How much does an AI receptionist cost in Ontario?
Most price guides are written in US dollars by companies selling their own app. This one is in Canadian dollars, uses Ontario wage data, and covers the costs that don't show up on a pricing page.
The short answer: in Ontario, an AI receptionist that's built and looked after for you usually costs about $300 to $800 a month, plus HST and sometimes a one-time setup fee. Self-serve apps start lower, but you set them up and maintain them yourself. For comparison, a part-time receptionist working 20 hours a week at the Kitchener-Waterloo median wage costs an employer about $2,000 a month.
All prices in this guide are in Canadian dollars before HST, unless marked otherwise. They're typical ranges from providers' published prices in October 2026, not quotes.
How AI receptionists are priced
Prices look hard to compare because providers charge in different ways:
- A monthly plan with included minutes. The most common. You pay a flat fee for a set number of call minutes, and extra minutes cost more. Check what happens when you go over, and whether unused minutes carry over (they usually don't).
- Per minute or per call. You pay only for what you use. It can be cheap for a quiet business and expensive in a busy month. Ask how minutes are rounded, and whether spam calls and hang-ups count.
- "Unlimited" plans. Usually unlimited within a fair-use limit. Read what that limit is.
- Self-serve vs built for you. A self-serve app costs less per month, but you do the work: writing what it says, setting up the call rules and testing it usually takes a few evenings, and you fix it yourself whenever your hours, prices or services change or it gets something wrong. A done-for-you service costs more because someone does that work with you and keeps it up to date.
Everything you'll actually pay for
Setup or build fee
Self-serve apps rarely charge one. Done-for-you providers in Ontario charge anywhere from nothing to several hundred dollars. A fair setup fee should cover learning your business, writing and approving what the assistant says, setting your transfer and after-hours rules, and testing it with real calls before it answers your customers.
The phone number and the calls themselves
Behind every AI receptionist is a phone line, and calls on it cost money by the minute. Some providers include this in the plan; others add a number fee or pass on "carrier fees". Toll-free numbers usually cost more per minute than local ones, so ask which you're getting and whether call costs are included.
Keeping your business number
Most setups forward your existing number to the assistant when you don't pick up or after hours, so customers dial the same number as always. Your phone company may charge for call forwarding, either monthly or per forwarded call, depending on your plan. Check with them before you start.
Going over your minutes
Ask whether extra minutes are billed automatically, at what rate, or agreed with you first. Also ask how a transferred call is counted: on some systems the whole call, including the part where you're talking to the customer, comes out of your minutes.
Contracts and notice periods
Most AI receptionists are month to month, but "cancel anytime" often still means a notice period. Ask how much notice you need to give, and whether a setup fee is refunded if you stop early (it usually isn't).
HST and US-dollar prices
Ontario's HST is 13% on top of the price. If your business is registered for HST, you can usually claim it back, so ask your accountant how it works for you. Many apps are priced in US dollars, which means they cost more in Canadian dollars and the price moves with the exchange rate.
How many minutes do you need?
Multiply the calls you get in a month by how long a typical call lasts. Calls handled by an AI receptionist are often short, one to two minutes, so 500 minutes covers roughly 250 to 330 calls a month. Your phone company's call log or your monthly bill shows how many calls you really get. Count the ones you miss, too: those are the calls an assistant would take.
AI receptionist vs answering service vs hiring
| Option | Typical monthly cost (CAD, before HST) | Hours covered | Who sets it up |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI, self-serve app | About $100 to $300 | 24/7 | You |
| AI, done for you | About $300 to $800, sometimes plus a setup fee | 24/7 | The provider, with you |
| Answering service | Often several hundred to $1,000+ (one service that publishes Canadian prices charges about $975 for 500 minutes) | Depends on the plan | The provider |
| Part-time staff | About $1,750 at minimum wage, about $2,000 at the KW median wage (20 hours a week) | 20 of the week's 168 hours | You hire and train |
| Full-time staff | About $4,000 at the KW median wage (40 hours a week) | 40 of 168 hours | You hire and train |
Wages: Ontario's general minimum wage is $17.95 an hour from October 1, 2026 (Government of Ontario). The median wage for receptionists in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Barrie region is $20.67 an hour (Job Bank, Government of Canada). Employer costs added: 4% vacation pay plus the employer's share of CPP and EI. Not included: public holiday pay, WSIB, benefits, training and cover for breaks and holidays.
What a receptionist does that AI doesn't
The comparison isn't quite fair either way. A receptionist greets people at the door, handles admin and makes judgment calls with upset or confused callers. An AI receptionist only covers the phone, but it covers it at any hour, takes several calls at once and never puts anyone on hold. Many businesses use both: staff during the day, the assistant for overflow, lunch breaks, evenings and weekends.
Recording calls and telling callers it's AI
If calls are recorded or transcribed, the federal Privacy Commissioner's guidance on recording customer calls (updated October 2026) says to tell callers at the start that the call is recorded and why, to keep recordings only as long as you need them, and, where recording isn't essential, to offer another way to reach you. If an outside service handles your calls, it has to follow the same rules. Your privacy policy should also say if callers' information is processed outside Canada. Health clinics may have extra obligations under Ontario's health privacy law.
Whatever the rules, being honest works better. An assistant that tells callers it's a virtual assistant when they ask, and never pretends to be a person, avoids the moment where a caller feels tricked. This is general information, not legal advice; check your own situation with a privacy professional.
10 questions to ask before you sign
- Is the price in Canadian or US dollars, and is HST extra?
- How many minutes or calls are included, and how are they counted?
- What happens when I go over: automatic charges, or do you ask first?
- Do unused minutes carry over?
- Are the phone number and call costs included?
- Can I keep my business number, and what will my phone company charge to forward calls?
- How are transferred calls counted?
- Who writes and approves what it says, and who fixes it when something changes?
- How much notice do I need to give to cancel, and is the setup fee refundable?
- Does it tell callers it's an assistant, are calls recorded, and where is the data stored?
Want straight answers to these for your business? Ask us any of them on a free 30-minute call.
When an AI receptionist isn't worth it
- You get only a handful of calls a week and can return them within the hour.
- Almost every call needs you personally, such as a quote that needs a site visit, and callers won't accept a message.
- Someone already answers every call during the hours your customers call.
If missed calls are rare, a clear voicemail greeting and a quick callback may be all you need.
What Nuvelo Labs charges
Our AI receptionist on its own is $349 a month plus a one-time $299 setup, plus HST where it applies. It includes up to 500 call minutes a month; if you get close, we agree a price for extra minutes with you before anything is billed. It's month to month with 30 days' notice to cancel. It's also included in our Growth plan ($1,297 a month) and Scale plan, or $249 a month as an add-on to Starter ($499 a month). We build and test it with you, it tells callers it's a virtual assistant whenever they ask, and you keep your number.
Next step
See how our AI receptionist works, or book a free 30-minute call and we'll go through your calls and what would fit. Weighing a live service? Read AI receptionist or answering service? For clinics and law firms, see after-hours new-patient calls and what an AI intake assistant should do.
Written by Nuvelo Labs, Kitchener-Waterloo. Prices are typical published ranges in October 2026, not quotes. General information only, not legal, tax or financial advice.