To choose a voice for your Voco receptionist, go to Settings, then Receptionist, and press Change voice beside Voice. Play the samples under Recommended, press Select on the one you want, then Confirm. Voco's recommended voices were tested on real phone calls, and callers hear your choice from your next call. Changing the voice is free.
How do I change the voice on Voco?
The voice is set on the Choose a voice page, which lists the six recommended voices first and every other voice after them.
- In your Voco dashboard, go to Settings, then Receptionist.
- In the Your receptionist card, find Voice: followed by the current voice, and press Change voice.
- Under Recommended, play each sample.
- Press Select on the voice you want, then Confirm.
The voice you use now is marked Current. Below the six, More voices (untested) opens every other voice the provider offers. Voco has not tested those on phone calls, so make a test call before you switch to one.
Which voices does Voco recommend?
Voco recommends six British voices, each with a trade it suits best. A new account in one of those trades starts with that voice, and every other account starts with Emma.
| Voice | How it sounds | Voco's pick for |
|---|---|---|
| Emma | Bright, clear and the quickest to reply | Lettings and property, and the default |
| Willa | Friendly and relaxed | Self storage |
| Eve | Calm and professional | Legal and accounting |
| James | Steady and reassuring | Emergency trades, such as plumbers, electricians and locksmiths |
| Owen | Plain-spoken and down to earth | Garages |
| Fiona | Clear and reassuring | Dental and health |
If your account uses a voice that is no longer on the list, it keeps working exactly as it is, and only changes if you pick another.
How did Voco choose these voices?
Voco chose the six recommended voices from its own test of 21 phone calls across 13 British voices on 12 October 2026. Each call asked the receptionist to read back a mobile number, two postcodes, three prices, a date and time, and two names, and measured how long it took to reply.
- Speed: Emma and Willa replied in about 2 seconds. Most other voices took about 3 seconds.
- Numbers, postcodes and prices: read back correctly on almost every voice.
- Names: the voices taken off the list misheard more. "Nguyen" was heard as "Wynne" on 3 of 4 calls with one group of them.
The test could not check how each voice copes when a caller talks over it, so try that yourself on a test call.
Should my receptionist sound male or female, and which accent?
Choose the voice that suits your business: research has found no reliable difference in how much callers trust a male, female or gender-neutral assistant voice (Tolmeijer and others, CHI 2021). What matters more is that the voice matches the receptionist's name, and that it reads details back correctly.
All six recommended voices have British accents. Research on accents in Britain still finds a preference for standard accents, though the gap is narrower than it used to be (Accent Bias Britain, 2020). How the receptionist handles the call, quickly and correctly, counts for more than the accent.
When the Receptionist name on the Receptionist page does not match the voice, Voco shows a warning such as "Your receptionist is called Emma but this voice sounds male. Callers may find that odd." It never stops you saving. See how to set your Voco greeting and away message to change the name.
What do Voice style and Personality change?
Voice style and Personality change how Voco's receptionist talks, not the voice itself. Both are under Call behaviour on the Receptionist page; press Save call behaviour after changing either.
- Voice style: Professional uses clear, polished phrasing for legal, financial and formal businesses. Natural is conversational and still professional, and suits most businesses. Very natural adds natural fillers and relaxed pacing, for cafes, salons and casual businesses.
- Personality: choose from Professional, Friendly & Casual, Warm & Empathetic, Direct & Efficient, Welcoming & Attentive, Calm & Knowledgeable, and Enthusiastic & Energetic. A dental practice might choose Warm & Empathetic, and a locksmith Direct & Efficient.
How do I test a voice before customers hear it?
Test a Voco voice by ringing your own Voco number from a test number. Add your mobile under Settings, then Test numbers, and calls from it are never charged and are left out of your call stats. Then ask the receptionist to take each detail below and read it back:
- A mobile number, such as 07700 900123, and a postcode, such as SW1A 1AA.
- Prices, such as £85 and £1,250, and a time, such as "Tuesday the 14th at half past two".
- A name callers often spell out, and your own trading name.
- Cut in halfway through a sentence. It should stop and let you speak.
Listen for gaps longer than about 2 seconds and for anything read back wrong. If something is off, try another recommended voice and ring again. See how to make your first test call to Voco.
What do my callers hear?
From the next call after you confirm a voice, callers hear your greeting in that voice, with the receptionist name you set and the Voice style and Personality you chose. Voco web chat is text only, so the voice affects phone calls alone. For how calls run, see Voco call handling.