Voice AI pricing: pay per minute or a monthly subscription — which pays off?
Sado AI team · · 4 min read
In short
One number shows which pricing model is cheaper: the real price of a talked minute. On a subscription, work it out as: everything you paid for the month ÷ the minutes you actually talked that month. If you have few calls, or the number changes with the season, per-minute pricing is usually cheaper because you don’t pay for unused minutes. If you have many calls and the same volume every month, price a package too. Before comparing, ask how minutes are rounded and whether unanswered calls or setup are charged.
The pricing models you’ll see
| Model | How it works | Who it suits | The risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly subscription | A fixed monthly sum with a bundle of minutes | Businesses with the same calls every month | Unused minutes are lost; extra minutes cost more |
| Per seat | A monthly fee for each “operator” or line | Teams replacing a permanent department | Peak hours need extra seats |
| Per minute | Only talked minutes | Changing call volumes, or just starting | More calls, bigger bill: set limits |
| Per lead | A fee for each lead or booking | Sales teams | Hard to agree what counts as a lead |
How to work out the real price of a minute
Formula: (monthly fee + charges for extra minutes + one month’s share of any setup fee) ÷ minutes actually talked that month.
For example, service A charges 3 million so‘m a month for 2,000 minutes, and each extra minute costs 1,800 so‘m. In month one you talked 1,200 minutes; in month two, with ads running, 2,600. These numbers are only an example:
| Option | Month 1: 1,200 minutes | Month 2: 2,600 minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Service A, subscription | 3,000,000 so‘m (2,500 so‘m a minute) | 4,080,000 so‘m (≈1,570 so‘m a minute) |
| Per minute, 800 so‘m | 960,000 so‘m | 2,080,000 so‘m |
On a subscription, a quiet month becomes the most expensive one: you talk less, but the sum stays the same.
Six questions for a vendor
- How is a minute counted: by the second, or every started minute in full?
- Do you pay for unanswered and busy numbers?
- Do ringing, waiting and the part after a transfer to staff count?
- Is there a separate fee for connection, setup or training?
- Is there a minimum term or a minimum monthly amount?
- Who do you pay for the phone line (SIP), and how much?
When each model pays off
- You’re just starting and don’t know your call volume: per minute, so a wrong guess costs you nothing extra.
- Your business is seasonal (a training centre in August, a flower shop before 8 March): per minute, so quiet months cost little.
- You need AI only at night or at peak hours: per minute, and your daytime operators keep their work.
- You have a large, steady volume every month and accept a long contract: price a package too, using the formula above.
How it works with Sado
Sado has one price: 800 so‘m a talked minute, whatever the length of the call. There’s no monthly fee and no setup fee. For example, 100 two-minute calls a day: 160,000 so‘m a day, about 4.8 million so‘m a month.
For outbound calls you set a daily limit and calling hours, and you can stop calls with one button. Each call’s cost is shown in the portal. More: pricing; comparing with operator salaries: AI vs call center; calls from a list: AI outbound calls.
Questions
Can a per-minute bill suddenly grow?
If incoming calls grow, the bill grows too, but that means more customers. For outbound calls, set a daily limit and hours, and check the spend in the portal every day.
Isn’t a subscription easier to budget?
The sum is known, but the price per minute isn’t: in a month with few calls it turns out expensive. With per-minute pricing you budget from the minutes of past months.
How do I compare it with a call centre?
Call centres often charge per operator hour or per month. Use the same formula to find the price of a talked minute, then compare it with what a call centre costs.
Does a long call cost more?
Not with Sado: a minute costs 800 so‘m whatever the length of the call. Other services may price by call length or package, so check the contract.