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AI answering service for contractors

Sarah answers your phone and website chat 24/7 while you’re on the job site. She gets details about the project, books the estimate, and follows up with the quote.

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Example: at 7:48 PM Hannah calls Stonebridge Builders about redoing her kitchen, maybe with a wall taken out. Sarah confirms she owns the home and takes the address, asks when she wants it done and her budget range, and books Matt’s in-home estimate for Saturday at 10:00 AM with both owners there. A confirmation text follows; Hannah replies Y, asks whether the estimate is free, and Sarah answers her by text.
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How the AI answering service handles a contractor call

  1. Job type, address, urgency.

    Sarah asks the questions you’ve written for each kind of job: what happened, where it is and how soon it needs someone. Water coming through a ceiling is handled differently from a deck quote.

  2. Sarah offers the earliest time you keep for repairs, reads it back with the address and books it before the caller hangs up.

  3. When the call ends, a workflow reads the summary. If water is coming in, it texts your on-call mobile the address, the booking and the caller’s number. A caller who asks for a person is put through to you on the call.

  4. The summary email brings the action items, the transcript and the recording. A Zap on “Appointment booked” creates the request in Jobber with the same details.

See Sarah on my site

An AI chatbot for contractors: the same Sarah on your website

Homeowners planning a remodel read your project pages at night and ask there first. Sarah answers on the site with the same instructions and the same calendar as on the phone.

  1. 1
    Knows your work. The projects you take, the towns you cover and how your estimates work, read from your own pages.
  2. 2
    Asks about the project. The same questions as on the phone: what they want done, where, and by when.
  3. 3
    Books the estimate. Sarah picks a time with the visitor and writes it into your connected calendar.
  4. 4
    Sends the confirmation. An email and a text from your booking workflow with the time and the address.
Example: at 9:20 PM Ana is on Stonebridge Builders’ basements page and asks the chat whether they finish basements, and says hers is about 900 square feet. Sarah says they do and that estimates are free and in the home, as the website says, and offers Wednesday or Saturday. Ana picks Wednesday at 5:00 PM and gives her name, address, email and mobile; the estimate is booked inside the chat, and the company’s booking workflow confirms it by email and by text.

What is an AI answering service for contractors?

  1. An AI answering service for contractors is an answering service run by an AI receptionist rather than a call center. It answers a contractor’s calls and website chats 24/7, qualifies the project and books the estimate.

  2. Sarah is Small Business Chatbot’s AI answering service for contractors. She answers every call and chat, asks about the job, the address, the timeline and the budget, books the estimate into your calendar and follows up the quote.

Also called Contractors answering service, Construction answering service, AI receptionist for contractors.

See also AI answering service AI follow-ups

Book estimates after the crew goes home

Homeowners plan projects after work. Sarah books the estimates that evening and handles every other call the way you’ve told her to.

Example: one evening at Stonebridge Builders. A skylight leaking since the storm is booked as a Thursday morning repair, a deck replacement from the website chat becomes a Saturday estimate, a drywall subcontractor looking for work leaves a message for Matt, and a bathroom remodel wanted by March becomes a Monday estimate. A sales call selling remodeling leads is answered but sends no summary email.
  • Project calls get an estimate.Kitchens, bathrooms, decks and additions go on your calendar with the address, the timeline and the budget range.
  • Repairs get your first opening.A leak after a storm books for the next morning, and a caller who asks for a person goes to your phone.
  • Subcontractors and suppliers leave a message.Who called, what it’s about and the number to call back, in your summary email.
  • Every caller gets a record.Name, address, number and what they want built, on their contact in your CRM.
  • Lead sellers never reach you.A caller who matches your spam keywords is answered, filed and never emailed to you.

How often do customers contact trades after hours?

More than a third of the time, while your crew is off the clock.

38%

of website chats with our trade customers arrived outside 8 AM to 6 PM on weekdays.

Source: Small Business Chatbot, aggregated summary data from our trade customers.

What customers contact trades about

The same chats, grouped by what the customer wanted.

Website chats with our trade customers by kind of inquiry: quotes and estimates 33%, booking, call-backs and billing 32%, repairs and urgent jobs 19%, services, prices and areas 11%, other 5%. Other: 5% Services, prices and areas: 11% Repairs and urgent jobs: 19% Booking, call-backs and billing: 32% Quotes and estimates: 33%

Source: Small Business Chatbot, aggregated summary data from our trade customers.

AI for contractors that runs the front desk, from the first call to the quote follow-up

An AI virtual receptionist for contractors: Sarah schedules estimates, keeps the customer record and follows up every quote.

  • Scheduling

    for estimates and site visits. Sarah offers your open times, books the one the customer picks, and moves or cancels it when they text or chat back.

  • Transfers

    to your phone on the job site. Add your number, and when a caller asks for a person, Sarah puts them through.

  • A contractor CRM

    kept up by Sarah. Every call, chat, text and estimate visit lands on the customer’s record, with the address and what they want built.

  • Quote follow-up

    until they reply. Tag the customer “Quote sent” after the estimate, and a workflow texts and emails on the days you set. Their reply stops it, and Sarah answers.

  • A summary

    after each call or chat: what they want built, their details and the transcript, plus the recording if you turn it on.

How to set up an AI answering service for your contracting business

Give Sarah your website address and she builds her own first version in about a minute. Then tell her how you run estimates.

  1. 1

    Start from your website

    Sarah reads the work you do, your project pages, the towns you cover and your hours, and writes her greeting and first answers from them.

  2. 2

    Make Sarah yours

    Write her instructions the way you’d train someone to answer your phone: which projects you take, what to ask about each one, whether to ask for a budget range, who should be at the estimate, and the prices she can give. Choose her voice and call her from your browser to hear it.

  3. 3

    Plug in your calendar and your number

    Google Calendar or Outlook for the estimates; your line forwarded to Sarah full-time or only on the calls you miss on the job. Workflows then confirm each estimate, follow up your quotes and send new jobs to Jobber, Housecall Pro or ServiceTitan.

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Example: Stonebridge Builders, set up from its website in about 60 seconds, then its own instructions, its calendar and its workflows.

Contractor answering service pricing

Self Serve

Every tool. You set it up. Try the chat free for 7 days.

$99/ month

Billed monthly. Cancel any time.

Each month100 answered calls100 conversations100 follow-ups

  • AI phone receptionist that answers, books appointments, takes messages, transfers calls and sends you a summary
  • Website chat that answers from your site and books into your calendar
  • Texting and follow-ups by text, email and AI voice call
  • CRM and workflows, with every conversation in one place
  • Trained on up to 100 pages of your website
Start free trial

Managed

Done for you. Our team sets it up, meets with you and keeps tuning it.

$249/ month

Billed monthly. Cancel any time.

Each month500 answered calls300 conversations500 follow-ups

Everything in Self Serve, plus:

  • A 1:1 implementation call to set Sarah up with you
  • Set up for you: the chat installed, your calls forwarded, her answers and booking configured
  • Weekly meetings with your dedicated account manager
  • Ongoing tuning from your real conversations
  • Follow-up workflows built and published for you
  • Changes within 24 hours and priority support
  • Trained on up to 3,000 pages of your website
Book implementation call

See full pricing breakdown

One estimate that becomes a project pays for Self Serve for years. One repair call pays for the month.

Send every job to Jobber, Housecall Pro or ServiceTitan

Sarah’s bookings and call summaries go into the software you already run jobs in.

  • Jobber

    Each booked estimate becomes a request on the client’s record, with the time and the address.

    Zapier How to connect it

  • Housecall Pro

    Each project call becomes a lead, with the call summary as its note.

    Workflow automation How to connect it

  • ServiceTitan

    New project calls become leads for your team, or bookings in your booking queue.

    Zapier How to connect it

Estimates land in Google Calendar or Outlook as Sarah books them. Your estimating or project software connects through our workflow automations or a Zap. See every integration.

How to choose an answering service for your contracting business

You’re hiring whoever answers while you’re up a ladder. Compare the candidates.

Candidate

A receptionist on payroll

Wages
$3,000+ a month
In the office
Weekdays, 8 to 5
Kitchen lead, 7:48 PM
Voicemail
Budget and timeline
If they think to ask
Estimate
Booked while the caller waits
Your website
Not covered
Candidate

Sarah, your AI receptionist

Wages
$99 a month, or $79 billed annually
In the office
Every hour, every day
Kitchen lead, 7:48 PM
Answered, estimate booked
Budget and timeline
Asked on every project call
Estimate
Booked on the call
Your website
Same Sarah, books the estimate

The other AI receptionists

Entry plans, from each company’s pricing page on Oct 23, 2026

  1. Sarah

    01
    $99 /mo
    $79 billed annually · 100 answered calls
    • Phone answering100 answered calls
    • Website chat100 conversations
    • TextingReplies and follow-ups
    • CRM
    • Calendar bookingIn the chat and on calls
    Small Business Chatbot

  2. Rosie

    02
    $49 /mo
    250 minutes a month
    • Phone answering250 minutes
    • Website chat
    • TextingBooking links by text
    • CRMNot listed
    • Calendar bookingFrom the $149 plan

  3. Goodcall

    03
    $79 /mo
    100 callers a month, about 150 calls
    • Phone answering100 callers
    • Website chatNot listed
    • TextingNot listed
    • CRMNot listed
    • Calendar bookingA booking agent

  4. My AI Front Desk

    04
    $99 /mo
    $79 billed annually · 200 minutes
    • Phone answering200 minutes
    • Website chat100 conversations
    • Texting400 texts
    • CRM
    • Calendar booking

  5. NextPhone

    05
    $199 /mo
    $166 billed annually · unlimited calls
    • Phone answeringUnlimited calls
    • Website chatNot listed
    • TextingLinks and confirmations
    • CRMFrom the $299 plan
    • Calendar booking

Questions contractors ask about an AI answering service

Can Sarah qualify a project on the call?

Yes. She asks what you’ve told her to ask: what they want done, the address, whether they own the home, when they want it finished and a budget range. Everything they say goes in the call summary.

Does Sarah book estimates and site visits on the call?

Yes. Connect your calendar and switch on phone booking. She offers your open times, reads the chosen one back with the address and books it before the caller hangs up.

Should Sarah ask for a budget?

Write it into her instructions if you want it. A range works well on the phone, such as under $25,000 or $25,000 to $50,000, and it tells you before the visit whether the project fits the way you work.

Can Sarah make sure every decision maker is at the estimate?

Yes. Tell her who should be there, such as both homeowners for a kitchen or a bathroom, and she asks before she books. Their answer goes in the summary.

Will Sarah give a price for the project?

She gives the prices you give her, such as a starting price for decks or your fee for a design visit. For everything else she books the estimate, where you price the job.

What about urgent repairs, like a leak after a storm?

Sarah takes the address and what’s happening, and books your first opening. A call-ended workflow can text your on-call mobile when the summary says water is coming in, and a caller who asks for a person is put through to your phone.

How do quote follow-ups work?

After the estimate, add a tag such as “Quote sent” to the customer in your CRM. A workflow that watches the tag texts or emails them on the days you choose, from your business number and in your company’s name.

What happens when a customer replies to a follow-up?

The reply stops the follow-ups. With texting replies switched on, Sarah answers it from your instructions and books a second visit if they want one.

Can Sarah follow up leads from my website form or a lead service?

Yes. Send each new lead to a workflow automation, straight from the form or through Zapier, and the workflow texts them from your business number. When they reply, Sarah carries on the conversation and books the estimate.

What if a caller hangs up before the estimate is booked?

A “Call ended” workflow reads the call summary. If nothing was booked, it texts the caller from your number, and Sarah picks the conversation back up and books it by text.

Can Sarah take calls from subcontractors and suppliers?

Yes. She takes their name, the company, what it’s about and a number to call back, and the message reaches you in the summary email.

Does it work with Jobber, Housecall Pro or ServiceTitan?

Yes. A workflow automation sends each caller to Housecall Pro as a lead. Jobber and ServiceTitan connect through Zapier: a booked estimate becomes a request in Jobber, and a call becomes a lead or a booking in ServiceTitan.

Does Sarah speak Spanish?

Yes. A homeowner who starts in Spanish gets the whole call in Spanish, the project questions and the estimate booking included, and the transcript and summary reach you complete.

Is the chat on my website the same Sarah as the phone?

Yes. The phone and the website run on one Sarah, one set of instructions and one calendar. A visitor on your kitchens page gets the same project questions a caller would, and the estimate goes into the calendar from the chat.

What happens to calls selling leads and marketing?

Sarah picks up, as with any call. Put the phrases they use, such as “exclusive leads”, in your spam keywords, and those calls are filed without a summary email.

Can I keep my business number?

Yes. The number on your trucks and your signs stays yours. Forward it to Sarah all day, or only when you don’t pick up because you’re on a site.

How much does an AI answering service for contractors cost?

$99 a month on Self Serve, or $79 a month paid annually. Managed is $249 a month, or $200 a month paid annually, with our team setting Sarah up for your trade and tuning her from your real calls.

Give Sarah the calls you miss on the job site.

Paste your website and watch her answer as your company. No signup required.

See Sarah on my site See pricing