Comparison
A $125 AI answering plan is usually a message pad.
Several Ontario pages sell AI phone answering at about $125 a month with 50 included minutes and an email after every call. That is a real product. It isn't the same product as a receptionist that keeps your number and puts a job on the board.
Right On Call starts at $199 CAD a month for the first 200 minutes, with $699 CAD setup paid once and no term, and runs to $449 CAD a month when you need the integrations and the rotation handled. Photo intake is in the plan on every tier. If you only need a summary emailed to you, the cheaper plan is enough. If a missed after-hours call is a job walking to the next listing, it isn't.
Side by side
| Typical $125 plan | Right On Call | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $125 is a common published number | $199 CAD flat |
| Included talk time | Often 50 minutes | 200 minutes |
| Overage | Often about $0.25 / minute after the bundle | $0.70 CAD / minute after 200, billed to the second |
| How a minute is counted | Usually each call rounded up to the next full minute | Connected talk time to the second. 3:35 bills as 3.58 minutes, not 4 |
| Going over the bundle | Often a nudge to the next tier up | You pay the extra minutes. Same plan, same price, no upgrade |
| Setup | Sometimes $0, which usually means a template | $699 CAD to $1,299 CAD, paid once, no term. Waived on annual |
| What the caller gets | An answer and a promise you will call back | Triage, a service-area check, a booking or a dispatch text |
| What you get | An email with a name, number, and summary | A ticket, an SMS to the on-call tech, a photo of the unit when the caller sends one |
| Your public number | Often a new number, or forwarding you configure yourself | Keep the number on the truck. Forward after a few rings, or port later |
| Who it is built for | Dentists, lawyers, B&Bs, and trades on the same script | One home-service or property shop at a time |
The $125 / 50-minute shape is what several Ontario vendors publish today. Individual quotes vary. Ask them what happens after the email arrives, and whether the number on the truck stays yours.
Do the minute math before the monthly math
Fifty minutes is about 17 three-minute calls. A London appliance or HVAC shop that misses even part of a cold snap will burn that in a weekend. At $0.25 overage the cheap plan is no longer cheap, and you are still calling every lead back yourself. One recovered after-hours job at a typical diagnostic or service ticket covers months of either plan. The question is whether the call ends as a job or as a note.
Common questions
Why do some AI answering plans cost $125 a month?
That price usually buys a shared template: the agent answers, takes a name and reason for calling, and emails you a summary. Fifty included minutes is a thin bundle. At three minutes a call you have used it in about 17 calls. After that you pay per minute, often around $0.25. The headline is low because the product stops at a message.
Is Right On Call more expensive?
Our entry tier is $199 CAD a month for 200 included minutes, then $0.70 CAD per extra minute, plus $699 CAD setup paid once with no term. On a quiet month the $125 plan can look cheaper. On a real after-hours week the included-minute math flips, and you still only have an email.
What does the extra money pay for?
A build for one shop: your hours, your emergency list, Canadian postal-code coverage, booking or dispatch, SMS confirmation, and photo intake. You keep the number on the truck. The call is supposed to end with a job on the schedule, not a summary in your inbox.
When is the cheaper plan the right buy?
When a polite message is enough and you will always call back yourself. Law offices, B&Bs, and shops that don’t dispatch same-night are often fine there. A no-heat or no-hot-water call at 9 PM isn’t.
See current pricing or the comparison against a traditional answering service, or every comparison.