A receptionist costs more
than their salary.
A receptionist cost calculator compares the true annual cost of a full-time human receptionist against a voice AI agent. It factors in salary, benefits, payroll taxes, PTO, training, and recruiting costs — not just base pay. Most businesses find the real number is 30–40% higher than they expected.
Your receptionist costs
US median for a full-time front desk receptionist: $38,000
Average employer contribution: $6,000–$8,400/year
Typical qualification or booking call: 2–4 minutes
What you're actually paying
Base salary
$38,000
Health insurance
Employer contribution
$7,200
Payroll taxes
FICA, FUTA, SUTA — 7.65% of salary
$2,907
Paid time off
10 days @ pro-rated salary
$1,444
Training & onboarding
Initial + annual refresher
$1,200
Recruiting cost (amortized)
~18% of salary / avg tenure
$1,900
True annual cost
$52,651
Annual savings with AI
saved per year vs. a human receptionist
$53K
Human / yr
$4K
AI / yr
92%
You save
Human receptionist
True annual cost
$52,651
$22 / call
Voice AI agent
Wave Runner / year
$4,308
$2 / call
AI pays for itself in 30 days. 92% cheaper.
30-min demo · No commitment · Starts at $299/mo
What the salary number
doesn't tell you
Most business owners budget for salary. Few budget for what comes on top of it. The real number is 1.3–1.4x base pay before you've handled a single call.
One person. One call at a time.
Your receptionist can't handle two calls simultaneously. Peak hours, lunch breaks, sick days — callers get voicemail. An AI agent handles unlimited simultaneous calls with no gaps.
8,760 hours vs. 2,080 hours
A full-time employee covers about 2,080 hours per year. An AI agent covers all 8,760. After-hours and weekend calls — 62% of service inquiries — go unanswered without 24/7 coverage.
Turnover resets the clock
The average receptionist tenure is under two years. Each departure costs $5,000–$10,000 in recruiting, training, and lost productivity. The calculator above amortizes this — and it's still conservative.
You're paying for downtime too
Salary covers 40 hours per week. Actual call handling is a fraction of that. PTO, admin tasks, training, and idle time all come out of the same budget. AI only costs what it uses.
Answers calls 9am–5pm, Mon–Fri
One call at a time
10 days PTO per year
$38K–$55K true annual cost
Needs training when scripts change
Quits. Get replaced. Repeat.
Answers every call, 24/7/365
Unlimited simultaneous calls
No PTO, sick days, or breaks
Starts at $299/mo + $0.10/min
Script updates in minutes
Never quits
Add a voice AI service line.
Keep the margin.
Agencies resell Wave Runner under their own brand. You charge clients a monthly retainer for AI receptionist service. Wave Runner's $999/mo platform fee is your only fixed cost. Usage ($0.10/min) is billed through to clients — it's not a cost to you.
The more clients you add, the lower your per-client platform cost. At 10 clients, you're paying $100/month per client for the platform. What you charge them is up to you.
Agency example
10 clients at $500/mo retainer each
Client retainer revenue (10 × $500/mo)
$60,000 / yr
Wave Runner platform fee (only cost)
$11,988 / yr
Usage billed to clients — pass-through
$0 net cost
Agency gross profit
$48,012 / yr · 80% margin
Common questions
Every call answered.
No salary attached.
Wave Runner answers in under 1 second, 24/7. It qualifies callers, books appointments, and handles FAQs — at a fraction of what a single receptionist costs.
30-minute demo · No commitment · Starts at $299/mo