ReceptionHQ publishes its pricing, and its pay-per-call entry plans are among the cheapest ways to put a live human voice on a business line. When rechecked 2026-06-10: MessageExpress runs $25 per month plus $1.99 per answered call (message-taking only), ReceptionistPlus starts at $35 per month plus a per-call charge (with a $39 bundle including 15 answered calls), and the MyAssistant and MyDiary plans start at $49 per month with per-minute billing. There is a 7-day free trial that does not require a card, no setup fee, and no lock-in contract. This guide covers what each plan actually does, the line items to check, and the math at contractor call volume.
Last reviewed June 10, 2026.
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ReceptionHQ pricing in 2026, from the live pricing page rechecked 2026-06-10: MessageExpress $25/month plus $1.99 per answered call for message taking; ReceptionistPlus from $35/month plus per-call charges for messages and transfers (entry bundle $39/month including 15 calls); MyAssistant lead-capture and MyDiary scheduling plans from $49/month with per-minute billing. 7-day free trial with no card needed, no contract. Contractor-AI alternatives (OnCrew is the contractor-specific example we publish) start at $49/month for 100 included calls with $0.99 per-call overage.
ReceptionHQ pricing tiers (2026)
| Plan | Monthly base | Billing model | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| MessageExpress | $25 | $1.99 per answered call | Takes a message, relays it |
| ReceptionistPlus | from $35 (bundle: $39 incl. 15 calls) | per call (rate not published; ~$2.20-$2.99 reported) | Messages plus warm transfers |
| MyAssistant | from $49 | per minute | Lead capture, FAQs, CRM entry |
| MyDiary | from $49 | per minute | Appointment booking into your calendar |
Add-ons when rechecked: outbound calling from $49/month, IVR from $10/month, extra phone numbers from $10/month, call diversion from $20/month, voicemail-to-email from $5/month.
Sources: live ReceptionHQ pricing page, rechecked 2026-06-10; third-party reporting for the unpublished ReceptionistPlus per-call rate. Vendor pricing pages can change; verify before committing.
What ReceptionHQ's base price does NOT include
- The per-call rate on ReceptionistPlus is not published on the public pricing page; third-party sources report roughly $2.20 to $2.99 per call. Get the exact rate for your plan in writing.
- Sales tax is excluded from listed prices.
- Hang-up and spam policy is not published, and this matters: ReceptionHQ reviewers have reported being charged for hang-up calls counted as answered calls. Ask specifically how sub-10-second calls and robocalls bill.
- Message-taking is not intake. The $1.99 MessageExpress tier relays a name and number. Contractor-grade intake (address, problem detail, urgency flagging) is the per-minute MyAssistant tier, which prices differently.
- To its credit: per-minute plans bill to the exact second rather than rounding up, there is no setup fee, and there is no lock-in contract.
Real monthly math for a contractor shop
Worked example: a 4-truck plumbing shop fielding 130 calls a month.
- MessageExpress ($25 + 130 x $1.99): about $284 per month, but you get name-and-number messages, not intake, urgency flagging, or transfers.
- ReceptionistPlus (from $35 + 130 calls at the reported $2.20 to $2.99): roughly $320 to $425 per month for messages and transfers.
- MyAssistant at 130 calls x 3.5 minutes = 455 minutes of per-minute billing: at typical market per-minute rates this lands several hundred dollars or more; the exact rate for your account is the number to get in writing.
ReceptionHQ's entry plans are genuinely cheap for what they are. The question for a contractor is whether what they are (message relay) is what you need at 2 AM, when the caller has a burst pipe and the job goes to whoever actually captures the address, the problem, and the callback commitment.
How much does ReceptionHQ cost per month?
ReceptionHQ cost per month for a typical contractor shop: roughly $284 per month for message-only coverage at 130 calls (MessageExpress), $320 to $425 per month for messages plus transfers (ReceptionistPlus, using reported per-call rates), and more for the per-minute lead-capture tiers, based on the pricing rechecked 2026-06-10. Low-volume shops can run under $100 per month, which is the model's sweet spot.
Contractor-AI alternatives at published pricing
| Vendor | Plan | Included calls | Overage | Total monthly at 130 calls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OnCrew | Starter | 100 | $0.99 per call | $49 + ($0.99 x 30) = $79 |
| OnCrew | Pro | 400 | $0.99 per call | $149 (no overage at this volume) |
| OnCrew | Multi-Truck | 1,000 | $0.99 per call | $349 (no overage at this volume) |
The comparison to run: OnCrew at $79 for 130 calls does full contractor intake (address, problem in the caller's words, urgency flag, transcript handoff to your on-call team), which on ReceptionHQ's menu is the per-minute tier, not the $1.99 message tier. 14-day free trial.
When ReceptionHQ is still the right choice
An honest read of where ReceptionHQ wins:
- Very low call volume: under 20 to 30 calls per month, $25 plus $1.99 per call is hard to beat for a live voice.
- Simple message relay: if "take a name and number, email it to me" is genuinely all you need.
- Businesses that want second-exact billing and no contract from a human service: both are real and published.
If your line carries emergency calls where intake quality decides whether you win the job, the message-relay tiers are not built for that, and the tiers that are bill per minute.
Frequently asked questions
Is ReceptionHQ cheaper than Ruby Receptionists?
At low volume, substantially: ReceptionHQ's $25-plus-$1.99-per-call entry versus Ruby's $250 entry plan (each as last rechecked). The gap narrows as volume grows and closes entirely if you need intake rather than messages, which moves you to ReceptionHQ's per-minute tiers. See the Ruby Receptionist pricing breakdown.
Does ReceptionHQ bill per minute?
Depends on the plan: MessageExpress and ReceptionistPlus bill per call; MyAssistant and MyDiary bill per minute, to the exact second rather than rounded up.
Does ReceptionHQ have a free trial?
Yes: 7 days, with no card needed, on the standard plans when rechecked 2026-06-10.
Does ReceptionHQ charge for hang-up calls?
Reviewers have reported being charged for hang-ups counted as answered calls, and no spam or hang-up policy is published on the pricing page. Ask directly how very short calls bill, and watch your first invoices.
What is the cheapest ReceptionHQ alternative for contractors?
For message-relay needs, ReceptionHQ is already near the floor for human services. For full contractor intake at 80 to 150 calls per month, flat-rate contractor AI is cheaper: OnCrew runs $49 to $349 per month with $0.99 per-call overage and includes intake, urgency flagging, and transcript handoffs at every tier.
How is OnCrew different from ReceptionHQ for contractors?
OnCrew does contractor-grade intake on every call at every tier: trade-aware questions for HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and roofing, urgency flagging, and a handoff to your on-call team with the full transcript, at $49/$149/$349 per month with $0.99 per-call overage. ReceptionHQ's cheap tiers relay messages; its intake-grade tiers bill per minute.
Where to start
If you are evaluating ReceptionHQ pricing for a contractor shop:
- Decide what a 2 AM call needs: a message relay or full intake with urgency flagging. That decides which ReceptionHQ tier you are really pricing.
- Get the unpublished per-call and per-minute rates for your tier in writing, plus the hang-up billing policy.
- Apply a flat-rate alternative to the same call mix. For OnCrew that is $49/$149/$349 per month with $0.99 per-call overage, intake included.
- Run both free trials (ReceptionHQ's 7 days, OnCrew's 14) against the same week of calls.
For OnCrew specifically: see the contractor answering service page, or call the live AI demo line at (818) 578-4783 and run a real emergency intake on it.