How much does one phone call cost your business, and how do you work it out?
Sado AI team · · 4 min read
In short
To find your cost per call, take what answering calls costs you in a month (salaries, payroll taxes, desks, telephony, software) and divide it by the number of calls answered that month. For example, 13 million so‘m ÷ 1,800 calls ≈ 7,200 so‘m. With an AI operator the maths is simpler: call length × price per minute. Sado charges 800 so‘m a minute, so a 2-minute call costs 1,600 so‘m, with no monthly fee. Compare both with the same yardstick: one answered call.
Why you need your cost per call
Most managers know what an operator earns, but not what one call costs. That number answers two questions: how your costs grow when calls grow, and whether another option, an outsourcer or an AI operator, is cheaper or dearer. Comparing monthly totals misleads, because one month is quiet and the next is busy. Cost per call lets you compare any two months, or two different options, on the same scale.
Working out cost per call for your own operators
- Add up one month’s costs: operator salaries, payroll taxes and contributions, desks (computer, headset, share of rent), telephony, CRM and other software, the supervisor’s time.
- Take the number of calls answered that month. Not calls received, calls answered: your PBX or telephony report shows it.
- Divide the costs by the calls. The result is the cost of one answered call.
- If you like, find the cost per minute too: monthly costs ÷ total talk minutes. For businesses with many long calls this number is more accurate.
For example, the Bahor Mebel furniture store has two operators earning 5 million so‘m each. Taxes, telephony, CRM and desks add another 3 million so‘m. That’s 13 million so‘m in total. They answered 1,800 calls in the month: 13,000,000 ÷ 1,800 ≈ 7,200 so‘m. These numbers are only an example; use your own.
Why the number changes from month to month
Salaries don’t depend on how many calls come in, so the cost per call moves every month:
- In a quiet month each call gets dearer: the same 13 million so‘m over 1,000 calls is 13,000 so‘m a call.
- In a busy month it looks cheaper, but the queue grows and more calls go unanswered. A missed call isn’t in the sum, yet the customer is gone.
- When an operator leaves, calls are slower and less accurate while the new one learns.
- If evenings and weekends need a separate person, the cost jumps at once.
What unanswered calls cost you: missed calls.
Cost per call with an AI operator
With an AI operator there is one formula: call length × price per minute. Sado’s pricing is 800 so‘m per talked minute, short call or long. There is no monthly fee and no setup fee. No calls, no charge.
| Average call | One call | 100 calls a day |
|---|---|---|
| 1 minute | 800 so‘m | 80,000 so‘m |
| 2 minutes | 1,600 so‘m | 160,000 so‘m |
| 3 minutes | 2,400 so‘m | 240,000 so‘m |
| 5 minutes | 4,000 so‘m | 400,000 so‘m |
This price doesn’t depend on volume: in a quiet month or on an ad day, a 2-minute call costs 1,600 so‘m. Nights, weekends and holidays cost the same. The length and cost of every call are shown in the portal.
How to compare fairly
- The same unit on both sides: one answered call, or one talk minute.
- The same hours: if your operators work 9:00–18:00 and the AI answers 24/7, add the cost of people for the evening calls too.
- Work after the call: an operator fills in the CRM after each call. With an AI operator the recording, transcript and answers land in the portal by themselves.
- Complicated calls: a complaint or a big deal still goes to a staff member. You still need people for those, so keep them in the sum.
Put your own numbers into the calculator, and see the full comparison here: AI operator vs call center. To hear how the operator talks, try it live or call 78 778 01 23.
Questions
What goes into the cost of one call?
With your own team: salaries, taxes, desks, telephony, software and supervision. With Sado you pay only for talked minutes, 800 so‘m a minute, and there is no separate setup fee.
Do I pay for a call when the number doesn’t answer?
No. Sado counts only talked minutes; a number that doesn’t answer costs nothing.
Which is more accurate: cost per call or cost per minute?
If calls are short and similar, cost per call is enough. If their length varies a lot (advice, orders, choosing a product), compare the cost per minute.