Checked 5 November 2026 against each provider's own pricing page · Prices in AUD, ex GST unless noted
The short version
Every service on this list answers the phone in an AI voice, takes a message and sends it to you. The differences are in what you pay for (calls, minutes or conversations), whether a person is behind the AI, what it can do mid-call (transfer, look something up, book), and whether there is a phone system underneath it or just a forward to a US voice platform. Decide what you need the receptionist to do on a call before you compare prices.
Side by side
| Provider | Entry price | What it includes | After that | Setup | Billing unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BE Voice | $149 a month | 200 AI minutes; $299 for 600 | 45¢ a minute (40¢ on the $299 plan) | None; first integration free | Minutes |
| OfficeHQ MyAI | $20 a month | 10 calls; tiers up to 500 calls at $600 | $1.50 a call | Not shown | Calls |
| Johnni | $49 a month | 60 minutes; $134 for 200 and $269 for 600 on annual billing | 50¢ to 40¢ a minute | None; SMS alerts $50 a month extra | Minutes |
| Vereo | $79 a month | 100 inbound minutes | 35¢ a minute; transfers billed as outbound at 15¢ a minute | $295 | Minutes |
| OneBookPlus | $104 a month inc GST | 100 conversations, a conversation being each 4 minutes started; needs the $79 add-on plus the $25 AI Companion | Not shown | Not shown | Conversations |
| Valory | $149 a month | 100 minutes and 50 SMS; $299 for 250 minutes, $499 for 700 | 90¢ to 50¢ a minute | From $990 | Minutes |
| Siptalk | No monthly fee | Pay per minute | 27.5¢ a minute; their page gives about $400 a month as a typical spend | None | Minutes |
Sophiie does not publish prices (demo and quote). RingCentral's AI Receptionist is an add-on to a RingEX seat, reported at launch as from about $62 a month with 100 minutes, with no Australian price on the product page.
What a month actually buys
The billing units are not the same thing. Working on a two-minute average call:
- 200 minutes (BE Voice $149, Johnni Solo $134 annual) is about 100 calls.
- 100 calls (OfficeHQ $130) is about 200 minutes, but a long call costs no more than a short one.
- 100 conversations (OneBookPlus $104 inc GST) is 100 calls under four minutes; a nine-minute call is three conversations.
- 100 minutes (Vereo $79, Valory $149) is about 50 calls.
- Per minute (Siptalk) at 27.5¢ is $55 for 200 minutes and $220 for 800. Cheapest on minutes alone at every volume.
Count your calls for a fortnight before you choose. The AI receptionist cost guide works the maths at four volumes.
The questions that separate them
Is there a person behind it?
OfficeHQ is a live-answering company first; a human receptionist takes over when the AI is stuck or the caller asks. Everyone else on the list transfers to your people, not theirs. If you want a human fallback that is not your staff, OfficeHQ is the only one here that offers it.
What can it do on the call?
Taking a message is table stakes. Ask whether it can transfer with an introduction (so your colleague hears who is calling before saying hello), check a booking or an order in your own system, and put a caller through to a ring group or queue. BE Voice does those three; the others vary and the way to find out is a trial on your own number.
What is underneath it?
Most AI receptionists are a number you forward to. That is fine for after-hours cover. If the receptionist is the front door during the day, it matters whether there is a phone system behind it: extensions, ring groups, queues, your handsets. BE Voice runs on its own hosted phone system and trunks; Johnni, Vereo, Valory and OneBookPlus forward to you; OfficeHQ sits beside its live-answering service; RingCentral is a feature of its phone system.
Does it sound Australian?
All seven offer Australian voices now. Listen to each one on your own number; a trial is free almost everywhere on this list.
What does the setup cost?
Nothing at BE Voice, Johnni and Siptalk. $295 at Vereo. From $990 at Valory. Not stated by OfficeHQ and OneBookPlus. Setup is where quotes diverge most, so ask before you sign.
Where BE Voice fits
Mid-price on the list, and the only one that also sells the phone system, the SIP trunks and the numbers under the receptionist. Pick it if you want the receptionist to transfer into real extensions and queues, answer from your own records, and be written up to your desk, with one company to call. Pick a per-minute service if you only want after-hours messages taken. Pick OfficeHQ if you want a human behind the AI. What the BE Voice receptionist does on a call.
Questions people ask
Which AI receptionist is cheapest in Australia?
On a low number of calls, OfficeHQ at $20 for 10 calls or Siptalk at 27.5¢ a minute with no monthly fee. On a few hundred minutes a month, the included-minute plans from Johnni, Vereo and BE Voice cost less than paying per call.
Do I have to change my phone number?
No, with any of them. You forward your existing number, all the time or only when busy or after hours.
Can I try before I pay?
BE Voice runs a free pilot on your own number. OfficeHQ and Valory offer free trials (7 and 14 days). Johnni, Vereo and Siptalk have no contracts, so a month is the trial.
Prices and plans change; confirm with each provider before you decide. Company and product names belong to their owners and are used only to identify the services compared; no endorsement is implied.