# An IVR menu, or an AI receptionist that answers? > An IVR plays a menu and routes the call, but a person still has to pick up. In India, cloud IVR plans start around ₹5,000 a month plus GST. Brand Bakery's AI Receptionist answers the caller itself, books the appointment and logs the call, for ₹10,000 a month after a ₹30,000 setup, with 1,000 minutes. No GST is added. - Page: https://www.brandbakery.tech/ai-receptionist-vs-ivr - Last updated: 2026-10-21 Breadcrumb: [Home](https://www.brandbakery.tech/) > [Pricing](https://www.brandbakery.tech/pricing) > AI receptionist vs IVR ## Side by side - **Monthly cost.** An IVR menu: From ₹5,000 a month billed yearly (MyOperator), or ₹9,999 for five months for three agents (Exotel), plus GST. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: ₹10,000 a month after a ₹30,000 setup, with 1,000 minutes, then ₹9 a minute. No GST added. - **What the caller hears.** An IVR menu: A recorded menu: press 1 for this, press 2 for that. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: A voice that says it is an AI assistant, then asks how it can help. - **Questions about fees, timings or stock.** An IVR menu: Routed to a person, who has to be free. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: Answered from the material you approve. - **Bookings.** An IVR menu: Your staff take them once the call reaches them. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: Booked, moved or cancelled in your calendar during the call. - **After hours and busy lines.** An IVR menu: Voicemail, a callback request or a missed call. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: Answered day and night, and on Sundays. - **Records.** An IVR menu: Call logs and recordings in the telephony dashboard. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: Every call logged with who called and why, sent to your sheet or WhatsApp. - **Setup.** An IVR menu: You build the menu and keep the routing up to date. Brand Bakery AI Receptionist: Set up for you, and changed when your hours or prices change. Sources: [MyOperator pricing, checked 21 October 2026](https://myoperator.com/pricing); [Exotel business phone system pricing, checked 21 October 2026](https://exotel.com/pricing/business-phone-system/). IVR plans as each provider publishes them, before GST. They include more than the menu (numbers, users, call recording), so read the plan before you compare. ## Where an IVR still fits - Large offices that only need calls sent to the right department - Call centres where a trained team picks up every routed call within seconds - Fixed announcements, such as holiday hours, that never change mid-call ## Keep the menu, or drop it Many businesses keep their number and their IVR for staff extensions, and let the AI Receptionist take the calls that would have rung out: lunch, the evening rush, after closing and Sundays. Others replace the menu entirely, so every caller gets an answer on the first ring. We set it up whichever way you choose. ## For clinics and doctors The AI Receptionist is the only service we offer clinics. It is a flat monthly fee, never tied to patients or bookings. It says it is the clinic's AI assistant at the start of every call, gives no medical advice, and never asks patients for reviews or offers discounts, in line with the NMC guidelines of 6 October 2026. ## Questions ### What is the difference between an IVR and an AI receptionist? An IVR is a recorded menu that sends the caller to a person or a voicemail. An AI receptionist holds the conversation: it answers questions from material you approve, books appointments and logs the call, then hands anything it cannot handle to your staff. ### How much does an IVR cost in India? Published cloud telephony plans with IVR start around ₹5,000 a month billed yearly, plus GST, and vary by users, numbers and features. Check each provider's current plan page, as these change. ### Can I keep my IVR and add an AI receptionist? Yes. A common setup keeps the menu for extensions and sends unanswered, busy and after-hours calls to the AI Receptionist, so none of them ends as a missed call. ### Will callers know they are talking to an AI? Yes. Every call starts with the AI saying it is an AI assistant, and a notice that the call is recorded. ### Does the AI Receptionist make sales calls? No. It answers the calls and WhatsApp messages people send you. Calling new leads is the AI sales employee, quoted separately after a call. ## Start Request a callback at https://www.brandbakery.tech/contact?service=ai-employees. Every price: https://www.brandbakery.tech/pricing. --- Brand Bakery is a design-first digital studio in New Delhi. Start an enquiry at https://www.brandbakery.tech/contact or email support@brandbakery.tech. This is the Markdown copy of https://www.brandbakery.tech/ai-receptionist-vs-ivr; the site index for language models is https://www.brandbakery.tech/llms.txt.