Employ a Receptionist or Use an AI Plan?
The wage is only part of what a receptionist costs. Superannuation, paid leave and on-costs sit on top, and the desk is still empty at night and on weekends. Put in your own figures and compare the full annual cost of each option side by side. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Set the wage, hours and on-costs to match the role you would hire for, then pick the monthly AI plan cost. Your numbers are kept in this browser so you can come back to them.
Receptionist vs AI Cost Comparison
Full employment cost against a monthly plan. Nothing leaves your browser.
Base rate before super. Use a loaded rate if the role would be casual.
38 is a standard full-time week.
Confirm the current rate with the Australian Taxation Office.
Annual leave, personal leave and public holidays. Still paid, but the desk is empty.
Workers compensation, payroll tax, recruitment, equipment.
Starter $299, Professional $599, Enterprise $1,299. Only Professional and Enterprise are 24/7.
Staff total minus AI total. A negative figure means the plan costs more than the role.
An estimate from the figures you entered, not payroll advice or a quote. Award rates, superannuation and on-costs change over time and differ by state, so confirm current figures before relying on the result. The coverage figures assume a 24/7 plan; the Starter plan answers during business hours only.
How to Read the Comparison
The saving figure is a cost difference, not a promise. Read it alongside the coverage figure, because the two options do different jobs at different hours.
Wages are the floor, not the total
Superannuation is paid on top of ordinary wages, and on-costs such as workers compensation, payroll tax where it applies, recruitment and equipment add more again. The calculator shows the total so you compare a full employment cost, not a headline hourly rate.
Coverage hours are the other half of the answer
A full-time receptionist covers about 38 hours in a working week and is on leave for several weeks a year. A 24/7 AI plan covers 168 hours every week. The coverage figure shows how many extra hours per year the phone is answered, which matters if callers ring after hours.
A person does things an AI plan does not
A receptionist greets walk-ins, handles mail, manages the front desk and picks up jobs nobody else wants. If those tasks matter in your business, the honest comparison is an AI plan plus part of a staff member, rather than one or the other.
The Maths Behind the Comparison
Every figure comes from your inputs. There are no hidden multipliers, so you can check the result against your own payroll.
Annual wages
Hourly rate multiplied by hours per week, multiplied by 52. Permanent staff are paid for the full year, including annual leave and sick leave, so the leave weeks do not reduce the wage bill.
Superannuation and on-costs
Superannuation is added as a percentage of wages. On-costs are added as a second percentage to cover workers compensation, payroll tax if your payroll is over the state threshold, recruitment, training, a desk and a computer.
Annual AI cost
The monthly plan cost multiplied by 12. Our published plans are $299, $599 and $1,299 per month. Use the slider to match whichever plan or quote you are considering.
Saving and coverage
Saving is the staff total minus the AI total. Coverage gained is 168 hours a week for 52 weeks, minus the hours a receptionist actually works after leave is taken out.
What Each Option Really Costs
The numbers above are only useful if the inputs are honest. These notes help you set them for an Australian business.
Setting the hourly rate
Receptionist pay in Australia is usually set by a modern award or an enterprise agreement, and the rate depends on the classification level and whether the role is permanent or casual. Casual rates include a loading in place of paid leave, so if you would hire a casual, raise the hourly rate and drop the leave weeks to zero.
- Check the current minimum for the role with the Fair Work Ombudsman before relying on a figure
- Include any above-award amount you would need to offer to fill the role
- Casual loading replaces paid leave, so treat the two settings together
- Penalty rates apply if the role covers evenings or weekends
Setting leave weeks
A full-time employee accrues four weeks of annual leave and around two weeks of personal leave each year, plus public holidays. Six weeks is a reasonable starting point for the weeks the desk is unattended. The wage is still paid for those weeks, which is why leave reduces coverage but not cost.
- Four weeks annual leave plus personal leave and public holidays is a normal year
- Long service leave adds more over a longer tenure
- Cover for leave, if you hire it, is an extra cost the calculator does not include
- If nobody covers leave, those weeks fall back to whoever is nearest the phone
Setting on-costs
On-costs are the expenses of having an employee that never appear on a payslip. The right percentage varies by state and by how you account for equipment, so the calculator lets you set it. Ten per cent is a conservative starting point for a small business under the payroll tax threshold.
- Workers compensation premiums, which vary by state and industry
- Payroll tax once total wages pass your state threshold
- Recruitment advertising, onboarding time and training
- A desk, a phone, a computer and software licences
Setting the AI plan cost
Our Starter plan is $299 per month for business hours answering and up to 100 calls. Professional is $599 per month for 24/7 answering, appointment booking and up to 500 calls. Enterprise is $1,299 per month for unlimited calls. Prices are in AUD and include GST.
- Only the Professional and Enterprise plans answer 24/7, so use those for the coverage figure
- Overage calls are billed per call on the Starter and Professional plans
- One-off setup, if any, is not included in the annual figure
- If you have a quote from another provider, set the slider to that amount instead
Next Steps
AI Receptionist vs Hiring a Receptionist
The non-financial differences: walk-ins, admin, coverage, and where each option fits.
Read the comparison →AI Receptionist ROI Calculator
Add the revenue from calls that are currently missed to the cost saving.
Work out the ROI →After-Hours Call Value Calculator
Put a figure on the calls that arrive when the desk is empty.
Value after-hours calls →Frequently Asked Questions
What hourly rate should I use for a receptionist?
Use the rate you would actually pay to fill the role, not the legal minimum. For most small businesses that is the award rate for the classification plus whatever it takes to attract someone in your area. The Fair Work Ombudsman publishes current award rates and the calculator lets you set any figure between $25 and $60 an hour. If you already employ a receptionist, use their real rate from payroll.
Why does the calculator pay wages for 52 weeks when leave is taken?
Because that is how permanent employment works. Annual leave and personal leave are paid, so the wage bill covers the full year even though the desk is unattended for several weeks. The leave weeks setting reduces the hours of coverage you receive, which changes the cost per covered hour, but it does not reduce the total you pay. Casual staff are the exception, and for them you should set leave to zero and use a loaded hourly rate.
What superannuation percentage should I enter?
Enter the current superannuation guarantee rate, which you can confirm with the Australian Taxation Office. The default is set to the rate that applied when this page was written. If you pay above the guarantee under an agreement, use your own rate. Superannuation is calculated on ordinary time earnings, so the calculator applies it to the full wage figure.
What counts as on-costs?
Anything you pay because you have an employee that is not wages or superannuation. The usual items are workers compensation insurance, payroll tax once you cross your state threshold, recruitment and training, and the desk, phone and computer the role needs. Some businesses also count the owner time spent managing the person. Ten per cent is a modest figure for a small business. Larger employers who pay payroll tax commonly sit higher.
Does the AI cost include everything?
The annual AI figure is the monthly plan price multiplied by 12. It does not include overage calls if you exceed your plan allowance, or any one-off setup fee. Our published plans are $299, $599 and $1,299 per month, GST inclusive, and the slider covers that range so you can match the plan you would choose. If you are comparing a quote from another provider, enter that figure instead.
Is this a fair comparison when a receptionist does more than answer the phone?
Only if phone answering is the main reason you would hire. If the role also handles walk-ins, mail, invoicing or general admin, the fair comparison is the cost of the phone portion of the role against the AI plan, or an AI plan plus a part-time administrator. The coverage figure is also worth weighing: a person covers business hours only, while a 24/7 plan answers at night and on weekends. Which option wins depends on when your callers ring and what else the desk needs to do.
Sources and further reading
- Fair Work Ombudsman: pay, awards and conditions (Fair Work Ombudsman)
- Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
Want the Saving Checked Against Your Real Call Volume?
The plan you need depends on how many calls you take each month. Tell us your volume and we will confirm which plan fits, what the annual cost is, and whether the saving above holds up.