Virtual receptionist: what it is, what it costs and is it worth it?

A virtual receptionist is a receptionist who isn't in your building. Your calls are forwarded to them, they answer in your business name, and they send you the details. You only pay for the calls they take, or a monthly fee, instead of a salary.

There are two kinds:

In some business phone systems, such as Vonage Business Cloud, "virtual receptionist" means an automated menu that says "press 1 for sales". That routes calls but doesn't answer questions or take messages, so it isn't what this guide covers.

1. 1Answers your calls in your business name, when you're busy, out or closed.
2. 2Takes messages: the caller's name, number and what they need.
3. 3Sends you the message straight away, by email, text or in an app or online account.
4. 4Answers common questions, such as your opening hours, prices or the areas you cover.
5. 5Transfers urgent calls to you or the right person in your team, on plans that include it.
6. 6Books appointments into your calendar, on plans that include it.

Most virtual receptionists take messages as standard. Call transfers and bookings are often on higher plans, so check what each plan includes.

Here's what UK providers publish, from pay per call to monthly plans, next to the cost of employing a receptionist.

Moneypenny, one of the best-known UK virtual receptionist services, prices by quote. For a closer look at AI prices, see our AI receptionist cost guide, and for human services, our telephone answering service price guide.

If you need someone at the front desk, an employed receptionist does more than answer the phone. If you mainly need calls answered when you can't, a virtual receptionist costs a small fraction of a salary.

A virtual receptionist is worth it when the enquiries it saves are worth more than it costs. If you miss five calls a week and one in five would have become a £200 job, that's about £870 a month in work you could have won, against a virtual receptionist costing £50 to £150 a month.

Use our missed call calculator to work it out with your own numbers, and our guide to whether an AI receptionist is worth it for more detail.

It's less likely to be worth it if you rarely miss calls, or if most of your calls need a decision only you can make.

Some can. AI virtual receptionists usually answer 24/7 at no extra cost. Ringzel answers every call you forward to it, 24/7, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays. Human services vary: ReceptionHQ and Answer.co.uk answer 24/7, Pocket Receptionist's plans cover 8am to 8pm, and Answerpoint's plans cover business hours.

Our guide to out-of-hours call answering covers how to handle calls after you close.

Not permanently, from the UK providers we checked, but most let you try one free:

1. 1Pick a service that covers the hours and number of calls you need.
2. 2Tell it about your business: your services, prices, hours and the questions you want asked.
3. 3Choose how messages reach you, such as email, text or an online account.
4. 4Forward your calls. Divert your number when you're busy, when you don't answer or when you're closed. Our call forwarding guide has the codes.
5. 5Ring it yourself, then check the message you get. Adjust anything it got wrong.