ResellPortal / Guides
How much does it cost to start an AI receptionist agency?
Short answer: the minimum is $20. On ResellPortal a $20 wallet deposit covers your first AI Chat client at $15 a month wholesale, with no platform fee or per-minute charges; a client on the $99 phone plan needs $99 in the wallet. Building on voice AI platforms costs $0 to $497 a month in platform fees before your first client, plus usage such as $0.07 to $0.31 a minute and a monthly fee per phone number.
An AI receptionist agency sells local businesses an AI that answers calls and website chats, books appointments and captures leads. You can build agents on a voice AI platform or resell a finished receptionist under your brand. The startup bill turns on three things: platform fees, per-minute usage and how much you build yourself. Here is each cost with published prices.
Startup cost at a glance
| Cost item | Doing it yourself | With ResellPortal |
|---|---|---|
| Platform fee | $0 on Retell AI; $99 on white-label builders like Stammer.ai and Trillet; $97 to $497 on GoHighLevel, with resale on $497 | $0 monthly or setup fee |
| Usage per client | $0.07 to $0.31 a minute on Retell AI; $0.12 a minute after included minutes on Trillet; $50 or $97 AI plans per sub-account on GoHighLevel | $15, $39 or $99 a month wholesale, no per-minute charges |
| Phone numbers | Extra, such as $2 a month per number on Retell AI | Local US or Canada number included on the phone plan |
| Client dashboard | Build your own on Retell AI; included on white-label platforms | Included, under your brand on your domain |
| Starting deposit | First month's platform fee or usage credit | $20 wallet minimum, plus a $10 bonus on a first deposit of $20 or more |
| Payments | 2.9% + 30¢ per US card payment on Stripe | Your own Stripe or PayPal; ResellPortal takes nothing from retail |
Platform software
Voice AI platforms price access in different ways. Retell AI has no platform fee and bills only for use. Stammer.ai's Pro White Label plan is $99 a month for 5 chat and 5 voice agents, with extra agents at $10 each. Trillet starts at $99 a month with included minutes. GoHighLevel's plans are $97, $297 and $497 a month, and reselling it under your brand needs the $497 plan. Apart from Retell AI, that fee runs whether or not you have clients. ResellPortal charges no monthly or setup fee.
Usage and wholesale cost
Per-minute pricing is the cost that grows with success, because a client who takes more calls costs you more. Retell AI's voice agents run $0.07 to $0.31 a minute depending on the model and voice. Trillet charges $0.12 a minute beyond its included minutes, with telephony billed separately. Stammer.ai bills voice by the minute at rates set by the AI model. GoHighLevel bills AI per sub-account: $50 includes 100 voice minutes, and $97 is unlimited under fair use. On ResellPortal wholesale is flat per client: $15 for AI Chat, $39 with booking and $99 with phone answering, and calls are unlimited for normal business use, up to 15 minutes each.
Phone numbers and setup
Each client needs a number. On Retell AI a number is $2 a month, and every account includes 20 concurrent calls. Building agents yourself also means writing prompts, connecting calendars and testing calls for each client. On ResellPortal the client picks a local US or Canada number by area code or forwards their existing line, then finishes a five-step checklist: the receptionist reads up to 20 pages of their website in about a minute.
Domain and branding
A .com costs about $11 a year or more. On ResellPortal your store and the client dashboard carry your brand on your domain, calls and chats use the client's own business name, and store hosting and SSL are free. On Retell AI the dashboard is not rebranded, so agencies build their own client portal.
Payments
Stripe charges 2.9% + 30¢ per successful US card payment, with no monthly fee. ResellPortal clients pay your retail price straight into your own Stripe or PayPal, and the platform takes nothing from it.
Marketing
The cheapest sales tool is the product itself. The AI Receptionist has a live demo prospects can try, and the owners of dental offices, salons, trades and clinics already know what a missed call costs them. Start with businesses you already know before paying for ads.
Example first-month budget
Say you sign three local businesses in your first month on ResellPortal: one on the phone plan and two on AI Chat.
- Wallet deposit: $150, plus the $10 bonus, so $160 of credit
- Wholesale: $99 plus two at $15, so $129, leaving $31 in the wallet
- Platform fee, minutes and phone number: $0
- Domain: about $11 for a new .com
- Total out of pocket: about $161
At suggested retail of $199 and $49, revenue is $297 a month and you keep $168 before card fees. On GoHighLevel's resale plan, the same three clients start with a $497 platform fee before any AI plans, and on Retell AI the phone client's cost depends on every minute it answers.
Common questions
Can I start an AI receptionist agency with no clients?
Yes. On ResellPortal nothing is charged until a client activates, apart from the $20 minimum wallet deposit, which pays wholesale on that client. Platforms with a monthly fee charge it from day one.
What should I charge for an AI receptionist?
ResellPortal's suggested retail is $49 a month for AI chat, $99 with booking and $199 with phone answering, against $15, $39 and $99 wholesale. That leaves $34, $60 and $100 a month per client.
Are per-minute charges a problem?
They make costs rise with call volume. At Retell AI's published range, a client who takes 1,000 minutes in a month costs $70 to $310 in usage alone. ResellPortal's phone plan has no per-minute charges, with calls up to 15 minutes each.
Do I need technical skills?
Not on ResellPortal: the client trains the receptionist from their website and goes live with one line of code, a hosted chat link or a phone number. Builders like Stammer.ai and infrastructure like Retell AI expect you to design and test each agent.
Create a free ResellPortal account to try the AI Receptionist demo and see live wholesale prices.
