VoiceNation Alternatives for Small Businesses (2026 Prices)
The best VoiceNation alternative depends on whether callers must be able to reach a person or you just need every call answered. VoiceNation is part of the Moneypenny group, and voicenation.com/pricing now redirects to Moneypenny’s US pricing page: People Answering is listed at $985 a month for 500 minutes and AI Answering at $775 for 500 calls. Dooza’s AI answering service costs $149 a month for up to 500 minutes, then $0.30 a minute. Prices checked October 21, 2026 on each vendor’s own page.
We sell one of the services on this page (Dooza). Prices checked October 21, 2026 on each vendor’s own pricing page; check the links yourself.
VoiceNation alternatives compared
These services bill in different units: per call, per minute, per Abby Minute or per unique customer. VoiceNation’s pricing page redirects to Moneypenny’s US plans, so the VoiceNation rows below are Moneypenny’s prices: its AI plans count calls and its People plans count minutes. A 10-minute call costs one call on the AI plan or Upfirst but 10 minutes on Dooza or Rosie, so compare on your own call pattern. A human service’s minute is receptionist time, so it is not directly comparable with an AI minute. The closest like-for-like line: 500 People minutes cost $985 a month and Dooza’s up to 500 minutes cost $149, but those are human minutes and Dooza is AI. 500 AI calls cost $775; if your calls averaged 3 minutes, 500 calls would use 1,500 Dooza minutes, which is $149 + 1,000 × $0.30 = $449. Prices checked October 21, 2026.
| Service | Type | Billed by | Entry plan | Other plans | Overage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dooza (ours) | AI | Minutes | $149/month for 500 minutes | One plan | $0.30/min |
| VoiceNation / Moneypenny (AI Answering) | AI with human escalation | Calls | $99/month for 50 calls | $199 for 100; $435 for 250; $775 for 500 calls | $2.39/call (50 calls) down to $1.69/call (500 calls) |
| VoiceNation / Moneypenny (People Answering) | Human | Minutes | $165/month for 50 minutes | $265 for 100; $422 for 200; $985 for 500 minutes | $2.85/min (50 minutes) down to $2.09/min (500 minutes) |
| Ruby (virtual receptionist) | Human | Minutes | $250/month for 50 minutes | $395 for 100; $720 for 200; $1,725 for 500 minutes | Not listed on pricing page |
| Smith.ai (human-first) | Human | Calls | $300/month for 30 calls | $810 for 90 calls; $2,100 for 300 calls | $11.50/call over 30 (Starter) |
| Smith.ai (AI receptionist) | AI | Calls | $0/month for 25 calls (Free); Pro $150/month | Pro: $2.00/call (about 2–3 calls a day) | $3.00/call after 25 (Free) |
| Abby Connect | Human or AI | Abby Minutes | $164/month for 50 Abby Minutes | $329 for 100; $599 for 200; $1,380 for 500. Minutes double if you choose AI | Billed at your plan’s Abby Minute rate |
| Goodcall | AI | Unique customers | $79/month for 100 unique customers | $129 for 500; $299 for 2,000 unique customers | 79¢ (Starter), 26¢ (Growth), 15¢ (Scale) per extra customer |
| Upfirst | AI | Calls | $24.95/month for 30 calls | $59.95 for 90; $159.95 for 300; $299 for 600 calls | $1.50/call (Starter) down to $.70/call (Scale) |
| Dialzara | AI | Minutes | $29/month for 60 minutes | $99 for 220; $199 for 500; $349 for 1,000 minutes | $0.48/min (Lite) down to $0.35/min (Elite) |
| My AI Front Desk | AI | Minutes | $99/month for 200 voice minutes | $79/month if billed annually | 25 credits ($0.25) per extra minute |
| Rosie | AI | Minutes | $49/month for 250 minutes | $149 for 1,000; $299 for 2,000 minutes | Not listed on pricing page |
Sources (checked October 21, 2026): moneypenny.com/us/pricing, ruby.com/plans-and-pricing/, smith.ai/pricing/receptionists, smith.ai/pricing/ai-receptionist, abby.com/pricing/, goodcall.com/pricing, upfirst.ai/pricing, dialzara.com/pricing, myaifrontdesk.com/pricing, heyrosie.com/pricing. Monthly list prices; some vendors discount annual billing. The VoiceNation/Moneypenny prices carry an “Original price” label, but the page shows no lower sale price. That page asks for 30 days’ notice to cancel and does not state a free trial or refund policy. For 20 services in one place, see our best AI receptionist comparison; to estimate your own bill, try the AI receptionist cost calculator.
The alternatives, one by one
Dooza AI answering service
An AI that answers your calls when you can’t, asks the caller the questions you give it, and emails you the message with the transcript and a link to the recording. Run by us, the company that publishes this page.
Price: $149/month for up to 500 minutes, then $0.30/min. Month to month, no free trial. Full refund if you cancel within 14 days of your first charge.
Best for: Owners who miss calls on the job and want each caller’s message in their inbox, without calendar booking, texting or a person to hand calls to.
Ruby
A live virtual receptionist service priced by minutes per month. Its pricing page describes 24/7 phone and website coverage and “100% live, personalized communication”, and says there are no additional fees for activation, onboarding, setup or customization.
Price: From $250/month for 50 minutes; $1,725/month for 500 minutes. No overage rate on the pricing page.
Best for: Businesses that want every call handled by a person.
Smith.ai
A receptionist service with human-first plans and a separately priced AI receptionist. Its human plans include transfer destinations, and its pricing page says it is a month-to-month service.
Price: Human-first from $300/month for 30 calls ($11.50 per extra call). AI receptionist: free for 25 calls a month, Pro from $150/month at $2.00 per call.
Best for: Businesses that want live people on the phone, or a low-volume AI plan from the same vendor.
Abby Connect
A receptionist service where one plan covers both human and AI answering. Its page says your Abby Minutes double when you choose AI, that every plan comes with a free trial, and that Abby is month to month.
Price: From $164/month for 50 Abby Minutes; $1,380/month for 500. Overage at your plan’s Abby Minute rate.
Best for: Teams that want humans and AI under one plan.
Goodcall
An AI answering service that bills by unique customer: one phone number, once a month, however often that person calls. You can start free with a demo agent and add a number later.
Price: From $79/month for 100 unique customers, then 79¢ each; $129/month for 500.
Best for: Businesses whose customers call back often, so unique-caller billing can cost less than per-call or per-minute billing.
Upfirst
An AI receptionist billed per call. Its page lists appointment scheduling into your calendar, call transfers and a 14-day free trial with no credit card, and says you can cancel anytime.
Price: From $24.95/month for 30 calls, then $1.50 per extra call; $159.95/month for 300 calls.
Best for: Low call volumes on a tight budget, or anyone who needs calendar booking.
Dialzara
An AI receptionist billed by minutes of talk time, with outbound voice, SMS and website chat sold as add-ons. Its page lists a 7-day free trial and no contract.
Price: From $29/month for 60 minutes ($0.48/min after); $199/month for 500 minutes ($0.40/min after).
Best for: Buyers who want to start small and add texting or chat later.
My AI Front Desk
An AI front desk whose call-answering plan bundles 200 voice minutes with chat, SMS, CRM and automations, per its pricing page, with a 7-day free trial.
Price: $99/month ($79/month billed annually) for 200 voice minutes; extra minutes use 25 credits ($0.25) each.
Best for: Businesses that want calls, chat and texting in one tool.
Rosie
An AI answering service with a 7-day free trial. Its Scale plan adds booking appointments on your calendar, warm transfers and texts to callers during the call.
Price: From $49/month for 250 minutes; $149/month for 1,000 minutes. No overage rate on the pricing page.
Best for: Price-sensitive owners who want the most minutes per dollar.
Where Dooza fits, and what it does not do
Dooza is one plan: $149 a month for up to 500 minutes, then $0.30 a minute, month to month. It answers when you can’t pick up, asks the caller your questions, and emails you the message with the transcript and a link to the recording. If you miss calls while you are on a job, see how it works for HVAC, plumbing and garage door businesses.
Dooza does
- Answer your calls when you can’t
- Ask the questions you give it
- Email you the message, transcript and recording link
- Up to 500 minutes a month; $0.30/min after
Dooza does not
- Book onto your calendar
- Send texts
- Give you a human receptionist
- Do live transfers
Where VoiceNation does more: its People Answering plans put live receptionists on your calls, the pricing page lists warm call transfer among the features included from day one, and every AI Answering plan lists human escalation. Dooza has no person to hand a call to and does not transfer calls: it takes the message and emails it to you. If callers must be able to reach a person, VoiceNation or another human service fits better.
Cheaper on paper: VoiceNation’s AI plan ($99/month for 50 calls), Upfirst ($24.95/month for 30 calls), Dialzara ($29 for 60 minutes; $99 for 220), Rosie ($49/month for 250 minutes) and My AI Front Desk ($99 for 200 minutes) cost less than Dooza to start, and Smith.ai’s AI plan is free for 25 calls. If your call volume is low or you need booking, start there. Dooza makes sense when you want one flat price that covers up to 500 minutes a month, a stated $0.30 overage, and each caller’s message in your inbox.
Human or AI answering?
VoiceNation’s People Answering, Ruby, Smith.ai’s human-first plans and Abby put a trained person on the line. A person handles upset callers, judgment calls and sales conversations better than AI does, and you pay for it: VoiceNation’s People plans start at $165 for 50 minutes, Ruby at $250 for 50 minutes and Smith.ai’s human plans at $300 for 30 calls. If every caller needs a careful conversation with a person, a human service may suit you better than Dooza. Comparing against PATLive instead? See PATLive alternatives. Or Moneypenny, where voicenation.com now redirects? See Moneypenny alternatives.
AI services such as Dooza, Rosie, Upfirst and Goodcall cost a fraction of that. They are not a human receptionist. A common setup is a person for the office day and AI for overflow and after hours. More detail: AI answering service for small business and AI receptionist.
Frequently asked questions
voicenation.com/pricing now redirects to Moneypenny’s US pricing page. It lists People Answering at $165 a month for 50 minutes, $265 for 100, $422 for 200 and $985 for 500 minutes, with extra minutes from $2.85 down to $2.09, and AI Answering at $99 a month for 50 calls, $199 for 100, $435 for 250 and $775 for 500 calls, with extra calls from $2.39 down to $1.69. Each price is labelled “Original price”, but the page shows no lower sale price, so these are the listed prices. Checked October 21, 2026.
Yes, per Moneypenny. Its About page says that in 2020 it was “delighted to welcome VoiceNation and Ninja Number to the Group”, and voicenation.com now redirects to moneypenny.com/us. For more on the same plans, see our Moneypenny alternatives page.
The Moneypenny US pricing page that voicenation.com/pricing redirects to says no long-term commitment is required and there are no hidden fees, and that you need to give 30 days’ notice to cancel, effective from your next billing date. We found no free trial or refund terms on that page.
It depends on your calls. Dooza costs $149 a month for up to 500 minutes, then $0.30 a minute. The VoiceNation (Moneypenny) AI Answering plan costs $99 for 50 calls and $775 for 500 calls, so if you get only a few dozen calls a month, it can cost less than Dooza. Its People Answering plan costs $985 for 500 minutes of human answering. Its AI plans include human escalation; Dooza does not. Prices checked October 21, 2026.
Not fully. AI is good at answering every call, asking set questions and passing on the message. A person is better with upset callers, judgment calls and sales conversations. A common setup is a person for the office day and AI for overflow and after hours.
Yes. Dooza is month to month with no contract, and you pay the first month up front; there is no free trial. If you cancel within 14 days of your first charge, you get a full refund.
Stop sending callers to voicemail
$149/month for up to 500 minutes, then $0.30/min. Month to month. Cancel within 14 days of your first charge for a full refund.