aiReceptionist vs Frontdesk AI
Frontdesk AI (sold at myaifrontdesk.com) bundles phone, SMS, web chat, email and a built-in CRM into one $99 plan with credit-based overage; aiReceptionist sells the phone receptionist at the same $99 entry price, with managed plans above it and per-minute overage.
The two entry plans cost the same and include the same 200 minutes, so this page is mostly about what surrounds those minutes: channels, overage, and whether you want a managed service. Where Frontdesk AI ships something we have on the roadmap, the table says so.
Example call
Incoming call
New caller
(757) 555-0134
Outerbanks HVAC line
Sent to voicemail. That is the call you lose.
- Thank you for calling Outerbanks HVAC. This is Eryn, an AI receptionist.
- I can help with scheduling service, questions about your heating or cooling system, or an existing appointment.
- How can I help you today?
- Hi. My AC stopped cooling this morning. Can someone come out today?
- I can help with that. Are you a new or an existing customer?
- New. I found you online.
- Welcome. May I have your name and the best number to reach you?
- Dana Reyes. 757-555-0134.
- Thanks, Dana. What is the address for the visit?
- 412 Bay Street, Chesapeake.
- Got it. Is this urgent, or is later this week fine?
- Urgent. It is 88 degrees in the house. Any time after 2 today works.
- Understood. The diagnostic visit is $89. I will send your details to the service team now, and they will confirm the window with you.
- Can I talk to a person before I hang up?
- Of course. Transferring you to the team now.
- Transferred to a person. The human desk is the backup on every call.
- Message sent to your inbox
- Transcript and recording saved
Answered by aiReceptionist. It says it is an AI at the start of every call.
At a glance
| Row | aiReceptionist | Frontdesk AI |
|---|---|---|
| Who answers | An AI receptionist trained on your business; calls it should not handle transfer to your team | An AI receptionist that “answers, qualifies, books and follows up”; transfers by rules you set |
| Hours | Every hour of every day | 24/7 |
| How you are billed | Monthly plan with included minutes; overage per minute | Monthly plan with included minutes, texts and chats; overage in credits |
| Entry price | $99/Month for 200 minutes (DIY: Self-Service) | Business-in-a-Box “$99/mo” for 200 voice minutes, or “$79/mo” billed annually |
| Above the entry plan | SMB $350/Month and Enterprise $1,000/Month, built and supported for you | Partner / Enterprise at custom pricing with volume rates, API access and a dedicated account manager |
Capabilities, side by side
The aiReceptionist column reads from the same feature list as our pricing page, so it cannot say anything that page does not.
| Row | aiReceptionist | Frontdesk AI |
|---|---|---|
| Answers the phone | Included on every plan | Included |
| Books appointments during the call | Included on every plan | “Books appointments live on your calendar”, Google Calendar, Outlook and Calendly named |
| Transfers calls to your team | Included on every plan | Live transfers of VIPs, emergencies or hot leads “based on rules you set” |
| Text messages | Included on every plan | Two-way SMS, post-call confirmations and reminders; 400 SMS a month on the Business plan |
| Included on every plan | An AI email agent | |
| Transcript and summary | Included on every plan | “Every conversation is transcribed, summarized, and pushed straight to your CRM” |
| Sentiment on each call | Included on every plan | Not stated on their site |
| Zapier and app integrations | Included on every plan | Zapier and Make; native HubSpot, Salesforce and Pipedrive |
| Custom integration built for you | Included on SMB and Enterprise | API access and custom integrations on Partner / Enterprise |
| Languages | Not published on our pricing page | “Speaks 20+ languages natively” and auto-detects the caller’s language |
| Website chat | On the roadmap | Web chatbot included; 100 chatbot conversations a month on the Business plan; WhatsApp also listed |
| Built-in CRM | On the roadmap | “AI-native CRM”, ticketing and sequence automations included |
Pricing, like for like
Both entry plans are $99 a month with 200 minutes. Frontdesk AI meters everything above the allowance in credits; aiReceptionist meters minutes and texts separately. The rows quote each as published.
| Row | aiReceptionist | Frontdesk AI |
|---|---|---|
| Plans | $99/Month (200 minutes), $350/Month (500 minutes) or $1,000/Month (1,500 minutes) | Business-in-a-Box “$99/mo”, or “$79/mo” billed annually; Partner / Enterprise custom |
| Allowance | 200, 500 or 1,500 minutes a month | 200 voice minutes, 100 chatbot conversations, 400 SMS messages and 1,000 overage credits a month |
| Overage | $0.60 per additional minute; $0.50 on Enterprise | Voice 25 credits a minute (“$0.25/min”); SMS 4 credits a message; chatbot 5 credits a conversation; credits auto-reload at $10 per 1,000 |
| Texts | 100 texts a month on DIY, 250 on SMB, 750 on Enterprise; overage $0.02 / $0.01 / $0.01 per text | 400 SMS a month, then 4 credits a message |
| Volume pricing | Enterprise overage $0.50 a minute | Enterprise voice “as low as 7 credits/min” |
| Free trial | Free trial on every plan | 7 days |
| Contract | No long-term contract | “No contracts”; cancel anytime |
When Frontdesk AI is the better choice
Frontdesk AI is the better choice if you want one $99 plan to cover phone, text, web chat, WhatsApp and email today, with a built-in CRM to hold it all. Those channels and that CRM are on our roadmap, not on our pricing page, and a business that needs them this month should not wait for us.
It is also the right pick for callers in many languages, it publishes 20+ with automatic detection, and we publish no language list, and for a bookings-heavy business on Calendly or Outlook, both of which it names. Its published voice overage is $0.25 a minute against our $0.60, which matters if you routinely run past the allowance rather than moving up a plan. Where it stops is the managed service: our SMB and Enterprise plans are built and supported for you, and its Enterprise tier is custom-quoted.
What switching actually involves
- Export contacts, conversations and call transcripts from the Frontdesk AI CRM before you cancel, if your customer records live only there, this step matters most.
- Decide where those records go next: your own CRM through aiReceptionist’s Zapier or post-call sync, since our built-in CRM is still on the roadmap.
- Recreate the questions your receptionist asks, its transfer rules and its booking calendar in the aiReceptionist portal, or brief them to us on a managed plan.
- Change the forward on your existing number, Frontdesk AI works by forwarding, so there is no number to port.
- Run both during the free trial and compare the summaries and bookings before switching the forward fully.
Questions people ask
- Is Frontdesk AI the same as My AI Front Desk?
- The product is sold at myaifrontdesk.com and its site brands it Frontdesk AI, from AI Front Desk, Inc. This page uses that name.
- How does Frontdesk AI pricing compare with aiReceptionist?
- Both entry plans are $99 a month with 200 minutes. Frontdesk AI adds 100 chatbot conversations, 400 SMS and 1,000 overage credits, with voice overage at 25 credits ($0.25) a minute and $79 a month if billed annually. aiReceptionist adds SMB at $350/Month for 500 minutes and Enterprise at $1,000/Month for 1,500, with overage at $0.60 a minute ($0.50 on Enterprise).
- What are Frontdesk AI credits?
- Its usage above the plan is metered in credits: a voice minute is 25 credits, an SMS 4, a chatbot conversation 5, and credits reload automatically at $10 per 1,000. aiReceptionist meters minutes and texts at published per-unit rates instead.
- Does Frontdesk AI include web chat and a CRM?
- Yes, its site lists a web chatbot, WhatsApp, an AI email agent and an AI-native CRM with ticketing and sequences on the Business plan. Website chat and a built-in CRM are on aiReceptionist’s roadmap.
- Which one is managed for me?
- aiReceptionist’s SMB and Enterprise plans are built and supported for you, with white-glove onboarding and an assigned support manager. Frontdesk AI publishes white-glove onboarding and a dedicated account manager on its custom-priced Partner / Enterprise tier.
Try aiReceptionist on your own calls
The free trial includes everything in the plan you choose. Run it alongside what you have today.