How much does AI phone answering cost for a restaurant?

Published entry prices run from $99 to $399 a month per location, and two vendors do not publish at all. The number that matters is not the headline but what is billed on top of it — Slang.ai adds per-minute billing, so a three-site group starts near $1,200 a month before usage. Sonorch starts at $99 a site for a team of up to five, with nothing billed per minute.

Why does per-location pricing matter so much?

Because it sets what growth costs. With per-location pricing the bill rises on the day you open a second site, whether or not call volume did — and every vendor here that publishes a price charges per location, Sonorch included. So compare what a site costs and what is billed on top of it: at Slang.ai a second site adds $399 plus per-minute charges; at Sonorch it adds a plan sized to that site’s team, from $99, with calls unlimited. For a single independent it barely matters; for anyone planning a second site it is the largest number in the comparison.

Which ones will not tell me the price?

Loman publishes no pricing on any tier — Starter and Premium are both quote-only. Hostie publishes tier prices but not what volume they include. Slang.ai publishes tier prices and states that per-minute billing applies on top. Sonorch publishes its prices, and every plan includes unlimited calls.

Can I test one before buying?

Call ours: 941-430-4049, around the clock. Ask it for a booking and hear exactly what a guest would hear. If a vendor will only show you a scheduled demo, you are being shown the calls that went well.

Comparison

The best AI phone answering for restaurants in 2026

Four options with real prices from each vendor's own page — including the two that will not publish one.

We make one of these.Sonorch is our product, so read this as you would any comparison written by a contestant. Every price and limit below came off the vendor’s own pricing page in August 2026, and where a competitor suits you better, it says so.

Three of these four price per location, and two will not publish a number at all. For a single independent that is a detail. For anyone opening a second site it is the largest figure in the comparison — Slang.ai at $399 a location means a three-site group starts near $1,200 a month before usage.

On features, the split is clean: Slang.ai has the deepest reservation integrations, Loman is the one built for phone ordering, Hostie undercuts Slang.ai on the same ground, and Sonorch is the one that also runs the floor.

Side by side

Published prices, and what they include

	Slang.ai	Sonorch	Hostie.ai	Loman.ai
Entry price	$399 / location	$99 / location	$199 / location	Not published
Priced per location	Yes	Yes — by team size	Yes	Unknown
Per-minute fees on top	Yes	No	Not stated	No
Included volume published	No	Yes — unlimited calls	No	No
Reservation integrations	OpenTable, SevenRooms, Yelp	Own calendar	From $399 tier	Not stated
Phone ordering	No	No	No	Yes — Premium
Point of sale	No	Yes	No	Integrates with yours

From each vendor’s published pricing, August 2026. “Not published” means exactly that — we did not estimate it.

One by one

What each one is actually for

Slang.ai

$399 / month per location · $599 Premium

Full-service restaurants already living inside OpenTable or SevenRooms.

Where it is strong

The deepest reservation integrations here — OpenTable, SevenRooms, Yelp and Fishbowl.
Longest track record in restaurants specifically; nothing in the product has to accommodate another industry.
Premium adds bilingual Spanish, real-time alerts and AI texting; Enterprise adds SSO and dedicated support.

Where it falls short

The most expensive published entry price on this list, and it is per location.
Per-minute billing on top of the monthly fee.
Phone only — no ordering, no point of sale.

Sonorch

From $99 / month per location · by team size

Independents and small groups that want the phone and the floor on one system.

Where it is strong

Priced by team size, from $99 for up to 5 staff, with unlimited calls and nothing billed per minute on top.
Sonorch POS runs the floor plan, tableside orders with modifiers, kitchen tickets and split checks.
Every plan has every feature; plans differ only by team size.
A live line you can call before buying rather than a booked demo.

Where it falls short

Newer in restaurants than Slang.ai, with a shorter track record.
Priced per location, like Slang.ai and Hostie — a second site is a second plan, sized to that site’s team.
Books into the Sonorch calendar; deep OpenTable or SevenRooms integration is not what it is for.

Hostie.ai

$199 / $399 / $599 per month per location

Restaurants that want reservation handling at a lower entry point than Slang.ai.

Where it is strong

Half Slang.ai’s entry price for a comparable restaurant-only focus.
Reservation integrations from the Premium tier.
Built by restaurant operators, and aimed squarely at full-service dining.

Where it falls short

Does not publish included calls or minutes on any tier, so the real cost is hard to model.
Reservation integrations are gated to the $399 tier and above.
Per location, like Slang.ai — the bill scales with sites.

Loman.ai

Not published — quote only

Takeout and delivery restaurants that want phone ordering, not just reservations.

Where it is strong

Takeout and delivery ordering with POS integration and secure phone payments on the Premium tier.
States plainly that there are no per-minute fees.
Handles up to 50 concurrent calls.

Where it falls short

Publishes no prices at all — every tier is "contact us", so you cannot compare without a sales call.
Ordering features are gated to Premium, whose price is also undisclosed.

Head to head with the incumbent: Sonorch vs Slang.ai.

Questions

Choosing one

If you run a full-service restaurant on OpenTable or SevenRooms and want the AI to work inside that system, Slang.ai is the strongest option at $399 a location. If you want reservations handled more cheaply, Hostie starts at $199 a location. If you take phone orders for takeout, Loman is the one built for that, though it publishes no prices. If you want the phone and the floor on one system, with unlimited calls and nothing billed per minute, that is what Sonorch is for, from $99 a location.

Judge for yourself

Call ours before you decide.

941-430-4049 answers around the clock.

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