Question 1

What is an AI receptionist?

Accepted Answer

An AI receptionist is a voice-based artificial intelligence that answers your business phone calls. Unlike voicemail or IVR phone trees, it holds a natural conversation with callers — answering questions, capturing details, booking appointments, and taking messages. Ahoy is an AI receptionist built for Australian small businesses.

Question 2

How much does an AI receptionist cost in Australia?

Accepted Answer

Ahoy AI receptionist plans are tiered by the call minutes you need each month — Starter (150 minutes), Growth (400 minutes), and Professional (800 minutes). Every plan includes a dedicated Australian phone number (+61), call transcripts, and post-call summaries, with no setup fees and no per-call charges. See our pricing page for current plan details.

Question 3

Is an AI receptionist better than a virtual receptionist service?

Accepted Answer

For most small businesses, yes. Human virtual receptionist services in Australia charge $1.80 to $1.90 per call on top of monthly fees, and typically only operate during business hours. An AI receptionist like Ahoy works 24/7, answers from your knowledge base (not just take messages), provides full transcripts, and costs a flat monthly rate with no per-call fees.

Question 4

Can an AI receptionist handle Australian accents?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Ahoy is configured for Australian English and handles local accents, slang, and terminology. It also understands callers from diverse backgrounds. The speech recognition models are trained on Australian speech patterns for high accuracy.

Question 5

How quickly can I set up an AI receptionist for my business?

Accepted Answer

Most businesses are live within 24 hours. We configure your AI receptionist with your business details, FAQs, services, and voice persona. You then forward your existing phone number to Ahoy — no hardware or technical setup required on your end.

Question 6

Does the AI receptionist work with my existing phone number?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You simply set up call forwarding from your existing business number to Ahoy. You can forward all calls, or only when you're busy or after hours. Every Ahoy plan also includes a free Australian phone number if you prefer a new one.

Feature	Ahoy AI	Virtual Receptionist	Voicemail / IVR
24/7 coverage	Yes	Business hours only	Yes (no response)
Answers questions	Yes (AI knowledge base)	Basic scripted	No
Books appointments	Yes	Limited	No
Per-call fees	No	$1.80-$1.90/call	No
Full transcripts	Yes	No	No
Monthly cost	Flat monthly rate	From $85 + per-call	Free-$50
Setup time	Same day	1-2 business days	Instant

Your AI receptionist answers every call, 24 hours a day

Everything a receptionist does, powered by AI

Answers every call

24/7 availability

Natural conversations

Books appointments

Full call intelligence

Australian data compliance

AI receptionist plans that scale with your calls

AI receptionists for Australian businesses across every industry

AI receptionist vs traditional alternatives

AI receptionist questions answered

Ready to try an AI receptionist?