AI receptionist · by Upfirst
Upfirst
AI answering service and virtual receptionist for small businesses that answers calls 24/7.
Upfirst in one paragraph
Upfirst is an AI answering service and virtual receptionist aimed at small businesses that answers phone calls 24/7. It qualifies leads, schedules appointments into calendars, takes orders, and transfers calls with context. Upfirst says it answers in English, Spanish, and 35+ other languages, blocks spam calls without billing for them, and can be trained from a business's website. Setup can be done directly or through ChatGPT or Claude connectors. The company says over 1,000 businesses use it, across industries such as law firms, property management, and real estate.
How does Upfirst bill?
Billing is a flat monthly subscription with an included call allowance: Starter $24.95/month for 30 calls, Premium $59.95 for 90, Pro $159.95 for 300, Scale $299 for 600. Additional calls cost $1.50, $1, $.75, and $.70 per call respectively. Annual billing takes 20% off. Over 600 calls needs a custom plan. Spam, telemarketing, calls under 15 seconds, and calls where the caller never speaks are not billed and are labeled in the call log. Extra AI agents cost $9.95 per month each.
| Plan | Price | What’s included |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $24.95/month ($20/month annual) | 30 calls; $1.50 per additional call; 24/7 answering, summaries, recordings, transfers, scheduling, spam blocking, Zapier, 35+ languages |
| Premium | $59.95/month ($48/month annual) | 90 calls; $1 per additional call; same core features as Starter |
| Pro (Most popular) | $159.95/month ($128/month annual) | 300 calls; $.75 per additional call; adds white-glove onboarding and custom integrations |
| Scale | $299/month ($240/month annual) | 600 calls; $.70 per additional call; white-glove onboarding and custom integrations |
| Custom | Custom | More than 600 calls; volume discounts, priority support, BAAs for HIPAA-regulated businesses |
What would a month cost?
Our model uses the cheapest published plan for each volume and a 3-minute average call. Change the inputs in the savings calculator.
| Calls per month | 100 | 300 | 600 | 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimated bill | $69.95 (Premium) | $159.95 (Pro) | $299 (Scale) | $579 (Scale) |
Where Upfirst sits at 300 calls a month
300 calls of 3 minutes, priced on each vendor’s cheapest published plan. Cheapest first.
Vapiusage, platform fee only$45+
Retell AIusage, rate range$63–$279
Bland AIusage, rate range$126
GoodcallGrowth$129
RosieScale$149- UpfirstPro$160
My AI Front DeskBusiness-in-a-Box$274
DialzaraBusiness Elite$349
Smith.ai AI ReceptionistEnterprise$500
Rubyover planAbove published plans
What happens when Upfirst can’t answer?
Warm transfers: the agent tells you who's calling and what they need so you can decide whether to take it; it can also take a message or explain someone will call back.
Booking and scheduling
Upfirst checks your calendar while the caller is on the line and books an open time, directly into Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity Scheduling, Square, and Clio Manage.
Connects with
- Google Calendar
- Outlook
- Calendly
- Acuity Scheduling
- Square
- Clio Manage
- Zapier
- ChatGPT
- Claude
Languages: Answers in English, Spanish, and 35+ other languages, and switches when a caller does; translates the transcript into your language.
Where it’s strong
- Published per-call overage rates and plan allowances, so costs are predictable
- Spam calls, calls under 15 seconds, and silent calls are never billed
- Books appointments directly into Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity, Square, and Clio Manage
- 14-day free trial with full feature access and no credit card required
Watch-outs
- Call allowances are capped per plan; high-volume months trigger per-call overage charges
- Each additional AI agent costs $9.95 per month extra
- Human support is limited to Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Eastern; weekends are AI-only
Pick it or skip it
Pick Upfirst if: Small businesses that miss calls and want an affordable AI receptionist with clear per-call pricing and calendar booking.
Skip it if: Teams needing more than 600 calls a month on published pricing, or 24/7 human support, should look elsewhere or ask about custom plans.
Test-call log
Status: not yet tested. We run the same 12-call script on every phone product and publish the transcript notes here. Vendors can’t pay to change results.
Upfirst: quick answers
How much does Upfirst cost per month?
Plans start at $24.95 a month for 30 calls. Premium is $59.95 for 90 calls, Pro is $159.95 for 300 calls, and Scale is $299 for 600 calls. Annual plans are 20% off.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. Upfirst offers a 14-day free trial with full access to every feature in your selected plan, and no credit card is required. You can forward real calls during the trial.
Am I charged for spam calls or hang-ups?
No. Upfirst detects and blocks spam automatically and never bills for it. Calls under 15 seconds and calls where the caller never speaks are also free and labeled in your call log.
Does Upfirst work with my calendar and CRM?
Yes. It books appointments into Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity Scheduling, Square, and Clio Manage. Custom Actions connect to any CRM with an API, and Zapier connects thousands of other apps.
Can I keep my current phone number?
Yes. Most customers keep their business number and forward calls to Upfirst; every plan also includes its own Upfirst number. Porting your number is available at no extra charge.
What happens if a caller wants to talk to a person?
You decide. Upfirst can warm-transfer the call to you or your team with context about who's calling, or it can take a message and promise a callback.
Receipts: the quotes behind this profile
Each line is copied from Upfirst’s own pages and was checked automatically against the page text on 28 October 2026.
| Claim | Vendor’s words |
|---|---|
| Lowest plan is $24.95/month | Plans start at $24.95 a month for 30 calls. |
| Starter plan price and overage | $24.95 / month $20 / month $1.50 per additional call |
| Premium plan price and overage | $59.95 / month $48 / month $1 per additional call |
| Pro plan price and overage | $159.95 / month $128 / month $.75 per additional call |
| Scale plan price and overage | $299 / month $240 / month $.70 per additional call |
| 14-day free trial with full access | Full access to every feature in your selected plan for 14 days. You can forward real calls and test responses with no commitment. |
| Annual discount and custom plans | Annual plans are 20% off, and we offer custom plans if you get more than 600 calls a month. |
| Warm transfers with caller context | With warm transfers, your agent tells you who's calling and what they need, so you can decide whether to take it. |
| Books appointments while caller is on the line | Upfirst checks your calendar while the caller is on the line and books an open time. |
| Calendar integrations | Upfirst books appointments directly into Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Acuity Scheduling, Square, and Clio Manage. |
| Zapier integration | Upfirst also connects to thousands of apps through Zapier. |
| 35+ languages with automatic switching | Upfirst answers in English, Spanish, and 35+ other languages, and switches when a caller does. |
| BAAs for HIPAA-regulated businesses | BAAs for compliance Business Associate Agreements for HIPAA-regulated businesses. |
| Spam and short calls not billed | We also don't bill for calls under 15 seconds or calls where the caller never speaks, like pocket dials. |
Commercial relationship: none. We have no paid or affiliate relationship with this vendor today. Disclosures.
Where these facts come from
- Upfirst: homepage (upfirst.ai)
- Upfirst: /pricing (upfirst.ai)