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What does a front-desk hire really cost?

The wage is only part of it. Add payroll tax, workers' comp, and overhead — then remember a 40-hour hire never covers nights, weekends, or the rush. See the real number.

What a front-desk hire really costs you a month

Fully-loaded monthly cost

$4,330/mo

$3,464 in wages + ~25% payroll tax, comp & overhead

And that hire covers about 24% of the week — nights, weekends, and the rush still go to voicemail.

Ansora AI receptionist

24/7 — nights, weekends, the rush

$500/mo

That's about $3,830/mo less than the hire — and it never calls in sick.

Illustrative. Loaded cost adds ~25% over wages for payroll tax, workers' comp, and overhead; your real numbers will vary. A good receptionist is worth a lot — this is about the calls a 40-hour hire can't physically cover.

How this is calculated

Wage × hours a week × 4.33 weeks, then add about 25%for payroll taxes, workers' comp, and the overhead of having an employee. That's the fully-loaded monthly cost — what the hire actually costs your business, not just what lands in their paycheck.

This isn't anti-hiring — a great receptionist is worth a lot. It's about the hours a person simply can't be at the desk. There are 168 hours in a week; a 40-hour hire covers under a quarter of them, and the calls that come in on the other 128 hours still go to voicemail. A 24/7 AI receptionist covers all of it for a flat $500/mo.

Cover all 168 hours for a flat rate

Book a strategy call and we'll show you what a 24/7 receptionist would catch that a desk shift can't.

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