Best answering services for plumbers in 2026
The best answering service for plumbers in October 2026 depends on who should take a 2 a.m. burst pipe call. A Message Center, MAP Communications and Specialty Answering Service put live agents on the line and follow your on-call schedule. If jobs must land in ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber, look at AnswerForce, PATLive, Smith.ai or your software’s AI receptionist.
LobbyStack publishes this list and sells an AI receptionist, so you’ll find it in the AI section with its limits spelled out. It doesn’t connect to any field service software.
Prices checked October 9, 2026. We read every price on the vendor’s own pricing page that day, in US dollars before tax, and read each vendor’s plumbing page on October 10. For other trades, see the best answering services for contractors or the best HVAC answering services.
Which answering service is best for plumbers?
Pick by who should answer when water is coming through a ceiling and where your jobs get booked. Live services cost more, and three of them say they work from your on-call schedule. Most AI services cost less, and the ones built into Jobber or Housecall Pro, or certified for ServiceTitan, book jobs where your dispatchers already work.
- A Message Center, best plumbing-focused live service: $47 a month plus $2.00 a call, triage that treats a sewage backup as dangerous, and an on-call rotation.
- Specialty Answering Service, best for on-call schedules that change: per-second billing from $44 a month plus $1.54 a minute, and you update the on-call schedule yourself.
- MAP Communications, best low overage: $1.28 per extra minute on its $339 and $649 plans, plus a Roster Service that follows your on-call schedule.
- AnswerForce, best for software integrations: human agents in English and Spanish, with ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber and Workiz named on its plumbing page.
- PATLive, best published rate card: 11 tiers, a 14-day trial, no contract, and eight software tools named on its plumbing page.
- Smith.ai, best AI with live receptionists behind it: 25 free AI calls a month, with burst pipes and flooding escalated to human receptionists.
- Jobber Receptionist and Housecall Pro CSR AI, best for shops already on that software: Jobber charges $29 a month for 30 conversations, and Housecall Pro doesn’t publish its price.
- Goodcall, best for repeat callers: $79 a month for 100 unique callers, and routing on keywords such as “burst pipe” and “sewer backup”.
- LobbyStack (ours), best for Google Calendar shops with callers in many languages: $30 a month for 150 minutes with no setup fee, and answers in the caller’s language across 70+ languages.
How do answering services for plumbers compare?
The table covers seven live services and eight AI or hybrid ones. They bill per call, per minute, per second, per unique caller or per conversation, so the last two columns price every service at the same call pattern.
Assumptions: 3 minutes a call (our assumption, not vendor data), every call answered, each caller unique, the cheapest plan or plan plus overage that covers the volume, no holiday fees, US dollars before tax, prices as of October 9, 2026.
| Service | Who answers | Entry price | Billing unit | Setup fee | 40 calls (120 min) | 100 calls (300 min) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Message Center | Live, trades focus | $47/mo + $2.00 a call | Per call | Not stated | $127 | $237.50 |
| AnswerForce | Live, people only | $349/mo for 200 min | Per minute, rounded up | $75 on Intro only | $349 + $75 setup | $389 |
| PATLive | Live | $49/mo + $2.99/min | First minute, then 6-second steps | None listed | $230.80 | $479 |
| MAP Communications | Live | $49/mo + $1.37/min | Whole minutes, rounded up | Not stated | $179 + telecom fee | $403 + telecom fee |
| Specialty Answering Service | Live | $44/mo + $1.54/min | Per second | $0 | $187.80 | $384.20 |
| Ruby | Live | $250/mo for 50 min | 60 seconds, rounded up | None | $485 | $1,160 |
| Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk | Live receptionists | $300/mo for 30 calls | Per call | None | $415 | $915 |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | AI, with live escalation | $0 for 25 calls | Per call | None | $45 (Free), or $150 on Pro | $212.50 |
| Jobber Receptionist | AI inside Jobber | $29/mo add-on for 30 conversations | Per conversation | None listed | $36.90 + Jobber plan | $84.30 + Jobber plan |
| Housecall Pro CSR AI | AI inside Housecall Pro | Price not published | Not published | None listed | Not published | Not published |
| Sameday AI | AI for home services | From $449/mo for 500 min | Not stated | Not stated | From $449 | From $449 |
| Avoca | AI, with a human CSR team | Price on request | Not published | Not published | Price on request | Price on request |
| Goodcall | AI | $79/mo for 100 unique callers | Per unique caller | Not stated | $79 | $79 |
| Rosie | AI | $49/mo for 250 min | 60 seconds, rounded up | Not listed | $49, or $149 with booking and transfers | $149 |
| LobbyStack (ours) | AI | $30/mo for 150 min | Per second | None on any plan | $30 | $60 |
The cost section below shows the plan and the math behind each cell.
The best live answering services for plumbers
All six put people on plumbing calls. Read each one’s plumbing page before you sign, because that’s where the emergency and dispatch promises live.
A Message Center: best plumbing-focused live service
A Message Center’s plumbing page sorts calls into three tiers. Dangerous calls come first, with “gas smell, sewage backup” as the examples. Major problems such as no water come next, and jobs that can wait come last. After hours, the agent reaches your on-call plumber, describes the job and confirms they’re on the way. Solo owners can get a call, a text or both. The on-call rotation is part of the full setup, which takes 5 to 7 business days.
The page names ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber, FieldEdge and ServiceFusion, and handles standard Spanish calls at no extra charge. The pricing page starts at $47 a month plus $2.00 a call, and Standard costs $145 for 50 calls. The plumbing page offers custom quotes by volume and coverage hours, so ask which rate card applies to you. The FAQ says holidays, outcalls and patching may cost more without listing amounts, and the site states no setup fee or contract term.
AnswerForce: best for software integrations
AnswerForce uses human agents only, in English and Spanish. Its plumbing page covers drain cleaning, gas lines, water and sewage, and promises answers for “middle-of-the-night plumbing emergencies”. Agents book through an integrated scheduling system, and the page names ServiceTitan, Workiz, Jobber, Housecall Pro, FieldPulse and Service Fusion among 15 tools. It doesn’t describe how agents reach your on-call plumber, so ask.
AnswerForce’s main pricing links ask you to register first, but its plans page shows prices without it. The $349 Intro plan carries a $75 setup fee, and the $389 plan for 300 minutes has none. AnswerForce rounds calls up to the minute, but the first 30 interactions under 30 seconds in each cycle cost nothing.
PATLive: best published rate card
PATLive’s pricing page lists 11 tiers up to 5,000 minutes, from $49 a month plus $2.99 a minute, with overage falling at each step. It bills the first minute in full, then in 6-second steps, and doesn’t bill after-call notes. Nights, weekends, holidays and Spanish cost nothing extra.
Its plumbing page says receptionists “capture and prioritize true emergencies” and route high-urgency calls. It names ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber, ServiceFusion, FieldEdge, FieldPulse, Kickserv and BuilderTrend. It doesn’t describe on-call dispatch or a rotation. Every plan comes with a 14-day trial and no contract, and the only one-time fee we found is $50 to turn on business texting.
MAP Communications: best low overage with an on-call roster
MAP’s overage falls to $1.28 a minute on its $339 and $649 plans (pricing page). Its FAQ describes a Roster Service: you supply the on-call schedule and agents follow it. The plumbing page says agents “dispatch plumbers” and get the details of an emergency “to your team or on-call plumber”, from frozen pipes to water heaters. Every plan includes English and Spanish, and the page names no field service software.
MAP’s terms (March 2026) round calls up to whole minutes and count after-call work toward them. They add a $0.024 telecom fee per call and a holiday fee on seven holidays, with no amount stated. Cancelling takes written notice at least a month before your next invoice.
Specialty Answering Service: best for on-call schedules that change
Specialty Answering Service (SAS) bills by the second, from $44 a month plus $1.54 a minute, with $0 setup and no contract (pricing page). The trial runs 14 days or 200 minutes with no card. Its plumbing page lets you decide what counts as an emergency and add, delete or update your plumbers’ on-call schedule. Agents relay jobs by phone, email, text or pager, and they can take payment over the phone before a plumber goes out.
The page lists English and Spanish speakers and names no field service software. Patching a caller through to you costs $0.10 a minute.
Ruby: best for Spanish at any hour
Ruby’s plans differ only in minutes, from $250 for 50 to $1,725 for 500 (pricing page). Every plan includes Spanish 24/7, with no setup or after-hours fees, and Ruby doesn’t bill the robocalls its filter catches. Its plumbing page mentions a burst pipe in the middle of the night and says receptionists are trained for emergencies. It mentions integrating with your scheduling software without naming any product, and it doesn’t describe on-call dispatch. Included minutes cost $3.45 to $5.00 each, the highest here. Extra minutes cost $4.00 to $5.40, depending on the plan (help center, checked October 10, 2026). Ruby rounds each call up to 60 seconds and bills after-call notes as call time (terms, March 2026).
Is there an AI answering service for plumbers?
Yes. Jobber and Housecall Pro sell AI receptionists inside their own software. Sameday AI and Avoca build AI for home services that connects to ServiceTitan. Smith.ai escalates emergencies from its AI to live receptionists. Goodcall, Rosie and LobbyStack book into a calendar and send urgent calls to people you name, Rosie only from its $149 plan.
Smith.ai: best AI with live receptionists behind it
Smith.ai’s plumbing page says its AI follows your emergency protocols, with burst pipes, gas leaks and flooding as examples. Intake questions cover severity and water damage, and emergencies go to “North America-based human receptionists” who coordinate with your team. The page doesn’t say how they reach your on-call plumber.
The AI Receptionist charges $3.00 a call after 25 free ones, or $150 for 75 calls on Pro, and speaks English and Spanish. The human Virtual Front Desk costs $300 for 30 calls and charges $1.50 a call extra for booking. Neither has a setup fee. The plumbing page names ServiceTitan, and Smith.ai’s help center has setup guides for ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro and Jobber.
Jobber Receptionist: best for Jobber shops
Jobber Receptionist is a $29 monthly add-on with 30 conversations, then $0.79 each. Jobber Plus includes unlimited use from $399 a month billed annually (help article, July 2026). You need a Jobber plan and a Jobber phone number in the US, Canada or the UK, and you can forward your existing number to it.
You list trigger words such as “emergency” or “urgent”. When a caller uses one, Receptionist texts your escalation contact a transcript snippet or transfers the call. That contact’s number must differ from your business number. It books through Jobber’s online booking form, can answer texts, and doesn’t count spam toward the limit.
Housecall Pro CSR AI: best for Housecall Pro shops
Housecall Pro’s help center calls CSR AI an optional paid add-on, and we found no price. It answers calls and chats 24/7, with texting in alpha, and books jobs in Housecall Pro. It sends calls to a number you choose or to a Housecall Pro Assist Rep. The feature page describes no emergency workflow. Base plans start at $59 a month billed annually, with a free trial and no card.
Sameday AI: best for ServiceTitan shops with a budget
Sameday AI starts at $449 a month for 500 minutes and $789 for 1,000, and publishes no overage rate (pricing page). It’s a certified ServiceTitan app that also connects to Housecall Pro, FieldRoutes and Service Fusion, and it books into the software during the call. Its plumbing page says it qualifies burst pipes, active leaks and no-water calls and transfers true emergencies to your on-call plumber. Multilingual voices come only on Enterprise.
Avoca quotes prices on request and aims at larger shops. Its plumbing page shows a sample log in which Avoca marks a burst pipe flooding a basement and a kitchen sewer backup “Routed to Tech”. Avoca is a certified ServiceTitan app, its homepage also names Housecall Pro, and its AI can hand calls to Avoca’s human CSR team.
Goodcall: best for many repeat callers
Goodcall bills per unique caller and doesn’t meter minutes: $79 a month covers 100 unique callers (pricing page). A customer who calls three times in a month about one leak counts once, and spam and wrong numbers don’t count. Its plumbing page (June 2026) says Goodcall routes calls on urgency keywords including “burst pipe, flooding, and sewer backup”. The FAQ says the agent transfers to an escalation contact and tries up to three contacts when nobody answers.
The plumbing page lists “ServiceTitan-compatible workflows”. The FAQ lists native connections to Google Calendar, Google Sheets and HighLevel, and says other systems need an API tool or MCP server you set up. The plumbing page also quotes $41 to $59 a month, which doesn’t match the $79 on the pricing page, so we used the pricing page. Goodcall doesn’t publish its languages.
Rosie: best low-cost message taking
Rosie’s $49 plan books only by texted link and has no transfers. The $149 plan adds calendar booking and live transfers, and the $299 plan adds waterfall transfers that try several numbers (pricing page). Going over your minutes moves you up a plan. Rosie speaks English and Spanish. Its plumbing page says Rosie “can’t dispatch plumbers directly”, but she can tell callers whether emergency service is available, give after-hours instructions and notify you.
LobbyStack (ours): best for Google Calendar shops with callers in many languages
LobbyStack’s Starter plan costs $30 a month for 150 minutes, then $0.20 a minute. Pro costs $100 for 500 minutes, then $0.18. Billed annually, they cost $24 and $80 a month, and no plan has a setup fee. LobbyStack counts usage in seconds and doesn’t bill spam or calls under 10 seconds. Plans don’t limit how many calls it answers at once, and simultaneous calls share the same minutes.
Each call opens in the business’s default language: English, French, Spanish, Serbian, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Italian or Dutch. The receptionist then answers in the caller’s language: 70+ languages on OpenAI GPT-Live, including Spanish and Serbian. You tell it which calls count as urgent, such as water that won’t stop or sewage coming up a drain, and it transfers them to one number. If the transfer doesn’t go through, it tells the caller, offers to take a message, and your team can get a “Live call transfer failed” alert. It books into Google Calendar and, when the caller agrees, texts a confirmation and a 24-hour reminder to US and Canadian numbers. Every call leaves a summary, transcript and recording in the dashboard, and you get an email when it takes a message.
It doesn’t sync with ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber, and Google Calendar is its only calendar. Transfers go to one number with no briefing, and you get no on-call rotation. No human agents back it up, and the AI doesn’t reply to texts. Free gives you 30 voice minutes and a US or Canadian number free for 14 days, with no card. See how it handles urgent calls on the AI receptionist for plumbers page.
How much does an answering service for plumbers cost?
At 40 three-minute calls a month, the live services here cost $127 to $485 and the AI services $30 to $149, with Sameday AI from $449. At 100 calls, the live services with complete published prices run $237.50 to $1,160 and the AI services $60 to $212.50, again with Sameday AI from $449. Setup fees and add-ons can raise both.
Housecall Pro and Avoca publish no prices, so we left them out. For more vendors and call volumes, see how much an answering service costs.
A quiet month (40 calls) and a hard-freeze month (100 calls)
Each line shows the cheapest option for 40 calls (120 minutes), then for 100 calls (300 minutes):
- A Message Center: $47 + 40 x $2.00 = $127; $145 + 50 x $1.85 = $237.50
- MAP Communications: $179 for 125 minutes; $339 + 50 x $1.28 = $403. Telecom fees add $0.96, then $2.40.
- Specialty Answering Service: $159 + 20 x $1.44 = $187.80; $269 + 80 x $1.44 = $384.20
- PATLive: $189 + 20 x $2.09 = $230.80; $479 for 300 minutes
- AnswerForce: $349 for 200 minutes, plus $75 setup once; $389 for 300 minutes
- Smith.ai Virtual Front Desk: $300 + 10 x $11.50 = $415; $810 + 10 x $10.50 = $915. Booking on every call adds $60, then $150.
- Ruby: $395 + 20 x $4.50 = $485; $720 + 100 x $4.40 = $1,160
- Smith.ai AI Receptionist: Free plan, 15 extra calls x $3.00 = $45; Pro, $150 + 25 x $2.50 = $212.50
- Jobber Receptionist: $29 + 10 x $0.79 = $36.90; $29 + 70 x $0.79 = $84.30, plus a Jobber plan
- Rosie: $49, or $149 with booking and transfers; $149, because 300 minutes passes the $49 plan’s 250
- Goodcall: $79 at both volumes
- Sameday AI: from $449 at both volumes
- LobbyStack (ours): $30; $30 + 150 x $0.20 = $60
Fees that change the bill
AnswerForce charges $75 setup on Intro. A Message Center may charge for holidays, outcalls and patching. MAP adds telecom and holiday fees, SAS charges $0.10 a minute to patch calls to you, and Smith.ai’s live booking costs $1.50 a call. Jobber Receptionist also needs a Jobber plan, and Rosie moves you up a plan when you pass your minutes.
LobbyStack has no setup fee on any plan. On Starter and Pro, owners can set a monthly overage spending cap, and LobbyStack sets none by default. Once spending reaches the cap, new calls get a busy signal.
Who handles a burst pipe or sewer backup at 2 a.m.?
A service that follows your on-call schedule can reach whoever is on duty that night. A Message Center, MAP and SAS describe doing that. Most AI services send urgent calls to one escalation number, try a short list of contacts in turn, or ring a team queue. LobbyStack uses one number.
| Service | What its pages say about emergencies | On-call schedule | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Message Center | Three-tier triage; gas smell and sewage backup count as dangerous; agent reaches the on-call plumber and confirms they’re en route | On-call rotation set up in 5 to 7 business days | English, Spanish |
| MAP Communications | Agents dispatch plumbers and pass emergency details to your team or on-call plumber | Roster Service follows your schedule | English, Spanish |
| Specialty Answering Service | You define emergencies; jobs relayed by phone, email, text or pager; payment before dispatch | You add, delete or update the on-call schedule | English, Spanish |
| AnswerForce | Answers middle-of-the-night emergencies | Not described | English, Spanish |
| PATLive | Captures and prioritizes true emergencies; routes high-urgency calls | Not described | English, Spanish |
| Ruby | Trained for emergencies such as a burst pipe at night | Not described | English, Spanish 24/7 |
| Smith.ai | AI follows your protocols for burst pipes, gas leaks and flooding; escalates to live receptionists | Not described | English, Spanish |
| Jobber Receptionist | Trigger words text or transfer to an escalation contact | Not described | Not stated |
| Housecall Pro CSR AI | Sends calls to a number you pick or an Assist Rep | Not described | Not stated |
| Sameday AI | Qualifies burst pipes, active leaks and no-water calls; transfers emergencies to the on-call plumber | Round-robin queues and a nights-and-weekends line that rings every member | Multilingual on Enterprise |
| Avoca | Sample log shows burst pipe and sewer backup calls “Routed to Tech” | Not described | Not stated |
| Goodcall | Routes on “burst pipe, flooding, and sewer backup”; tries up to three contacts | Not described | Not published |
| Rosie | Can’t dispatch plumbers; gives after-hours instructions and notifies you | Waterfall transfers on $299 | English, Spanish |
| LobbyStack (ours) | You set which calls are urgent; transfer to one number; message and alert if the transfer fails | One transfer number | Opens in your choice of 8 languages, answers in 70+ languages |
Services that follow an on-call schedule
A Message Center, MAP and SAS say they work from your on-call schedule. During a trial, send them next week’s schedule and ask how a 2 a.m. sewer backup would reach the plumber on duty. Sameday AI’s queues, Goodcall’s three escalation contacts and Rosie’s waterfall transfers reach more than one person, but their pages don’t describe following a dated schedule.
Services that send urgent calls to one number
Jobber Receptionist, Housecall Pro CSR AI and LobbyStack send urgent calls to a contact or number you choose. That works when one phone always reaches the plumber on call. With LobbyStack, you change that number in settings when the on-call plumber changes. The plumber gets no briefing during the transfer and can read the call summary in the dashboard afterward.
Which plumbing answering services work with ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro and Jobber?
A Message Center, AnswerForce and PATLive name all three on their plumbing pages, and Smith.ai has setup guides for all three. Sameday AI and Avoca are certified ServiceTitan apps that also connect to Housecall Pro. Jobber and Housecall Pro build their own AI receptionists. LobbyStack connects to none of the three.
| Service | ServiceTitan | Housecall Pro | Jobber | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Message Center | Named | Named | Named | Books into most platforms or exports to a dispatch board |
| AnswerForce | Named | Named | Named | Named on its plumbing page with Workiz and others |
| PATLive | Named | Named | Named | Named on its plumbing page with five other tools |
| Smith.ai | Setup guide | Setup guide | Setup guide | Guides in Smith.ai’s help center |
| Sameday AI | Certified app | Yes | Not named | Books into the software during the call |
| Avoca | Certified app | Yes | Not named | Price on request |
| Goodcall | “Compatible workflows” | API tool you set up | API tool you set up | FAQ: native links to Google Calendar, Google Sheets and HighLevel |
| Jobber Receptionist | No | No | Built in | Jobber only |
| Housecall Pro CSR AI | No | Built in | No | Housecall Pro only |
| Ruby | Not named | Not named | Not named | “Your existing scheduling software” |
| MAP Communications, SAS | Not named | Not named | Not named | None named |
| Rosie | Not named | Not named | Not named | Zapier on every plan |
| LobbyStack (ours) | No | No | No | Google Calendar; signed webhooks for 6 events; REST API |
If your dispatchers live in ServiceTitan and need the job written there during the call, pick Sameday AI, Avoca, Smith.ai or a live service that names ServiceTitan. Ask each one to create a test job there before you sign. LobbyStack fits shops that book in Google Calendar, or that copy bookings into their software by hand or push them there with its webhooks and API.
How do you choose an answering service for a plumbing company?
1. Count your calls in a freeze month and a slow month
Pull call counts and average call length for your busiest and quietest months from your phone bill, then price both. Per-call and per-caller plans need the count, and per-minute plans need the minutes. Pay-as-you-go plans at A Message Center, SAS, MAP and PATLive keep the slow-month bill low.
2. Place three test calls before you sign
Call each finalist three times: a 2 a.m. burst pipe with water still running, a sewer backup in a basement, and a water heater quote. Make one of them in Spanish if your customers speak it. Check who answered, what the summary said, and whether the on-call plumber got the call. Trials: PATLive 14 days, SAS 14 days or 200 minutes, Rosie 7 days, free trials at MAP and Housecall Pro, Smith.ai’s AI Free plan, and LobbyStack Free, with 30 minutes and a US or Canadian number free for 14 days.
3. Read the terms for billing and fees
A 20-second wrong number bills as a full minute at MAP, PATLive, Ruby and Rosie, and at AnswerForce after its first 30 short calls each cycle. SAS bills it by the second, and LobbyStack counts 20 seconds. Then check holiday, telecom and setup fees and the notice period. MAP wants written notice a month before your next invoice.
4. Keep your number with call forwarding
Forward your existing number from your carrier for overflow, after-hours or every call, so the number on your vans stays the same. Jobber Receptionist needs calls forwarded to a Jobber phone number. With LobbyStack, your carrier’s forwarding rule decides which calls it answers. Our guide on how to forward business calls covers the common carriers.
Questions about answering services for plumbers
Is there a free answering service for plumbers?
No live service in this list is free; trials come closest. Smith.ai’s AI Free plan covers 25 real calls a month, then $3.00 a call. LobbyStack Free gives you 30 voice minutes and a US or Canadian number free for 14 days, so it can answer your business line for two weeks if you forward it.
Can I use an answering service only after hours?
Yes. Set your carrier to forward calls when you close, or when nobody picks up. PATLive, Ruby and Smith.ai say they charge the same rate at night. LobbyStack answers whatever your carrier forwards, so your forwarding rule sets its hours, and it can take every call, overflow only or after-hours only.
What should an answering service ask a plumbing caller?
Get the address and a callback number first. Then ask whether water is still running, whether it’s clean water or sewage, where the leak is, and whether the caller has shut off the main valve. Your rules then decide what’s urgent. SAS, Smith.ai, Jobber Receptionist and LobbyStack let you set those rules yourself.
What happens if the on-call plumber doesn’t pick up?
Goodcall tries up to three contacts, Rosie’s $299 plan tries several numbers, and MAP’s agents work from your roster. LobbyStack’s transfer is blind, so an unanswered call goes to that phone’s voicemail, if it has one. If the transfer fails to connect, LobbyStack offers to take a message and can alert your team. Ask other vendors during the trial.
Can a plumbing answering service answer in Spanish?
Yes. AnswerForce, PATLive, MAP, SAS, Ruby, Rosie, A Message Center and Smith.ai’s AI plans list English and Spanish, and Smith.ai’s live plans charge $1.00 a call for a dedicated Spanish line. LobbyStack opens each call in your choice of eight languages, then answers in the caller’s language across 70+ languages, Spanish included.
How we checked these services
We read prices on October 9, 2026, and plumbing pages on October 10, each on the vendor’s own site. We mark quote-only services as price on request, and we compare different billing units only at the call pattern above. We checked Ruby’s overage rates in its help center on October 10, 2026. LobbyStack’s figures come from its pricing page. Some older lists quote prices that have since changed: Ruby’s 50-minute plan costs $250 today. Our next price check is January 2027.
Sources:
- A Message Center: pricing, plumbing page
- AnswerForce: plans, plumbing page
- PATLive: pricing, plumbing page
- MAP Communications: pricing, terms, plumbing page
- Specialty Answering Service: pricing, plumbing page
- Ruby: pricing, overage rates, plumbing page
- Smith.ai: AI Receptionist pricing, Virtual Front Desk pricing, plumbing page
- Jobber: Receptionist help article, pricing
- Housecall Pro: CSR AI, pricing
- Sameday AI: homepage, pricing, plumbing page
- Avoca: homepage, plumbing page
- Goodcall: pricing, plumbing page, FAQ
- Rosie: pricing, plumbing page
Which answering service should your plumbing company pick?
- People on every call and an on-call roster: A Message Center, MAP Communications or Specialty Answering Service.
- ServiceTitan, with the job written there: AnswerForce or PATLive for live agents, Sameday AI or Smith.ai for AI.
- Jobber or Housecall Pro: try the built-in receptionist first.
- Google Calendar booking, overflow and after-hours calls for $30 to $100 a month, and callers in other languages: LobbyStack.
Want to hear LobbyStack take a burst-pipe call before you pay? Create a free account and test it with 30 voice minutes and a free number for 14 days, no card needed. Paid plans have no setup fee. Then see how urgent calls, bookings and transfers work on the AI receptionist for plumbers page.