Voco, the AI receptionist and front office for UK small businesses
AI Receptionist for UK Small Businesses
Voco answers every phone call, WhatsApp message and web chat for UK small businesses, 24 hours a day, and sorts your email with replies drafted for you to approve. Voco books the appointment, sends the reminder, chases the quote, asks for the review and remembers every customer.
Pay as you go at 29p a minute. Every feature on every plan. No contract.
Works with the tools you already use
Google Calendar
Outlook- Cal.com
Voco at a glance
- What it is
- An AI receptionist and front office for UK small businesses
- Channels
- Phone, WhatsApp, website chat, email and SMS
- Price
- 29p a minute pay as you go, or monthly plans from £49
- Hours
- 24 hours a day, every day of the year
- Setup
- Forward your existing business number to Voco
- Contract
- Month to month, cancel any time
- Company
- Voco Digitals Ltd, England and Wales, 16967764, ICO registered
- Try it now
- Ring the demo line on 0333 043 6661
What is Voco?
Voco is an AI front office: one AI receptionist that handles customer conversations on every channel and keeps a shared memory of each customer. A basic AI receptionist only answers the phone. Voco also books, reminds, follows up, collects reviews and tells you what your customers keep asking.
The term AI front office means software that does the customer-facing work of a receptionist or office manager: answering, booking, reminding, following up and keeping customer records. Voco does all five on one platform.
Answers on every channel
Voco answers calls, WhatsApp and web chat 24 hours a day, and sorts your inbox with replies drafted for you to approve.
Does the follow-up for you
Voco rings back missed callers, chases quiet quotes, sends reminders the evening before and asks for reviews after.
Pay only for what you use
Voco pay as you go costs 29p a minute, billed by the second, with no monthly fee. Every feature is on every plan.
What does a call with Voco sound like?
Voco answers in your business's name, takes the caller's details and books the job before the call ends. Follow three example calls line by line, or ring 0333 043 6661 and hear it yourself.
- VocoHello, Brightwater Plumbing, you're through to the receptionist. How can I help?
- CallerHi, I've got water coming through the kitchen ceiling.
- VocoSorry to hear that. What's your postcode, so I can check we cover you?
- CallerLS6 2AB.
- VocoWe do. I can get someone out tomorrow morning. Shall I book that in?
The live page plays the real recording with its own transcript, once each caller has agreed.
Which channels does Voco answer?
Voco answers phone calls, WhatsApp, website chat and email from one place, and every conversation lands on the same customer record. WhatsApp alone is used by 90% of UK adults, according to Ofcom's Online Nation 2025 report.
-
Phone calls
Voco answers every call day and night, takes the details, books the job and puts urgent calls through to your mobile.
How Voco answers the phone -
WhatsApp
Voco answers customers who reply on WhatsApp, keeps the photos they send and transcribes their voice notes.
How Voco handles WhatsApp -
Website chat
Voco adds a chat window to your website that answers questions and books appointments with the same knowledge as your phone line.
How Voco web chat works -
Email
Voco gives you a forwarding address, sorts incoming mail and drafts replies you approve, sent from your own domain.
How Voco sorts email -
Text messages
Voco sends booking links, reminders and quote chasers by SMS.
How Voco reminders work -
Outbound calls
Voco rings back missed callers about a minute later, calls customers on the morning of a visit and works through calling lists screened against TPS.
How Voco calls customers
How does Voco look after a customer from first call to review?
Voco follows every customer through six steps, from the first enquiry to the review, on whichever channel that customer prefers. Below is a week at a plumbing firm.
- 01
Answer
Calls, messages and chats, at any hour. - 02
Research
A brief on company callers before you ring back. - 03
Book
Into your diary, or a booking link by text. - 04
Remind
The evening before, plus an optional morning call. - 05
Follow up
Quiet quotes chased, missed callers rung back. - 06
Review
A review request two hours after the visit.
Why the review step matters: in BrightLocal's 2026 Local Consumer Review Survey of 1,002 US adults, 97% said they read online reviews.
How does Voco remember every customer?
Voco keeps one record for each customer, with every call, message, email, booking and review in a single timeline. Voco reads that record at the start of each conversation, so returning customers never have to repeat themselves.
- Customer profiles: a short summary of what each customer needs and how they like to be contacted.
- Customer groups: groups such as "Quoted, not booked in 30 days", each with an action you run in one click.
- Consent built in: callers are told Voco remembers them and can opt out at any time.
Can I run Voco from WhatsApp?
Voco owners run the front office from their own WhatsApp: alerts for urgent calls with the caller's number, and drafted email replies approved in a single message.
- You decide which calls count as urgent and get put through to you.
- No email leaves Voco in your name until you approve it.
- You set the most Voco can spend in a month.
What does Voco learn from your customers?
Voco turns what your customers ask into weekly content drafts: FAQ answers for your website, newsletter topics and social post ideas, written from your real calls and messages.
You review every draft and publish it yourself. The questions customers ask most are the questions people type into Google and ChatGPT, so answering them on your own website helps new customers find you.
Which businesses is Voco built for?
Voco comes with ready-made setups for more than a dozen types of UK business, each with its own questions, booking rules and urgent-call triggers.
-
Emergency trades
A plumber's line at 7:40pm
At 7:40pm a homeowner rings about a leaking pipe. Voco takes the postcode first, checks the address is inside the service area and books Thursday morning. The customer gets a booking link by text straight away, a reminder at 6pm on Wednesday and a review request two hours after the visit.
Voco for emergency trades -
Clinics and dental
A dental practice on a Saturday
At 10:15am on a Saturday, with the practice closed, a new patient rings about a check-up. Voco answers the price question from the practice's own information, takes the patient's details and sends the booking link. The patient mentioned toothache, so Voco flags the enquiry as urgent for Monday morning.
Voco for clinics -
Property and lettings
A letting agent during viewings
At 2:30pm a tenant reports a leak while the whole team is out on viewings. Voco logs the repair in Fixflo and tells the tenant what happens next. A landlord who calls ten minutes later from a property company gets a research brief waiting for the team.
Voco for property
What should a UK small business look for in an AI receptionist?
A good AI receptionist for a UK small business keeps your existing number, books into your real calendar, puts urgent calls through to a person, handles messages as well as calls, follows up afterwards and handles data under UK GDPR. Here is how Voco meets each test.
Keeps your existing number
Voco works behind the number customers already dial: you forward calls to Voco and nothing changes for them.
Books into your real calendar
Voco books into Google Calendar, Outlook, Apple Calendar or Cal.com, or texts a booking link.
Puts urgent calls through to a person
Voco transfers urgent or complex calls to your mobile, and you decide what counts as urgent.
Handles messages as well as calls
Voco answers WhatsApp and website chat and sorts your email, not only the phone.
Follows up after the call
Voco sends reminders, chases quiet quotes, rings back missed callers and asks for reviews.
Handles data under UK GDPR
Voco is run by a UK company registered with the ICO, with a data processing agreement for every customer.
Has a price you can predict
Every Voco plan includes every feature, and a spend cap stops surprise bills.
Is an AI receptionist better than an answering service or a receptionist?
For most UK small businesses, an AI receptionist like Voco costs less than an in-house receptionist and covers more channels than a human answering service, while a person still handles judgement calls better. Voco puts urgent calls straight through to you, so a person is always one step away.
| Voco | Answering service | In-house receptionist | Voicemail | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours covered | 24 hours, every day | Depends on the plan | Working hours | 24 hours, nobody answers |
| Cost | 29p a minute, or plans from £49 a month | £25 - £50 a month for entry plans, £200 or more for 24/7 cover 1 | About £2,065 a month at the National Living Wage, before employer costs 2 | Free |
| Channels | Calls, WhatsApp, chat, email, SMS | Mainly calls | Calls and email | Calls only |
| Books appointments | Into your diary | On some plans | Yes | No |
| Follows up and chases quotes | Automatically | Rarely | When time allows | No |
| Remembers every customer | Shared timeline | Message notes | From memory | No |
| Contract | Month to month | Moneypenny: 3-month minimum on smaller schemes 1 | Employment contract | None |
| Judgement calls | Puts them through to you | Yes | Yes | No |
- 1. Moneypenny, Telephone answering service guide for UK businesses (2026): prices and contract terms as published by Moneypenny.
- 2. GOV.UK, National Living Wage increases to £12.71 per hour (from 1 April 2026). £12.71 x 37.5 hours x 52 weeks ÷ 12 months.
Weighing up a specific provider? Read Voco compared with Moneypenny.
How much does an AI receptionist cost in the UK?
Voco costs 29p a minute on pay as you go, billed by the second with no monthly fee, and every plan includes every feature. Busier businesses can switch to a monthly plan from £49, which brings the price down to as little as 27p a minute. For comparison, Moneypenny's own guide puts human answering plans at £25 - £50 a month for a small bundle of minutes and £200 or more for 24/7 cover.
20calls a week, about 108 minutes a month
5150 a week
- Pay as you go£31a month, estimatedCheapest for you
- Starter£49a month, estimated
- Professional£149a month, estimated
- Business£249a month, estimated
Estimate for 75-second calls. Minutes over a plan's allowance are charged at that plan's rate. Texts, chats and outbound calls use a little extra.
Pay as you goStart here
29p
a minute · billed by the second
No monthly fee. Top up as you go.
Starter
£49
a month · about 132 calls
Works out at 28p a minute
ProfessionalLowest per minute
£149
a month · about 416 calls
Works out at 27p a minute
Business
£249
a month · about 715 calls
Works out at 27p a minute
"About X calls" assumes a typical 75-second call. Every feature is on every plan. Month to month, no contract.
What does Voco connect to?
Voco connects to Google Calendar, Outlook, Apple Calendar, Cal.com, HubSpot, Attio, Jobber, Fixflo and Stora, and any other app can ask Voco to make a call through a webhook. Every integration is included on every plan.
- CalendarGoogle CalendarBookings sync to your diary, with no double-booking.
- CalendarOutlookBookings sync to your Outlook diary.
CalendarApple CalendarBookings sync to your iCloud calendar.
BookingCal.comBooks the slot while the caller is on the line.- CRMHubSpotGreets callers by name and logs every call.
- CRMAttioAdds callers and call notes to your records.
- Job managementJobberTurns phone enquiries into Jobber requests.
- Property repairsFixfloLogs repairs onto your Fixflo job sheet.
Self storageStoraQuotes a unit and texts a payment link.- Everything elseWebhooksLets any other app ask Voco to ring a customer back.
Questions about Voco
Something else? Ring 0333 043 6661 and ask Voco directly.
Still not sure? Ask an AI assistant about Voco.
Each link opens a new tab with a neutral question about Voco. These are independent AI assistants, and Voco does not control their answers.
Answers at 2am. Doesn't ask for overtime.
Hear Voco answer a call
Ring 0333 043 6661 and talk to Voco now, or set up your own AI front office today.
Guides and comparisons
All resources
VocovsMoneypennyCompare7 min readVoco compared with Moneypenny: cost, hours and channelsUpdated September 2026
Integration5 min readFixflo integration: repair calls answered 24/7, logged automaticallyUpdated September 2026
Google CalendarIntegration4 min readGoogle Calendar integration: calls booked into your diaryUpdated September 2026
Guide8 min readIntegrating Voco with your CRM: a step-by-step guideUpdated September 2026