Answering service is a service offered by a third-party company that provides virtual customer support representatives for businesses to handle calls, messages, and other customer support services.
Answering services assist small and mid-sized businesses by improving client communication processes without the need for an in-house team of receptionists, saving money on hiring and training expenses.
Geekflare has researched and listed the best answering services based on features such as personalized customer experiences, bilingual agents, round-the-clock coverage, and affordability.
- Ruby – Best for Personalized Customer Experiences
- ReceptionHQ – Best for Professional Virtual Receptionist Services
- Conversational – Best for Comprehensive Support Across All Team Sizes
- Grasshopper – Best for Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses
- My Receptionist – Best for Appointment Scheduling
- AnswerForce – Best for Lead Capture and Customer Support
- AnswerConnect – Best for Round-the-Clock Coverage
- Abby Connect – Best for Scalable Virtual Receptionist Solutions
- Specialty Answering Service (SAS) – Best for Complex Needs Across Various Industries
- VoiceNation – Best for Instant Setup and Easy Scalability
- PATLive – Best for High-Quality Scripted Responses
- Davinci Virtual – Best for Full-Service Virtual Office Solutions
- Show less
You can trust Geekflare
At Geekflare, trust and transparency are paramount. Our team of experts, with over 185 years of combined experience in business and technology, tests and reviews software, ensuring our ratings and awards are unbiased and reliable. Learn how we test.
Ruby
Best for Personalized Customer Experiences
- Call HandlingComprehensive
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About Ruby
Ruby is the market leader in virtual answering services, offering highly trained US-based virtual bilingual receptionists and chat specialists who are available 24/7 to assist businesses with various tasks, such as answering calls, scheduling appointments, capturing leads, and making outbound calls.
With Ruby’s call-handling service, you can customize instructions for handling calls, such as forwarding important calls to specific team members or taking messages. Instant app notifications or emails are provided after each call, ensuring team members stay informed of any important updates.
Ruby’s virtual agents are trained to work across various industries, from finance and marketing to healthcare and legal firms, making it a perfect choice for businesses seeking to deliver personalized customer experiences. To streamline workflow, it integrates with various tools, including Zapier, Clio, Grasshopper, Nextiva, Rocket Matter, etc.
Ruby Pros and Cons
It offers flexible call forwarding with number porting and hosting options
Its robocall filtering technology automatically detects spam calls
PCI & HIPAA compliant for secure business & patient data
It doesn’t add any additional setup fee or after-hour service charge
Costly plans with higher per-minute call rates
Doesn’t offer a free service trial
ReceptionHQ
Best for Professional Virtual Receptionist Services
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound
About ReceptionHQ
ReceptionHQ is a popular business answering service provider that specializes in inbound telecommunication services for businesses, such as live call answering, virtual business addresses, automated messaging, and customized corporate solutions.
ReceptionHQ provides professional and friendly bilingual virtual receptionists available around the clock, allowing them to thrive in a competitive industry for over 20 years and serve over 25,000 businesses.
Catering to various businesses and industries, including real estate, healthcare, finance, marketing, retail, e-commerce, and IT, ReceptionHQ is the perfect choice for businesses seeking top-notch virtual receptionist services. It supports integration with a wide range of CRMs, collaboration tools, calendars, practice management software, and customer service software.
ReceptionHQ Pros and Cons
Real-time call reporting via email and text messages
Online call management portal and mobile app for easy access to call logs and voicemail messages.
No extra fees for after-hours or overflow calls.
Receptionists take quite a while to adapt to your scripts.
Limited call reporting and analytics capabilities.
Conversational
Best for Comprehensive Support Across All Team Sizes
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportNo
- Call typeInbound
About Conversational
Conversational has over 20 years of experience in providing virtual receptionist services. They help businesses of all sizes enhance their professional image, streamline operations, and improve their customer service.
Their team of highly trained virtual receptionists offer a wide range of essential call handling, and administrative support solutions customized to the business. They offer tailored appointment handing using the client’s existing software.
From medical and legal industries to e-commerce, trades, beauty, and retail, Conversational possesses a deep understanding of industry-specific terminology and processes, to ensure a successful outcome for every call.
Conversational allows the client to keep complete control of the quality of VR service. Their portal keeps their clients in the know about every detail they handle, and the same also available on their app. It gives easy access to statistics, business calls, message details, and so much more.
Conversational provides customization to large plans or ones that suit a business volume best, to ensure they are paying for only what they need.
Conversational Pros/Cons
Work with any web based software for scheduling services
All North American Speaking receptionist
No setup fee and 30 day MBG
More cost-efficient than the competition
Not 24/7 Support
Not bilingual
My Receptionist
Best for Appointment Scheduling
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound
About My Receptionist
My Receptionist is a US-based virtual receptionist service that helps small businesses and entrepreneurs by providing bilingual remote agents specializing in business call handling with 24/7 business availability at a lesser price than hiring an on-site receptionist.
Businesses can leverage My Receptionist’s highly skilled virtual agents to improve customer service, capture leads, schedule appointments, and project a professional image at a much more affordable price.
My Receptionist Pros and Cons
Appointment scheduling and reminders to ensure you won’t miss any appointment
The call screening feature informs you about the caller’s identity before transferring calls
Agents take detailed messages and send them to you in real-time via text, email, or CRM
Doesn’t support outbound calling
Doesn’t offer a free service trial
AnswerForce
Best for Lead Capture and Customer Support
- Call HandlingComprehensive
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About AnswerForce
AnswerForce is a telephone answering service that provides specialized agents for business call handling and lead capture. They offer 24/7 support with bilingual receptionists to ensure all calls are handled and valued.
AnswerForce provides services for residential and commercial businesses, such as home services and plumbing, allowing teams to focus on completing projects while leaving customer handling and business calls to them.
In all its plans, AnswerForce provides a complete tech stack with advanced features like meeting scheduling, video meetings, team messaging, and live chat. It supports integration with a range of tools, including HousecallPro, ServiceTitan, and Pipedrive.
AnswerForce Pros and Cons
Trained receptionists to help you capture high-quality leads and qualify them
Custom greetings to personalize all incoming calls
Call forwarding and recording option
Doesn’t offer a free service trial
Adds a $75 setup fee on the base plan
AnswerConnect
Best for Round-the-Clock Coverage
- Call HandlingComprehensive
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About AnswerConnect
AnswerConnect is a phone call answering service with bilingual receptionists available 24/7/365 to provide professional support to businesses.
All virtual receptionists at AnswerConnect receive industry-specific training to ensure they can handle live call answering, lead generation, and qualification, provide excellent customer service, and offer industry expertise.
Live chat is included in all AnswerConnect plans except the basic one. It is a great option for businesses of any size because it can efficiently handle large volumes of calls. It captures detailed messages, including caller information, the reason for the call, and any additional details.
AnswerConnect Pros and Cons
Real-time call reporting directly to your point of contact
HIPAA compliant, ensuring the privacy and security of patient’s data
Lacks free trial option
Adds additional cost for HIPAA compliance and bilingual services support
Abby Connect
Best for Scalable Virtual Receptionist Solutions
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound
About Abby Connect
Abby Connect is a business answering service that provides small businesses with dedicated receptionists to improve customer experience and streamline call handling.
Abby Intelligence is an AI-powered tool offered by Abby Connect that improves receptionist service quality, efficiency, and call handling while minimizing human errors to ensure exceptional customer service. Its call announcement feature provides information about the caller before the call gets transferred to you.
When it comes to industries, Abby Connect’s receptionist teams are trained to work in legal, accounting, dental, and health fields. Their HIPAA compliance ensures customer data security.
Abby Connect provides mobile apps for Android and iOS and a web-based app for desktop devices. It supports integration with Zapier, Hubspot, Clio, Lawmatics, and vCita.
Abby Connect Pros and Cons
Dedicated receptionist team
Spam filtering and call screening features ensure your agents will only deal with real callers
Industry-specific receptionists ensure your callers will communicate with SMEs
Doesn’t offer a free trial option
No custom scripts
Specialty Answering Service (SAS)
Best for Complex Needs Across Various Industries
- Call HandlingComprehensive
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About Specialty Answering Service (SAS)
Specialty Answering Service is a trusted business answering service that has been in operation since 1985. It provides client communication solutions and is ISO 27001 certified and PCI compliant to ensure data privacy and security.
Inbound and outbound calling facilities are offered by Specialty Answering Service, with agents specializing in lead generation and general business call handling. It offers customizable quota usage notifications at different thresholds.
Specialty Answering Service (SAS) Pros and Cons
Allows you to select a group of agents that align with your needs
Offers both inbound and outbound calling facility
Affordable pricing plans
Outdated user interface
IVR, Voicemail, and Patching are additionally charged
VoiceNation
Best for Instant Setup and Easy Scalability
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About VoiceNation
VoiceNation is a top virtual receptionist service with US-based receptionists available 24/7 to provide professional and personalized assistance to enhance customer experience.
Besides offering business call answering services, VoiceNation provides outbound calling services to assist businesses in generating and qualifying leads, connecting with potential customers, and scheduling appointments.
One key benefit of using VoiceNation is the convenience and flexibility of its services. With apps available for Android and iOS and a web-based online portal, businesses can easily access and manage their outbound calling campaigns from anywhere at any time.
VoiceNation offers flexible pricing plans based on receptionist minutes, with no extra charges for additional features like setup, call transfers, custom scripting, and bilingual answering services. It also offers advanced call features, including robo and spam call blocking, on-call scheduling, custom on-hold music, etc.
VoiceNation Pros and Cons
Custom answering scripts for a personalized experience
Automatic screening for solicitations and robocalls
Neatly designed online dashboard with tracking and analytic features
Limited integration with third-party services such as CRMs, business software, etc.
No discount for annual billings or high-volume callings
PATLive
Best for High-Quality Scripted Responses
- Call HandlingAdvanced
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About PATLive
PATLive is a leading provider of business answering solutions with over 34 years of experience, offering 24/7 live call and web chat receptionists to assist businesses with various tasks such as business book appointments, pre-qualify leads, managing event registrations, sales calls, and more.
PATLive provides extensive training for its receptionists, with new hires undergoing 80 hours of training and ongoing monitoring to ensure top-quality service for their clients.
Besides, PATLive supports integration with various calendars, CRMs, e-commerce services, property management, and legal practice management software, making it a great tool for businesses because it helps streamline workflows.
PATLive Pros and Cons
Flexible call answering with pre-call screening and transfers
Offers good performance for lead generation campaigns
Custom voicemail option
Bilingual receptionist facility is available as an add-on
The web chat option is quite costly
Davinci Virtual
Best for Full-Service Virtual Office Solutions
- Call HandlingComprehensive
- Bilingual SupportYes
- Call TypeInbound and Outbound
About Davinci Virtual
Davinci Virtual is a virtual business office solution that provides multiple services for small businesses and solopreneurs, including virtual office spaces, virtual live receptionists, and on-demand meeting spaces in major cities worldwide.
With Davinci Virtual’s live receptionist service, businesses can get a free local, toll-free US number starting with 888, 855, 866, and 877, along with all essential back-end support such as live call answering agents, voicemail management, online fax, call forwarding, etc. It is accessible through apps for Android and iOS and a web-based app for desktop devices.
Davinci Virtual offers a premium plan that allows businesses to use virtual receptionists for additional administrative tasks, such as scheduling appointments, generating leads, making follow-up calls, order processing, and more.
Davinci Virtual Pros and Cons
Solid back-end answering with call screening and forwarding, voicemail management, and auto-receptionist features
Additional services include virtual office addresses, spaces, entity registration, and on-demand meeting spaces
Advanced call routing and conferencing with multiple virtual phone numbers
Live chat support is quite expensive
Lacks integration with other business apps
Answering Services Comparison
Answering Service | Starting Price USD (monthly) | Bilingual Support | Location Coverage |
---|---|---|---|
Ruby | $235 | Yes | United States |
ReceptionHQ | £15 | Yes | USA, UK, New Zealand, and Australia |
Conversational | $209 | No | USA and Canada |
MyReceptionist | $110 | Yes | USA and Canada |
AnswerForce | $349 | Yes | USA and Canada |
AnswerConnect | $350 | Yes | USA and Canada |
Abby | $329 | Yes | United States |
Specialty Answering Service | $38 | Yes | United States |
VoiceNation | $70 | Yes | USA and Canada |
PATLive | $205 | Yes | USA and Canada |
Davinci Virtual | $129 | Yes | USA |
What is an Answering Service?
An answering service is a service offered by a third-party company that acts as an extension for small businesses. It helps businesses by assigning trained virtual agents to answer calls on their behalf. These agents act as in-house receptionists for businesses, dealing with incoming calls, taking detailed messages, and re-routing calls to respective team members if needed.
Answering services can provide benefits such as 24/7 visibility, improved customer support, additional features like business numbers and voicemails, integration with business software, and cost savings compared to hiring in-house receptionists.
Why should you hire a virtual receptionist?
Virtual receptionists can help businesses improve their customer experience, project a professional image, capture more leads, and reduce the overhead expenses of hiring in-office receptionists.
For example, if your business is growing, an answering service company is a great option to handle business calls, as it is difficult to estimate the call volume in the growing stage. After identifying the call volume, you can decide whether to proceed with the business call answering service or hire in-house receptionists.
When call volume is high, in-house receptionists may be a slightly more cost-effective option. They provide better control compared to external services, as you won’t incur extra charges for outbound calling, call transfer, and additional features.
For on-site receptionists, you can opt for a reliable cloud phone system for easy call management, as these are more affordable than on-premise solutions and offer more features.
Role of Answering Services in Modern Businesses
Only businesses that focus on client satisfaction thrive in competitive industries, and answering services try to help businesses by improving their client communication, playing a crucial role in their success.
The right answering service company keeps your business available beyond working hours to project a professional business image, ensure you never miss a call, and get a higher customer satisfaction rate.
And since you don’t have to worry about customer satisfaction, your staff can focus on aspects that will help your business grow.
Criteria for Choosing the Best Answering Services
Here are a few things you should consider while choosing an answering service to ensure you make the right choice –
Understand Your Requirements
Before picking any answering service company, make sure to understand your business requirements, such as the estimated call volume, operating hours, specific features, and other industry-specific needs.
Experience
When selecting an answering service, choose one that has experience and serves other businesses in your industry to ensure professional caller experience.
Data Collection and Management
Data privacy should be a top priority for businesses choosing an answering service. The mentioned services prioritize keeping user data safe and secure and complying with HIPAA.
Additional Features
When choosing an answering service, consider what additional features beyond call answering are offered, such as voicemail, message taking, appointment scheduling, lead generation, and call forwarding, and choose based on what features are needed for your business.
Pricing
Pricing is one crucial factor to consider, and for this, we recommend first examining the answering service’s per-minute rate and increment rate and then considering additional features.
If the budget is limited, it is recommended to use IVR software for incoming calls and voice broadcasting software for outbound calling instead of an answering service.
Frequently Asked Questions
The cost of answering services ranges between $0.99 per minute to up to $4.7 per minute. The exact cost depends on the service and the plan you choose.
Yes. Answering services can work for almost any industry. However, I’d recommend picking the answering service that offers expertise or features tailored to your industry or business type.
When choosing an answering service for your business, consider their billing increment rate, per-minute cost, experience in the industry, data management strategy, and additional features.
Virtual receptionists can help your business by answering business calls, generating and qualifying leads, and reducing the cost of hiring and training an in-house receptionist.