The short answer: another hire gives you depth during office hours, a live answering service puts a person on overflow and after-hours calls, and an AI receptionist answers every call at once, around the clock, for the lowest monthly cost. Many clinics end up combining a strong front desk with one of the other two.
The costs side by side
| Option | Typical cost (US) | What it covers | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Another front-desk hire | About $18.50 an hour on average, roughly $38,000 a year full-time before payroll taxes and benefits | Office hours, in-person check-in, complex conversations | One person still answers one call at a time; no after-hours cover |
| Live answering service | General services from about $235 a month for 50 minutes or $293 for 30 calls; dental-specialised services often $800 to $2,000 a month per location | Overflow and after-hours calls, answered by people | Per-minute or per-call billing; may only take messages rather than book |
| AI receptionist | Typically $200 to $500 a month per location; dental-focused platforms range up to about $1,200 | Every call at once, 24/7, booking where your software allows | Needs careful setup and a supervised trial; must never give clinical advice |
Prices are 2026 published figures and pricing guides (see sources). Quotes for your clinic will depend on call volume, hours and features.
What you actually get for the money
Another front-desk hire
The best option when your problem is workload during the day: insurance questions, treatment plans, check-ins and phones all landing on one person. A good hire improves everything at the desk, not just the phone. It does nothing for calls after you close, and two calls at once still means one waits.
Live answering service
Real people answering when your team can't. Patients hear a human, which some practices value highly. The trade-offs are cost per minute or per call, and that many services take a message rather than booking into your schedule, so your team still calls back.
AI receptionist
Answers every call, including several at once, at any hour, and can book or reschedule where your software allows it. It is usually the cheapest per call. It is not a person: it should say it is an AI, never give clinical advice, and hand anything clinical or sensitive to your team. Setup quality matters, so insist on a supervised trial.
How to choose
- Measure first. Four weeks of call data shows how many calls you miss and when. Our guide to what a missed call costs walks through it.
- Decide what must stay human. Treatment and insurance conversations usually should. Hours, directions, bookings and reschedules usually don't need to.
- Price your actual volume. Per-minute plans that look cheap can cost more than a flat plan once your overflow is counted. Ask every vendor to quote on your real numbers.
- Start with the gaps. Cover lunch, early mornings and after hours first, so your team keeps every call it already answers.
Where Lucentia fits
We build AI receptionists, so weigh this section accordingly. Our dental front desk covers phone and website chat, and each clinic gets one written quote after a free 20-minute call. You can hear it for yourself: Daisy, our demo receptionist, is on the dental clinics page.
The bottom line
If your desk is overloaded during the day, hire. If you want people on every overflow call and the budget allows it, an answering service works. If you want every call answered, day and night, at the lowest monthly cost, an AI receptionist is worth a careful trial. Whichever you pick, decide on your own call data.
Sources
- PayScale, Receptionist, dental office: average hourly pay (2026).
- Dialzara, The 10 best dental answering services in 2026 (published plan prices for Ruby and Smith.ai).
- Viva, How much does a dental answering service cost in 2026? Viva sells an AI receptionist.
- TensorLinks, AI dental receptionist pricing 2026.