are not cheap and expensive versions of the same product. The app gives you software to configure; the service sells finished work. Before comparing numbers, decide whether you are buying a tool for someone on your team to run, or an outcome someone else is responsible for.
Ten of the twelve offers charge by a unit that grows as you use the service: users, credits, minutes, calls or requests. That is reasonable for light use and can surprise a growing business. For a fair comparison, estimate a normal month (calls, messages, tasks, people who need access) and price that month on every option.
Self-serve tools leave setup to you, which costs time instead of money. Some managed services charge for it separately: AIQ Labs' typical first project lists $3,500 to $7,000 in setup on top of the monthly fee. Ask every provider whether setup, changes after launch and monitoring are included.
Voice platforms and receptionist services bill per minute or per call, because phone time is the product. Services built around email, text, scheduling and records, like Clover, usually price by role or workload. If most of your admin is written, a per-minute calling plan may be the wrong unit to compare.
Our virtual employee cost guide works through the same math for hiring, a freelance assistant, DIY software and a managed service. For who does the setup at each provider, see digital employee providers compared.
Bring the recurring work you want to hand off to a 20-minute video call. We'll tell you whether Clover fits and quote one flat monthly price for it. If a per-call receptionist or a self-serve tool fits better, we'll say so.
Part-time: one workflowFull-time: several workflows
One flat monthly price. No setup fee, no usage charges, no long-term contract.
Choose a time, then share a little about your business. Your request is reviewed before the call is confirmed by email.
Among the 12 offers checked on October 19, 2026, self-serve AI employee apps start between $24 and $50 a month, AI receptionists start free or at $150 a month plus per-call charges, voice AI platforms bill about $0.12 to $0.15 a minute, and managed AI employee services run from about $700 a month plus a setup fee. The starting price is rarely the full bill: seats, credits, minutes, calls and setup fees decide what you actually pay.
They sell different things. A self-serve app gives you software to configure yourself. A voice platform sells minutes of calling. A managed service sells finished work, with the provider doing the setup and monitoring. Compare who does the work and what makes the bill grow, not only the headline price.
Clover Digital quotes one flat monthly price per Clover after a short call about the work. A Part-time Clover runs one workflow and a Full-time Clover handles several. There is no setup fee, no per-seat or usage-based charge and no long-term contract.
Related: Digital employee providers compared · How much does a virtual employee cost? · What is a digital employee?