It depends on how the vendor charges, but for most physio and chiro clinics an AI receptionist costs a small fraction of a part-time front desk hire. Vendors charge per minute, per call or interaction, a fixed monthly price, or a custom rate for clinic groups. ZeroMiss lets you choose: pay per interaction, a fixed monthly price set from your real volume, or a pricing structure you bring to us, with $0 setup.
The four ways AI receptionists are priced
| Model | How it works | Good for | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per minute | You pay for every minute the AI is on the phone | Very low call volume | Long calls cost more; costs are hard to predict |
| Per call or interaction | You pay each time a patient reaches you | Clinics that want to pay only for real patient contact | Whether spam, silent and repeat calls are billed |
| Fixed monthly | One price a month | Clinics that budget monthly and know their volume | Minute caps and overage charges hidden in the plan |
| Custom | Agreed with the clinic or group | Multi-location clinics and networks | That it's written into the order form |
How ZeroMiss pricing works
- Per interaction: one person counts once per day, whether they call, text and chat or just call. Spam, silent and test calls aren't billed, and your clinic's own numbers are excluded. No monthly minimum, no overage.
- Fixed monthly: one predictable price based on your clinic's actual call and text volume. Many clinics start per interaction and switch once they know their numbers.
- Your own structure: per location, per practitioner, a capped budget or a pilot. Tell us how you like to buy and we'll work to it.
Every option includes the phone assistant, secure text links and chat, the dashboard and the access log, with no setup fee and no fee to connect your booking system. See pricing to get a quote.
ROI: AI receptionist vs. a part-time hire
A part-time front desk receptionist in Canada (20 hrs/week) typically runs $18-$24/hour, or roughly $1,500-$2,000/month before payroll taxes and benefits, and still leaves evenings, weekends and lunch breaks uncovered. An AI receptionist covers those hours, never takes a sick day, and answers two calls at once.
For a physiotherapy or chiropractic clinic, one recovered new-patient booking is often worth $300-$1,000+ in lifetime treatment value. Recovering just two or three missed bookings a month typically covers the cost of the AI receptionist several times over.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is per-minute or per-interaction pricing better?
Per-interaction is usually easier to predict than per-minute, because a long call costs the same as a short one and a patient who calls, texts and chats on the same day counts once. A fixed monthly price is the most predictable once you know your volume.
Are there hidden fees to watch for?
Ask about setup fees, phone line or telephony charges, integration fees for your booking software or EMR, overage charges, billing for spam calls, and long-term contracts or termination fees.
Can we switch pricing models later?
With ZeroMiss, yes. Your order form sets the model, and you can change it by agreement, for example from per interaction to a fixed monthly price once you know your volume.
What if it doesn't work well for my clinic?
You test it first with made-up patients, at no charge. Once live, our 30-day performance commitment means that if it doesn't capture bookings you would otherwise have missed, you pay no usage charges for that period, and there's no long-term contract.
Bottom Line
Compare AI receptionists on how they charge, not just the headline number. Pick a model that matches how your clinic budgets, check what isn't billed, and make sure there's no setup fee or lock-in. ZeroMiss will price per interaction, by the month, or to the structure you bring.