Compare your options

One provider for the agent, phones, fibre and mobile, or a stack of separate ones. And how an AI receptionist stacks up against an answering service and voicemail.

Comparison as at

Talk to the agentSee pricing
One provider vs a patched-together stack

Four providers, or one

A software-only answering vendor sells you the agent alone, so you still need a telco to get calls to it. H3llo does the lot: agent, phones, fibre and mobile, configured together and on one bill.

  • Answering your calls
    Patched-together

    A software-only AI receptionist or a human answering service, bought from its own vendor. [TYPICAL: $X–$Y/month for the answering alone] [CONFIRM: source]

    H3llo

    The AI receptionist, running on the same platform as your phones.from $75/month · H3llo AI 60

  • Getting calls to it
    Patched-together

    Call forwarding or SIP trunking arranged with a separate telco before a call can reach the answering vendor. Two parties to set up.

    H3llo

    Nothing to connect. The agent answers on your H3llo number, and we set it up with you.

  • A phone system
    Patched-together

    A cloud phone system or an on-site PBX from a telco, on its own contract.

    H3llo

    Cloud phones: numbers, extensions, hunt groups and the H3llo Phone app.from $30/month · Business Freedom 300

  • Internet
    Patched-together

    Fibre from another retailer, on another account.

    H3llo

    Fibre over the same national network, on the same account.from $84.35/month · Standard Fibre

  • Mobiles
    Patched-together

    Mobile plans from another carrier, on another account.

    H3llo

    Mobile plans on the same account.from $39.13/month · Edge 5GB

  • The bill
    Patched-together

    One invoice per provider: three or four a month to reconcile.

    H3llo

    One invoice a month, excl. GST, for everything on the account.

  • When something breaks
    Patched-together

    A fault can bounce between the answering vendor, the telco and the fibre retailer.

    H3llo

    One team in Kāpiti that set the whole thing up. Our phones are answered 24/7.

H3llo prices are monthly, excl. GST, from our published price list. They add together; there’s no bundle discount.

Answering options

AI receptionist vs answering service vs voicemail

Three ways to answer the calls you can't. Each one suits someone; here's where they differ.

H3llo AI receptionist

Crews who miss calls on the tools and want the job logged, not just a message.

Hours
24/7, including weekends and public holidays.
Callers at once
2 to 10 at once, depending on the plan. No queue up to that.
Cost
$75/month with 60 AI minutes a month, then $1 per additional minute. Excl. GST.
What the caller gets
A conversational agent that takes their details and answers from what you've told it. The call is recorded and the caller is told so.
What you get after
An email for every call. SMS and email actions from H3llo AI 200.
Into your job software
Yes, from H3llo AI 200: Fergus, Simpro, Tradify, iTrade, Xero and Graft.

Answering service

Calls that need a person every time, or conversations a script can't cover.

Hours
Often business hours, with after-hours or weekend cover at extra cost. [CONFIRM: source]
Callers at once
As many as there are operators free. Busy periods can mean a queue.
Cost
Typically charged per call or per minute, so a busy month costs more. [TYPICAL: $X–$Y/month for a small business] [CONFIRM: source]
What the caller gets
A real person, working from the script you supply.
What you get after
A message by email or text, for you to act on.
Into your job software
Varies by service. Often you retype the message yourself. [CONFIRM: source]

Voicemail

A quiet line where every caller will happily wait for a ring back.

Hours
24/7.
Callers at once
Any number, but each one is talking to a beep.
Cost
Usually included with your phone line. [CONFIRM: source]
What the caller gets
A greeting and a beep. Plenty of callers ring the next business instead. [CONFIRM: source]
What you get after
A recording to listen to, then a call back to make.
Into your job software
No. You listen, then type it in.

How we compared

  • True as at . We compare kinds of service, not named providers.
  • Costs for other options are typical ranges, not quotes. Your own bill is the real comparison.
  • H3llo prices are our published monthly prices, excl. GST.

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